US tells Syria’s Assad to lead transition or leave
DAMASCUS: The United States has told Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad to lead a transition or step down and slapped him with sanctions, as a journalist told of "savage beatings" in…
Oil steady after surprise US crude stocks drop
LONDON: Oil prices were little changed on Thursday, holding on to gains in the previous session on the back of weaker US stockpiles, as the International Energy Agency called for…
Bomb attacks on north Iraq police kill 27
KIRKUK: A spate of bomb attacks against police in the disputed northern oil-rich city of Kirkuk on Thursday killed at least 27 people, the worst violence to hit Iraq in…
Yemen rivals fail to sign power transfer deal
SANAA: Yemen's political rivals failed Wednesday to sign a Gulf-brokered plan under which veteran President Ali Abdullah Saleh would leave office as demanded in almost four months of popular protests.…
Humanitarian crisis in Libya worsening, says UN chief
TRIPOLI: Attempts to secure a ceasefire in Libya have failed and the humanitarian crisis is worsening, UN chief Ban Ki-moon told AFP, while Moamer Kadhafi's embattled regime freed four foreign…
Orascom results boost Egypt index
CAIRO: Egypt's main index rose 1.2 percent, boosted by heavyweight Orascom Telecom after it reported first-quarter results that showed a better operating performance than some analysts expected. Orascom shares were…
Pope meets Arab League chief over safety of Christians
VATICAN CITY: Pope Benedict XVI met with the new Arab League chief, Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil Al-Arabi, on Wednesday amid concerns over the safety of Christians caught up in the…
Juhayna reports 17 pct slide in Q1 net
CAIRO: Egyptian dairy and juice maker Juhayna Food Industries Co reported on Thursday a 17 percent drop in net profit for the first quarter to LE 50.1 million ($8.4 million)…
After Bin Laden: has militant Islam failed?
By Mustafa Akyol Among the dozens of tweets that I received from fellow Turks following the breaking news of Osama Bin Laden's death, one was a bit uncommon. While most others…
Social media creating social awareness in the Arab world
By Hani Naim BEIRUT: Social media has brought various religious and ethnic groups across the world closer together. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the Arab world, as demonstrated by…