AI toys look for bright side after troubled start
Las Vegas, United States -- Toy makers at the Consumer Electronics Show were adamant about being careful to ensure that...
Business
US could run Venezuela, tap its oil for years, Trump says less than a week after toppling Maduro
The United States could run Venezuela and tap into its oil reserves for years, President Donald Trump said in an...
Geostrategy
Geostrategy
Opec+ plus to raise oil production by 137,000 barrels a day in Nov
The increase was less than many analysts expected, with the cartel seeking to avoid pressuring prices amid weak demand. OPEC+...
- Opec+'s priority at the start of the year was to maintain prices high by limiting supply, but it changed strategy starting in April.
- Since April, the V8 group -- comprising Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria and Oman -- has boosted production by 2.5 mbpd in total.
Geostrategy
Hundreds of thousands turn out at pro-Palestinian marches in Europe
Huge numbers turned out at pro-Palestinian rallies in Europe on Saturday, calling for an immediate end to the war in...
- Organisers of the protest in Rome said hundreds of thousands of people had turned out for a fourth day running, after Israel intercepted the flotilla seeking to reach Gaza
- Elsewhere, several thousand people marched through the centre of the Irish capital, Dublin, to mark what organisers said was "two years of genocide" in Gaza
Geostrategy
Israel confirms 137 more activists from Gaza-bound flotilla deported to Turkey
Jerusalem, Undefined - Israel said on Saturday that it had deported 137 more activists who were detained while taking part...
- The Israeli foreign ministry said those deported were citizens of the United States, Italy, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Jordan and several other countries
- The Global Sumud Flotilla set sail last month, ferrying politicians and activists including Swedish campaigner Greta Thunberg towards Gaza, where the United Nations says famine is
Geostrategy
Hamas says ready for peace talks, Trump urges Israel to halt Gaza bombing
Trump's peace proposal, backed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calls for a halt to hostilities in the nearly two-year...
- "President Trump's statements on the immediate cessation of Israeli bombings in the Gaza Strip are encouraging," Hamas spokesman Taher al-Nunu told AFP
- "Hamas is ready to immediately begin negotiations to achieve a prisoner exchange, end the war and ensure the withdrawal of the (Israeli) army from the Gaza Strip," he added
Geostrategy
Palestinian agency says water supply resumes in central Gaza
The Ramallah-based Palestinian Water Authority said Friday that running water would return to central Gaza after damage to supply lines...
- Almost all Gazans have been displaced during the nearly two years of war, increasing the population density in central Gaza, which has been less affected by airstrikes
- The repairs on the water main took time, the Water Authority said, because of military activity and the presence of Israeli forces, and had to be done in coordination with Israel
Economy
AI in an ‘industrial bubble’ but will benefit society: Bezos
Turin, Italy - Artificial intelligence technology is in an "industrial bubble," Amazon founder Jeff Bezos told a tech conference in...
- "Investors don't usually give a team of six people a couple billion dollars with no product... and that's happening today," Bezos told an audience at Tech Week in Turin
- Multiple technologies are in a kind of "golden age," he said, echoing language used by US President Donald Trump. "There's never been a better time to be excited about the future."
Geostrategy
Trump demands Hamas agree to deal by Sunday or face ‘all hell’
"If this LAST CHANCE agreement is not reached, all HELL, like no one has ever seen before, will break out...
- In the post, Trump said "innocent Palestinians" should evacuate an unspecified area in anticipation of a potential assault on Hamas's remaining forces.
- Trump's deal calls for a ceasefire, the release of hostages within 72 hours, Hamas's disarmament and a gradual Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.
Geostrategy
Not all ‘A’s: Unconventional paths that led to Nobels
Stockholm, Sweden -- Some Nobel laureates were straight-A students from the get-go. But others AFP spoke to recounted how they...
- Many Nobel laureates had unconventional academic starts, including cutting classes, getting expelled, or performing poorly in their studies.
- Laureates like Einstein and Frances Arnold overcame early educational struggles to achieve groundbreaking scientific recognition.
Geostrategy
Carrefour name disappears from Arab stores as Israel boycotters claim victory
Dubai, United Arab Emirates -- The Carrefour name has disappeared from storefronts in some Arab countries, with pro-Palestinian shoppers and...
- The French multinational has long been in the crosshairs of Palestinian supporters, who accuse it of selling products from Israeli settlements and partnering with Israeli firms.
- Majid Al Futtaim, the group that operates the Carrefour franchise in the Middle East, has closed the brand's supermarkets in Jordan, Oman, Kuwait and Bahrain.
Arts & Culture
Let the ‘Showgirl’ era begin: Taylor Swift’s new album is almost here
New York, United States - Swifties, the wait is nearly over. Taylor Swift's hotly anticipated "The Life of a Showgirl"...
- "Showgirl" is the 35-year-old's 12th studio album, and draws inspiration from her life on the record-shattering Eras Tour, which wrapped up late last year with a staggering $2 bn
- The album "comes from the most infectiously joyful, wild, dramatic place I was in in my life," she said on the New Heights podcast hosted by Kelce and his brother
Most Read
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
AI toys look for bright side after troubled start
Las Vegas, United States -- Toy makers at the Consumer Electronics Show were adamant about being careful to ensure that...
Business
Company News
Latest News
Ukraine hails ‘real progress’ in Zelensky’s talks with US envoys to end the war with Russia
Kyiv's negotiator Rustem Umerov wrote on social media that the marathon diplomacy in the German capital had been "constructive and...
Geostrategy
Deja vu? Trump accused of economic denial and physical decline
Washington, United States -- An aging president faces poor poll numbers and suspicions about his health but insists that America...
Economy
Hamas says weapons are ‘legitimate right’, open to proposals that preserve it
"Resistance and its weapons are a legitimate right guaranteed by international law and are linked to the establishment of a...
Geostrategy
Most Read
Economy
Algeria include son of Zinedine Zidane in AFCON squad
Goalkeeper Luca Zidane, a son of France football icon Zinedine Zidane, was named on Saturday in the Algeria squad for the...
- The 27-year-old plays for Spanish second-tier club Granada and represented France at youth level before switching his international allegiance to Algeria
- "I'm sure the players will arrive highly motivated and ready to play in this AFCON," said Algeria coach and former Switzerland coach Vladimir Petkovic after announcing the squad
Geostrategy
China’s smaller manufacturers look to catch the automation wave
Yancheng, China -- In a light-filled workshop in eastern China, a robotic arm moved a partially assembled autonomous vehicle as workers...
- China is already the world's largest market for industrial robots.
- The first essentially humanless factories are already in operation.
Geostrategy
Trump vows revenge after troops in Syria killed in alleged IS ambush
The deadly attack had been "an ambush by a lone ISIS gunman," who was "engaged and killed," US Central Command...
- Trump called it "an ISIS attack against the US, and Syria, in a very dangerous part of Syria, that is not fully controlled by them."
- The incident is the first of its kind reported since Islamist-led forces overthrew longtime Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad in December last year