Representatives of around 40 countries on Saturday approved plans to establish a fund to protect heritage sites in war zones and a network of safe havens for endangered artworks. A closing statement issued after two days of talks in Abu Dhabi did not specify the total amount pledged for the …
Read More »World News
Aleppo at risk of becoming “one giant graveyard” – Egypt co-sponsors ceasefire
A top UN envoy on Wednesday pleaded with the Security Council to help break the siege of Aleppo, warning that residents of the Syrian city were at risk of extermination. “For the sake of humanity we call on — we plead — with the parties and those with influence to …
Read More »Trump victory sparks global uncertainty
Republican Donald Trump has won the US presidency with at least 290 electoral votes, securing more than the 270 he needed to succeed Barack Obama. His Democratic rival Hillary Clinton had 218 electoral votes, a crushing defeat for the former secretary of state. . Donald Trump’s improbable victory in …
Read More »Libya crisis: new peace talks “must include armed groups”
Libya’s armed groups must be involved in new peace talks towards ending political division and conflict in the oil-rich country, International Crisis Group said Friday. “Little progress will be made without involving the most important armed actors in dialogue,” ICG said in a report. “The reset of the mired peace …
Read More »Turkish police detain opposition newspaper editor
Turkish police on Monday detained the editor-in-chief of the newspaper Cumhuriyet — a thorn in the side of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan — as Ankara widens a crackdown on opposition media. The Cumhuriyet, which had published revelations embarrassing for the government, said at least a dozen journalists and executives were …
Read More »Michel Aoun elected new president of Lebanon
by Layal Abou Rahal Lebanese lawmakers ended a two-year political vacuum Monday by electing as president ex-army chief Michel Aoun, who promised to protect the country from spillover from the war in neighbouring Syria. The deeply divided parliament took four rounds of voting to elect 81-year-old Aoun, whose supporters flooded …
Read More »Mediterranean refugee death toll reaches 3,800
At least 3,800 migrants and refugees have perished this year while trying to cross the Mediterranean to reach Europe, the highest ever toll ever on the perilous route, the UN said Wednesday. “We can confirm that at least 3,800 people have been reported dead or missing in the Mediterranean Sea …
Read More »Saudi Arabia announces seven fold increase in business visa fees
A seven-fold hike in visa fees to do business in Saudi Arabia risks deterring the foreign investment needed to transform its oil-dependent economy, diplomats and other sources say. But a senior Saudi business leader has dismissed such concerns, insisting the country’s most sought-after business partners could easily afford the new …
Read More »UN plans Aleppo evacuations – if truce holds
by Karam al-Masri The United Nations hopes to carry out the first medical evacuations from Aleppo on Friday, if a “humanitarian pause” in the Syrian army’s Russian-backed assault on the city holds. Despite a drop in violence after the unilateral ceasefire took effect on Thursday, there was little sign civilians …
Read More »Mohamed El Neny, Mohamed Salah short-listed for African Player of the Year
African football body CAF has released the lists of nominees for the two major annual individual awards, the African Player of the Year and the Africa-based Player of the Year: Algeria: Riyad Mahrez (Leicester City/ENG), Islam Slimani (Leicester City/ENG), El Arabi Hillel Soudani (Dinamo Zagreb/CRO) Cameroon: Samuel Eto’o (Antalyaspor/TUR), …
Read More »