Under US takeover plan, Palestinians will have no right of return to Gaza: Trump
Trump told Fox News Channel’s Bret Baier that "I would own it" and that there could be as many as...
Geostrategy
Trump condemned for ICC sanctions over Israel, US probes
The United Nations and the European Union also urged Trump on Friday to reverse the decision ordering asset freezes and...
Geostrategy
Economy
China’s central bank cuts two key rates to boost economy
Beijing, China - China's central bank on Monday said it had cut two key interest rates to historic lows, in the...
- The cuts come just days after the country posted its slowest quarterly growth in a year and a half, underlining the deep economic woes the country faces
- Leaders are targeting annual growth of five percent this year, but that goal is being challenged by weak consumption and a prolonged and debilitating debt crisis
Geostrategy
Oil-rich Iraqi Kurdistan votes, shadowed by economic struggles
The KDP is the largest party in the outgoing parliament, with 45 seats against 21 for the PUK. The KDP's...
- Iraqi Kurdistan presents itself as a relative oasis of stability in the turbulent Middle East, attracting foreign investors due to its close ties with the United States and Europe
- However, activists and opposition figures contend that the region, autonomous since 1991, faces the same issues affecting Iraq as a whole: corruption, repression, and cronyism
Putin thanks UAE president for positive role in prisoner exchange with Ukraine
UAE President Sheikh Mohamed meets his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to discuss bilateral ties and Middle East. Sheikh Mohamed will...
- Moscow and Kiev announced that they had swapped 95 prisoners each following negotiations led directly by the UAE
- The UAE and Russia ties have grown closer recently with Putin saying that their bilateral trade had tripled in the past three years to $11.1 billion
Geostrategy
Israeli settler attacks, Gaza conflict ruin Palestinian olive harvest
UN experts said recently that Palestinian farmers in the occupied West Bank are facing "the most dangerous olive season ever".
- The ongoing war has reduced vast areas of Gaza to rubble, with about 68 percent of the territory's agricultural areas damaged by the conflict.
- This year's harvest in Gaza is expected to net just 15,000 tons, sharply down from around 40,000 tons in the years before the war.
UN biodiversity conference in Colombia: what’s at stake?
Paris, France - The world's pledges to halt humankind's destruction of nature will be put to the test when the 16th...
- The COP16 is the first meeting of the international community since the adoption two years ago of an unprecedented roadmap to stop humankind's destruction of nature
- But putting that agreement into practice risks not moving fast enough to stop the destruction of land, oceans and species by a 2030 target date
Geostrategy
Israeli attack kills 73 in north Gaza as Netanyahu says Hezbollah tried to kill him
War in the Middle East continues as Israeli attack kills 73 in northern Gaza while Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu says...
- "Our civil defense crews recovered 73 martyrs and a large number of wounded as a result of the Israeli air force targeting a residential area."
- "The attempt by Iran's proxy Hezbollah to assassinate me and my wife today was a grave mistake," Netanyahu said in a statement.
Geostrategy
Updates: Israeli attack kills 33 people in Gaza refugee camp as Hamas mourns Sinwar
As Israel continues to pound Gaza, Lebanon, and West Bank, Turkey's Erdogan conveys his condolences to Hamas officials over Sinwar's...
- Families in northern Gaza are trying to survive in atrocious conditions, and under heavy bombardment, says United Nations
- We (are) afraid that Netanyahu does not intend on stopping the war, nor does he intend to bring the hostages back: relative of Israeli hostage
Geostrategy
States helping Israel’s occupation may be ‘complicit’: UN experts
"Israel's internationally wrongful acts give rise to state responsibility, not only for Israel, but for all states," said Navi Pillay,...
- It also examines the implications of last month's UN General Assembly vote demanding the occupation end within a year.
- Pillay, a former UN rights chief, said all countries are "obligated not to recognize territorial or sovereignty claims made by Israel over the occupied territories".
Drought forces Big Tech to rethink thirsty LatAm data centers
A prolonged drought in much of South America has forced tech giants Google and Amazon to rethink their plans for...
- Plans for a US$200 million data center project needed a cooling system that would consume 1.85 billion gallons of water yearly
- Google said the new facility would use air cooling technology, reducing its water use to a minimum
Economy
Gold breaks above $2,700 to record high as geopolitical uncertainty heightens
Hong Kong, China - Gold prices hit a record high above $2,700 on Friday as traders piled into the safe-haven commodity...
- Bullion hit an all-time high of $2,704.89 in early Asian trade, up from its previous record of $2,688.83 touched on Thursday
- Markets have been on edge over the crisis in the Middle East as Israel battles Hamas in Gaza and, more recently, Hezbollah in southern Lebanon
Under US takeover plan, Palestinians will have no right of return to Gaza: Trump
Trump told Fox News Channel’s Bret Baier that "I would own it" and that there could be as many as...
Geostrategy
Company News
Latest News
Israel approves plan aiming to double annexed Golan population, Saudi calls it ‘sabotage’ of Syria
The occupied Golan is home to about 23,000 Druze Arabs, whose presence predates the occupation and most of whom retain...
Geostrategy
Key Libya oil refinery halts operations after clashes: state firm
Tripoli, Libya -- A key oil refinery in western Libya suspended operations after armed clashes erupted early on Sunday, causing fires...
Geostrategy
US Federal Reserve expected to cut rates in last meeting of Biden era
Washington, United States -- The US Federal Reserve is widely expected to announce a quarter point cut to its key lending...
Business
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Business
Family-friendly ‘Astro Bot’ wins highest award at Oscars of video games
Los Angeles, United States -- Video game "Astro Bot" -- a family-friendly sci-fi adventure -- was named 2024's Game of the...
- It has sold more than 1.5 million copies according to Sony, which owns the 65-person Japanese studio Team Asobi responsible for the mega-hit.
- Onstage at the Peacock Theater, Team Asobi's French chief Nicolas Doucet praised the studio for designing a game that "put the user first".
Business
Boeing to boost 787 production
The firm will invest$1bn to ramp up production in South Carolina.
- The aim is to increase production of the 787 Dreamliner to 10 every month by 2026, Boeing said.
- In October, Boeing unveiled plans to reduce its global workforce by 10 percent over the coming months, without giving further details.
Asian markets retreat as China pledges fail to spark excitement
Asian markets fell Friday as China's latest vows to boost the beleaguered economy failed to stir much excitement, while traders...
- Beijing began unveiling in September a raft of policies to reverse a growth slump
- All three main indexes in New York closed in the red