February, 2017

• 15 February

  UAE launches first nanosatellite into space

    Dubai / WAM The Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) and the American University of Sharjah (AUS) have announced the successful launch of Nayif-1, the UAE’s first nanosatellite launched into outer space. The launch occurred at 7.58 in the morning (UAE local time). Nayif-1 takes on added importance as an educational project launched by MBRSC in cooperation with AUS with ...

  Read More »
• 15 February

  Expo 2020 Dubai, SAP partner to enable ‘Made-for-You’ experiences

    Dubai / WAM SAP, a global leader in innovative software solutions, become Expo 2020 Dubai’s first international Premier Partner and will support the delivery of personalised experiences to millions of visitors from around the world. As Expo 2020 Dubai’s newly appointed Innovative Enterprise Software Partner, SAP will co-innovate on real-time technology platforms that enable organisers and exhibitors to instantaneously analyse ...

  Read More »
• 15 February

  85% of Dubai buildings comply with planning and construction laws

    Dubai / WAM Dubai Municipality confirmed that more than 85% of the existing buildings and establishments in the Emirate of Dubai comply with the approved planning and construction rules and regulations. “One of the main tasks of the Building Inspection Section in our Buildings Department is the constant control and inspection of all existing buildings and establishments in the Emirate ...

  Read More »
• 15 February

  Centrist upends French presidential race in era of extremes

  

    PARIS / AP France’s presidential race this year is upending every political assumption that has governed the country for decades. And now Emmanuel Macron, a 39-year-old former economy minister who is running an independent, centrist campaign, has a real chance to become France’s next president in the country’s two-round April-May vote. Among the startling events: an incumbent president is ...

  Read More »
• 15 February

  Pentagon chief says US committed to NATO

  

    BRUSSELS / AP US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis on Wednesday made clear that the United States was committed to NATO while also reinforcing the Trump administration’s demand that allies pay their fair share. Speaking at his first NATO defense minister’s meeting, Mattis called the alliance “a fundamental bedrock for the United States and for all the trans-Atlantic community.” That ...

  Read More »
• 15 February

  Taliban suicide bombing kills 5 in northwestern Pakistan

    PESHAWAR / AP A Taliban suicide bombing targeted the administrative headquarters of a tribal region in northwestern Pakistan on Wednesday, killing three policemen and two passers-by, according to officials. The explosion went off at the main gate of the tribal headquarters in Ghalanai in the Mohmand tribal region, just as the workday was about to start, said Hameedullah Khan, ...

  Read More »
• 15 February

  India launches more than 100 satellites into orbit

    NEW DELHI / AP India’s space agency said it successfully launched more than 100 foreign nano satellites into orbit Wednesday aboard a single rocket. The Indian Space Research Organization said the nano satellites — those weighing less than 10 kilograms (22 pounds) — were sent into orbit from southern India. It said the launching of the 104 satellites was ...

  Read More »
• 15 February

  WHO declares end to yellow fever outbreak in Congo, Angola

    JOHANNESBURG / AP The World Health Organization has declared an end to the yellow fever outbreak that killed about 400 people in Congo and Angola, calling it “one of the largest and most challenging” in recent years. The WHO statement says 965 cases were confirmed but thousands of others had been suspected. Neither country had reported a new confirmed ...

  Read More »
• 15 February

  Russia denies intel contacts with Trump campaign team

    MOSCOW / AP Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has denied reports of intercepted phone calls between Russian intelligence officials and members of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign. The New York Times said that the Russians made contact with Paul Manafort, who briefly served as Trump’s campaign chairman. Current and former US officials interviewed by the Times declined to identify other Trump ...

  Read More »
• 15 February

  ABN Amro reports 23% increase in Q4 profit

  

    Bloomberg ABN Amro Group NV, the state-controlled Dutch lender, reported a 23 percent increase in fourth-quarter profit, helped by higher net interest income and lower provisions set aside for risky loans. Underlying net income, which strips out one-time items, rose 333 million euros ($352 million) from 272 million euros a year earlier, the Amsterdam-based company said in a statement ...

  Read More »