Manila / AFP Authoritarian firebrand Rodrigo Duterte warned of a “rough ride” after being sworn in as the Philippines’ president on Thursday, promising a relentless war on crime and corruption, but also to be a unifying leader. Duterte, 71, won last month’s election in landslide after a campaign dominated by foul-mouthed threats to kill tens of thousands of criminals ...

  Beijing / AFP Beijing will reject any ruling by an international tribunal in a contentious case brought by the Philippines over the South China Sea, the foreign ministry said, as tensions mount over the disputed waters. The United Nations-backed Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) said Wednesday it will rule on July 12 in a closely watched case challenging China’s ...

  Kuala Lumpur / AFP A vocal critic of Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak was charged with corruption on Thursday in a further blow to the divided opposition, which alleged that the case was politically motivated. Lim Guan Eng, who has repeatedly demanded that Najib explain a massive financial scandal that engulfed his administration last year, appeared in the High ...

  Mumbai / AFP Eight people were killed when a fire gutted a pharmacy in India’s financial capital Mumbai on Thursday, police said. One other person was seriously injured in the blaze, which broke out early Thursday morning, Mumbai police spokesman Ashok Dudhe said. “The primary reason for the fire seems to be a short circuit. But officials will have ...

  Sunaina Rana / Emirates Business The holy month of Ramadan brings in lots of joy. However, the season also witnesses an increased rate of food wastage. It is estimated that the over 50 percent of food is wasted every day during the period. According to Ivano Lanelli, CEO of Dubai Carbon Centre of Excellence, “Food wastage is generated across ...

  Abu Dhabi / Emirates Business In keeping with the spirit of the Holy Month of Ramadan, Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) hosted a lecture delivered by Omar Habtoor Al Darei, Director of Fatwa Department at the General Authority of Islamic Affairs and Endowments, on the importance of loyalty and belongingness to one’s homeland. In his lecture, Al Darei ...

  DUBAI / Emirates Business ‘Jeans for Refugees’, is a Johny Dar project and artistic fundraising initiative dedicated to helping refugees around the world, with all proceeds going to the International Rescue Committee (rescue.org). Dubai based agency White Water PR has been chosen to generate awareness amongst people in this region and support the cause. One hundred and one celebrities ...

  Bloomberg Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government is working on targets to cut pollution on Germany’s roads that may effectively force carmakers to switch most of their sales to electric vehicles by the end of the next decade. Merkel’s chancellery is reviewing a draft of her coalition’s Climate Protection Plan 2050, which would require fossil-fuel emissions cuts of 45% for cars ...

  Bloomberg German unemployment extended its decline in June, signaling economic growth remained robust before Britons unexpectedly voted to exit the European Union. The number of people out of work fell by a seasonally adjusted 6,000 to 2.69 million, data from the Federal Labour Agency in Nuremberg showed on Thursday. German companies shrugged off the risk of the U.K. quitting ...

  PARIS / AFP President Francois Hollande said he expected the French economy to perform better than expected this year and add at least 200,000 new jobs, as the deeply unpopular leader shifts into campaign mode ahead of next year’s elections. In an interview published Wednesday on the website of Les Echos daily, the Socialist president also repeated a promise ...