European Union probes UAE oil giant’s purchase of Germany’s Covestro
Brussels, Belgium -- The European Commission on Monday announced an investigation into the takeover of German chemical firm Covestro by...
Business
Godzilla fans fete the monster as it turns 70
San Diego, United States - Godzilla has morphed over the years, but one constant is the devotion of its fans,...
Arts & Culture
Geostrategy
Thousands in Morocco call for end to Gaza war, normalization deal with Israel
Rabat, Morocco -- Tens of thousands of Moroccans demonstrated Sunday in the capital Rabat against the dire humanitarian situation in...
- Protesters gathered in the city center, brandishing Palestinian flags and placards calling for the free flow of aid to the war-ravaged Palestinian territory.
- "It's a disgrace, Gaza is under fire", "Lift the blockade", "Morocco, Palestine, one people" and "no to normalization", chanted the demonstrators.
Geostrategy
European powers plan fresh nuclear talks with Iran
Berlin, Germany -- Britain, France and Germany are planning to hold fresh talks with Iran on its nuclear programme in...
- Britain, France and Germany "are in contact with Iran to schedule further talks for the coming week".
- Iran's Tasnim news agency also reported that Tehran had agreed to hold talks with the three European countries, citing an unnamed source.
Geostrategy
Syrian govt says fighting in Sweida halted after tribal forces pull out
Druze fighters had pushed out rival armed factions from the city on Saturday, a monitor said, after the government ordered...
- Sweida was "evacuated of all tribal fighters, and clashes within the city's neighborhoods were halted", Syria's interior ministry spokesman Noureddine al-Baba said.
- More than 900 people have been killed in Sweida since last Sunday as sectarian clashes between the Druze and Bedouin drew in the Islamist-led government, Israel and armed tribes..
Geostrategy
Thai wildlife hospital treats Sunbears, elephants
Edwin Wiek founded Wildlife Friends Foundation Thailand (WFFT) facility in 2001 with two macaques and a gibbon. It now spans...
- The light-filled hospital only opened this month, replacing a previous "tiny" clinic, said WFFT founder Edwin Wiek.
- Wiek once had tendentious relations with Thai authorities, even facing legal action, but more recently has become a government advisor.
Geostrategy
Restoring sea floor after mining may not be possible, researchers warn
Kingston, Jamaica -- Scientists present at the latest effort to hash out international rules for deep-sea mining say it's unclear...
- The sea floor is a coveted frontier for companies and countries eager to access minerals that are in high demand for emerging technologies such as electric cars.
- Particularly coveted are potato-sized nodules containing cobalt, nickel, copper and manganese, that are found in abundance on the seabed in the central Pacific Ocean.
Geostrategy
Ceasefire order fails to halt fighting in Syria’s Druze heartland
Sweida, Syria - Syrian Bedouin and their allies fought Druze fighters in the community's Sweida heartland for a seventh day...
- AFP correspondents reported clashes in the west of the provincial capital as Druze fighters battled armed Bedouin supported by tribal gunmen from other parts of Syria
- The interior ministry announced that internal security forces had begun deploying in Sweida province and AFP correspondents saw them manning checkpoints
Geostrategy
Israeli fire kills 39 and wounds more than 100 Gazans near two aid centers
UN has said it had recorded 875 people killed in Gaza while trying to get food, including 674 in the...
- The World Food Programme said nearly one in three people in Gaza were not eating for days at a stretch and "thousands" were "on the verge of catastrophic hunger".
- Civil defense agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal said the deaths happened near a site southwest of Khan Yunis and another center northwest of Rafah
Economy
Turkey parliament passes contentious mining legislation
Turkey's parliament on Saturday passed a controversial bill that opens certain agricultural lands including olive groves to mining activities, local...
- The bill, part of a broader package proposed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's ruling AKP party, sparked protests from opposition parties and environmental groups
- Farmers from across Turkey have gathered outside parliament over the past two weeks, urging the government to withdraw the draft, with some starting a hunger strike this week
Geostrategy
Trump sues Murdoch, newspaper over Epstein sex bombshell
Washington, United States - US President Donald Trump sued media magnate Rupert Murdoch and The Wall Street Journal for at...
- The defamation lawsuit, filed in federal court in Miami, saw the 79-year-old Republican hitting back at a scandal threatening to cause serious political damage
- The Journal reported Thursday that in 2003, the then-real estate magnate wrote a birthday letter to Epstein, illustrated with a naked woman and alluding to a shared "secret."
Geostrategy
New clashes rock Syria’s Druze heartland as tribal fighters reinforce Bedouin
Armed tribes supported by Syria's Islamist-led government clashed with Druze fighters in the community's Sweida heartland on Friday, a day...
- The United Nations called for an end to the "bloodshed" and demanded an "independent" investigation of the violence, which has claimed nearly 600 lives since Sunday
- It was Sharaa who ordered government forces to pull out, saying that mediation by the United States and others had helped avert a "large-scale escalation" with Israel
European Union probes UAE oil giant’s purchase of Germany’s Covestro
Brussels, Belgium -- The European Commission on Monday announced an investigation into the takeover of German chemical firm Covestro by...
Business
Company News
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UK starts online checks to stop children accessing harmful content
London, United Kingdom -- New UK age verification measures to prevent children accessing harmful online content came into force on...
Geostrategy
UN chief blasts ‘lack of compassion’ for Palestinians in Gaza
United Nations, United States -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday slammed the international community for turning a blind eye...
Geostrategy
China’s premier tells EU leaders ‘we can’t afford’ massive industrial subsidies
Chinese Premier Li Qiang dismissed EU fears over Beijing's allegedly excessive subsidies to its industry, telling the bloc's leaders "we...
Economy
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Geostrategy
Macron says France will recognise State of Palestine, angering Israel, US
At least 142 countries now recognise or plan to recognise Palestinian statehood, according to an AFP tally -- though Israel...
- At least 142 countries now recognise or plan to recognise Palestinian statehood, according to an AFP tally -- though Israel and the United States strongly oppose the move
- Several countries have announced plans to recognise statehood for the Palestinians since Israel launched a bombardment of Gaza nearly two years ago
Geostrategy
Iran defends ‘unshakable’ right to enrich uranium ahead of key talks
Iran on Thursday reaffirmed its right to enrich uranium, saying it was "unshakable", on the eve of key talks with...
- Friday's meeting, set to take place in Istanbul, will be the first since Israel's mid-June attack targeting key nuclear and military sites in the Iran sparked a 12-day war
- The hostilities between Iran and Israel broke out just two days before Tehran and Washington were set to resume negotiations on Iran's nuclear programme
Geostrategy
International Court of Justice court paves way for climate reparations
The court said climate change was an "urgent and existential threat" and countries had a legal duty to prevent harm...
- Countries breaching their climate obligations were committing a "wrongful act", the court said in its advisory opinion, which is not legally binding.
- Campaigners and countries on the climate frontlines hailed a milestone moment in the fight for accountability from big polluters most responsible for global warming.