Turkey opens Spotify probe after ‘provocative playlist’ complaint
Istanbul, Turkey - Turkey's competition authority has launched an investigation into Spotify for anti-competitive practices as a deputy minister demanded...
Arts & Culture
Settlers and Palestinians clash in West Bank village
Sinjil, Palestinian Territories - Dozens of Israeli settlers and Palestinians clashed Friday in the occupied West Bank village of Sinjil,...
Geostrategy
Business
European equities retreat before US inflation data
European stock markets retreated at the open Friday following losses in Tokyo, with all eyes on US inflation data and...
- In the eurozone, Frankfurt's DAX index shed 0.7 percent to 14,103.61 points and the Paris CAC 40 lost 0.7 percent to 6,315.39
- Economists warn that surging inflation, driven by soaring energy prices, could push top economies into recession
Arts & Culture
Turkish site holds secrets to dawn of civilization
On a sun-blasted hillside in southeast Turkey, the world's oldest known religious sanctuary is slowly giving up its secrets.
- Thousands of our prehistoric ancestors gathered around its highly-decorated T-shaped megalith pillars to worship 7,000 years before Stonehenge or the earliest Egyptian pyramids
- Academics believe the history of human settlement began in these hills close to the Syrian border some 12,000 years ago
Geostrategy
Iran removal of monitoring cameras may scupper nuclear talks: IAEA
The UN atomic energy watchdog said Thursday that Iran was removing 27 surveillance cameras at its nuclear facilities, warning this...
- The negotiations also aim to lift sanctions against Iran and bring it back into compliance with nuclear commitments it made to world powers as part of the deal
- International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) members on Wednesday passed a resolution censuring Iran over its lack of cooperation with the watchdog
Geostrategy
Lebanon should block Israel gas extraction move: Hezbollah chief
Lebanon should block Israel from extracting gas from a disputed offshore field, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah said Thursday, warning a...
- Nasrallah said extraction should halt pending the completion of maritime border negotiations between Lebanon and Israel
- The company "should pull out its ship immediately and avoid getting involved in this aggression and provocation against Lebanon," he said
Geostrategy
Israeli PM holds talks in UAE after Iran snub, trade deal
Israel's Prime Minister Naftali Bennett held talks with the UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Thursday during...
- There was no prior announcement of the trip, which Bennett's office described as a "snap visit" at the invitation of Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed.
- The UAE was the first Gulf country to normalise relations with Israel and only the third Arab nation to do so after Egypt and Jordan.
Arts & Culture
Auction gathers horse-lovers from across divided Libya
Libyan horse-lovers have managed to keep their traditions alive, including the crafts of making saddles and tack -- and breeding...
- Despite years of conflict and division since the fall of dictator Moamer Kadhafi in 2011, breeders and buyers from across Libya were able to attend.
- Equestrianism has a prominent place in Libya as in other parts of the Arab world, with weekly horse races as well as shows and parades.
Geostrategy
Iran condemns IAEA censure vote in new blow to nuclear talks
Iran already announced it had disconnected some International Atomic Energy Agency cameras monitoring its nuclear sites in anticipation of the...
- The motion -- approved by 30 members of the IAEA board of governors, with only Russia and China voting against -- was the first to criticise Iran since June 2020.
- The agency has said its questions about the three sites of Marivan, Varamin and Turquzabad were "not clarified" in its meetings with Iranian authorities.
Business
Iraq approves $17bn to pay Iran gas debt and buy grain
Iraq passed Wednesday an emergency finance bill to pay debts to Iran to ensure gas supplies and forestall worsening power...
- Iraq's agricultural sector contracted by 17.5 percent last year "following severe droughts, energy outages, and the rising global price of inputs", according to the World Bank
- Despite its immense oil and gas reserves, Iraq remains dependent on imports to meet energy needs
Science
Cut airline emissions to meet Paris targets: report
The world needs "early, aggressive and sustained" government intervention to cut aviation emissions if Paris Agreement temperature goals are to...
- Airlines must start to slash emissions before the end of the decade and by 2025 if possible, said the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) in a new report
- Earth's average surface temperature has already risen 1.2C above preindustrial levels
Geostrategy
European sanctions will wipe out Russia’s 15 years of economic gains
Sanctions imposed on Moscow over the invasion of Ukraine are rolling back more than a decade of economic progress and...
- According to IIF report, Russian economy will contract by 15 percent in 2022 and another three percent in 2023
- The damage will make it more costly for Russian president Vladimir Putin to continue the war
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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
Turkey opens Spotify probe after ‘provocative playlist’ complaint
Istanbul, Turkey - Turkey's competition authority has launched an investigation into Spotify for anti-competitive practices as a deputy minister demanded...
Arts & Culture
Company News
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‘Number one’ Joshua defeats Ngannou with brutal second-round KO
Joshua, a former unified WBO, WBA and IBF heavyweight champion, went into the fight on the back of three successive...
Asif Ali Zardari: ‘Artful dodger’ returns as Pakistan president
He has spent more than 11 years in jail, a long time even by the standards of Pakistani politicians, with...
Geostrategy
Canada to resume funding UN agency for Palestinians
Canada has reviewed the investigation's interim report and "we were reassured by the contents," Minister of International Development said. He...
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Geostrategy
US plan for Gaza aid transfer through sea dismissed by UN expert
In his annual State of the Union address to Congress, President Joe Biden said the US military would "lead an...
- But Michael Fakhri, the United Nations special rapporteur on the right to food, dismissed the measure.
- Neither a pier, nor the increasing airdrops over Gaza would "prevent starvation and famine by any definition", Fakhri said.
Geostrategy
Zelensky to discuss war, Black Sea security during Turkey visit
NATO member Turkey has sought to maintain good relations with Moscow and Kyiv throughout the two-year war, with Erdogan pitching...
- NATO member Turkey has sought to maintain good relations with Moscow and Kyiv throughout the two-year war, with Erdogan pitching himself as a key go-between.
- A Turkish diplomatic source told AFP that Ankara "will once again emphasize that our strong support for the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine.
Geostrategy
Muslims pray for end to Palestinian suffering as Ramadan nears
Other parts of the Islamic world may be grappling with their own challenges, from conflicts to high inflation. But many...
- While international mediators were hoping for a truce in time for Ramadan, no breakthrough had come by Friday.
- Much of the territory of 2.4 million people has become a hellscape of bombed-out neighborhoods, emaciated children and mass graves.