But with few spies in the city, American officials say assessing the enemy is difficult. “We’ve spent a lot of time trying to understand the situation on the ground in Raqqa,” Lt. Gen. Jeffrey L. Harrigian, the air war commander, said in an interview from his headquarters in Qatar. “It’s improving. It’s still not at the level we’d like it to be.” Continue reading the main story […]
Jim Gomez, The Associated Press Published Sunday, December 25, 2016 9:12AM EST Last Updated Sunday, December 25, 2016 3:43PM EST MANILA, Philippines — A powerful typhoon slammed into the eastern Philippines on Christmas Day, spoiling the biggest holiday in Asia’s largest Catholic nation, where a governor offered roast pig to entice villagers to abandon family celebrations for emergency shelters. Typhoon Nock-Ten was packing maximum sustained winds of […]
ArabPlast 2017 promises an international participation accentuated by the presence of the giant operators in the industry of plastics, petrochemicals and rubber Dubai, UAE, 25 December 2016 As the biggest plastics, petrochemicals and rubber industry exhibition in the MENA region, ArabPlast 2017 is set to bring together the key players, experts and industrials in the field from around the world, between 8th-10th January at Dubai World Trade […]
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 […]
Fare collection gates have more than doubled at the Business Bay Metro Station on Dubai’s Red Line in response to growing passenger number. The Road and Transport Authority’s Rail Agency said it has added six fare collection gates, raising the number of entry gates at the station to 10. It said the step has been taken in response to the growing footfall at the station, which is […]
She says she hasn’t decided what she’ll do next, but that it likely will involve working for a foundation or, perhaps, in the private sector. She’ll depart the FEC having largely seen her standing goal of revealing sources of secret money in politics stymied. Goodman, in an interview, wouldn’t commit to staying at the FEC through 2017. “I will make a decision early next year about my […]
In 300 B.C., Carthage was one of the world’s largest cities with up to 700,000 people living within its walls. The Carthaginian republic was a force to be reckoned with, controlling inconceivable amounts of wealth and land all around the Mediterranean. However, just over a century later in 146 B.C., Carthage was burnt to the ground by the Romans. The destruction of Carthage was so thorough that […]
MANILA, Philippines — A powerful typhoon is on its way to slam into the eastern Philippines on Christmas Day as officials struggled to divert people’s attention from family celebrations and travel. A provincial governor offered roasted pigs to entice villagers to move to emergency shelters. Typhoon Nock-Ten packed maximum sustained winds of 114 miles per hour (185 kilometers per hour) and gusts of up to 158 mph […]
By Tracy Rucinski | CHICAGO CHICAGO Caesars Entertainment Corp’s (CZR.O) bankrupt operating unit resolved a dispute with its lenders on Friday, paving the way for a consensual plan to push the casino group out of its $18 billion Chapter 11. In filings with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Chicago, bank lenders said they had reached an agreement over their recovery terms and were withdrawing a threat to […]
Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T)said on Saturday that a new chief executive officer will lead its Brazil operations beginning Jan. 2. The Japanese carmaker said Rafael Chang would take over the company’s largest South American operation. He will replace Koji Kondo, whom the company praised as leading Toyota through difficult years as demand for autos in Brazil has fallen by half in the last four years. Toyota, Brazil’s […]
A nearby star is exhibiting bizarre dimming of its light, a puzzling phenomenon similar to what was observed with KIC 8462852, also known as “Tabby’s star.” Kepler Spots Dimming Of Young, Nearby Star RIK-210 RIK-210, a young star located 472 light-years away, is estimated to be between 5 and 10 million years old. It is about half as massive as the sun. Its radius is about 1.24 […]
MANILA, Philippines – A powerful typhoon was heading for a Christmas Day collision with the central Philippines. The U.S. military’s Joint Typhoon Warning Center said Nock-Ten was a super typhoon with winds of up to 240 kph (150 mph) late Christmas Eve local time (1200 GMT), though it was expected to weaken before landfall. The Philippines’ own weather bureau said the province of Catanduanes was likely to […]
Tunisian security forces have arrested three suspected militants, including the nephew of the man believed to be responsible for the attack on a Berlin Christmas market, the country’s interior ministry said on Saturday. The ministry said that the three men, aged between 18 and 27, had been arrested after their links to Anis Amri, who was shot dead by police in Italy on Friday, had been uncovered, […]
The power of a good interview to shed light on the personalities and themes driving the news agenda was demonstrated clearly in the year of tumult that has been 2016. As geopolitical shocks spread, a roll call of politicians, business leaders, celebrities and cultural figures sat down with the Financial Times to share their thoughts. In the UK, Theresa May revealed some insights into her brisk management […]
Real estate markets in the UAE witnessed contrasting trends in November with sales prices and rents up in Dubai but values falling in Abu Dhabi, according to a new report by Bayut.com. Property website Bayut said the real estate market in Dubai was buoyed last month by a spate of project launches, stirring up interest in the market but activity in Abu Dhabi was slow, resulting in […]
A round up of some of 2016’s most significant corporate events and news stories. Smartphone sales © EPA A bright start to the year for Samsung Electronicswent up in smoke, after it took the unprecedented decision to axe its Galaxy Note 7 line, following a spate of safety issues that saw the smartphone banned from aircraft, writes Nic Fildes. The 2016 Galaxy Note iteration won substantial praise […]
The vote for Brexit will change the course of Britain’s history, Philip Hammond announced last month. The UK chancellor may be a strident advocate for a soft departure from the EU but he has also been keen to paint a positive picture of the country’s economy, saying the UK’s fundamental strengths will “ensure our future success”. Financial markets are sceptical. The economy may have confounded doom laden […]
Ma’aden, QIC and Bupa Arabia are fastest growing companies in 2011-15. Nearly 90% of fastest growing companies come from Saudi Arabia and Qatar. Share prices rose for almost all the fastest growing companies. Collectively, the fastest growing companies achieved around 100% stockmarket outperformance. 22 December 2016 A landmark report released today by research group Marmore MENA Intelligence profiles 15 of the fastest growing listed […]
By Brendan O’Brien | MILWAUKEE MILWAUKEE A winter storm was taking aim on Saturday at the U.S. West and Midwest where it was expected to dump heavy snow and freezing rain, causing headaches for millions of holiday travelers who were hitting the road over the weekend, forecasters said. Winter storm and blizzard warnings and watches were in effect from Nevada and Colorado up through the Dakotas and […]
By Rodrigo Campos | NEW YORK NEW YORK The year-end stocks rally on the heels of the election of Donald Trump as U.S. president was built on expectations of reduced regulations, big tax cuts and a large fiscal stimulus. Now signs are emerging from the Trump camp that harsher trade policies that could jeopardize the honeymoon are likely in the offing, and investors would be well advised […]
When that ultimately did not stop the Council from acting, Mr. Netanyahu’s team expressed blistering anger at Mr. Obama. An Israeli official, insisting on anonymity to maintain the veneer of diplomatic protocol, gave a statement to multiple reporters on Friday blasting Mr. Obama and his secretary of state, John Kerry, by name. Continue reading the main story “President Obama and Secretary Kerry are behind this shameful move […]
“The boundaries of uncertainty have increased [for fixed-income markets],” says Dan Ivascyn, chief investment officer at Pimco, the bond specialist that invests more than $1.5tn. “Rates certainly can go higher.” What is clear for bond investors is that they face a true test of their convictions in 2017 after an end to 2016 that challenged the consensus of low inflation and rates that, at one point, drove […]
On April 7, 14 large blue letters quietly disappeared from the outer walls of an office building in an exclusive neighborhood in northern San Salvador. One by one, the letters came down from the blue and beige stucco walls, leaving behind faint traces of the name of the law firm that had been working there just days before: M-O-S-S-A-C-K-F-O-N-S-E-C-A. Employees of the El Salvador branch of Mossack […]
A hundred years ago, an arms race between the dominant global superpower the (British Empire) and a rising power (Kaiser Wilhelm’s Germany) culminated in the mass slaughter of World War One. The deep mistrust between the United States and the People’s Republic of China has all the potential to spawn a traumatic chapter in international relations. Despite its “pivot” to Asia, the Obama White House was cautious […]
