STOCKHOLM / AP A 20-year-old Swedish national has been charged with preparing to a make a suicide bomb, a prosecutor said on Thursday. Prosecutor EwamariHaggkvist says the suspect, who denies the charges, “could have seriously hurt Sweden.” “He told relatives he had sympathies for (the Islamic State group) and would blow himself up for them in Sweden,” Haggkvist told The ...

BAGHDAD / AP Iraq’s elite counterterrorism forces say they have entered the center of a strategically important western Islamic State-held town. Government forces reached the center of Hit on Wednesday. The operation to retake the small Euphrates river town — initially launched last month — was stalled by politics, heavy IS resistance and tens of thousands of trapped civilians. Iraqi ...

Brussels / AFP Gone are the usual snap-happy crowds on Brussels’ famed Grand Place, visits to the Atomium monument have plummeted and hotel rooms are empty. Two weeks after the Belgian capital was hit by terror attacks, the country’s tourist industry is in despair. As Belgium struggles to move on from the March 22 IS suicide bombings that struck Brussels ...

Hanoi / AFP Vietnam’s parliament approved Nguyen XuanPhuc as the communist country’s new prime minister on Thursday, handing him a five-year term and a range of tough challenges from domestic economic reforms to a simmering maritime dispute with China. Phuc, a former deputy prime minister, was the only candidate nominated for the position by party officials earlier this year and ...

SHARJAH / WAM Sharjah Investment and Development Authority, Shurooq, announced that it will silver-sponsor the Annual Investment Meeting (AIM) 2016, the global economic event which is organised annually by the UAE Ministry of Economy in Dubai. The 6th edition of AIM will be held under the theme: ‘The New World of FDI, Key Features and Best Practices’ from April 11-13 ...

SHARJAH / WAM His Highness Dr Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member, Ruler of Sharjah and President of Al Qasimia University (AQU), on Thursday opened the first International Conference for the AQU under the theme, ‘Our Identity in our historic and heritage memory.” The conference is jointly organised by the University of Sharjah in association with Sharjah ...

DUBAI / WAM On April 1, 1986, an Emirates Boeing 727-200 Flight EK800 departed Dubai International Airport touching down in Colombo, Emirates’ fourth global destination. Thirty years later, Emirates has logged 56 million miles, transported thousands of tonnes of cargo and continues to connect Sri Lanka to the world, with 34 flights a week to Dubai, and Singapore. With approximately ...

DUBAI / Emirates Business Running out of data? Not to worry because du just raised the bar for consumer postpaid plans – now du’s entire range of consumer postpaid plans come with generous data at no extra cost. There has never been a better time to change to du. du addresses its customer’s growing data consumption by enhancing the data ...

DUBAI / Emirates Business Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) honoured 13 of its customers who won the Best Consumer Award, which DEWA organised for the 12th consecutive year. The move supports DEWA’s efforts to encourage customers to use electricity and water sensibly, and its strategy to reduce energy demand, and protect natural resources and ensure their sustainability. Fardan Al ...

AL AIN / WAM A delegation from the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs in Sharjah visited the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs in Al Ain. The visit aims to review the work mechanism and to exchange expertise on services procedures in general and the procedures followed by the Information and Follow-up Section in particular. Colonel Khalifa ...