The bank's monetary policy committee decided to reduce the policy rate from 50 percent to 47.5 percent, with a statement citing improvement in "inflation expectations and pricing behavior". The last cut was in February 2023.

17 people were killed Wednesday in clashes in Tartus province after security forces sought to arrest an officer under deposed leader Bashar al-Assad. "14 members of the General Security force" of Syria's new authorities were killed,

Hamas accuses Israel of stalling the truce with new demands on troop withdrawal and prisoner release, while Netanyahu’s office counters, accusing Hamas of lying and creating obstacles in ongoing ceasefire negotiations.

Rome, Italy -- Pope Francis called Wednesday for "arms to be silenced" around the world in his Christmas address, appealing for peace in the Middle East, Ukraine and Sudan as he denounced the "extremely grave" humanitarian situation in Gaza.He used his traditional message to the world's 1.4 billion Catholics to call...

Washington, United States -- The International Monetary Fund said Tuesday that it has reached a deal with Egyptian authorities allowing the country access to about $1.2 billion.The funding access is subject to executive board approval."The Egyptian authorities have continued to implement key policies to preserve macroeconomic stability, despite ongoing regional tensions...

Kabul, Afghanistan - Pakistan air strikes in an eastern border province of Afghanistan killed 46 people, the Taliban government spokesman told AFP on Wednesday."Last night (Tuesday), Pakistan bombarded four points in the Barmal district of Paktika province. The total number of dead is 46, most of whom were children and women,"...

Jerusalem, Undefined - The Israeli army said Wednesday it intercepted a ballistic missile fired towards the country from Yemen.Air raid sirens sounded over a wide swathe of central Israel as a precaution against falling debris, but the army said it shot down the projectile before it entered Israeli territory.No injuries were...

Syria's new leaders announced Tuesday that they had reached an agreement with the country's rebel groups on their dissolution and integration under the defense ministry. Absent from the meeting were representatives of the US-backed, Kurdish-led forces that control swathes of Syria's northeast.

The surge came after the auto giant announced a $7bn buyback.

It acquired an 80 percent stake in Global Medical Supply Chain.

Paris, France -- Billionaire tech mogul Elon Musk's startup xAI said it had raised $6 billion from investors in its latest funding round, as it battles stiff competition in the artificial intelligence market.The firm, whose flagship product is the Grok chatbot, garnered support from US venture capitalists, chipmakers NVIDIA and AMD,...

Asian stocks were mostly higher on Tuesday after a tech rally on Wall Street, but their gains remained modest in thin Christmas Eve trade. European stocks bounced around while US equities shook off early weakness

In an interview with The Wall Street Journal last week, Netanyahu said, however, said he was not going to agree to end the war before they remove Hamas, adding Israel was "not going to leave them in power in Gaza, 30 miles from Tel Aviv."

Honda and Nissan were poised Monday to announce the start of talks on a merger to help the Japanese giants catch up with Chinese rivals and Tesla on electric vehicles. Their collaboration would create the world's third-largest automaker

Ahmed al-Sharaa announced all weapons, including those held by Kurdish-led forces, will come under state control, emphasizing unity and coexistence after toppling Bashar al-Assad's regime in a sweeping offensive.

"And with pain I think of Gaza, of so much cruelty, of the children being machine-gunned, of the bombings of schools and hospitals. What cruelty," the pope said after his weekly Angelus prayer. It comes a day after the 88-year-old Argentine lamented an Israeli airstrike that killed seven children from...

In Tunisia's highlands, women harvest wild herbs to earn a living, but drought is making their work harder, shrinking incomes and opportunities

Barbara Leaf, Washington's top diplomat for the Middle East, told Syria's new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa of the "critical need to ensure terrorist groups cannot pose a threat inside of Syria or externally, including to the US and our partners in the region."

The move aims to optimize financing costs.

Washington, United States -- The United Arab Emirates has informed the United States that it will not arm paramilitaries in Sudan's brutal civil war, US lawmakers long critical of the Gulf power's role quoted the White House as saying on Thursday.The assurance came as the United States announced $200 million in...

Washington, United States -- US President Joe Biden said Friday he was canceling student loans for an additional 55,000 Americans, which would amount to wiping out $4.28 billion in debt in his final month in office.The mass cancellation of debt is for "teachers, nurses, service members, law enforcement officials, and other...

Tokyo, Japan --Japanese auto giant Honda and its struggling rival Nissan will reportedly begin talks on a merger to boost their strength in electric vehicles, where Chinese brands are racing ahead.At the same time, Taiwanese electronics behemoth Foxconn has approached France's Renault to buy its large stake in Nissan, according to...

Crypto hackers stole US$2.2bn worth of crypto. This amount was a 21 percent yoy increase, the fourth consecutive year they stole US$1bn+ in crypto. Although DeFi still accounted for the largest share of stolen assets in the first quarter of 2024, centralized services were the most targeted in Q2 and...

WTTC research shows that, having endured estimated losses of $4.5 trillion and 62 million jobs in 2020 alone, travel and tourism has recovered and is set to reach new heights. The travel sector is expected to continue to grow, creating over 100 million new jobs, adds the author.

Cairo, Egypt -- The leaders of Turkey and Iran were in Egypt on Thursday for a summit of eight Muslim-majority countries, meeting for the first time since the ouster of Syria's president Bashar al-Assad.Turkey historically backed the opposition to Assad, while Iran supported his rule.The gathering of the D-8 Organisation for...

Istanbul, Turkey -- Turkey's Pegasus Airlines said Thursday it would buy 200 Boeing 737 MAX 10 aircraft in its largest-ever order worth some $36 billion as it seeks to expand its service."Pegasus has signed an agreement with The Boeing Company for 200 Boeing 737-10 aircraft," the low-cost airline said in a...

Human Rights Watch (HRW) accused Israel of committing "acts of #genocide" in the Gaza Strip by damaging water infrastructure and cutting off supplies to civilians, calling on the international community to impose targeted sanctions

Turkey's Foreign Minister warned Syria's new government to address Kurdish militancy, signaling potential intervention if unresolved with tensions rising with pro-Turkey fighters clashing against Kurdish-led forces despite a US-brokered truce.

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia – The number of employees in tourism-related activities in Saudi Arabia increased by 5.1 percent in the second quarter of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023, reaching 959,175, according to the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT).GASTAT's Tourism Establishments Statistics bulletin for the second quarter of...

Paris, France -- World coal use is set to reach an all-time high in 2024, the International Energy Agency said Wednesday, in a year all but certain to be the hottest in recorded history.Despite calls to halt humanity's burning of the filthiest fossil fuel driving climate change, the energy watchdog expects...

United Nations' special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, referring to fighting between the US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and Turkish-backed groups who have captured several Kurdish towns in recent weeks and millions in refugees returning, said that conflict in Syria could re-emerge

The UN migration chief expressed concerns about large-scale refugee returns destabilizing Syria further, particularly affecting religious minorities who fled violence during the Assad regime’s brutal crackdown and subsequent years of conflict

It is a JV between ADNOC Drilling, SLB and Patterson UTI.

The platform faces accusations of espionage in the United States, while the European Union has launched an investigation into claims it was used to sway Romania's presidential election in favor of a far-right candidate.

HTS leader Abu Mohammed al-Jolani said that all rebel factions in Syria would "be disbanded and the fighters trained to join the ranks of the defense ministry

Jolani emphasized unity in Syria, advocating a social contract among religions for justice, while urging diplomats to lift sanctions to facilitate refugee returns and support the nation’s recovery and stability.

Dubai, UAE -- Coffee aficionados and industry leaders will converge in Dubai this February at World of Coffee (WOC) Dubai 2025 to participate in its first DMCC Specialty Coffee Auction, where some of the globe's rarest and most exquisite coffee beans will be up for bidding.Through a special strategic partnership...

The Fed is widely expected to cut its key lending rate for a third straight time, reducing it by a quarter point despite a recent uptick in inflation. But there are fears it will have to slow its pace of easing next year owing to sticky inflation and bets that...

Governments worldwide are stepping up efforts to engage with Syria's new interim rulers, just over a week after Islamist-led rebels ousted President Bashar al-Assad, ending decades of brutal rule and civil war

The occupied Golan is home to about 23,000 Druze Arabs, whose presence predates the occupation and most of whom retain Syrian citizenship, as well as around 30,000 Israelis.

Tripoli, Libya -- A key oil refinery in western Libya suspended operations after armed clashes erupted early on Sunday, causing fires in several storage units, the state petrol company said.Libya's National Oil Corporation (NOC) "declares a force majeure... because several Zawiya refinery storage tanks sustained significant damage from gunfire... that led to serious...

Washington, United States -- The US Federal Reserve is widely expected to announce a quarter point cut to its key lending rate on Wednesday despite a recent uptick in inflation, in the central bank's last meeting of Joe Biden's presidency.The Fed is also tipped to signal a slower path of cuts...

The United States said Saturday it had made contact with Syria's victorious Hayat Tahrir al-Sham rebels, despite previously designating the group as terrorists, following Bashar al-Assad’s ouster last weekend

In 2024, cybersecurity remained central, addressing skill gaps and the impact of generative AI. A Strategic Cybersecurity Talent Framework offered solutions to workforce shortages, while reports underscored resilience against rising cyber risks. The global outage in July and ongoing cybercrime challenges reinforced the need for collaborative efforts to protect economies...

Los Angeles, United States -- Video game "Astro Bot" -- a family-friendly sci-fi adventure -- was named 2024's Game of the Year on Thursday at the annual awards considered the Oscars of the digital entertainment industry.The platform game featuring the adventures of a small space robot was also awarded "best family...

The firm will invest$1bn to ramp up production in South Carolina.

Asian markets fell Friday as China's latest vows to boost the beleaguered economy failed to stir much excitement, while traders looked ahead to a key Federal Reserve policy meeting

Damascus, Syria - G7 leaders will meet virtually Friday to discuss the momentous changes underway in Syria, where the interim government has vowed to institute the "rule of law" after years of abuses under ousted president Bashar al-Assad.Assad fled Syria after a lightning offensive spearheaded by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham...

The latest bloodshed came despite growing optimism that negotiations for a ceasefire and hostage release deal might finally succeed, with US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan saying on Thursday that the regional "context" had changed in favour of an agreement.

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia -- Fireworks and drones depicting the iconic golden World Cup trophy lit up the sky in Saudi Arabia's capital Wednesday after FIFA confirmed the Gulf kingdom would play host to the tournament in 2034.While the news was hardly a surprise, with Saudi Arabia emerging as the sole candidate...