Showing posts with label News. Show all posts
Showing posts with label News. Show all posts
Donald Trump On The Middle East... And Much More
Multi-billionaire Donald Trump has vowed to beat terrorism in the Middle East if he was elected president of the United States, and warned that Saudi Arabia would be “nothing” without the US. In a speech at the famous Trump Tower in Manhattan, New York City, on Tuesday, the sixty-nine-year-old tycoon announced his intention to stand as a Republican candidate in the 2016 presidential election. He told viewers: “Islamic terrorism is eating up large portions of the Middle East…Mark my words. Nobody would be tougher on ISIL than Donald Trump. Nobody.” Referring to reports last month that ISIL had re-opened a 262-key luxury hotel in Mosul, Trump said the terrorist group had become so rich he was now “in competition with them”. He said: “Now ISIL has the oil, and what they don’t have, Iran has. I said it, very strongly, years ago, that I want to have the strongest military we’ve ever had, and we need it more now than ever. But I said, “don’t hit Iraq”, because you’re going to totally destabilise the Middle East. “Iran is going to take over the Middle East, Iran and somebody else will get the oil, and it turned out that Iran is now taking over Iraq. Think of it. Iran is taking over Iraq, and they’re taking it over big league. He slammed current president Barack Obama’s Middle East foreign policy as “a disaster”. “We spent $2 trillion in Iraq, $2 trillion. We lost thousands of lives, thousands in Iraq. We have...thousands of wounded soldiers. And we have nothing. We can’t even go there. “Our president doesn’t have a clue… Take a look at the deal he’s making with Iran [intended to force Iran to scale back its nuclear weapons programme]. He makes that deal, Israel maybe won’t exist very long. It’s a disaster.”
Trump also said Saudi Arabia was in “big, big trouble” as a result of its staunch policy on oil production. “Now, thanks to fracking and other things, the oil is all over the place. “They’ve got nothing but money.” He also claimed the Kingdom was dependent upon the US for its economic survival. "Saudi Arabia without us is gone. They’re gone," he said. The real estate magnate, whose luxury $1.76 million Trump-branded Dubai homes at Damac’s Akoya were launched in March, added that he thought China posed a bigger threat to the US than ISIL in the long term. He said: “You have a problem with ISIL. You have a bigger problem with China. They’re building up their military to a point that is very scary…They’re building a military island in the middle of the South China sea.” The US, Trump concluded, needs a “truly great leader” to tackle such threats from foreign enemies. “Sadly the American Dream is dead,” he pronounced. “We need a leader that wrote [Trump’s 1987 business book] The Art of the Deal.” However, his withering attack on Mexico (“They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people”) and his pledge to build a wall – paid for by Mexico – on the US southern border, prompted Hispanic civil rights group the National Council of La Raza to label Trump “an extremely silly man”. “This is a man who has a pathological need for attention,” Lisa Navarrete, a director at La Raza, told the UK’s Guardian newspaper. “I look at him as a two-year-old who will say a naughty word to get their parents’ attention. That’s what he’s doing.”
Women From MENA At Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards
Started in 2006, the Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards aim to identify, support and encourage resourceful ideas by women ‘treps globally. Developed by Cartier, the Women’s Forum, McKinsey & Company and INSEAD, so far they’ve helped over 120 potential female businesspeople and recognized 38 Laureates. Three promising women from each region are nominated, and go through two rounds that include mentorship and a presentation of their respective business plans for jury evaluation. One Laureate is chosen per region and receives US$20,000 of funding, one year of coaching, networking opportunities and media exposure. Who are the three women representing the MENA region this year? Hailing from UAE is May Habib, Founder and CEO of Qodoba, a tech company using “proprietary software” to enhance “localization and translation.” With lack of quality Arabic content online, the company has shaken up the overlooked industry, raising $1.5m in Series A funding. Next up is Mariam Hazem, Co-Founder of Reform Studio, which designs high-quality fashion products out of plastic bags.
UAE The First Arab Country to Sell The iPhone 6
UAE consumers will have to wait at least three weeks before getting their hands on the Apple iPhone 6, which was launched in California on Tuesday night. As early as last Thursday, Apple fans began to camp outside the company’s flagship US store ahead of the launch. While an exact date for the UAE launch is not yet known, retailers in the country have estimated that it could be anywhere between three to six weeks before it arrives in local stores (or ten days online). The Khaleej Times, speaking to founder of online retailer JadoPado, Omar Kassim, estimated that the new iPhone could be available in the UAE as early as September 20, and could retail for somewhere in the region of AED3,100 ($750). “I’d expect a bit of a price premium for the first week or so, around eight to 10 per cent over Apple’s retail US prices, but I don’t expect it to change versus their current iPhone 5s prices,” Kassim said. “It is likely the iPhone 6 will be available in launch markets 10 days after the announcement.
MENA Fashion Week In Dubai
Around 50 fashion designers will showcase their latest creations at the upcoming inaugural edition of Fashion Week MENA, slated to take place from October 1 to 4, 2014 in the glitzy Emirati city of Dubai. Expected to be attended by industry insiders, buyers, potential consumers and fashion editors and bloggers, the event will showcase fresh spring/summer 2015 collections from a talented mix of both regional aFand international names. The designers’ line up includes the likes of the India-born, Pakistan-raised and New York-based label Altaf Manneshia, who is known for his bold intricately detailed structured pieces, the house of Armani-trained talent known for his Eastern-influenced design sensibilities, Amber Feroz, and the London-born NYC-based international celebrity-favoured designer Charlotte Ronson whose designs are being favoured by Blake Lively, Kirsten Dunst, Nicole Richie, Rihanna, Diane Kruger, Leighton Meester and Kate Moss.
Most Punctual Airlines In MENA
Bahrain's Gulf Air tops the list of the most punctual regional airlines in 2013, as compiled by Flight Stats. Airline passengers worldwide are often faced with lengthy delays, caused by factors such as bad weather conditions, airport congestion and time mismanagement. However, according to data from Flight Stats which tracks flight performance data, airline punctuality is relatively high in the MENA region in comparison to other parts of the world, with two regional airlines boasting over 90 per cent on-time arrival rates. But Flight Stats did add a disclaimer. Within this region, many carriers track less than 90 per cent of their flights, hence results may not be completely accurate. Most punctual airlines in the MENA in 2013: 1. Gulf Air: Flights: 43,515. On Time Arrival: 90.73 per cent. The Bahraini airline was one of only two in the Middle East and Africa region to boast an on–time arrival of over 90 per cent in 2013. 2. South African Airways: Flights: 59,900. On Time Arrival: 90.42 per cent. The largest airline in South Africa, which narrowly missed the top spot, is currently experimenting with Tobacco based bio–fuels to reduce its carbon footprint.
Mohammed Saeed Harib's And Gibran's The Prophet
In between working on his cartoon show Freej, Mohammed Saeed Harib has been devoted to a project produced by Salma Hayek and funded by the Doha Film Institute – an animated adaptation of the Lebanese poet Khalil Gibran’s 1923 philosophy classic The Prophet. It features the voice of Liam Neeson, while Hayek voices a supporting character. Harib was picked to be one of the nine directors from around the world to direct a chapter of the book within The Prophet, all brought together by the Lion King director Roger Allers. Harib says being the only Arab among them, and the only director who hasn’t won or been nominated for an Oscar, was a challenge. “Each director had the freedom to choose whatever style he wanted, to put his vision into it,” explains Harib. “It took me one year to produce a three-and-a-half-minute piece.” The story is a series of philosophical poems, with each “chapter” of the movie covering a different theme such as Love, Marriage, Death, Crime and Punishment, and Good and Evil, which is Harib’s segment. “Good and Evil is about taking a path,” says the director.
Jorge Takla, A Lebanese–Brazilian Theater Director
Jorge Takla is perhaps Brazil’s most prominent theater director. In recent years he has brought numerous Western musicals to the country, with the performances drawing praise for their unique staging and minimalist lighting. Takla is far from the average Lebanese–Brazilian. Unlike most, he was born in Lebanon and lived in Beirut until his late teens when he travelled to France to study. He comes from Lebanese aristocratic stock — his father Philippe was seven times Lebanon’s foreign minister, the first head of the central bank, and Lebanon’s ambassador to the United Nations. Despite this commitment to Lebanon, Philippe wanted his children to get out, especially as they had Brazilian citizenship through their Lebanese–Brazilian mother. “He always said when we were kids ‘don’t think of your future in Lebanon, because when you have grown up it is better you are not here. Thank god you have Brazil.’” He admits that his father would perhaps have preferred him to move into business or politics, but he was set on theater. “When I told my father I wanted to be an actor he almost collapsed and I saw these tears. I said: ‘I am sorry father, you are very disappointed.’ He said ‘no, I think you should do what you like but I am sad because you chose the one thing I cannot help you with.’” Takla’s latest work, a critically acclaimed minimalist version of Jesus Christ Superstar, recently completed a successful two-month run. Yet in a highly religious country a show depicting Jesus dying on a cross still brought protesters to the streets, leaving him unconcerned. “These people who came in front of the play and were protesting are people from the extreme right-wing, fascists,” he says.
The Science Behind High Heels
Just a glimpse of Louboutin’s red sole captivates our attention. A status symbol that exudes confidence renders longer legs and a slimmer silhouette. Indeed, when we slip on a pair of towering heels something magical happens. But even cobbler du jour, Mr. Christian Louboutin, admits that most woman have “a quasi-masochistic experience” wearing his stilettos. Those six-inch Louboutins might make you wince, but according to the New Yorker more than 500,000 pairs are sold each year even if the cost of getting a pair of Louboutins ranges from nearly $400 up to $6,000. So why did his killer heels conquer fashion and what exactly is the appeal of high heels? Is it their seduction power? Or is it a form of rebellion and show of character? Our attraction to the high heel is deeply ingrained in both the female and male psyche. The elegance of high heels has been communicated to us since childhood when we wobbled around balancing in our mother’s heels, raiding her closet with fascination and longing for the day when we have our own pair. It was all about Barbie’s pink stilettos and Cinderella’s glass slippers that symbolised her encounter with Prince Charming. Historically, Catherine de Medici, who is credited with introducing many of Italy’s luxuries and customs to France in the 16th century, wore the very first high heel shoes during her wedding to the future King of France, Henry. When commoners began to wear them around Europe, aristocrats where outraged and passed a law forbidding anyone of “lesser class" from wearing heels – which is the source of the expression "well-heeled". Now research suggests that wearing jolts our posture into a forced feminine stance. In the journal Evolution and Human Behavior a research team from the University of Portsmouth reported that while the popularity in footwear is popularized by historical reference and cultural norms, the long-term popularity of high-heels suggest that our gravitation to them stems from a deeper impulse of attraction. They titled it “the supernormal stimulus,” or an enhanced stimulus found in nature, whereby “walkers in high heels took smaller, more frequent steps,” and an “increased rotation and tilt of the hips,” which exaggerated femininity and attractiveness. But most of us could cry with relief when we them off at the end of the day. The truth is that it’s not just about the discomfort or enduring the awkwardness, women can suffer from serious foot problems at some point.
Oscars Of The Arab World
London-based public relations and promotions company Medium Enterprises has announced plans to stage the first ever Arab Film and TV Awards (AFTVA) in February 2015. AFTVA has been created to help promote, support and develop film and television talent in the Middle East region by awarding and celebrating their excellence, a statement said, adding that the aim was to eventually have a similar status as the Oscars. Organisers said the awards will become an annual event taking place in a different country each year alternating annually between Europe and the MENA. James Black, chairman of Medium Enterprises, said: "Through the awards we are committed to promote Arab culture worldwide and want to introduce the international film community to the growing and emerging film and TV making talent that the Middle East has to offer, along with the state of the art facilities that are now available in the region for film makers and television companies worldwide." Black added: "We are developing the awards to eventually become the Academy Awards of the Arab world." The organisers plan not only to present awards for Arab film, television and acting talent but also to give special awards to Western film, television and acting talent chosen by the AFTVA committee. A special Lifetime Achievement Award and Humanitarian Award will also be given each year to honour both Arab and Western recipients, the statement added. The awards will be attended by film and television industry celebrities and talent from the MENA, Europe and Hollywood.
British-Iraqi Artist Athier Mousawi Reflects War Vividly
Both are stealth operators. Both destroy their prey. Neither have a brain. These descriptions can be applied to two efficient killing machines that outwardly seem to have little in common. One operates in the sky, the other in the ocean. They are the unmanned aerial vehicle or ‘drone’, and the jellyfish, whose species, including the deadly Man of War, have roamed the oceans as silent predators for over 600 million years. British-Iraqi artist Athier Mousawi has fused these natural and man-made phenomena to create pictures that show the helplessness and despair of the countless, nameless people crushed or enmeshed by the tentacles of war. The artist spoke about his work at the launch of his latest exhibition, ‘Man of War’ co-presented with Ayyam Gallery at the Edge of Arabia Gallery in Battersea, London. He said that one of the most insidious aspects of drones was that the act of killing was done remotely which served to dilute the sense of guilt that the perpetrator might otherwise feel when engaging directly with the target. “With the drone, guilt has been replaced by efficiency on another level,” he commented. Mousawi’s latest work comprises a series of black and white drawings alongside paintings full of vivid colors which at first mask the dark elements contained within the imagery. It is only when you step closer that you see the suffering figures with grimacing faces and contorted limbs embedded in the canvas; these together with images of entrails and blood are not overt or at the forefront of the paintings, you have to look quite closely to see the disturbing elements in the work. This is deliberate as the artist wants people to be drawn to the paintings. “You can see the people who become tangled up – figures, bodies and parts of arms — but I always try, especially when using colors, to represent the darker side with more brightness so that it is easier to look at. Even where I have blood cells, I often disguise them with color. But when you step into the work you realize there is a lot more entrapped inside it,” he explained. Mousawi has seen at first hand the suffering of people displaced by war. He was Artist in Residence at the British Museum for three years and has led workshops in refugee camps in Beirut, Istanbul, Amman and Jarash in collaboration with an organization called START. Inspired by the UN Human Rights Council’s Declaration of the Rights of the Child, START seeks to heal, educate, and enrich the skills and opportunities of children in the poorest areas of the MENA through art.
Sport Is For Everyone
When the French-American tennis professional Marc Massad brought his US-based sport coaching company to the Emirates three years ago, he found a specific section of society being excluded from structured physical activity – children with special needs. In the United States, programmes for the disabled and those with cognitive disorders are commonplace. Massad’s company, Healthy Fit Habit Group, joined the movement there with wheelchair tennis in 2001. Now the 42-year-old tennis pro, who served as a coach for the Lebanese Tennis Federation and Junior Davis Cup and has experience coaching underprivileged children during the US Open, wants to recreate a similar culture of physical activity and sport for children with special needs in the UAE. Along with the intensive health programme for children that his company’s Dubai-based arm New York Sports Services runs at five schools and seven nurseries, individual coaching in tennis and swimming is also offered to children of varying abilities. “I want to create an awareness and realisation that sports is important and children with special needs shouldn’t be excluded from such physical activity,” says Massad, who wrote the book Discover the Wonderful World of Tennis in 23 Lessons, which is used by the tennis federations he has worked with. “Along with combating obesity, sport helps develop motor skills and self-confidence. Parents need to advocate a healthy lifestyle for their children.” A study cited in a paper by AbilityPath, an online special-needs community in the US, found that 86 per cent of teenagers with Down Syndrome were either overweight or obese. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the US notes that children with disabilities are 38 per cent more likely to be obese than their counterparts. Massad says integrating children with special needs by modifying sport activities such as swimming, bicycling, football, gymnastics and yoga assists development. Massad began coaching at the age of 22 while still playing tournaments in Europe and the US. He teaches cardio tennis, a technique borrowed from a trend that began in 2000 that makes the sport more accessible.
The Most Expensive Cities
Dubai has beaten Abu Dhabi to rank as the most expensive city in the UAE for expatriates, according to a new survey by HR consultancy Mercer. Dubai ranked 67 on Mercer’s 2014 Cost of Living Survey, up 23 spots compared to its 90th position last year, while Abu Dhabi ranked 68 this year, up 11 positions from 79 in 2013. Nuno Gomes, principal, Information Solutions Leader Middle East, Mercer said: “Dubai is now on a strong economic hub following the global market depression of 2008 and this renewed economic strength is reflected in an increase in accommodation costs, which is the main reason why the city has jumped so many places. “The steep rise in rental prices is a phenomenon witnessed over the past 18 months and can be traced to a renewed sense of confidence in the city, particularly in the wake of the Expo 2020 build-up and award. “The situation will stabilise as we start to see more and more of the building projects that have been restarted after being put on hold come on line,” he added. Most cities from across the Middle East region have gone up in the 2014 ranking, mainly due to global currency fluctuations and other locations’ decline, said Mercer. Beirut topped the regional index for the highest rates of living expenditure incurred by expatriates, coming in at number 63. Riyadh ranked 111, up 11 spots from last year, while Jeddah – the only other non-capital city in the ranking apart from Dubai – continues to rank as the least expensive city in the region, at 175. Mahmoud Ghazi, Information Solutions leader for Saudi Arabia, Mercer said: “Jeddah remains a less explored destination for international assignees and expatriates in general, which makes it very affordable. “When it comes to Riyadh, despite its rise of 11 places in the ranking, it still remains a relatively cheap location for expatriates. Most consumer-spending is actually quite affordable when comparing to the rest of the region, such as supermarket or food away from home, but the compound type of accommodation keeps Riyadh’s ranking at a higher level.”
Omar El Zohairy’s Short Film Marks A First At Cannes
The MENA may be under-represented at this year’s Cannes, but it can take home one accolade: the film with the longest title at the festival. The Aftermath of the Inauguration of the Public Toilet at Kilometer 375 may have numerous honours already (among them, the only film to force Cannes schedulers to widen their printed brochures?), but it’s also the first Egyptian film to appear in Cannes’ Cinéfondation competition for student shorts, one of 16 films picked from 1,631 submissions. “It’s actually the first film to appear in Cannes’ official selection,” says the film’s director Omar El Zohairy, a recent graduate of Egypt’s High Cinema Institute, whose previous short Zafir (Breathe Out) won a Special Mention prize in the Murh Arab Short category in the 2011 Dubai International Film Festival. “It’s a very simple film about fear. I wanted to make a film about fear because, on a personal level, it’s my motivation. I’m always afraid of everything – time, being here in Egypt, which is a difficult country to be in right now. The beginning of the idea was that I have an obsession with fear.” Aftermath is inspired by Anton Chekhov’s hilarious short story The Death of a Government Clerk – about an administrative officer driven to his end through fear – but has been given a contemporary and Egyptian interpretation. “It’s about trying to make a Russian story Egyptian, with Egyptian visuals and relations, but at the same time it’s very global, about a normal man who is afraid of everything and has nothing to do except be afraid.” The film was shot in an old factory in Cairo built in the 1960s, which is when El Zohairy says Egypt began to lose its identity through modernisation. “It’s very iconic to what I mean, that this is our modern life, stuck in the 1960s but without any upgrading,” he says. For aesthetic experience, El Zohairy has worked under the wings of two Egyptian directors, Yousry Nasrallah and Ahmad Abdalla.
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