Netanyahu has become a ‘problem’, says Danish PM
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said Saturday that Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu has become a "problem", adding she would try...
Geostrategy
Hezbollah vows to fight disarmament as Lebanon PM slams civil war ‘threats’
Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem vowed Friday to fight government plans to disarm his group, with Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam...
Geostrategy
Business
Meta confirms it is working on potential Twitter rival
SAN FRANCISCO, US - Facebook owner Meta is working on a new "text sharing" social media platform, it said Friday, in...
- Since billionaire Elon Musk's takeover of Twitter in October, the influential website has suffered outages, layoffs.
- Several advertisers have left the platform over the alleged lack of content moderation in recent times.
Business
US closes SVB in biggest collapse since 2008
The move sends sent global banking shares sputtering, as markets fretted over possible contagion from America's biggest banking failure since...
- The move sends sent global banking shares sputtering, as markets fretted over possible contagion from America's biggest banking failure since the 2008 financial crisis
- SVB specialized in financing start-ups and had become the 16th largest US bank by assets. At the end of 2022, it had $209bn in assets and approximately $175.4bn in deposits
Geostrategy
Turkey poll on May 14: Erdogan vows to heal quake-stricken nation
Erdogan banned music from his campaign as he signed a decree on national television that kics off campaigning for what...
- Voters face a choice between keeping Erdogan's Islamic-rooted party in power until 2028 or handing the reins back to the main secular party of Turkey's founder Kemal Ataturk.
- Erdogan's political opponents have formed the type of broad-tent coalition that Erdogan himself relied on to win more than a dozen elections over his career.
Geostrategy
Syria’s Aleppo airport operational after Israeli air attack
DAMASCUS, SYRIA - Syria's Aleppo airport, a key conduit for relief flights after the devastating February earthquake, reopened on Friday, an...
- The damage caused by the raid forced aid deliveries and all flights to be diverted to Latakia and Damascus airports, the transport ministry had said.
- Israeli warplanes killed three people in the raid on the airport in Aleppo, Syria's second city, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor had said.
Geostrategy
Iran, Saudi agree to restore severed ties after talks in China
Riyadh cut ties with Tehran after Iranian protesters attacked Saudi diplomatic missions in the Islamic republic in 2016 following the...
- Ali Shamkhani, the secretary of Iran's Supreme NSC, had travelled to Beijing for "intensive negotiations with his Saudi counterpart" to resolve Riyadh -Tehran problems, IRNA said.
- Iraq, a neighbor to both countries, had hosted several rounds of low-level talks between Iran and Saudi Arabia since April 2021.
Geostrategy
Israeli settler kills suspected Palestinian gunman in West Bank
An Israeli settler killed an assailant in the occupied West Bank, the Israeli military said, the latest bloodshed in a...
- The Palestinian health ministry said the settler killed 21-year-old Abd al-Karim al-Sheikh at Qalqilya, a Palestinian city near Dorot Illit.
- The attack came hours after a member of the armed wing of the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas opened fire on a cafe in Tel Aviv.
Turkey to hold talks with Sweden, Finland on stalled NATO bids
A statement from NATO said that "participants welcomed the progress that has been made" on a three-way deal struck last...
- Turkey and Hungary are the only NATO countries still to ratify the applications, which must be accepted by all 30 existing members of the military organization
- Finland and Sweden dropped their decades-long policies of military non-alignment and applied to join the alliance last May after Moscow's invasion of Ukraine
Geostrategy
Bahrain ‘cancels’ HRW visas ahead of parliamentary meet
Dubai, UAE -- Bahrain has revoked visas for two members of Human Rights Watch who planned to attend this week's...
- The IPU, which groups parliaments around the world and aims to promote democracy, said it was "aware" the visas were revoked.
- But IPU said it "is not responsible for the visa process which is a sovereign decision of the host country".
Geostrategy
Xi Jinping gets third term as China’s president
The 69-year-old has weathered widespread protests over his zero-Covid policy and the deaths of countless people after its abandonment. But...
- The appointment by China's rubber-stamp parliament comes after Xi locked in another five years as head of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in October
- In an oath beamed live on state television, he vowed to "build a prosperous, strong, democratic, civilized, harmonious and great modern socialist country."
UN buys ship to remove oil from decaying tanker off Yemen coast
The 47-year-old ship has not been serviced since Yemen's devastating civil war broke out in 2015 and was left abandoned...
- UNDP signed a contract to purchase a crude carrier from major tanker company Euronav that will head to Yemen to remove the oil from the beleaguered FSO Safer
- The United States, which has contributed $10 million, welcomed the UN announcement and called on other nations as well as private donors to fill the funding gap
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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
Netanyahu has become a ‘problem’, says Danish PM
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said Saturday that Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu has become a "problem", adding she would try...
Geostrategy
Company News
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UN chief says six colleagues killed in Israel strike on Gaza school
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said late Wednesday that Israeli air strikes on a school-turned-shelter in Gaza killed six staffers...
Geostrategy
Israel strike on Lebanon kills Hezbollah commander
Mohammad Qassem al-Shaer, "a field commander" in the group's elite Radwan Force, "was targeted in an Israeli strike on a...
Geostrategy
Most Read
Business
Apple unveils new iPhone built for AI, looks to boost sales
Cupertino, United States - Apple on Monday unveiled new iPhones built for generative artificial intelligence as it seeks to boost sales...
- The tech giant has a lot riding on the new iPhone 16 and hopes that customers are enticed to buy the latest models, attracted by new AI powers
- The features are similar to tools recently released by Meta, Microsoft and Google, which can produce well-crafted content simply by querying in everyday language
Gaza agency says Israeli strike kills 40 in humanitarian zone
Gaza civil defence official Mohammed Al-Mughair told AFP early Tuesday that "40 martyrs and 60 injured were recovered and transferred"...
- The strike hit Al-Mawasi - in Gaza's main southern city of Khan Yunis - which was designated a safe zone by the Israeli military early in the war
- Israel's military has occasionally carried out operations in and around the area, including a strike in July that it said killed Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif
Geostrategy
WTO says trade alone won’t bridge gap between economies
The WTO's 2024 report on global trade looked at the role that commerce has played to narrow the gap between...
- The report found that low- and middle-income economies tend to engage less in international trade, receive less foreign direct investment and depend more on commodities.
- WTO chief economist Ralph Ossa added: "Less trade will not promote inclusiveness, nor will trade alone."