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Beirut / AFP The Syrian army retook a strategic town from the IS group on Thursday, paving the way for the reopening of its sole supply route to main northern city Aleppo. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said troops still needed to clear the extremists from hills overlooking the key highway before it could be fully secured. The road ...

Irbil / AP The IS group relies on commercially available components for most of its bombs, with some parts coming from as far away as the United States and Japan, according to a report released Wednesday by a London-based arms research group. Conflict Armament Research says most components — such as chemicals and detonators — come from companies in Turkey ...

Geneva / AFP All sides in Libya’s chaotic conflict are likely guilty of war crimes, including torturing, raping and executing prisoners, the UN said on Thursday, urging the world to do more to bring the perpetrators to justice. “A multitude of actors, both state and non-state, are accused of very serious violations and abuses that may, in many cases, amount ...

Benghazi / AP French special forces have been helping Libyan troops fight IS militants in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi for two months, two Libyan military officials said. The French combat squad, consisting of 15 special forces, carried out four military operations against IS and other militant groups in Benghazi, the officials said. They said that French forces work ...

Abu Dhabi / WAM The second UAE-Qatar Business Forum focused on ways to promote building a variety of economic partnerships and supporting the goals of sustainable development. The meeting also discussed opening up wider horizons for mutual investments to enhance the joint cooperation and consolidation of efforts to bring about desired economic integration among the GCC countries. The Forum, which ...

ABU DHABI / WAM Dr Lee Yang, member of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) and Vice-President of the China Society for Finance and Banking (CSFB), has said that his country seeks to strengthen its relations with the UAE in all fields as it holds a strategic position in the region and is a central player in the implementation ...

London / Bloomberg Fancy another recession? Economists say voting to leave the European Union would dramatically increase the UK’s chances of heading down that road. As Britons contemplate their place in the 28-nation bloc before June’s referendum, respondents to a Bloomberg survey said the probability of a slump spikes to 40 percent in the event of an “out” vote. That ...

ABU DHABI / WAM Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), has commended the UAE authorities for having built large fiscal and external buffers, advancing economic diversification and taking steps to address the consequences of the sharp drop of oil prices, notably the reform of fuel subsidies. She added that the IMF enjoys a strong relationship with ...

ADDIS ABABA / WAM Ghazi Abdullah Salem Al Mehri, UAE Ambassador to the Republic of Ethiopia, participated at the first Ministerial Conference on Immunisation in Africa, which kicked off at the African Union’s conference centre in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. The inauguration of the conference was attended by a group of dignitaries, led by Ethiopian Prime Minister, Hailemariam Desalegn, ...

DUBAI / WAM Emirates will launch a daily service from Dubai to Yangon in Myanmar and Hanoi in Vietnam, starting August 3. Utilising a Boeing 777-300ER aircraft in a three-class configuration, this new route will strengthen Emirates’ network of destinations in Southeast Asia, offer a new flight option to passengers travelling between Hanoi and Yangon, and open up new connections ...