DUBAI An Iranian official confirmed on Monday that Saudi Arabia had invited Tehran to discuss arrangements for the annual Muslim haj, which Iran boycotted last year after hundreds died in a crush at the 2015 pilgrimage. Most were Iranians, and the incident infuriated Tehran. Soon after, ties between the two regional rivals worsened further when Saudi Arabia executed a Shi’ite cleric, angry Iranians stormed the Saudi embassy […]
By Kay Johnson | ISLAMABAD ISLAMABAD Pakistan’s government said on Monday it was seeking to amend the constitution to keep special military courts for civilians charged with terrorism, days after the mandate expired for the secret courts that had been accused of fostering rights abuses. It was unclear how long an extension the government was seeking for the military tribunals, which proponents said were necessary because of […]
By Zachary Fagenson | FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. The 26-year-old Iraq war veteran accused of killing five people at a busy Florida airport in the latest U.S. gun rampage was due to appear in a federal court on Monday on charges that could bring him the death penalty. Esteban Santiago, who had a history of erratic behavior, has admitted to investigators that he planned Friday’s […]
Amazon’s Echo – and the built-in Alexa service: coming to a home near you, soon? Amazon’s Alexa service has been a surprise hit; the digital assistant wrapped up in the Amazon Echo smart speaker that is rapidly turning itself into the leading smart home hub. Alexa can be used for anything from playing music, setting timers and writing shopping lists, to controlling smart home systems, domestic appliances […]
DUBAI // The main site for the UAE Food Bank was announced on Monday after the first meeting about the new charity initiative. The bank’s main branch will be in the Dubai Vegetable Market, while 15 other outlets are planned for inside and outside the UAE. Sheikha Hind bint Juma Al Maktoum, Chairwoman of the Food Bank, said it is hoped that it will become the “biggest […]
Once again, the dawn of a new year is upon us. People will wonder what to do, what will happen and what can they expect. We, as humans, will rely on pundits to tell us what they think and yes most of what will be said will have a 50/50 chance of being as much right as wrong. This year is going to usher in many seismic […]
“We have no eternal allies, and we have no perpetual enemies. Our interests are eternal and perpetual, and those interests it is our duty to follow.” So Henry Temple, the third Viscount Palmerston, described British foreign policy in 1848, at the height of its imperial pomp. “England is a power sufficiently strong, sufficiently powerful to steer her own course.” It is more than fanciful to imagine US […]
Here’s what the next round of the N.F.L. playoffs looks like. The Giants dominated most of the first half, but they managed only two field goals by Robbie Gould before Rodgers invigorated the bundled-up crowd with two touchdowns in the final three minutes. The second was spectacular, a 42-yard heave to Randall Cobb that six Giants in the end zone failed to knock down as time ran […]
The world’s main repository for data on credit derivatives deals will move its database on to the blockchain, in the first big test case for whether the emerging technology can be employed across the finance industry. The DTCC, a US post-trade services group that processes more than $1,500tn of securities a year, will use technology from IBM and US blockchain start-ups R3 and Axoni as the basis […]
Two weeks ago we previewed that the U.S. Department of Energy could begin to sell off some of its strategic petroleum reserve (SPR) as soon as January, the beginning of a multi-year process to shrink the nation’s stockpile of oil. Congress has authorized DOE to sell off $375.4 million worth of oil in its recent budget resolution. The DOE said that such a sale could be held […]
BAGHDAD Iraqi special forces made further advances against Islamic State in Mosul on Monday, pushing militants out of another district a day after driving them back to the eastern bank of the Tigris river, a spokesman said. The elite counter-terrorism service (CTS) had taken full control of the Baladiyat district and encircled neighbouring Sukkar, Sabah al-Numan told Reuters. The advance also consolidated Iraqi forces’ control of several […]
Watergate. Spying by the National Security Agency. Bungled protection by the Secret Service. These stories have two things in common: Each were major, consequential pieces of journalism about the federal government that got big results. And none of them were broken by the White House press corps. With less than two weeks before Donald Trump is inaugurated as the nation’s 45th president, news organizations have begun plotting […]
Doha, 9 January 2016 Dr. R. Seetharaman, Doha Bank CEO was conferred with the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award (PBSA) by the Hon’ble President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee at the PRAVASI BHARTIYA Divas Convention on 9 January 2017 which is the highest honour conferred on overseas Indians by the Government of India in recognition of their achievements both in India and abroad. The PBSA was conferred was […]
MEXICO CITY Mexican migrants in the United States are not criminals, Mexico’s new foreign minister said on Monday, adding that the country would face the “dynamic” U.S. political situation with negotiation, not conflict or insults. Luis Videgaray, was appointed foreign minister last week just four months after he was replaced as finance minister in the wake of a controversial visit by Donald Trump. (Reporting by Frank Jack […]
By Jonathan Landay | WASHINGTON WASHINGTON The risk of conflicts between and within nations will increase over the next five years to levels not seen since the Cold War as global growth slows, the post-World War Two order erodes and anti-globalization fuels nationalism, said a U.S. intelligence report released on Monday. “These trends will converge at an unprecedented pace to make governing and cooperation harder and to […]
After attending last year’s Detroit Auto Show, I wrote that CES can’t replace traditional auto shows just yet. But after spending the last few days at CES in Las Vegas, I’m ready to reverse that position (somewhat). At CES 2017, a critical mass of auto makers and major suppliers unveiled several new concepts, a ton of new technology, and arguably stole the show from traditional […]
By Tulay Karadeniz (Corrects to U.S. support in fourth paragraph) By Tulay Karadeniz ANKARA President Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday he believes Turkey’s dialogue with the United States will gain pace after President-elect Donald Trump takes office and that they will reach a consensus on regional issues. Relations between Washington and Turkey – a NATO ally key to the U.S.-led fight against Islamic State in Syria and […]
Blow-dry bars are not the only booming business models in the world of hair and beauty. With the global appeal of beards, new barbershop concepts are also gaining popularity in the Middle East, where male clients are often just as particular about their appearance as women are. Nidal Rafiq Malaeb has been a barber for 15 years, and works at the new 1847 VIP Room in Jumeirah […]
The meeting between Mr. Netanyahu and the publisher of Yediot Aharonot, Arnon Mozes, took place in 2014, according to Channel 2, but the discussion does not appear to have materialized into action. Continue reading the main story Still, the disclosure caused an uproar. Critics accused Mr. Netanyahu and Mr. Mozes of plotting to upend the democratic principle of an independent, free and professional press. “We expect in […]
By Maria Tsvetkova and Christian Lowe | MOSCOW MOSCOW Allegations that Russia tried to influence the U.S. election in favour of Donald Trump amount to a witch-hunt, the Kremlin said on Monday, in its first reaction to the release of a U.S. intelligence report on the alleged Russian operation. The report, a redacted version of which was released publicly last week, alleged that Russian President Vladimir Putin […]
SKOPJE Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov said on Monday he will ask Nikola Gruevski, the veteran leader of the conservative VMRO-DPMNE party, to form a new government following elections last month. Gruevski, 46, who led the ex-Yugoslav republic for almost a decade, will now have 20 days to win approval for his cabinet in the parliament. VMRO-DPMNE won 51 out of 120 parliamentary seats in the Dec. 11 […]
09 January 2017 Dubai, UAE – Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) recently received two delegations, one from Sharjah Economic Development Department (SEDD), and the other from Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC). Both delegations visited DEWA to get acquainted with the latest technologies and systems adopted by DEWA. During the visit, the SEDD delegation got familiar with DEWA’s operations management approach, and the quantum leap it has […]
YANGON/KUALA LUMPUR Myanmar said on Monday it had sent out safety instructions to its workers in Malaysia after attackers hacked five of them to death with swords, weeks after it barred workers from going there, partly because of security fears. Tension between the Southeast Asian neighbours has risen in recent months over the fate of Myanmar’s stateless Rohingya Muslim minority, with Malaysia accusing Myanmar of genocide over […]
By Marius Zaharia and Fathin Ungku | SINGAPORE SINGAPORE Singapore’s defence minister said on Monday that the nine armoured vehicles seized in Hong Kong could not be detained or confiscated but that he welcomed Hong Kong’s pledge that the dispute would be handled in line with its laws. Hong Kong customs seized the troop carriers in November as they were being shipped from Taiwan to Singapore after […]
