Author: News Desk

UAE : Global police agency Interpol has elected UAE Inspector General Ahmed Naser al-Raisi, who has been accused of overseeing torture, as its new president. Raisi, who has been part of the UAE’s police force since 1980 and serves as inspector general at the country’s ministry of interior, received 68.9% of the vote at Interpol’s general assembly in Istanbul. The role is largely ceremonial — he will chair the general assembly as well as three executive committee meetings for each of the four years of his tenure. The vote went through despite criminal cases made by ex-detainees. Matthew Hedges, who was detained…

Buenos Aires : Argentina marked the one-year anniversary of the death of soccer legend Diego Maradona on Thursday with ceremonies, tributes, graffiti murals and emotional messages on social media, said AP. Maradona died of a heart attack at the age of 60 after having brain surgery two weeks earlier. Seven health professionals who tended to the star are facing criminal charges after a medical report said Maradona did not receive adequate treatment. “The world has been more horrible for a year because you are not here,” Maradona’s eldest daughter Dalma wrote on Instagram. Maradona’s youngest son, 8-year-old Diego Fernando, visited…

India : This will be the 18th round of talks between the foreign ministers under the RIC mechanism. India took over chairmanship of RIC after the last meeting of the three foreign ministers in Moscow in September last year. “The foreign ministers are expected to discuss further strengthening of RIC trilateral cooperation including exchange of views on various regional and international issues of importance,” the external affairs ministry said in a statement. China’s foreign minister Wang Yi will attend the meeting via video link, foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian told a regular news briefing on Thursday. The foreign ministers meet…

It is up to France to stop refugees crossing the Channel in small boats, Priti Patel has said after 27 people, mostly Kurds from Iraq or Iran, drowned trying to reach the UK in an inflatable boat. Making a statement to MPs, the home secretary said that while there was no rapid solution to the issue of people seeking to make the crossing, she had reiterated a UK offer to send more police to France. Answering a question in the Commons, Patel also backed the view of Robert Jenrick, the Tory MP and former communities secretary, who asked: “Would she agree with me…

Google’s Irish subsidiary has agreed to pay €218m (£183m) in back taxes to the Irish government, according to company filings on Thursday. The US tech giant, which had been accused of avoiding hundreds of millions in tax across Europe through loopholes known as the “Double Irish, Dutch Sandwich”, said it had “agreed to the resolution of certain tax matters relating to prior years”. Google Ireland Ltd said it would pay corporation tax of €622m in 2020, including the €218m backdated tax settlement and interest charges. The previous year Google Ireland paid taxes of €263m. The company, which is part of parent company Alphabet, promised last year…

Dubai : His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, today visited the Bahrain Pavilion’s National Day event held at Expo 2020 Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). His Royal Highness highlighted the Expo’s history of providing a platform to showcase innovations that have shaped the world we live in today. HRH the Crown Prince and Prime Minister noted the importance of the Expo in providing an opportunity to explore pioneering solutions that promote sustainable development. His Royal Highness commended the UAE’s continued success in hosting international exhibitions and wished the UAE…

Bahrain : The curtain fell on the third edition of the late HH Shaikh Salman bin Mohammed bin Salman Al-Khalifa Shooting Championship. Supreme Council for Youth and Sports (SCYS) First Deputy Chairman, Head of the General Sports Authority (GSA) and Bahrain Olympic Committee (BOC) President His Highness Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa attended the event. The Bahrain Shooting Association held the third edition of the championship at the Military Sports Association (MSA) shooting ground at Al Raffa. HH Shaikh Khalid commended the technical level of the championship which contributes to discover new talents practicing this sport to take part…

Dubai :  Foreign Minister Dr. Abdullatif bin Rashid Al-Zayani, inaugurated Bahrain’s Consulate General in Dubai, in the presence of the Minister of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the United Arab Emirates, Khalifa Shaheen Almarar. The inauguration was on the occasion of the visit of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, to Dubai to attend the National Day activities at the Kingdom’s pavilion (Expo Dubai 2020), The opening ceremony was attended by the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Bahrain to the United Arab Emirates, Ambassador Shaikh Khalid…

UAE : The United Arab Emirates’ embassy in Israel hosted a first-of-its-kind business conference on Israeli technology and innovation in Jaffa on Wednesday, bringing together government officials, business leaders and entrepreneurs for discussions on promoting bi-national business ties. The event was held jointly with Start-Up Nation Central, a non-profit organization that closely follows the Israeli tech ecosystem, and the Israeli Ministry of Economy. About 200 people attended the summit, among them members of a state-sponsored business delegation from the UAE led by Emirati Minister of State for Entrepreneurship and SMEs (small- and medium-sized enterprises) Ahmed Belhoul Al Falasi and Minister…

CALAIS :  French President Emmanuel Macron appealed Thursday to neighboring European countries to do more to stop illegal migration into France after at least 27 people died trying to cross the English Channel. Macron said that when migrants arrive on French shores with hopes of heading to Britain “it is already too late.” Speaking a day after the deadliest migration tragedy to date on the dangerous sea lane that separates France and Britain, Macron said France is deploying army drones as part of stepped-up efforts to patrol its northern coastline and help rescue migrants at sea. Migration is an explosive issue in Europe, where…