Israel hits another Gaza target after deadliest night since truce
Israel said it struck an arms dump in Gaza on Wednesday, hours after the deadliest night of bombing since the...
Geostrategy
Syria attracted $28 bn in investment since Assad’s fall: president
Syria has begun the mammoth task of trying to rebuild its shattered economy, after over a decade of war saw...
Geostrategy
Business
California looks to Europe to rein in deployment of AI
The richest state in the United States by GDP, California is a hotbed of no-holds-barred tech innovation, but lawmakers in...
- Lawmakers in California are looking to recent European legislation on AI, especially given the little hope of equivalent national legislation out of Washington
- There are at least 30 different bills proposed by California state legislators that relate to various aspects of AI, according to senior policy advisor
UN Palestinian agency chief says funding secured until end of May
Gaza has endured almost six months of war and a siege that has cut off most food, water, fuel and...
- UNRWA is in crisis since Israel accused that a dozen of its employees were involved in October 7 Hamas attack
- UNRWA chief warned last month that the funding crunch was so great the organization might not be able to operate beyond March
Geostrategy
Israeli hostage held by Hamas in Gaza dead, say families
Jerusalem--One of the Israeli hostages kidnapped during the October 7 Hamas attack has been killed and his body is being...
- The slain hostage, Uriel Baruch, 35, a father of two, was taken from the Supernova music festival by Hamas fighters
- Fighters from Hamas seized 253 Israeli and foreign hostages during the October 7 attack on Israel that triggered the war
Geostrategy
Syria strikes kill 17 including Iran Guard, WHO worker
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor, an Iranian Revolutionary Guards adviser, his two Iranian security escorts, and...
- A US defence official told AFP the United States "did not conduct any airstrikes" overnight
- WHO chief announced on social media "the tragic loss of another one of our own in an air strike in Syria"
Business
BYD posts record 2023 profit
The Shenzhen-based firm is now moving quickly overseas.
- BYD overtook Elon Musk's Tesla in the fourth quarter of 2023 to become the world's top seller of EVs.
- The figure is in line with a forecast issued by the firm in late January of 29-31 billion yuan ($4bn - $4.3bn)
Geostrategy
Qatar says negotiations ‘ongoing’ for Gaza truce
Doha, Qatar - Mediator Qatar said on Tuesday that talks between Hamas and Israel on a Gaza truce and hostage release...
- Qatar, with the United States and Egypt, has been engaged in weeks of behind-the-scenes talks in a bid to secure a truce in Gaza
- Since the UN adopted a resolution on Monday demanding an "immediate ceasefire", Hamas and Israel have traded blame for their failure to agree a deal.
Geostrategy
US defense chief tells Israeli counterpart that Gaza toll is ‘too high’
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told his Israeli counterpart Yoav Gallant that civilian casualties in Gaza are "too high". A...
- A senior Pentagon official said that US Defense Secretary had discussed his hopes that negotiations would "soon produce the release of all hostages."
- The United States has backed Israel with both military and diplomatic support.
Business
Spain grabs 3% Telefonica stake after concerns over Saudi deal
Madrid, Spain - Spain's government has acquired a three-percent stake in telecoms giant Telefonica following concerns over a Saudi firm taking...
- Spanish state-owned holding company SEPI said in a filing with the stock market regulator late Monday that the move was "in line with a cabinet decision in December".
- At the time, the government of Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said it was to safeguard the firm's "strategic capacities and essential importance" to Spain
Geostrategy
Major US bridge collapses as cargo ship plows into pylon
Baltimore, United States -- A major bridge collapsed in Baltimore on Tuesday, blocking one of the busiest US commercial harbors, after...
- Six people -- all members of a nighttime construction crew repairing potholes on the Francis Scott Key Bridge -- were missing, officials said.
- The Port of Baltimore is the ninth-busiest major US port in terms of both foreign cargo handled and foreign cargo value is directly responsible for more than 15,000 jobs.
Thousands trapped in Gaza hospital surrounded by Israeli tanks
Gaza's health ministry said Israeli troops were shooting and firing "shells and (conducting) violent raids in its surroundings in preparation...
- Witnesses told AFP that shots were being fired at the sprawling complex in the southern city of Khan Yunis, but no raid was as yet taking place
- "Thousands of displaced people are still inside the hospital,.They do not have sufficient quantities of drinking water, food and infant formula," the ministry said.
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Israel hits another Gaza target after deadliest night since truce
Israel said it struck an arms dump in Gaza on Wednesday, hours after the deadliest night of bombing since the...
Geostrategy
Company News
Latest News
Trump’s MAGA base defies conservative pro-Israel doctrine
Washington, United States - Unconditional support for Israel has long been an entry requirement in US Republican politics, but that...
Geostrategy
Russia to face new US sanctions unless ends Ukraine war in 10 days: Trump
US President Donald Trump said his deadline for Russia to end the fighting in Ukraine or face new sanctions will...
Geostrategy
UN agencies warn Gaza slipping into famine as Israel resists ceasefire calls
The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification Initiative, a coalition of monitors tasked by the UN to warn of impending crises,...
Geostrategy
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Arts & Culture
Portugal’s Felix joins Ronaldo at Al Nassr in Saudi
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia -- Portuguese forward Joao Felix has signed a two-year deal with Saudi Arabia's Al Nassr, where he...
- Felix, now 25, made a blockbuster move from Benfica to Atletico Madrid in 2019, but has since seen his fortunes decline.
- "I'm here to spread joy. Let's win together," said Felix in a video posted on the club's X account. A separate post said he had signed until 2027.
Economy
IMF lifts 2025 global growth forecast on ‘fragile’ easing in trade tensions
Looking ahead, the IMF expects the world economy to expand 3.1 percent next year, an improvement from the 3.0 percent...
- Despite the upward revisions, "there are reasons to be very cautious," IMF chief economist Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas told AFP.
- "Businesses were trying to frontload, move stuff around, before the tariffs were imposed, and so that's supporting economic activity," he said.
Geostrategy
Trump warns of ‘real starvation’ in Gaza as aid deliveries pick up after Israeli “tactical pause”
Speaking in Scotland after meeting Britain's leader, Trump contradicted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who had earlier dismissed fears of...
- Speaking in Scotland after meeting Britain's leader, Trump contradicted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who had earlier dismissed fears of famine in Gaza
- Trump said the US and its partners would help set up food centres to feed the more than two million Palestinians in Gaza facing what UN aid agencies warn is deadly hunger