Saudi says ‘no radioactive effects’ detected, more US embassy staff leaves Iraq
"No radioactive effects were detected on the environment of the Kingdom and the Arab Gulf states as a result of...
Geostrategy
Tens of thousands join pro-Palestinian marches across Europe
Protesters in the British capital waved Palestinian flags, donned keffiyeh scarves and carried signs including "Stop arming Israel" and "No...
Geostrategy
Geostrategy
Iran says foils sabotage attack on atomic energy agency building
State television said a "sabotage operation against one of the buildings (of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran) was foiled"...
- State television said a "sabotage operation against one of the buildings (of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran) was foiled" without causing any casualties or damage
- "The saboteurs failed to carry out their plan," the broadcaster added, without identifying the building or the nature of the attack that had been averted
Geostrategy
Power restored at Ukraine’s Chernobyl: IAEA
Power has been restored at Ukraine's Chernobyl nuclear power station, the site of the world's worst nuclear disaster in 1986,...
- The retired Chernobyl nuclear reactors -- enclosed in a giant steel and concrete sarcophagus -- had also lost power early last week but supply was restored Sunda
- The 1986 explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant killed hundreds and spread a radioactive cloud across Europe
Business
Art sales hit all-time high in 2021, continue rapid growth in Asia
Art auctions saw a record year in 2021 with $17.1 billion (15.6 billion euros) in sales as the market continued...
- There was also the landmark moment when digital artist Beeple sold a NFT for $69 million, the third-highest figure ever paid for a living artist.
- Contemporary art -- counted as anything created after 1945 -- accounts for a growing share of sales, with 20 percent of the market, up from 3 percent in 2000.
Geostrategy
Starvation in war-torn Yemen likely to increase five times : UN
The number of people in war-torn Yemen starving in famine conditions is projected to increase five-fold this year to 161,000,...
- Over 30,000 people are already struggling in famine conditions, a joint statement by the UN and other global bodies said
- The joint UN statement on Yemen comes two days ahead of a high-level conference to raise aid for the war hit nation
Business
Digital art in spotlight as Dubai makes crypto bid
Art Dubai, the Middle East's largest annual contemporary art fair, has featured for the first time digital works, as the...
- This year, in its 15th edition, the three-day fair hosted more than 100 local and foreign art dealers
- Local NFT platforms have welcomed the move as good for business, with crypto holders increasingly interested in digital art
Geostrategy
Amid NFT boom, artists worry about climate costs
Most NFTs are currently traded on Ethereum, which reportedly uses as much electricity as all of the Netherlands, with a...
- K-pop fans in South Korea last year staged a brutal campaign against plans for popular groups include BTS and A.C.E. to sell crypto-art.
- Selling art as non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, uses the same technology as crypto-currencies like Bitcoin. The buyer receives a verified digital token as a mark of genuineness.
Geostrategy
A day after missile strike, Iran warns of threats from Iraqi soil
Iran warned that it won't tolerate "threats" coming from Iraq, a day after firing ballistic missiles at what it said...
- "It is not at all acceptable that one of our neighbors that has deep relations with us ... becomes a center for creating threats," said foreign ministry spokesman
- Kurdish authorities, however, insisted that the Jewish state has no sites in or near Arbil, the capital of their autonomous region in Iraq's north
Geostrategy
Iran’s FM to hold talks on nuclear deal in Moscow Tuesday: Official
Ten months of talks in Vienna have brought major powers close to renewing a landmark 2015 agreement on regulating Iran's...
- US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has dismissed as "irrelevant" the Russian demands for guarantees.
- The 2105 deal gave Iran sanctions relief in exchange for curbs on its nuclear program.
Business
India Paytm shares crash on news of regulatory ban, CEO arrest
Paytm shares nosedived 13 percent Monday after Indian regulators banned the beleaguered payments platform from enrolling new customers and reports...
- The firm enjoyed India's biggest-ever initial public offering four months ago, with the backing of Chinese tycoon Jack Ma's Ant Group and Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway
- India's central bank demanded Paytm immediately stop enrolling new customers on Friday and ordered an audit of its IT systems
Economy
Chinese cities and factories lock down as outbreak spreads
China cannot relax its zero-Covid policy just yet despite the low fatality rate of Omicron, say medical experts.
- Authorities in China have reported 2,300 new covid cases across the country on Monday
- China cannot relax its zero-Covid policy just yet despite the low fatality rate of Omicron, say medical experts
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Revenue from Saudi cinema may exceed $1bn by 2030KSA, UAE play well as e-gaming trends across GCCExclusive: Middle East’s retail sector rides on AR and hybrid shopping to become $600bn digital economyTECOM Group profit soars 13%UAE startups eye Saudi Arabia for growth, expansionSaudi Arabia leads GCC AI healthcare raceDisparity remains as Saudis, Emiratis see wealth gains
Saudi says ‘no radioactive effects’ detected, more US embassy staff leaves Iraq
"No radioactive effects were detected on the environment of the Kingdom and the Arab Gulf states as a result of...
Geostrategy
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Hizbollah commander among 10 dead in Israeli strike on Lebanon
BEIRUT, LEBANON - A Hizbollah commander, two other fighters and seven civilians were killed in an Israeli strike in south Lebanon,...
Geostrategy
Tunisia gets new central bank chief amid economic crisis
TUNIS, TUNISIA - President Kais Saied on Thursday appointed a new governor of the central bank of Tunisia, a north African...
Geostrategy
Israel sends troops into besieged Nasser hospital in Gaza’s Khan Yunis
The raid came after days of intense fighting between troops and Hamas around the Nasser hospital in Khan Yunis --...
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Business
Commerzbank net profit $2.4bn
This is the bank's biggest net profit in 15 years.
- The lender said it had "benefited from strong customer business and persistently high interest rates".
- Like other European lenders, Commerzbank was boosted by the European Central Bank's unprecedented streak of rate hikes last year, aimed at taming red-hot inflation
Geostrategy
99 journalists killed in 2023, 72 in Israel-Hamas war alone
"The immense loss suffered by Palestinian journalists in this war will have long-term impacts for journalism not just in the...
- The 72 journalists killed in the Israel-Hamas conflict also include three Lebanese and two Israeli victims, the organization said
- Killings of reporters would have dropped globally year-on-year had it not been for the deaths in Gaza, Israel and Lebanon, the CPJ said
Business
IEA warns on plummeting oil stocks as growth in demand ebbs
"As the IEA celebrates its 50th anniversary this week, oil supply security remains as critical as ever," said the agency...
- The agency forecast that "the pace of expansion is set to decelerate further to 1.2 mbd in 2024, compared with 2.3 mbd last year".
- The reasons it gave for that were economic woes but also progress towards greater energy efficiency and the growing global market share of electric vehicles.