Second edition of Saudi art biennale seeks to modernize Islamic tradition
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia - Under a vast canopy of tents in the Saudi city of Jeddah, religious artefacts are on display...
Arts & Culture
Jordan king set for tense Trump talks as Gaza truce under strain
The talks come a day after Trump said he could "conceivably" halt billions of dollars in US aid to both...
Geostrategy
Geostrategy
Hamas negotiators ‘not in Doha’ but political office not closed: Qatar
Qatar, along with the United States and Egypt, had led months of fruitless negotiations for a truce in the Gaza...
- "The mediation process right now... is suspended unless we take a decision to reverse that which is based on the positions of both sides," spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari said
- "The office of Hamas in Doha was created for the sake of the mediation process. Obviously, when there is no mediation process, the office itself doesn't have any function," he said
Geostrategy
US envoy in Beirut says ‘real opportunity’ to end Israel-Hezbollah war
US special envoy said he was in Beirut because he saw "real opportunity" to end the Israel-Hezbollah war
- US special envoy said he was in Beirut because he saw "real opportunity" to end the Israel-Hezbollah war
- "I came back because we have a real opportunity to bring this conflict to an end," Hochstein said
Iran slams new EU, UK sanctions as unjustified: foreign ministry
ran's foreign ministry Tuesday slammed as unjustified the new sanctions by the European Union and Britain against Tehran over its...
- Sanctions also included the national airline, Iran Air, for transporting ballistic missiles and military supplies to Russia
- Iran's economy suffers from US sanctions following the unilateral US withdrawal in 2018 from a landmark nuclear deal
Divided G20 fails to agree on climate action, Ukraine war escalation dominates Rio summit talks
G20 leaders in Rio failed to resolve UN climate talks deadlock, merely stating funding for developing countries battling global warming...
- Ahead of the meeting, the UN had implored the leaders of the world's richest economies to rescue stalled climate talks in Azerbaijan by boosting funding for developing countries
- G20 members, who are divided on who should pay, did not make such commitments, saying only that the trillions of dollars needed would come "from all sources."
Geostrategy
UN climate chief at deadlocked COP29: ‘Cut the theatrics’
As the UN climate talks limp into a second week in Azerbaijan, the world is no closer to a finance...
- Nations have until Friday to break the impasse over how to raise $1 trillion a year for developing countries to cope with global warming.
- Climate-vulnerable countries want developed nations to commit to substantially raising their existing pledge of $100 billion a year.
G20 leaders to grapple with climate, taxes, Trump comeback
G20 leaders gather in Brazil on Monday to discuss fighting poverty, boosting climate financing and other multilateral initiatives that could...
- The main star of the show is expected to be Chinese President Xi Jinping
- Wars in Ukraine and the Middle East would be kept off the summit agenda to focus on the poor.
Economy
Egypt’s middle class cuts costs as IMF-backed reforms take hold
Cairo, Egypt -- Egypt's economy has been in crisis for years, but as the latest round of International Monetary Fund-backed reforms...
- The world lender has long backed measures in Egypt including a liberal currency exchange market and weaning the public away from subsidies.
- Foreign debt quadrupled since 2015 to register $160.6 billion in the first quarter of 2024. Much of the debt is the result of financing for large-scale projects.
Arts & Culture
Magritte’s ‘Empire of Light’ to fetch nearly $100m at New York auction
New York, United States -- With a Magritte painting estimated to sell for nearly $100 million, drawings by pop artist Keith...
- The seminal 1954 work is one of a series of paintings from the Surrealist master depicting the interplay of shadow and light.
- Its estimated price is $95 million, which would easily shatter the previous record for a Magritte, $79 million in 2022.
Israel escalates bombing in Lebanon as Hezbollah fires projectiles; UN warns of Gaza famine
Israel escalated strikes on Hezbollah in Beirut and Tyre, targeting strongholds, while Hezbollah launched retaliatory attacks on Haifa, hitting a...
- Israel has escalated its bombing of Lebanon since September 23 and has since sent in ground troops, following almost a year of limited, cross-border exchanges of fire
- Israel's military chief Hezbollah had already "paid a big price" but Israel will keep fighting until thousands of its residents displaced from the north can return safely
Geostrategy
With Trump’s presidency, expect pro-Israel policies to replace Biden’s nuanced approach in Middle East relations
Trump’s return could shift US policy on Israel, with his Republican Party's pro-Israel stance and his preference for "America First"...
- Trump, unlike every other recent president, has never committed to a fully sovereign, independent Palestinian state
- He leads a Republican Party so pro-Israel that some local offices handed out Israeli flags alongside Trump yard-signs
Second edition of Saudi art biennale seeks to modernize Islamic tradition
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia - Under a vast canopy of tents in the Saudi city of Jeddah, religious artefacts are on display...
Arts & Culture
Company News
Latest News
Pakistan air strikes kill 46 in Afghanistan: Taliban spokesman
Kabul, Afghanistan - Pakistan air strikes in an eastern border province of Afghanistan killed 46 people, the Taliban government spokesman told...
Geostrategy
Israeli army says intercepted missile from Yemen before it entered Israeli territory
Jerusalem, Undefined - The Israeli army said Wednesday it intercepted a ballistic missile fired towards the country from Yemen.Air raid sirens...
Geostrategy
Syria authorities say armed groups have agreed to disband
Syria's new leaders announced Tuesday that they had reached an agreement with the country's rebel groups on their dissolution and...
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Business
Musk’s AI startup raises $6bn more, Saudi and Qatari funds among investors
Paris, France -- Billionaire tech mogul Elon Musk's startup xAI said it had raised $6 billion from investors in its latest...
- The firm, whose flagship product is the Grok chatbot, garnered support from US venture capitalists, chipmakers NVIDIA and AMD.
- It also garnered support from investment funds from Saudi Arabia and Qatar among others.
Asian stocks mostly up after US tech rally
Asian stocks were mostly higher on Tuesday after a tech rally on Wall Street, but their gains remained modest in...
- Hong Kong stocks were "consolidating before the long holiday"
- Honda shares soared 16 percent after announcing a buyback of up to $7 billion
Geostrategy
Netanyahu tells Israel parliament ‘some progress’ on Gaza hostage deal, defence minister admits to killing Haniyeh
In an interview with The Wall Street Journal last week, Netanyahu said, however, said he was not going to agree...
- In recent days, indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas mediated by Qatar, Egypt, and the US took place in Doha, rekindling hope of an agreement that has proven elusive
- Negotiations have faced multiple challenges since a one-week truce in November 2023, with the primary point of contention being the establishment of a lasting ceasefire