RIYADH: The Red Sea Development Company (TRSDC), the developer behind the world’s most ambitious regenerative tourism project, has announced the signing of nine hotel management agreements with the international hotel brands to operate resorts in the first phase of development at the Red Sea project. The agreements were unveiled on Day 2 of the Future … Read more
BEIJING: Beijing said Thursday it opposed military ties between Washington and Taiwan, after President Tsai Ing-wen confirmed a small number of US troops are present on the island. Authoritarian China regards self-ruled Taiwan as its own territory and has vowed to one day seize it, by force if needed, and has ramped up its sabre-rattling … Read more
Former fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar is mulling approaching legal action over his heated spat with Pakistan Television (PTV) host Dr Nauman Niaz. Akhtar was part of an eight-member panel that includes the likes of Sir Vivian Richards, David Gower, Sana Mir on PTV Sports show Game On Hai. The unpleasant situation emerged when the panelists … Read more
Russia reported record numbers of daily coronavirus cases and deaths on Thursday as Moscow shut down non-essential services for 11 days to combat the surge in infections. The country hardest-hit in Europe by the pandemic, Russia has struggled with low vaccination rates despite developing several of its own jabs. Recent weeks have seen daily numbers … Read more
KARACHI: ESRA, a new division of HB International, a major Pakistan-based conglomerate with prominent telecommunications interests, has announced that it has signed a contract with EAST Satellite Holdings Pty Ltd for a hybrid ultra-high throughput geostationary satellite over Pakistan, a statement said. The newWAVE satellite by EAST will deliver 80Gpbs capacity in Ku and Ka … Read more
KARACHI: Najmi Alam, vice chairman of the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KW&SB), visited the North Karachi Association of Trade and Industry (Nkati) and assured the industrialists to resolve their problems, a statement said. Talking to the industrialists, Alam said that all possible facilities would be provided for the smooth running of the production activities, … Read more
KARACHI: The commercial banks have received applications worth Rs200 billion for the low-cost housing financing under Mera Pakistan Mera Ghar (MPMG) Scheme. The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) said that as per the latest numbers of October 18, 2021, the banks have received applications of more than Rs200 billion. The banks have approved financing of … Read more
BEIJING: President Xi Jinping has said that China will continue to support Pakistan in its fight against Covid-19, jointly build the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) with high quality and strengthen cooperation and continue to deliver benefits to the people and promoting growth and improving people’s wellbeing, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said. In his telephonic … Read more
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s exports to China, Afghanistan, Iran, Turkey and the Central Asian Republics grew 35 per cent during the first quarter of the current fiscal year, compared with the corresponding period of the last year, a senior official said. In a tweet, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Commerce and Investment Razak Dawood said that … Read more
RIYADH: The tourism industry is “too big to fail”, Arab News quoted a Saudi assistant minister, as she invoked the 2008 banking collapse to describe the challenges facing the sector. Speaking at the Future Investment Initiative Forum, Princess Haifa Al Saud called for enhanced cooperation between the public and private sectors with a focus on … Read more
RIYADH: Global institutions are lacking urgency when it comes to investing in green initiatives, Arab News quoted leading figures in the financial sector, as saying in a sobering assessment of the battle against climate change. Speaking at the Future Investment Initiative Forum in Riyadh, prominent players in Saudi’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), asset management firm … Read more
Rising sea levels and violent flooding are already putting tens of millions of lives at risk in Bangladesh, but they bring another problem that threatens the entire nation: Water-logged land and high salinity in streams and soil are killing crops. Bangladesh ranks seventh for countries most affected by extreme weather in the past two decades, … Read more
LONDON: From Death Valley to the Middle East, the Indian subcontinent to sub-Saharan Africa, global warming has already made daily life unbearable for millions of people. And if nothing is done to slow climate change, the record temperatures and deadly heatwaves it brings will only get worse, experts warn. “Climate (change) is sort of steroids … Read more
President Tsai Ing-wen has confirmed a small number of US troops are present in Taiwan to help with training, adding she had “faith” that the American military would defend the island in the event of a Chinese attack. In an interview with CNN, Tsai described Taiwan as a regional “beacon” of democracy that is facing … Read more
Clean energy remains just a tiny part of the pandemic economic recovery plans despite some improvement, the IEA said on Thursday as it warned carbon dioxide emissions were set to rebound. Investments in clean energy — whether it is renewable production, electric vehicles or efficiency measures — represent only three percent of the $16.9 trillion … Read more
SEOUL: Many characters in Netflix sensation “Squid Game” are loosely based on its South Korean director’s own life and he believes its theme of economic inequality has resonated with viewers around the world. Hwang Dong-hyuk’s television debut last month became the streaming giant’s most popular series at launch, drawing at least 111 million watchers. Its … Read more
The United States on Wednesday announced its first passport with “X” for gender, a landmark step for people outside the binary male or female categories. The State Department said it had issued a first passport with “X” for gender and would make the option routinely available by early 2022 both for passports and birth certificates … Read more
Iran’s foreign minister called on the Taliban to adopt a “friendly” approach as Afghanistan’s six neighbouring countries met Wednesday to determine a “roadmap” following the Taliban’s takeover of Kabul. The meeting, two months since the Taliban swept to power in Kabul, brought the foreign ministers of Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan to Tehran, while their … Read more
ISLAMABAD: Minister for Planning Asad Umar on Tuesday urged India to come for a “comprehensive dialogue” with Pakistan for a shared future of peace and prosperity. In a tweet Asad Umar said a “mindset” had developed in India that Pakistan can be “crushed” and there was no need to work out the differences. “Last three … Read more
A female teacher at an Indian school was fired from her job after expressing happiness over Pakistan’s victory against India in the T20 World Cup, reported India Today. The Muslim teacher, Nafeesa Attari, was working at the Neerja Modi School in Indian state Rajasthan’s Udaipur area. She had put up a status on WhatsApp with … Read more
BEIJING: China placed a city of four million under lockdown on Tuesday in a bid to stamp out a domestic coronavirus spike, with residents told not to leave home except in emergencies. The restrictions came as China reported 29 new domestic infections — including six cases in Lanzhou, the provincial capital of northwestern province Gansu. … Read more
Fahima has wept many times since her husband sold their two young daughters into marriage to survive the drought gripping western Afghanistan. Oblivious to the deal, six-year-old Faristeh and 18-month-old Shokriya sit by her side in a mud-brick and tarpaulin shelter for displaced people. “My husband said if we don’t give away our daughters, we … Read more
A year-and-a-half into the coronavirus pandemic, the world has still done far too little to respond and has failed to learn from its mistakes, a global health monitor said Tuesday. In a report launched in Berlin, the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board (GPMB), an independent body set up by the World Health Organisation and the World … Read more
BEIJING: Researchers have proposed a 3D printing strategy to develop titanium alloy with high strength and plasticity, according to a recent report published in the journal Science. The inhomogeneity of composition in metallic materials is often regarded as a major defect. But, researchers have found that the inhomogeneity of composition to a certain extent contributes … Read more
WASHINGTON: Covid vaccine requirements taking effect next month for people entering the United States by air will not apply to children, a senior US official said Monday. “For children under 18 there is a uniform exemption from that vaccination requirement,” the senior official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told reporters two weeks ahead of … Read more
ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed assured the country on Monday that he wishes to reach an agreement with the outlawed Tehreek e Labbaik Pakistan (TLP). Admitting that the TLP was the third largest party of Punjab, the interior minister said he wanted that the promises made during negotiations with them are fulfilled. “The government … Read more
RIYADH: The Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen said on Sunday its air strikes had killed more than 260 Houthi rebels in the past three days, but a rebel spokesman said the bombing campaign will not stop them. The deaths are the latest among roughly 1,600 rebels the coalition claims it has killed in strikes over … Read more
JERUSALEM: Israel on Sunday announced plans to build more residences for Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank, drawing immediate condemnation from Palestinians, peace activists and neighbouring Jordan. The announcement from the housing and construction ministry in right-wing Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s government said tenders had been published for 1,355 homes in the West Bank, … Read more
