Antananarivo / AFP A house fire during a party in central Madagascar killed 38 people including 16 children as the blaze ripped through a thatched roof, police said Monday. The victims—the youngest only six months old—were trapped inside the house in Ambalavato village of Ikalamavony district in the rural centre of the island. The party-goers, including several relatives of the ...

  Ansbach / AFP A failed Syrian asylum seeker who blew himself up outside a German music festival had made a video pledging allegiance to the IS group, in the second attack claimed by the extremists in Germany in a week. The 27-year-old assailant wounded 15 people, four of them seriously, near a cafe in the southern city of Ansbach on ...

Kabul / AFP Civilian casualties in Afghanistan soared to a record high in the first half of 2016, the UN said on Monday, with children in particular paying a heavy price for growing insecurity as the conflict escalates. The UN report, which comes days after the deadliest attack in Kabul since the Taliban were ousted from power in 2001, cited ...

  Abu Dhabi / WAM The Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED) issued a decision that allows the licensing of restaurants that provide their services through mobile vehicles, subject to their being an existing restaurant or foodstuff catering license that is either owned 100% by a UAE citizen or with a local partner. Mohamed Munif Al Mansouri, Executive Director of ...

  Abu Dhabi / WAM Tadweer, the Centre for Waste Management – Abu Dhabi, has announced that it collected around 74,000 tonnes of waste during the Holy Month of Ramadan and Eid Al-fitr, in collaboration with all relevant parties in Abu Dhabi to ensure seamless operations. Eisa Saif Al Qubaisi, General Manager of Tadweer, said, “During the Holy month of Ramadan, ...

  Ajman / WAM HH Sheikh Ammar bin Humaid Al Nuaimi, Crown Prince of Ajman, has been briefed on the programmes, objectives and strategies of the Statistics Centre – Abu Dhabi (SCAD) and its future plan. This came during a meeting between HH Sheikh Ammar and Butti Ahmed Mohamed bin Butti Al Qubaisi, Director-General of the Statistics Centre – Abu Dhabi, ...

  Emirates Business Al Mazaya Holding (K.S.C.P) announced its financial results for the first half of 2016, with the company reporting a net profit of USD13.68million in the first half of 2016, compared to USD13.54million in the corresponding period for 2015. Earnings Per Share (EPS) reached2.203cent, compared to 2.187cent, in the first half of 2015. Speaking after the recent meeting ...

  Dubai / Emirates Business Emirates NBD, a leading bank in the region, bagged ‘Best Customer Experience – Banking’ at the 2016 Customer Experience in Financial Services Asia (#CXFS Asia) Awards in recognition of its exceptional commitment to provide superior customer experience in 2015. Emirates NBD’s strategic focus on offering an enhanced customer experience in recent few years has significantly ...

  Dubai / Emirates Business Summertown Interiors, the UAE’s leading fit out contractor specialising in green interiors, has been awarded the Gold LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations and Maintenance (LEED EBOM) certification for the ongoing operations and maintenance of its headquarters located in the Jebel Ali Free Zone, Dubai. LEED EBOM certification identifies and rewards current best practices and provides ...

  Abu Dhabi / Emirates Business Making strategic long-term investments, and pooling knowledge and resources from within the oil and gas industry is central to energy sector progress, said senior officials and world representatives at a recent gathering in Abu Dhabi for members of the prestigious Middle East Petroleum Club (MEPC). Guests at the MEPC ‘Al Multaqa’ event were given ...