Taiwan fears getting caught between the US and China as President-elect Donald Trump threatens a tougher approach toward Beijing and the Chinese government intensifies its sabre-rattling in the region. Politicians and analysts in Taiwan believe that Beijing is stepping up pressure on the self-governing and democratic island, which China claims is its territory, because of actions taken by Mr Trump. On Monday, the Chinese navy sailed its […]
As the world’s reaction to news of George Michael’s death at 53 spread on social media, his UAE fans paused to fondly remember the pop legend. Taher Afridi, 36, a Pakistani who was born and raised in UAE, still recalled dancing to his favourite Michael song, Fast Love, when the pop-star played at Abu Dhabi’s Zayed Sports City stadium in December 2008. “There are many reasons why […]
Chinese retail investors may be able to dream of Picasso while hanging share certificates on their walls. A Singapore-based Chinese billionaire investor, who this year acquired stakes in peer-to-peer group Lending Club, Legg Mason, the fund manager and Sotheby’s, has proposed “securitising” the artist’s work to create fractional ownership and tap a wider market in Asia. Chen Tianqiao and his wife Chrissy Luo, co-founders of investment group […]
The prime minister defended his retaliation. “Israel is a country with national pride, and we do not turn the other cheek,” he said. “This is a responsible, measured and vigorous response, the natural response of a healthy people that is making it clear to the nations of the world that what was done at the U.N. is unacceptable to us.” Continue reading the main story The Security […]
Russia expanded its search on Monday for the remains of a military plane that crashed into the Black Sea, killing all 92 on board, and said pilot error or a technical fault – but not terrorism – were likely to have caused the tragedy. The plane, a Russian Defence Ministry TU-154, was carrying dozens of Red Army Choir singers and dancers to Syria to entertain Russian troops […]
By Jeffrey Heller | JERUSALEM JERUSALEM Benjamin Netanyahu has been unrelenting in his criticism of the Obama administration over what he condemned as its “shameful” decision not to veto a U.N. Security Council resolution calling for a halt to Israeli settlement-building. But with the clock ticking down on Barack Obama’s presidency, a possibly more amenable Republican Donald Trump waiting in the wings and a $38 billion U.S. […]
By Stephen Kalin | EAST OF MOSUL, Iraq EAST OF MOSUL, Iraq Iraqi forces will resume their push against Islamic State inside Mosul in the coming days, a U.S. battlefield commander said, in a new phase of the two-month-old operation that will see American troops deployed closer to the front line in the city. The battle for Mosul, involving 100,000 Iraqi troops, members of the Kurdish security […]
By Humeyra Pamuk | ISTANBUL ISTANBUL Turkish authorities have arrested the cafeteria manager of the opposition Cumhuriyet newspaper for insulting the president after he said he would not serve tea to Tayyip Erdogan, one of the manager’s lawyers told Reuters on Monday. Senol Buran, who runs the cafeteria at the Istanbul office of Cumhuriyet, was taken into custody after police raided his home late on Saturday, lawyer […]
26 December 2016 Middle East Payment Services (MEPS) – a leading, innovative payment services provider in the Middle East – has formally activated its acceptance of UnionPay cards at points-of sale (POS) across the Kingdom. This step follows the signing of a partnership agreement between MEPS and UnionPay International (UPI), a leading global payment services provider. Under the terms of the agreement, MEPS will not only accept […]
By Shwe Yee Saw Myint | YANGON YANGON A man has been found dead with stab wounds in Myanmar’s Rakhine State, in what the government said on Monday was the second murder in under a week of a Rohingya who cooperated with authorities as they crack down on suspected insurgents. Coordinated attacks on October 9 killed nine police officers and sparked a military operation in northern Rakhine. […]
By Andrew Osborn | MOSCOW MOSCOW Russia expanded its search on Monday for the remains of a military plane that crashed into the Black Sea, killing all 92 on board, and said pilot error or a technical fault – but not terrorism – were likely to have caused the tragedy. The plane, a Russian Defence Ministry TU-154, was carrying dozens of Red Army Choir singers and dancers […]
One may assume the life of a member of a Royal Family is easy, right? After all, members receive the “royal treatment” all year long. But the truth is royal families are just like all our families. Their lives can include controversy, scandal and some drama. And this year was no different. Whether it was relationship rumours, links to the Panama Papers scandal, tax fraud trials or […]
Recently, there has been an increase in anti-Semitic statements at the United Nations. Ambassadors have used its forums to accuse Israel of everything from harvesting the organs of slain terrorists to committing a “final solution” against the Palestinian people. In one case, a United Nations under secretary general has made coded comparisons of Israel’s actions to those of the Nazis during the Holocaust (a common anti-Semitic trope). […]
Egypt confirmed on Sunday that it had arrested an Al Jazeera news producer, accusing him of “provoking sedition” on behalf of the Qatar-based broadcaster that it considers a mouthpiece of the banned Muslim Brotherhood. Judicial sources said Mahmoud Hussain, who was detained on Friday, was being held on charges of disturbing public security and spreading false news. The Interior Ministry said in a statement that Al Jazeera […]
ISTANBUL Turkish authorities last week detained 1,682 people for questioning over suspected links to militant organisations and arrested another 516, the interior ministry said on Monday. People suspected of links to the Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, who Ankara says orchestrated an attempted coup in July, made up the biggest number of both the detained, 1,096, and the arrested, 426. A total of 508 people were detained for […]
JERUSALEM: In the days following the UN Security Council’s resolution affirming the illegality of Israeli settlements, it is business as usual as the Jerusalem municipality is expected to approve about 5,600 more homes.Israeli officials acknowledged that the move to expand the settlements in East Jerusalem was a direct response to the Security Council Resolution 2334 that was approved by 14 countries — Britain, Russia, China, France, Egypt […]
26 December 2016 Dubai – The internet of things (IoT) is rapidly gaining momentum within the healthcare industry of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. According to IDC Health Insights, there has been a steady rise in IoT initiatives over recent years, and in some usage scenarios, IoT services are maturing rapidly toward mainstream deployment. The firm projects IoT spending by healthcare providers across the Middle East […]
TAIPEI A group of Chinese warships lead by the country’s sole aircraft carrier has passed through waters south of Taiwan and is heading southwest, Taiwan’s defence ministry said on Monday of what China has termed a routine exercise. The ministry said the aircraft carrier the Liaoning, accompanied by five other vessels, had passed 90 nautical miles south of Taiwan’s southernmost point on Monday morning via the Bashi […]
DUBAI // Anyone who received a drone as a present this year has been reminded that they must register it with authorities. Saif Al Suwaidi, director general of the General Civil Aviation Authority, said it was important people know the regulations that govern drone ownership. “Whether it is received as a gift or bought by the person, it doesn’t matter. People need to register their drones with […]
In February, Anis Amri, a Tunisian refugee with a criminal past, was officially classified by the German authorities as a potential terrorist. For six months this year he was under near constant police surveillance. None of that helped. Amri went to ground and only resurfaced three days ago as the man investigators believe rammed a truck into a Christmas market in central Berlin, killing 12 people. The […]
KABUL There was an angry reaction in Afghanistan to news that the first female fixed-wing pilot in the country’s air force was requesting asylum in the United States after completing an 18-month training course. The Afghan defence ministry confirmed on Sunday that Captain Niloofar Rahmani, 25, had sought asylum after the Wall Street Journal quoted her as saying that she feared her life would be in danger […]
BAGHDAD Christians in Baghdad celebrated Christmas on Sunday in a heightened state of fear after deadly attacks on Christian-owned shops that sell alcohol. Two shops next door to each other were riddled with bullet holes and spattered with blood after gunmen opened fire late on Friday in Baghdad’s Ghadeer neighbourhood. Police and medical sources said three people were killed and four wounded. Local activists gave a higher […]
By Jeffrey Heller | JERUSALEM JERUSALEM Israel summoned the ambassadors of 10 nations to Jerusalem to reprimand them on Sunday and had more harsh words for the Obama administration over a U.N. Security Council resolution demanding an end to settlement-building. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu put his personal imprint on the show of anger by repeating at the weekly cabinet meeting what an unidentified Israeli government official contended […]
COTABATO CITY—The grenade explosion that left a police officer and 11 others injured outside a Catholic church in Midsayap, North Cotabato, on Christmas Eve was meant for the police, a local official said. Midsayap Mayor Romeo Araña told reporters that the main target of the attack by two men riding a motorcycle were the police officers who were part of the security during the Christmas Eve Mass. […]
