Rights group condemns continued detention of political activists
CAIRO: At a press conference organized by the Hisham Mubarak Law Center (HMLC) Wednesday, the wife of Bedouin writer and political activist Mossad Abu Fagr condemned the continued detention of…
Total, Abengoa to build UAE solar power plant
ABU DHABI: France's Total, Spain's Abengoa and the United Arab Emirates's Masdar will build a 100 megawatt concentrated solar power (CSP) plant southwest of Abu Dhabi, Masdar said in a…
Essdar buys debt of troubled Oman property project
DUBAI: UAE-based investment fund Essdar Capital, which bought the senior debt of the troubled $15 billion Blue City property development in Oman, plans to focus on developing hotels and tourism…
AgBank closes in on investors, size of IPO
SHANGHAI/BEIJING: The Agricultural Bank of China plans to sell a greater-than-expected amount of its roughly $20 billion initial public offering to pre-IPO investors such as Middle East and Asian sovereign…
NDP wins 80 seats in Shoura Council poll, says Electoral Commission
CAIRO: The Ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) has won 80 of 88 seats in the Shoura Council mid-term elections, the Supreme Electoral Commission announced in a conference Wednesday following…
Israel 'isolated' as Mideast-Asia forum condemns ship raid
ISTANBUL: Asian and Middle Eastern leaders united in condemning an Israeli deadly raid on Gaza-bound aid ships at a security summit Tuesday, as host nation Turkey warned Israel was "isolated"…
Egypt pension draft in parliament, businesses wary
CAIRO: The government submitted a draft pensions law to parliament on Wednesday designed to boost savings and growth, but which some employers grumble carries tough penalties for errors in implementation…
African challengers face steep World Cup obstacles
JOHANNESBURG: A second round at the first World Cup in Africa without a team from the continent is too ghastly a thought to contemplate. But an unkind draw followed by…
Prosecutor dismisses 'Arabian Nights' ban
CAIRO: Egypt's public prosecutor on Tuesday dismissed a complaint brought by Islamists seeking to ban "Arabian Nights" which they judged to be immoral, the official MENA news agency reported. Prosecutor…
Pope Shenouda says Church will not implement remarriage ruling
CAIRO: Pope Shenouda III, head of Egypt's Coptic Orthodox Church, reiterated the Church’s refusal to implement a verdict by the Supreme Administrative Court that allows divorced Orthodox Copts to remarry.…