AI-powered meet-up apps fight ‘epidemic of’ loneliness
San Francisco, United States -- On a summer evening in San Francisco, JT Mason went to dinner with five complete...
Arts & Culture
Bird call contest boosts conservation awareness in Hong Kong’s concrete jungle
The competition brought nearly 100 people together, including a contestant who mimicked the critically endangered yellow-crested cockatoo.
Arts & Culture
Business
Oil spills disrupt farming activities in drought-hit Iraq
Oil spills in Iraq -- a country ravaged by decades of conflict, corruption and decaying infrastructure -- have contaminated farmland...
- Amid the hills of Salaheddin province, puddles of the viscous black liquid pollute the otherwise fertile and green fields, rendering vast swathes of farmland barren
- "The oil has damaged all that the land can give," said one farmer, Abdel Majid Said, 62, who owns six hectares (15 acres) in the village of Al-Meaibdi
Arts & Culture
Museum in West Bank displays Gaza’s ‘artistic demonstration’ against war
BIRZEIT, PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES – At a museum in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Gazan works on display are proclaimed to be an...
- Alongside contemporary pieces, the works include old, traditional paintings and costumes, as well as archeological artifacts.
- Gaza's bloodiest war has devastated the small Hamas-ruled coastal territory, with its cultural heritage just one of the many casualties of war.
Geostrategy
British lawmaker suspended over ‘Islamophobic’ comments
London, UK - Britain's ruling Conservatives on Saturday suspended their former deputy chairman from the parliamentary party, after he refused to...
- Pressure had been growing on Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Tories to act following lawmaker Lee Anderson's contentious remarks.
- On the right-wing GB News channel, Anderson claimed Islamists had "got control" of Khan, who was the first Muslim mayor of London.
Geostrategy
Expelled from France, imam vows to challenge decision in court
Soliman, Tunisia - A Tunisian imam expelled from France for alleged hate speech said on Friday he would take legal action...
- Mahjoub Mahjoubi, from the town of Bagnols-sur-Ceze in the south of France, denounced his removal as "arbitrary"
- He was expelled on the charges of giving a sermon that had "retrograde, intolerant and violent" image of Islam
Domestic Haj pilgrims in Saudi Arabia guaranteed compensation for lodging issues
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - Saudi Arabia has announced that domestic pilgrims will be eligible for compensation in the event of...
- According to the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah, pilgrims will receive a 10 percent refund of their package value if there is a delay of more than two hours in obtaining accommodation
- In cases where the service provider fails to deliver the promised accommodation, the ministry will oversee housing arrangements, and the associated costs
Economy
UAE residents plead for lifestyle changes to save planet
Dubai, UAE-- As many as 81% of people in the UAE say that they owe it to future generations to...
- Nearly 80% of the respondents in the survey agreed that the time has come to transition from “preventing further damage” to “reversing damage already done”
- As many as 88% believe brands must take responsibility for helping to safeguard the future of the people and planet as they can’t make the world a better place on their own
Arts & Culture
US teens make efforts for Jewish-Muslim dialogue in New Jersey suburb
TEANECK, US - They are only teenagers, but a pair of New Jersey high school students -- one Jewish and one...
- The unexpected success of that first meeting led to a second, larger one, and the girls since have enjoyed support.
- Despite the strong turnout, the girls were not overly optimistic about the outcome of the meeting.
Arts & Culture
AI game gains popularity during Chinese New Year festivities
SHANGHAI, CHINA - Young Chinese flocking home for Lunar New Year this weekend have turned to an AI chatbot game to...
- The new game uses an AI chatbot to simulate the barrage of squirm-inducing questions young people can expect to face.
- The annual inquisition as extended families gather for China's biggest festival is a cultural touchstone across the country.
Arts & Culture
Butter chicken battle hits Indian court
Moti Mahal, one of the city's oldest restaurant chains, accuses rival of falsely taking credit for inventing the marinated chicken...
- The lawsuit, running to over 2,000 pages, claims that Moti Mahal's founder first crafted the dish by adding a rich tomato-based gravy to leftover chicken to keep the pieces moist
- The restaurant is seeking 20 million rupees ($240,000) in damages, and wants the court to bar Daryaganj from claiming its family pioneered the recipes
Arts & Culture
Iran’s long-lasting love for gemstones believed to have divine power
Common beliefs associated with gemstones are largely what motivates people to buy them, said Hassan Samimi, a lapidary at the...
- Iran's senior officials including Ayatollah Ali Khamenei have often been spotted wearing rings with agate or turquoise stones
- Agate, especially from Yemen, is popular "because it is recommended by imams" who often claim it can boost livelihoods
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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
AI-powered meet-up apps fight ‘epidemic of’ loneliness
San Francisco, United States -- On a summer evening in San Francisco, JT Mason went to dinner with five complete...
Arts & Culture
Company News
Huge crowds flock to Vatican for Pope Francis’s funeral
Arts & Culture
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Trump, Zelensky to attend Pope Francis’s funeral Saturday
Pope Francis's funeral will be held on Saturday, the Vatican announced, as world leaders from US President Donald Trump to...
Arts & Culture
As world mourns, cardinals meeting to decide the date for Pope Francis’s funeral
Vatican City, Holy See - Cardinals will meet Tuesday to decide the date for Pope Francis's funeral, starting a process...
Arts & Culture
War against elite universities: Trump ramps up conflict against defiant Harvard
Cambridge, United States - President Donald Trump escalated his war against elite US universities Tuesday with a threat to strip...
Science
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Business
$20 million rare blue diamond goes on show in Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates -- A rare blue diamond valued at $20 million went on pre-auction display on Tuesday...
- The 10-carat Mediterranean Blue, which will go on sale in Geneva next month, is the showpiece of a collection estimated at $100 million, organizers said.
- "Included in the group are the largest flawless diamond in the world... the second largest red diamond known to exist and several diamonds over 100 carats," Sotheby's said.
Arts & Culture
Hard-hitting drama ‘Adolescence’ to be shown in UK schools
London, United Kingdom - The Netflix drama "Adolescence", which has sparked widespread debate about the toxic and misogynistic influences young...
- Starmer said he had watched the drama -- in which a 13-year-old boy stabs a girl to death after being radicalised on the internet -
- The internet and social media meant "ideology" can now be "pumped directly into the minds of our children", he added
Arts & Culture
Saudi marks Eid al-Fitr today, other Mideast states on Monday
Saudi Arabia and some other Gulf Arab states are to celebrate the Eid al-Fitr holiday from Sunday but other Middle...
- The United Arab Emirates and Qatar also announced Sunday would be the first day of the holiday
- But neighbouring Oman and Jordan, as well as Shiite-majority Iran, said that Eid al-Fitr would not begin until Monday