By Angus McDowall | BEIRUT BEIRUT When President Bashar al-Assad turns from the wreckage of Aleppo to assert his authority across a fractured Syria, it will be as a figure who is virtually unassailable by rebels, but still faces great challenges in restoring the power of his state. The expected fall of Aleppo would mean rebels have almost no chance of ousting Assad, but their revolt has […]
Time to put Cortana on your iPhone or Android? Image: Microsoft Microsoft is finally making its Cortana virtual assistant available through Android and iOS apps in the UK. The Cortana iOS and Android apps launched in the US and China exactly one year ago, but the UK version features a new simplified look and feel for the apps. The idea of the app is to extend the […]
PTI BOGOR (INDONESIA)President Joko Widodo Saturday said Indonesia and India must cooperate closely in the key areas defence, security and counter-terrorism as no country is immune to a terror attack and also sought stepping up of bilateral trade ties.“I am very much looking forward to have discussions with Prime Minister Modi,” Widodo told PTI in an interview ahead of his state visit to India, beginning Monday.Widodo said […]
SEOUL South Korean prosecutors have indicted a former senior presidential aide and a former vice culture minister as part of an investigation of a corruption scandal that led to President Park Geun-hye’s impeachment in parliament, media said on Sunday. Park’s former senior economic aide, Cho Won-dong, was charged with colluding with the president over attempting to pressure a South Korean conglomerate to dismiss the group’s vice chairman, […]
By Ayman al-Warfalli | BENGHAZI BENGHAZI Just 10 people left a besieged neighbourhood in the east Libyan city of Benghazi on Saturday after forces surrounding the area said they would grant safe passage to trapped civilians, security and Red Crescent officials said. The eastern-based Libyan National Army (LNA) has been besieging the district of Ganfouda for months as it tries to take full control of Benghazi following […]
Alienware’s Steam Machine Valve rolled out the Steam Machine concept at CES 2014: Desktops that would be sized to compete with video game platforms in gamers’ living rooms, and run the company’s Linux-based SteamOS. Since then, the company ran into delays with its Steam Controllers, and by the time manufacturers started to roll out the actual systems (nearly two years later), a lot of the buzz about […]
DUBAI // Ten years ago, divers off the UAE coast revelled in regular sightings of many shark species. But overfishing and a demanding market in Asia for shark fins have put that number in decline, to the point of extinction in many cases. Conservationists hope they can help to halt that decline with a film festival in Dubai educating people about the important role sharks play. The […]
Submitted by Mac Slavo via SHTFPlan.com, The entire Pacific Coast of the United States, Canada and Mexico has been contaminated with radioactive particles from Fukushima. And finally, it is being officially acknowledged. This is really happening… It is a stark reminder that the effects from Fukushima radiation continually spilling into the ocean have not been abated. The site continues to leak highly toxic radioactive material to this […]
By Jack Kim and Nataly Pak | SEOUL SEOUL Protestors demanding that South Korean President Park Geun-hye step down marched on Saturday for a seventh straight weekend, a day after parliament voted overwhelmingly to impeach her and put the fate of her presidency in the hands of a nine-judge court. The crowd estimated by organisers at 200,000 packing a large square in downtown Seoul was significantly smaller […]
10 December 2016 Dubai, UAE: Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has reached financial closure for the 2,400MW Hassyan clean coal power project. The project uses the Independent Power Producer (IPP) procurement model on a Build Own Operate (BOO) basis and is supported by a 25-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with DEWA. Last June, DEWA signed the PPA, Shareholders Agreement (SHA), and other project agreements with the […]
By John Irish | PARIS PARIS Backers of the Syrian opposition appeared resigned to the fall of eastern Aleppo on Saturday, with the United States urging Russia to show “grace” when officials meet in Geneva to try to reach a deal for civilians and fighters to leave the city. Syrian government and allied forces have in the last two weeks driven rebels from most of their territory […]
Apart from the LG G6, poised as the upcoming G-series flagship, LG is also working on a new, midrange V-series phone, a less pricey option between its other V-series flagships, the V10 and V20. The aforementioned phone in the works is reportedly called the LG V5, and OnLeaks has now published product renders of the forthcoming smartphone. Awaiting a fresh new flagship leak, this is roughly […]
Scientists are closer than ever to unraveling a process called magnetic reconnection that triggers explosive phenomena throughout the universe. Solar flares, northern lights and geomagnetic storms that can disrupt cell phone service and black out power grids are all set off by magnetic field lines that converge, break apart and violently reconnect in ways that are not fully understood. (via WSJ)
Data — or lack of the right data — may be the Achilles Heel of the digital movement. Successfully making the move to digital nirvana requires data — lots of it, and in the right places, available to the right people and systems at the right time. Photo: HubSpot Unfortunately, organizations still do not have a handle on the data challenge. As expressed in a new McKinsey […]
ANKARA Turkey’s ruling AK Party on Saturday submitted to parliament a package of constitutional reform proposals that would expand the president’s powers, party officials said, in a move that could potentially see President Tayyip Erdogan govern until 2029. The package would also bring structural changes to Turkey’s security and judiciary, implementing criminal liability for the president, who previously was immune from all crimes except treason. The AKP, […]
PARIS: US Secretary of State John Kerry and leading diplomats are trying to find solutions for Syria’s desperate opposition, as Syrian government forces squeeze rebels out of Aleppo after a devastating blitz.With tens of thousands of civilians fleeing, Kerry said he is working to ensure their safety and to save Aleppo “from being absolutely, completely destroyed.”Kerry and European and Arab diplomats are meeting members of Syria’s opposition […]
Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb on Saturday said that Panama Papers had never been and will never be any threat to the government. Talking to the media persons in Islamabad, she said the politics of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif revolves around serving the masses with dedication and honesty. She said it is the vision of the prime minister that terror acts have significantly […]
By Lamin Jahateh | BANJUL BANJUL Gambia’s President-elect Adama Barrow said on Saturday the country’s outgoing leader Yahya Jammeh had no authority to reject the results of Dec.1. polls, while the United Nations and African Union piled pressure on Jammeh to step aside. Long-ruling Jammeh on Friday called for another election in the tiny West African country after narrowly losing to opposition leader Adama Barrow, jeopardising what […]
On December 19, Samsung will release a software update to all remaining Note 7 devices in the US that will stop the devices from working. According to the update posted December 9 on Samsung’s recall website, 93 percent of all recalled Note 7 devices in the US have been returned. The impending software update will stop the Note 7 from charging, and “eliminate their ability to work […]
Yahya Jammeh, the eccentric and capricious ruler of Gambia for the past 22 years, has reversed his decision to accept defeat in last week’s elections, saying he will call a fresh poll. He alleged voter irregularities and called for new “transparent” elections to be held by a “god-fearing” electoral commission, presumably not overseen by the same official that declared results a week ago. Speaking on Friday night, […]
In this part of the world, the debate is not just theoretical. Terrorism is an everyday reality, and the role that Facebook and other social media sites may play in inspiring it generates deep emotion. Israel has pushed to combat online provocation that it links to bloodshed. Palestinians consider a crackdown on Facebook posts just another tool of repression by an occupying power. Continue reading the main […]
MANAMA Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shukri on Saturday hailed a “special relationship” with Saudi Arabia, denying reports that the two powerful Arab nations had fallen out after Egypt expressed support for the Russian intervention in Syria. Egypt voted in favour of a Russian-backed U.N. resolution on Syria in October that excluded calls to stop bombing Aleppo, which Saudi Arabia strongly opposed. The kingdom informed Egypt last month […]
Ghana re-established its reputation as one of Africa’s cleanest democracies on Friday when authorities proclaimed opposition leader Nana Akufo-Addo, 72, a British-educated lawyer and veteran statesman, as the next president. The victory by Mr Akufo-Addo’s centre New Patriotic party, after eight years of rule by the left-leaning National Democratic Congress, triggered wild celebrations across much of the country. It follows the surprise electoral defeat last week of […]
Submitted by Nomi Prins via TomDispatch.com, Given his cabinet picks so far, it’s reasonable to assume that The Donald finds hanging out with anyone who isn’t a billionaire (or at least a multimillionaire) a drag. What would there be to talk about if you left the Machiavellian class and its exploits for the company of the sort of normal folk you can rouse at a rally? It’s […]
