Tech Mahindra’s Ram Ramachandran: MEA, India key to shaping future in multipolar world
Davos, Switzerland -- The Middle East, Africa, and India have an important role and influence in shaping the evolving world order...
World Economic Forum
Diplomats say at least 550 pilgrims died during hajj, mostly Egyptians
"All of them (the Egyptians) died because of heat" except for one who sustained fatal injuries during a minor crowd...
Geostrategy
Hamas team heads to Cairo for new truce talks
Palestinian Territories - A Hamas delegation was expected to fly to Cairo on Saturday for talks on a truce in...
- The source said the delegation would submit Hamas's "official answer" to a proposal thrashed out with Israeli negotiators in Paris late last month.
- A Hamas source told AFP that under the proposal, a truce would last for six weeks, with Hamas releasing 42 hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
Business
Apple’s changes contradicts European rules, 34 firms complain
Brussels, Belgium - Changes Apple is making to its services in the European Union "make a mockery" of new antitrust rules...
- Companies have expressed doubts about how much Apple's changes would ultimately broaden consumer choice and digital competition.
- Apple in January announced it was modifying how its iOS operating system, Safari browser and App Store operate in the 27-nation EU.
Business
Total value of Saudi Arabia’s export of dates reaches US$389m in 2023
RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA - According to data released by the National Center for Palms and Dates (NCPD), the value of...
- By the end of 2023, the number of countries importing Saudi Arabian dates had reached 119.
- The total value of date and date-byproduct exports increased by 152.5 percent since 2016.
Business
EU queries Meta about ad-free subscriptions, shadow banning
BRUSSELS, BELGIUM - The EU on Friday used new regulatory powers to query Meta about ad-free subscriptions to Facebook and Instagram as...
- The European Commission made a request for information under the mammoth content moderation law known as the Digital Services Act (DSA).
- The EU has launched probes under the DSA to quiz platforms on how they are addressing concerns from consumer protection to children's activity online.
Geostrategy
Hamas says Israeli military action kills 7 hostages in Gaza
Hamas said that seven more hostages seized during its unprecedented attack on southern Israel on October 7 had died because...
- Hamas seized around 250 Israelis and foreigners during the October 7 attack on southern Israel.
- A spokesman for the UN agency OCHA told reporters that "if something doesn't change, a famine is almost inevitable" in Gaza.
Science
Energy-related global CO2 emissions hit record levels in 2023, says IEA
PARIS, FRANCE – Energy-related carbon dioxide emissions rose to a record level in 2023, but the growth slowed from previous years...
- CO2 emissions from energy rose by 1.1 percent in 2023, increasing by 410 million tonnes to a record 37.4 billion tonnes.
- Without the drought and water shortfalls, global carbon emissions from power generation alone would have fallen last year.
Economy
World resource extraction could surge 60 percent by 2060, UN warns
Paris, France - Extraction of Earth's natural resources could surge 60 percent by 2060, imperiling climate goals and economic prosperity, the...
- The hunger for natural resources -- everything from food to fossil fuels -- keeps growing by an average of more than 2.3 per cent per year, it said.
- Extraction and processing of the huge amount of resources accounts for over 60 percent of planet-warming emissions, the report said.
Geostrategy
Global criticism of Israel after ‘massacre’ of Gazans lining for food
Global condemnation flowed after Israeli forces in war-ravaged Gaza opened fire as Palestinian civilians scrambled for food aid during a...
- Iran denounced "the barbaric attack by the Zionist regime", China said it was "shocked", and head of the Arab League said the "brutal" act showed "total contempt for human life".
- Saudi Arabia strongly condemned what it called the "targeting" of unarmed civilians, while Kuwait and the UAE also issued condemnations.
Geostrategy
WTO ministers struggle to forge deals as talks go into overtime
ABU DHABI, UAE – World trade ministers were locked in disagreement Thursday on fisheries subsidies, agriculture and digital customs duties as...
- The meeting opened with disagreements between the body's 164 member states on key issues that dominated the agenda of the talks.
- They include fisheries subsidies, agriculture and a moratorium on customs duties for digital transactions.
Geostrategy
Iran launches imaging satellite Pars 1 from Russia
Iran announced the launch of a remote sensing and imaging satellite into orbit from Russia, according to state media. The...
- Iran’s Telecommunications minister said "Pars-I" was "fully domestically developed" in his country.
- In August 2022, Russia launched Iran's remote-sensing Khayyam satellite into orbit from Kazakhstan.
Tech Mahindra’s Ram Ramachandran: MEA, India key to shaping future in multipolar world
Davos, Switzerland -- The Middle East, Africa, and India have an important role and influence in shaping the evolving world order...
World Economic Forum
Company News
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US Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge ticks up as fuel costs rise
WASHINGTON, US – The US central bank's favored measure of inflation edged higher last month on the back of rising fuel...
Economy
Russia says ‘evidence’ links Ukraine to Moscow attack
MOSCOW, RUSSIA - Russia said on Thursday it had evidence the perpetrators of last week's massacre at a concert hall outside...
Geostrategy
Rise in remittances hikes demand for Jordanian dinar, says chamber of commerce
AMMAN, JORDAN – Rising remittances from the Kingdom’s citizens working abroad has contributed to increasing demand for Jordanian dinar.Exchange companies...
Economy
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Geostrategy
Trump tells Israel media ‘you’re losing support’ over Gaza war
Former US president Donald Trump warned Israel in an interview that it was losing support over the war in Gaza....
- Trump frequently touts himself as a devoted ally of Israel, pointing to his decision to move the US embassy to Jerusalem.
- The former US President said he would have responded to Hamas's attack "very much the same way" Israel did.
Arts & Culture
World’s only Dragon Ball theme park launched in Saudi Arabia’s Qiddiya City
RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA – The Board of Directors of the Qiddiya Investment Company (QIC) revealed on Sunday the launch of...
- Nestled within Qiddiya City, just 40 minutes from Riyadh, this never-seen-before anime theme park is set to become a spectacle.
- Inspired by the seven legendary Dragon Balls, visitors can navigate seven distinctively themed zones within the park.
Business
EU imports US$120.5bn worth of energy products in Q4 2023
BRUSSELS, BELGIUM – In the fourth quarter of 2023, the EU imported US$120.5 billion (€111.3 billion) worth of energy products...
- Compared with the same period in 2022, imports decreased both in value (-34.2 percent) and in net mass (-11.7 percent).
- Comparing 2023 with 2022, the value of energy products dropped by 35 percent, while the volume dropped by 9.4 percent.