The Taliban have released footage of the moments of their handover of US army sergeant Bowe Bergdahl to US forces after his five years in captivity. The video posted on Wednesday, which cannot be independently verified, apparently shows Taliban fighters walking Bergdahl towards a US military helicopter while holding a white flag. A group of men, believed to be US special forces, then take Bergdahl back to the helicopter […]
WASHINGTON — Did the search for Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl cost the lives of American soldiers? Since last weekend’s prisoner exchange in which Afghan insurgents turned over Sergeant Bergdahl after five years of captivity, a number of the men who served with him have called him a deserter. Some have gone further, blaming him for the deaths of six to eight soldiers. That second claim is hardening into […]
ABU DHABI // A little boy who has overcome deafness to become an academic star at school has received a personal letter of praise from Barack Obama. “I am proud of you for pushing yourself academically,” the US president told Yusuf Batha, “and I am counting on you to continue to set a good example to help others whenever you have the opportunity.” Mr Obama also told […]
DUBAI // Hanan Al Attar has made it her life’s work to ensure children with special needs feel included in mainstream education. Ms Al Attar created a programme using music and interactive games to teach children with physical or mental disabilities basic lessons in mathematics, Arabic and English. “For a Child’s Smile”, is used in most schools in the Sharjah Educational Zone and won Ms Al Attar […]
ABU DHABI // If Daniel Bekai has his way, robots will be common features in homes of the future. Daniel, 16, wants to live in a world where humans command robots to perform the mundane tasks that an artificially intelligent machine would be better at anyway. “Suppose you’re in your house and you want some yogurt, you can build a robot that gets yogurt from your fridge […]
By Alan Cochrane, Scottish Editor 8:59PM BST 03 Jun 2014 A FUNNY thing happened to me on my way to save the Union yesterday; Gordon Brown cracked a joke and everyone laughed. Mind you, there was a bit of a delay, a sort of double-take, whilst the people in the room – assorted Labour politicians and reporters – worked out if their ears had deceived them or […]
Apple Inc on Monday took the wraps off mobile applications that pool and analyze health and home data, kicking off an annual developers’ conference lacking in big surprises, despite hopes the iPhone maker would offer a glimpse into its secretive pipeline of products. Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook and software-engineering boss Craig Federighi told several thousand developers about new features that come with the latest “Yosemite” Mac […]
DUBAI // Two Zayed University students have won Dh45,000 each for their idea to open a gym for pregnant and elderly women. Sumaia Alharthi, and Shamma Alfahim, both 21, decided to enter the “Business for Better” competition as this was a good chance for their voices to be heard, said Ms Alharthi. The competition was aimed at encouraging young entrepreneurs, and eight universities from across the UAE […]
ABU DHABI // Yas Marina Circuit is looking to stage major international charity events after staff visited New York to gain ideas from a major run there. Officials from the track visited the Big Apple last month to attend the city’s UAE Healthy Kidney 10K road run and learn about staging the best in community fitness programmes. The annual Healthy Kidney event, a tribute to the founding […]
JERUSALEM — President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority swore in a transitional government on Monday intended to unify the West Bank and Gaza after seven years of division, though the run-up was marred by last-minute disputes over its composition. The move is likely to complicate further the Palestinians’ already fraught relations with Israel and put them under international scrutiny because the new government is supported by […]
‘As a scientist, all I can do is tell the truth based on the evidence,’ says Dr Jane Plant Photo: MARTIN POPE In 1993, the breast cancer that had plagued Jane Plant since 1987 returned for the fifth time. It came in the shape of a secondary tumour – a lump in her neck the size of half a boiled egg. Doctors told her that she had only […]
DUBAI // Private schools in Dubai “must address the shortcomings of teaching Arabic as a first and additional language as a matter of urgency”, the Knowledge and Human Development Authority has said in a report. The warning, issued on Monday in the KHDA’s annual report, Key Findings: 2013-2014 Inspection of Private Schools, outlines the strengths and weaknesses of the 141 private schools inspected by the agency and […]
Donetsk, Ukraine – The coffins were lined up in a car park at Kalininsky hospital the Donetsk, all 30 wrapped in bright white, red or black satin, stacked one on top of the other. They had been prepared for the bodies of Russians fighting with separatists for the city’s airport just days before. Leaders of the separatist movement on Thursday said many would be repatriated to their home country […]
Whoop, whoop: Kathleen Turner and Ian McDiarmid in ‘Bakersfield Mist’ at the Duchess Theatre Photo: Alastair Muir “They applaud, even when it is good,” said Artur Schnabel, the great Austrian pianist. These days, they stand to cheer, even when it is poor. The standing ovation, which used to be a Broadway phenomenon, something we used to snigger at, has become an increasingly unpleasant feature of theatrical life […]
ABU DHABI // The UAE’s support for women in science, technology, engineering and maths (Stem) was discussed at a meeting of the United Nations commission on the status of women. At the session held in New York this year, Dr Lamya Fawwaz, the executive director of public affairs at Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, talked about the participation of women and girls in those areas, including […]
DUBAI // Six natural reserves have been formally declared in Dubai to improve the environment and boost eco-tourism. Jabal Nazwa reserve, Al Marmoum desert reserve, Al Wuhush desert reserve and Al Ghaf reserve, Hatta mountain reserve and the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve (DDCR) will now also be run by Dubai Municipality. They have been established to protect natural wildlife, including plants such as samar, ghaf, and side, […]
(Reuters) – It took a Texas man five days to polish off what has been hailed as one of the most expensive drinks produced at Starbucks, a several-thousand calorie frozen concoction that included 60 shots of espresso and was topped with whipped cream. “It was delicious, very strong, very sweet,” Andrew Chifari said on Thursday. “After the first day, the ice crystals had melted and it was […]
The property game: Help to Buy is also helping Londoners Photo: Justin Sutcliffe The Government is persistently defensive about its Help to Buy scheme, partly because the criticism has been so consistent. Two parts of the scheme have been rolled out by David Cameron in an attempt to improve the route to property ownership, or in his emotive words: “As prime minister I am not going to stand […]
Egypt’s apparent low voter turnout in presidential elections could be driven by millions boycotting the process because of objections to the two candidates or simply by apathy to yet another ballot during a tumultuous three years. But wedged in between the boycotters and enthusiastic voters is a group that is carrying on the tradition of spoiling their ballots, often with poignant or whimsical messages to the state. Here’s […]
Although the world’s largest democracy has been hobbled by inflation, a declining currency and difficult business environment, the pro-business Bharatiya Janata Party that just won an epic election in India has engendered optimism that the country can turn around its sagging economic scenario. It’s time to increase your exposure to India’s stock market. The timing is good with equities in India perking up of late, something that […]
DUBAI // Engineering student Chibuke Enekwechi has plans to develop a drone that could be used to monitor pupils sitting exams instead of relying on teachers to do the job. The final-year student from the American University in Dubai said on Tuesday that he hoped to come up with a winning design that could help him bag Dh1 million and possibly a further US$1m (Dh3.6m) in the […]
NEW HAVEN, Conn. — Forget the endless obsession with assigning blame for the attack in 2012 on the American diplomatic compound in Benghazi. The United States has another large problem on its hands right now in Libya. Khalifa Hifter, a former Libyan general who is now an American citizen, is mounting what could be a de facto coup, with far-reaching consequences for Libya and the United States. […]
Nigeria’s military has located nearly 300 school girls abducted by Boko Haram almost seven weeks ago, the country’s chief of defence said. Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh, Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff, said on Monday that any potential armed rescue operation was fraught with danger as the 223 girls still held hostage could be caught in the crossfire. Boko Haram fighters kidnapped 276 girls from the remote northeastern town […]
Nigeria’s military has located nearly 300 school girls abducted by Boko Haram six weeks ago but fears using force to try to free them could get them killed, the country’s chief of defence said. Air Marshall Alex Barde told demonstrators supporting the much-criticised military on Monday that Nigerian troops could save the girls. But he added: “We can’t go and kill our girls in the name of trying to get them […]
