Oman endured flash flooding with authorities reporting fatalities before the United Arab Emirates was hit by what the government described as the largest amount of rainfall in the past 75 years. The rains began on Monday night, and by Tuesday evening the desert city of Dubai had received the average amount of rainfall it normally gets for the whole year Source link
Dubai’s major international airport diverted scores of incoming flights on Tuesday as heavy rains lashed the United Arab Emirates, causing widespread flooding around the desert country. Issued on: 17/04/2024 – 01:05 2 min The world’s busiest air hub for international passengers confirmed a halt to arrivals at 7:26 pm (1526 GMT) before announcing a “gradual resumption” more than two hours later. Earlier the airport, which had been expecting more than 100 flight arrivals on Tuesday evening, took the equally unusual step of briefly halting its operations in the chaos caused by the storm. Dubai, the Middle East’s financial centre, has been paralysed by the torrential rain that caused floods across the UAE and Bahrain, and left 18 dead in Oman on Sunday and Monday. Dubai airport operations were suspended for 25 minutes in the afternoon before resuming. Unconfirmed images on social media showed planes taxiing across an apron flooded with standing water. Departure flights remained in operation during the evening but were plagued with delays and cancellations. Access roads to the airport were also badly …
Governments across the Arab world called for de-escalation in tensions between Israel and Iran on Sunday, after Iran launched a large-scale missile barrage on Israel Saturday evening. Iran fired about 350 rockets toward Israel, raising concerns over a regional war after Israel attacked Iranian military leaders in Syria earlier this month. Nearly all the rockets were intercepted in a joint effort by Israel, Jordan and the U.S., with minimal damage inside Israel. The Saudi Arabian Foreign Ministry called for the “highest levels of self-restraint” in a statement, while the United Arab Emirates government warned of growing “instability” in the region. Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry made a similar warning, urging both Israeli and Iranian leaders “to exercise utmost self-restraint and refrain from provocations that would increase tension and instability in the region.” Shoukry said the conflict between Israel and Iran “has begun taking a dangerous turn as it coincides with the crisis in the Gaza Strip and adds tension to other hot spots in the region,” adding that he spoke to Secretary of State Antony …
As the fate of TikTok hangs in the balance in the US, so too does the future of those who’ve turned the platform into an arena for change. Within a few months, Americans might lose access to TikTok if a bipartisan bill that recently passed the House of Representatives is signed into law. The United States wants the Beijing-based parent company ByteDance, which owns TikTok, to sell the app to a US company over fears of privacy and national security. But how will this ban affect the mostly young content creators and advocates for marginalised voices who have found solace and solidarity on the platform? Presenter: Myriam Francois Guests:Kahlil Greene – Digital educator and speakerNikita Redkar – Comedian, writer and content creatorWally Rashid – Online personality and entrepreneur Source link
Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during their meeting at the Vostochny Cosmodrome in the Amur region on Sept. 13, 2023. Vladimir Smirnov | Afp | Getty Images Russia’s move to effectively disband the panel of experts monitoring longstanding United Nations sanctions against North Korea points to a “grim future” for the sanctions enforcement, three former members of the panel told Reuters. Russia vetoed the annual renewal of the multinational panel of experts on Thursday, which has spent the last 15 years monitoring U.N. sanctions against North Korea over its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs. China, North Korea’s only military ally and its largest trading partner, abstained. Beijing and Moscow have denied breaking sanctions but have blocked new measures at the UN Security Council and advocated lifting some existing sanctions on North Korea, blaming the West and its allies for exacerbating tensions. Diplomats said it appeared unlikely there would be another vote to try to renew the mandate before it expires on April 30. The veto highlights a rare diplomatic dividend …
Signage for the Newsmax conservative television broadcasting network is displayed at a broadcast TV booth at the National Rifle Association (NRA) annual meeting at the George R. Brown Convention Center, in Houston, Texas on May 28, 2022. Patrick T. Fallon | Afp | Getty Images Right-wing news outlet Newsmax received an investment of roughly $50 million from a Qatari royal between 2019 and 2020, The Washington Post reported, citing documents seen by the paper and confirmations from representatives of both Newsmax and the royal investment firm. Former Qatari government official Sheikh Sultan bin Jassim Al Thani invested in Newsmax through Heritage Advisors, a London-based investment fund that he owned, according to the report. At the time, Qatar was under an economic and diplomatic blockade by a coalition of neighboring Arab states, led by the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. These nations accused Qatar of supporting terrorism, which Doha stringently denied. According to the Post’s reporting on Tuesday, Newsmax was looking for investors to compete with the likes of Fox News. The paper cited sources …
This is a drama less visually dramatic than the Houthis’ attacks — but it too involves shocking rule-breaking, as an increasing number of sailors are being abandoned by their vessels’ owners, left stuck on board sometimes for months or even years. And a leading culprit behind this growing abandonment appears to be the similarly growing shadow fleet. On Dec. 18, for example, 11 Indonesian seafarers working on the Sierra Leone-flagged cargo ship Grand Sunny realized the vessel’s owner could no longer be reached, and were left stranded in the Chinese port of Nansha. “We are trying to get food and water to the vessel urgently,” the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) logged on Dec. 19. These sailors have been stuck ever since. Moreover, the ship’s owner, Thousand Star International Ltd., is so tiny, there’s virtually no information about the company. These abandoned Indonesians aren’t the only seafarers trapped on their ships either. In the French port of Lorient, three Georgian seafarers have been stranded on their Tanzania-flagged icebreaker since Dec. 7. “The crew is in …
A suspected attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels saw an explosive detonate near a ship early Sunday in the Gulf of Aden, potentially marking their latest assault on shipping through the crucial waterway leading to the Red Sea. The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said the vessel’s crew saw the blast as it passed off the coast of Aden, the port city in southern Yemen home to the country’s exiled government. “No damage to the vessel has been reported and the crew are reported safe,” the operations center said. The Houthis have launched repeated drone and missile attacks in the same area, disrupting energy and cargo shipments through the Gulf of Aden. The rebels did not immediately claim responsibility for the attack, though it typically takes the Houthis several hours before acknowledging their assaults. Separately, the U.S. military’s Central Command said it carried out a series of strikes targeting the Houthis. It said it destroyed five drone boats and one drone before takeoff from Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen on Saturday. It was an …
United Arab Emirates helped with the delivery process through a new shipping route Source link
The Open Arms vessel docked in the Cypriot port of Larnaca. – | Afp | Getty Images An aid ship was approaching the Gaza Strip’s coastline on Friday with much-needed deliveries for the Palestinian people, as relief organizations warn that thousands in the besieged enclave are on the brink of famine. The ship — called Open Arms and run by a Spanish charity of the same name — carries around 200 metric tons of supplies including flour, rice and water, from Larnaca port in Cyprus. Video footage from the AFP news agency showed the ship visible off the shore of the Gaza Strip on Friday morning London time. The circuitous route comes as numerous trucks of food and aid await permission to enter the Gaza Strip via either the Kerem Shalom crossing, which borders Israel and Gaza, or the Rafah crossing, which borders Egypt and Gaza. Israel last year agreed to work with Cyprus in setting up an aid corridor across the sea between the European Union member and the Gaza Strip. Earlier this month, the …
