December, 2016

• 14 December

  UAE launches five-year foreign aid strategy

  

    Abu Dhabi / WAM The UAE’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation on Wednesday launched a five-year plan for the country’s foreign aid strategy. Under the strategy, covering 2017-2021, the UAE will focus on three key pillars – women’s empowerment and protection, transport and urban infrastructure, and technical co-operation. The plan was launched under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh …

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• 14 December

  DM holds forum for people with special needs

    Dubai / WAM Dubai Municipality (DM) on Tuesday held the first annual forum for people with disabilities under the title, “Together, let’s make the disabled happy.” The event was held at the Children’s City Theatre in Creek Park. The forum, which promotes the slogan, “My Volition Defies My Disability,” was organised in line with Dubai Municipality’s efforts to become a disabled-friendly …

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• 14 December

  ‘Promoting tolerance via social media key to combat bigotry’

  

    Abu Dhabi / Emirates Business The UAE is making history with the launch of new ministries as part of its recent cabinet reshuffle, which include ministries for tolerance, happiness and youth, said Cabinet Member and Minister of State for Tolerance Sheikha Lubna bint Khalid Al Qasimi. The new ministries reflect the leadership’s vision to promote tolerance and cultural diversity …

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• 14 December

  Deadly clashes hit Aleppo as evacuation deal on hold

  

    Aleppo / AFP Deadly clashes erupted in Syria’s Aleppo on Wednesday and a deal for the evacuation of rebel areas was on hold, leaving thousands of cold and hungry civilians uncertain of their future. Entire families had gathered in the early hours, in the hope of leaving Aleppo after an agreement announced the night before for rebels to withdraw from …

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• 14 December

  Erdogan to discuss Aleppo ceasefire with Putin

    Ankara / AFP Turkey’s president said on Wednesday he would speak with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in an effort to rescue a ceasefire deal which would allow civilians and rebel fighters to be evacuated from Syria’s Aleppo. “I will speak with Mr Putin again later in the evening,” President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said during a televised speech in Ankara. “The …

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• 14 December

  France urges int’l monitoring of Aleppo evacuation

    Paris / AFP French President Francois Hollande on Wednesday joined calls for international observers to oversee the evacuation of civilians trapped under fire in the wrecked Syrian city of Aleppo. At a meeting with his defence cabinet, Hollande said those trapped by the fighting should “be evacuated in a dignified and safe manner, under the supervision of international observers and …

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• 14 December

  Saudi rejects interference in Yemen: King Salman

  

    Riyadh / AFP Saudi Arabia is determined to prevent external “interference” in neighbouring war-torn Yemen, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud said in an annual address on Wednesday. He did not explicitly refer to the kingdom’s regional rival Iran but Saudi officials have accused Tehran and the Lebanese Shiite militant group Hezbollah of aiding rebels in Yemen. Since March 2015, …

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• 14 December

  Kiir calls for ‘national dialogue’ to end South Sudan war

    Juba / AFP President Salva Kiir called on Wednesday for a “national dialogue” to end the three-year-long civil war in South Sudan. In a speech to parliament, Kiir, whose wrangling for power with his former deputy Riek Machar plunged the world’s newest nation into a brutal, destructive and ongoing civil war in December 2013, said the dialogue would “consolidate peace” …

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• 14 December

  Iraqi gains reveal huge scale of IS arms industry

    Qaraqosh / AFP Factories churning out tens of thousands of munitions and an entire street turned into a conveyor belt for car bombs: advances by Iraqi forces around Mosul have laid bare the scale of the IS group’s arms industry. In the more than two years since it seized control over swathes of the country, IS established a sprawling and …

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• 14 December

  International Franchise Conference and Exhibition kicks off in Abu Dhabi

  

    Abu Dhabi / Emirates Business The 2016 edition of the International Franchise Conference & Exhibition began yesterday, at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC). The event, which is organized by the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry, gathers companies and brands together with the goal of providing investment opportunities for entrepreneurs and businesses in the United Arab …

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