Sharjah / Emirates Business The Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA) concluded the seventh annual Sharjah Light Festival in a ceremony held at University City Hall. The ceremony was attended by Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed Al Qasimi, Chairman of Sharjah Media Corporation and Chairman of Sharjah Media Centre; Sheikha Bodour bint Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Chairperson of …

  Dubai / Emirates Business Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry has announced that it has launched “Dubai-Opoly”, a new recreational game as part of its efforts to promote Dubai as a global hub for business and trade. Modelled after the world-famous “Monopoly” board game, Dubai-Opoly will soon hit store shelves in the UAE and GCC region, and feature some …

  Dubai / Emirates Business Emirates Islamic, one of the leading Islamic financial institutions in the UAE, on Sunday announced it has contributed AED 1.72 million from its charity fund to the UAE’s Ministry of Health & Prevention, (MOHAP) to support the purchase of 37 life-saving emergency devices, including defibrillators and adhesive pads, which are used to deliver electric shocks …

  Dubai / Emirates Business As part of its continuous efforts to support the “Year of Giving” initiative in the UAE, Waiwera water, the world’s leading artesian water brand has slashed its prices by 25 percent for the entire year. Adyton One General Trading, the sole distributor of Waiwera Artesian water in the UAE announced the launch of the initiative …

  North Korea / AP North Korea appeared to fire a ballistic missile early Sunday in what would be its first such test of the year and an implicit challenge to President Donald Trump, who stood with the Japanese leader as Shinzo Abe called the move “intolerable.” There was no immediate confirmation from the North, which had recently warned it …

  SRINAGAR / AP Four suspected rebels, two Indian army soldiers and a civilian have been killed in a fierce gunbattle in Indian-controlled Kashmir, officials said on Sunday. The fighting began after police and soldiers cordoned off the southern village of Frisal overnight following a tip that militants were hiding in a house, said police Inspector-General Syed Javaid Mujtaba Gillani. …

  PANGLONG / AP Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi called on all armed ethnic groups to sign a cease-fire agreement during a speech on Sunday in the same place where her father, an independence hero, signed a peace deal 70 years ago. Speaking during annual Union Day celebrations, Suu Kyi said ethnic groups can still join the movement for …

  ISLAMABAD / AP The chairman of Pakistan’s senate says the body will not welcome any US delegation, member of Congress or dignitary in Islamabad. The move comes after the US failed to issue a visa to the senate’s deputy chairman, a member of the right-wing Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam political party. Chairman Raza Rabbani says in a statement that no Pakistani …

  Bloomberg House of Commons Speaker John Bercow faced increased pressure to quit from pro-Brexit members of Prime Minister’s Theresa May’s Conservative Party after disclosing that he voted last year for the UK to remain in the European Union. Bercow, whose position as the independent chairman of Parliament’s lower chamber means he is supposed to remain impartial, was already sharply …

  THE HAGUE / AP Dutch populist Geert Wilders says mainstream politicians in the Netherlands will have to work with his Party for Freedom if voters strongly back his anti-immigration, anti-European Union platform in the country’s upcoming election, or face a peaceful backlash. Wilders’ Party for Freedom is polling strongly ahead of the March 15 election for the lower house …