Lebanon economic losses top $5 billion in year of clashes: World Bank
Beirut, Lebanon -- More than a year of clashes that recently escalated into war have cost Lebanon more than $5 billion...
Geostrategy
Lebanon says 11 killed in Israel strikes across the country
Lebanon said Israeli strikes killed 11 people across the country Tuesday
Geostrategy
Putin in Azerbaijan for state visit amid Ukraine offensive on Russian soil
Aliyev and Putin will sign joint documents and make statements to the press, said Russian agency Ria Novosti. On Monday,...
- His visit to the Caucasus country, a close partner of Moscow, comes against the backdrop of an unprecedented Ukrainian military offensive on Russian soil
- Putin is due to hold talks with his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev on bilateral relations and "international and regional problems," the Kremlin said
Social media platform X to shutter local operations in Brazil
Social media platform X, formerly Twitter, will shutter its local operations in Brazil following a bitter legal tussle over the...
- A post Saturday from X's Global Government Affairs department said Moraes had "threatened our legal representative in Brazil with arrest if we do not comply with his orders."
- It said the office closure was necessary "to protect the safety of our staff," adding, "the responsibility lies solely with Alexandre de Moraes."
Unnerved and exposed, Trump struggles to regain campaign mojo
Washington, United States - Donald Trump has never lacked for self-confidence, but his presidential campaign has been sent into a tailspin...
- President Biden's exit has been particularly impactful, removing a rival whose 81 years, faltering speech and physical frailties had largely shielded Trump from scrutiny
- Now it is Trump, 78, who is the oldest presidential nominee in history, and the point of comparison is a 59-year-old former prosecutor who has come out fast and swinging
Geostrategy
Not facing a deal but imposition of American diktats: Hamas
"To say that we are getting close to a deal is an illusion," Hamas political bureau member Sami Abu Zuhri...
- As efforts towards a truce continued, so did the killing in Gaza and Lebanon. An Israeli air strike in Lebanon killed 10 Syrians, including a woman and her two children.
- In Gaza, the civil defense authority said an Israeli air strike killed 15 people from a single Palestinian family, taking Gaza death toll to 40,047.
Economy
China youth unemployment jumps to 17.1% in July
Beijing, China - Youth unemployment in China ticked up to 17.1 percent in July, official figures showed, the highest level this...
- China is battling soaring joblessness among young people, a heavily indebted property sector and intensifying trade issues with the West
- The unemployment rate among 16- to 24-year-olds released Friday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) was up markedly from June's 13.2 percent
Geostrategy
Hamas rejects ‘new’ Gaza truce conditions as Biden says deal closer than ever
Egyptian, Qatari and US mediators have been seeking to finalize details of a framework initially outlined by Biden in May,...
- US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is to travel to Israel this weekend to advance the latest proposal, the State Department said
- Egyptian, Qatari and US mediators have been seeking to finalise details of a framework initially outlined by Biden in May, and which he said Israel had proposed
Geostrategy
United Nations calls Israeli settler attack in West Bank ‘horrific’
Geneva, Switzerland -- The United Nations on Friday said a deadly Israeli settler attack on a Palestinian village in the occupied...
- "There are even reports of weapons being distributed to the settlers. So there is clearly a state responsibility in this regard." said UN HR office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani.
- "This really is the crux of the matter: the impunity that the perpetrators of such grave violations have been enjoying," she said.
Business
Gold hits record high, oil prices slide on weak Chinese demand
Expectations of US interest rate cuts weakened the dollar, while oil prices tumbled as weak Chinese demand expectations offset turmoil...
- Oil prices slumped more than 1.5 percent. "The significant price recovery on the oil market has run out of steam in recent days," said Commerzbank analyst Carsten Fritsch.
- "For one thing, the feared retaliatory strike by Iran (on Israel) has so far failed to materialize, which has probably favored a partial pricing out of the risk premium," he said.
Geostrategy
Israel FM says expects allies to attack Iran if it strikes
Israeli Foreign Minister told his French and British counterparts that his country expects support "in attacking" Iran if it strikes...
- "If Iran attacks, we expect the coalition to join Israel not only in defense but also in attacking significant targets in Iran," Katz said
- On Thursday, Jewish settlers attacked a Palestinian village in the Israeli-occupied West Bank
Arts & Culture
Five charged over ketamine death of ‘Friends’ star Matthew Perry
Los Angeles, United States - Five people who allegedly supplied ketamine to "Friends" star Matthew Perry in a bid to exploit...
- The actor died at his luxury Los Angeles home last year, sparking an outpouring of grief from fans around the world
- An autopsy found the cause of his death was "the acute effects of ketamine," a controlled drug the recovering addict was taking as part of supervised therapy
Lebanon economic losses top $5 billion in year of clashes: World Bank
Beirut, Lebanon -- More than a year of clashes that recently escalated into war have cost Lebanon more than $5 billion...
Geostrategy
Company News
Boeing to cut 10% of workforce
Business
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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".
Geostrategy
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...
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...
Geostrategy
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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