JAMADA ALTHANI 5, 1440 AH SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2019

28 Pages Max 21º Min 12º 150 Fils Established 1961

ISSUE NO: 17755 The First Daily in the Arabian Gulf www.kuwaittimes.net

NATO lauds Kuwait’s positive role Nude protest and black flags Thai princess premiership bid Biggest NBA trade deadline story 39in enhancing NATO-GCC relations greet India’s Modi in Assam 24 scuttled as party obeys king 26 was of one that never happened

Kuwait calls to empower women in war-torn areas

Justice for victims of sexual violence in conflict inseparable part of permanent peace

NEW YORK: Deputy of Kuwait’s Permanent called Islamic State (IS) and Boko Haram have geted and graduated” measures against war- Delegate to the UN Counselor Bader Al- used sexual violence to terrorize people and ring factions who committed rape and other Munayyekh urged world communities to finance their criminal operations, he added. forms of violence against women and girls. boost UN peacekeeping operations, including Sexual assault has also been used to target Therefore, it is important to boost coopera- women’s empowerment in post-conflict situa- ethnic and religious minorities and displace tion with the UN Secretary-General’s Special tions. It is important to back peacekeeping them from their original homelands, such as Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict missions in war-torn countries, particularly the case of the minority Muslim community in in order to determine perpetrators of criminal with holding sexual assault perpetrators Myanmar, said Munayyekh. sexual assaults and include their names in accountable and bringing them to justice, The international community and UNSC regimes’ sanction lists, he added. Munayyekh said during a UNSC session should bear their responsibilities and do their The state has a primary responsibility to Friday night. best to stop these intentional and systematic protect its citizens from sexual violence in Wartime sexual violence is one of the most crimes and violations against humanity, and conflict, Munayyekh said, adding the interna- hideous crimes against humanity, especially bring their perpetrators to justice, he tional community and UN bodies must coop- since it targets women and children and leads stressed. So far, UNSC has succeeded in lay- erate toward building states’ potentials, them to a lifetime health, mental, and physical ing solid standards to thwart sexual assaults boosting their security and judicial systems, disorder, he noted. The cumulative effects of in conflict situations, but it has not imple- and revive their civil societies. State societies such violence could expand to generations, mented them fully yet, said Munayyekh. also have the responsibility to denounce all rule out any chance of achieving reconcilia- He recalled UNSC resolution 1820 (2008), forms of violence against women and chil- tion and peace, and destabilize societies in which affirmed the council’s intention, when dren, preserve their full rights, build their NEW YORK: Deputy of Kuwait’s Permanent Delegate to the UN Counselor Bader the short and long-terms, said Munayyekh. establishing and renewing state-specific abilities toward protecting themselves Al-Munayyekh addresses the UNSC session. — KUNA Terrorist organizations such as the so- sanction regimes, to consider imposing “tar- Continued on Page 24

Quebec mosque shooter Central Circle and J&J make medical history in Kuwait gets life, no parole for 40 yrs

QUEBEC CITY: A 29-year-old who shot dead six worshipers at a Quebec City mosque in the worst anti-Muslim attack in the West got life in prison Friday. Alexandre Bissonnette will have to wait 40 years - longer than usual - before he can apply for parole. In his decision, Judge Francois Huot rejected a prosecu- tion request for a 150-year sentence, which would have been the longest ever in Canada, saying “subjecting a murder to a sentence that exceeds his life expectancy” would be a cruel and unusual punishment under Canadian law. Continued on Page 24 Alexandre Bissonnette (From left) Dr Fawzia Al-Kandari, Dr Moaz Alanbaei, Dr Telal Mudawi and Dr Chest x-ray showing a permanent pacemaker. Darar Al-Khudair at the Cardiac Cath laboratory. past decade,” IMF Managing Director IMF warns Christine Lagarde said. “Among oil KUWAIT: Just a few days before one of the Johnson Middle East, the cutting-edge treat- innovative treatment to the private sector. importers, (economic) growth has picked world’s largest health and medical confer- ment is now available in the private health- “A vital treatment such as ablation therapy up, but it is still below pre-crisis levels,” ences - Arab Health - took place, Kuwait care sector in Kuwait. should be made accessible to all those who of high Arab she told the Arab Fiscal Forum in Dubai. scored an important medical milestone with A team of leading doctors including elec- need it,” stated Dr Ziad Al-Alyan, Central Lagarde said public debt among Arab the first cardiac ablation treatment done in trophysiologist Dr Fawzia Alkandari per- Circle CEO. Dr Al-Alyan thanked the great public debt oil importing nations had increased from the private sector. Cardiac ablation is a com- formed the groundbreaking and complex pro- Johnson & Johnson team and the team at Hadi 64 percent to 85 percent of Gross plex cardiac procedure used to treat abnor- cedure at Hadi Hospital. The event is a major Hospital for making the groundbreaking DUBAI: Public debt has rapidly increased Domestic Product in the decade since mal electrical activity in the heart. leap in the right direction in acknowledging treatment become a reality. Cardiac arrhyth- in many Arab countries since the 2008 2008. Nearly half of these countries now Given the complex nature of the treat- the importance of such treatments, which mia is relatively common in Kuwait due to the global financial crisis, due to persistently have public debt of over 90 percent of ment, cardiac ablation is usually done by shouldn’t be held from patients in need. The high prevalence of heart disease in the region. high budget deficits, the International GDP, she said. Public debt among oil only a handful of trained cardiologists in cardiac ablation was covered by insurance. Having the private sector contribute in the Monetary Fund warned yesterday. exporters - including the six-nation Gulf Kuwait’s public sector hospitals. But thanks Johnson & Johnson is a top manufacturer of treatment availability reduces wait times for “Unfortunately, the region has yet to fully Cooperation Council - rose from 13 per- to a collaboration between Kuwait’s Central the ablation technology. They have partnered patients and results in better outcomes for recover from the global financial crisis and cent of GDP to 33 percent Circle medical company and Johnson & with Central Circle in Kuwait to bring this public health in general. other big economic dislocations over the Continued on Page 24

News in brief Sex, plots and Morocco recalls envoy to Saudi blackmail: Toxic RABAT: Morocco has recalled its ambassador to Saudi Arabia for consultations, media said on Friday. politics behind Ambassador Mustapha Mansouri confirmed the recall to pro-establishment news website Le360. He added that Morocco and Saudi Arabia are bound by strong Bezos’ claims and longstanding ties that are currently undergoing a NEW YORK: The stunning extortion claims made by “transient crisis”. The recall is due to the airing by Amazon and Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos against Saudi TV channel Al Arabiya of a documentary that the Trump-friendly National Enquirer tabloid have spot- diverged from the Moroccan position on the Western lighted a fierce behind-the-scenes media feud, taking Sahara issue, Mansouri told Le360. — Reuters place in an ever more toxic US political climate. The sto- ry recounted by Bezos - the world’s richest man - touch- es on political intrigue, sexual indiscretion, the murder of $3.1bn to help Saudi companies a Saudi journalist and bitter charges of media bias. The supermarket tabloid last month reported Bezos RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s King Salman has approved had an extramarital affair with a former news anchor, a scheme to reimburse some of the companies who publishing a trove of private text messages. The report struggled to pay steadily increasing fees for expatri- appeared days after Bezos and his wife Mackenzie ate work permits in 2017 and 2018 and waive the fee announced their divorce. hikes for some who weren’t able to pay, the labour That prompted Bezos to launch an investigation into minister said. The government is allocating 11.5 billion the Enquirer, and how it was able to obtain such inti- riyals ($3.1 billion) for reimbursements under the mate material. decision, according to the royal decree. Only compa- In a post on the online platform Medium, Bezos said nies that had a higher or equal number of Saudi Enquirer publisher American Media Inc (AMI), led by employees versus expats will be eligible for the reim- David Pecker, a friend of President Donald Trump, was bursement or waiver of fees, according to the decree. now threatening to publish intimate photos of him, if he Companies with a lower number of Saudis compared KUWAIT: Automated jockeys are placed on camels before the 19th International Camel Race at the Kuwait did not call off the probe. “Rather than capitulate to to expats will benefit from the initiative only after Camel Racing Club yesterday. — Photo by Yasser Al-Zayyat extortion and blackmail, I’ve decided to publish exactly they hire more locals, it said. — Reuters Continued on Page 24 2 Established 1961 Local Sunday, February 10, 2019 Kuwaiti Prime Minister’s visit to Jordan helps take ties to new heights Several agreements expected during joint committee meeting AMMAN: Kuwaiti Prime Minister His Highness Sheikh Top investor Jaber Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah’s visit to Jordan, Kuwait is the top Arab and foreign investor in due tomorrow at the invitation of Prime Minister Omar Jordan with $18 billion, distributed on tourism, indus- Razzaz, reaffirmed deep-rooted multi-faceted relations. try, banks, telecommunication, real estate and trans- The visit coincides with the joint committee meeting, port. Among Kuwaiti investments in Jordan is Al- which would be co-chaired by the foreign ministers and Abdali Mall of Kuwait Projects Company, KIPCO, is expected to result in a number of economic, trade Jordan-Kuwait Bank and Noor company. Kuwait is and investment agreements. His Highness the Prime also investing $1.418 billion in Amman’s stock market, Minister is also expected to inaugurate Kuwait the third largest foreign investor, while Kuwaitis own Embassy’s new building in Amman. 126 real estates in 2017, the fourth largest amongst Relations between Kuwait and Jordan, established in non-Jordanians. 1961, have progressed in many domains and the two Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development countries are committed to 57 cooperation agreements (KFAED) contributed to 26 economic and social devel- covering many areas. The two countries have been opment projects with a value of $580 million between coordinating positions over many regional issues, 1962-2017. KFAED is also responsible for the dis- including the Palestinian question where Kuwait and bursement of $1.250 billion, which is Kuwait’s share in Jordan are staunch supporters of the Palestinian right financing strategic and development project, part of a of freedom and to establish their independent state on GCC financial package to Jordan, in sectors of agricul- the June 4, 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its cap- ture, energy, minerals, roads, education, health, water ital. Kuwait and Jordan rejected, at the Arab Summit in and transport. Saudi Arabia and the Organization of Islamic Kuwait built LNG Port that will address energy cri- KUWAIT: His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Kuwaiti Prime Minister His Highness Sheikh Jaber Mubarak Al- Cooperation’s Summit in Istanbul, Turkey, the US deci- sis, establish wind power farm in Ma’an as well as other Al-Sabah meets with King Abdullah II in this file photo. —KUNA Hamad Al-Sabah receives an invitation from Jordanian Prime sion to move its embassy from Tel Aviv to occupied infrastructure projects in different governorates that Minister Omar Razzaz to visit Jordan. Jerusalem. Kuwait, through its 2018-19 non-permanent contributed to creation of thousands of jobs. Kuwait membership in UN Security Council (UNSC) as a rep- also offered a billion dollars for Jordan, part of $2.5 bil- resentative of the Arab Group, was a solid supporter of lion economic package by Saudi Arabia and the United the Palestinian cause. Arab Emirates (UAE), in forms of donations and loans. Kuwait believes in the vital role of Jordan in achiev- Kuwait deposited $500 million at Jordan Central Bank ing peace and stability in the Middle East, and support- and the rest was in forms of loans for five years. Total ed Amman’s protection of Jerusalem. Kuwait’s parlia- Kuwaiti deposits at Jordan’s Central Bank is $1.3 billion. ment played a leading role in supporting the Palestinian cause. Kuwait parliament speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanem Refugees’ crisis and president of Jordan’s House of Nobles Faisal Al- The Syrian crisis forced millions of people to flee to Fayez affirmed, during a meeting in Kuwait last month, neighboring countries, including Jordan which is host- the importance of coordination to address challenges ing around 1.3 million Syrian refugees. Kuwait rushed facing the region. to help the Syrians and KFAED offered $58 million grants in 2014-16 to support the Jordanian govern- Trade relations ment’s response plan. Kuwait government and private As for trade ties, Kuwait-Jordan trade exchange reg- institutions offered relentless support for the Syrian istered $270 million in November, 2018, according to refugees, either directly or via the government of ministry of industry and trade. Jordan imports plastic, Amman. Kuwait built two villages named after His non-organic chemical materials, steel, copper, fuel and Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber oil. Kuwait imports livestock, vegetables, nuts, eggs, Al-Sabah in Zaatari refugee camp, each houses more dairy products and some house appliances. The two than 80,000 Syrian refugees. A village consists of countries signed many cooperation agreements, includ- 1,000 housing units, a mosque, two schools and a ing air services in 1975, prevention of dual taxation on medical center. income of corporates and airlines in 1985, economic On the other hand, Kuwait and Jordan enjoy good and trade and technical deal in 1986, encouraging and military cooperation. The two countries renewed military protecting investment in 2001, land transport in 2002 cooperation agreement during a meeting of the joint and establishment of a joint committee in 2002. Kuwait higher committee last March. Military cooperation began and Jordan also signed tourism agreement in 2007, sea in 1974 when Kuwait opened an attache in Jordan, transport deal in 2009, the development of industrial paving way for the training of more than 8,000 Kuwaiti exports and organization of exhibitions agreement in servicemen in Jordanian institutions up to date. Hundreds President of the Jordanian Senate Faisal Al-Fayzes seen during a tour at Kuwait’s National Assembly 2010 and a protocol to attract foreign direct investment of Kuwaitis register at Jordanian educational institutions, during his recent visit to Kuwait. in 2011, among many others. The number of Kuwaitis while over 4,200 men and women study at Jordanian registered at Amman Chamber of Commerce is 82. universities. Kuwait Health Office in Amman is also fol- liament MP Haitham Al-Zyadeen arrived in Kuwait Jordanian delegation was welcomed at the airport by They are investing $330 million in information technol- lowing up cases of Kuwaiti patients in the country. yesterday. The ranking legislator, accompanied by a the head of the mission of honor MP Al-Humaidi Al- ogy and communications, services and consultations, In the meantime, the head of the brotherly delegation, has just begun a four-day official visit to Subaiee, and the deputy Jordanian ambassador to construction and banking. Kuwaiti-Jordanian commission in the Jordanian par- the country. ‘Al-Dustoor’ news network said the Kuwait Fadi Al-Abadi. —KUNA Kuwait’s envoy hands in credentials to Saudi FM RIYADH: Kuwaiti Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Sheikh Ali Khaled Al-Jaber Al-Sabah handed in last Thursday his credentials to Saudi Foreign Minister Ibrahim Abdulaziz Al-Assaf, said a statement yester- day. The Ambassador met minister Assaf to hand in a copy of his credentials in a meeting in Riyadh. He conveyed greetings from Kuwait’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah to Assaf, added the statement. Sheikh Ali had arrived to Riyadh on Tuesday to start as the appointed Kuwaiti Ambassador to Saudi Arabia. —KUNA RIYADH: Kuwaiti Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Sheikh Ali Khaled Al-Jaber Al-Sabah meets with Saudi Foreign Minister Ibrahim Abdulaziz Al-Assaf. —KUNA

Kuwait’s hosting of NBK, KRCS distribute ‘Al-Fahd’ exhibit winter supplies to reflects deep ties: Envoy families in need KUWAIT: Ambassador of the Custodian of the Two Holy KUWAIT: The National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) Mosques to Kuwait Prince Sultan and Kuwait Red Crescent Society (KRCS) distrib- bin Saad Al Saud said yesterday uted winter supplies for families in different areas that Kuwait’s hosting of the exhi- in Kuwait including electrical appliances and bition ‘Al-Fahd.. Spirit of necessity food items as part of its ‘Winter sup- Leadership’ as the first foreign plies’ Campaign. station for him reflects the deep- This campaign aims to offer a warm winter for rooted historical and close rela- families facing hard weather conditions in Sulaibiya tions between the two brotherly and Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh. The campaign included dis- countries. Prince Sultan said in a tributing electrical appliances, food parcels, blan- press statement that Kuwait’s Saudi Ambassador to kets, heaters and other home supplies. hosting of this exhibition, which Kuwait Prince Sultan Talal Al-Turki, NBK Public Relations Team enjoys Kuwaiti praise at the high- bin Saad Al Saud Leader, who led the NBK field team in Sulaibiya and est level, indicates the strength of Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh expressed his sincere apprecia- fraternal ties between the two peoples under the leadership of the tion to Kuwait Red Crescent Society for its active two wise countries. He added that the exhibition, which will start on and prompt response and efforts to be on call and Monday at the Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Cultural Center, will be a help families in need. Saudi-Kuwaiti cultural, historical and knowledge event that will “We are pleased and proud to be a part of this deepen both countries’ bilateral relations and their peoples. He noble campaign that aims to ensure the provision of pointed out that the allocation of a special pavilion for Saudi- Kuwaiti relations at the exhibition, which lasts until February 23rd, much needed aid to the people, especially children will allow visitors to see pictures displayed for the first time of kings and the elderly, who have been displaced in shelters of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait rulers. He said that the exhibition is with little infrastructure to protect them from cold aimed at the current generation of Gulf and Arab youth to learn winter,” he added. about the biography of the kings and leaders, the circumstances “NBK strives to support the community and vari- gram, which seeks to support initiatives that make a NBK is the strategic partner of Kuwait Red they have lived through and the achievements they have made. He ous private and public humanitarian missions and aid profound impact on the lives of communities around Crescent Society. NBK also took part in other expressed his thanks and appreciation to the Custodian of the Two in meeting their needs and achieving their humani- Kuwait. We thank the Kuwait Red Crescent Society humanitarian and social initiatives lead by KRCS in Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and His Crown tarian and social goals,” Turki noted. “This aid is part for their noble efforts, and the continued aide they Kuwait during Ramadan in addition to a huge cam- Prince Mohammed bin Salman for their keenness to enhance the of our corporate social responsibility (CSR) pro- provide to people in need,” he stressed. paign targeting education for children in need. spirit of cooperation with the brothers in Kuwait in all fields, in addi- tion to supporting the King Fahd Foundation. —KUNA Established 1961 3 Local Sunday, February 10, 2019 Kuwait calls for amending IPU’s bylaw to penalize members breaching it

Ghanem meets UN refugee agency’s protection chief

GENEVA: Kuwait National Assembly Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanem speaks to reporters after a preparatory meeting for Parliament Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanem meets with UN refugee the Fifth World Conference of Speakers agency’s protection chief Volker Turk and the President of the Inter- of Parliament. — KUNA photos Parliamentary Union (IPU) Gabriela Cuevas Barron. Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanem meets with members of Kuwait’s mission to Geneva.

GENEVA: Kuwait National Assembly of the Preparatory Committee for the 5th dination of stances on issues that would be Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanem Friday called World Conference of Parliaments Speakers, addressed at the international convention. for amending bylaw of Inter-Parliamentary discussed a number of issues related to the In the meantime, Ghanem visited the Union (IPU) in a way that imposed penal- Commission work in the Middle East, and Permanent Mission of the State of Kuwait ties on any member failing to comply with how the IPU can play a bigger role by to the United Nations Office and other this bylaw. He was speaking to reporters shedding light on it. international organizations in Geneva where after a preparatory meeting for the Fifth Furthermore, Ghanem held talks with his he was welcomed by Head of the Mission World Conference of Speakers of Ugandan counterpart Rebecca Kadaga on Jamal Al-Ghunaim and other members of Parliament, which concluded yesterday. He the sidelines of the first meeting of the the mission. He appreciated the great said they discussed a mechanism to enforce Preparatory Committee for the Fifth World efforts being made by the mission to affirm IPU’s bylaw to bring about compliance by Conference of Speakers of Parliament. The Kuwait’s presence at, and effective contri- member countries, including abidance by bution to, the various activities of the UN resolutions “which were violated by Geneva-based international organizations. some countries.” Later yesterday, Ghanem arrived in Kuwait therefore called on importance Ghanem to Cairo to take part in a scheduled joint of amending bylaw in a way penalties are attend Arab meeting of the Arab Parliament and chairs enforced on any member country failing of the Arab parliaments, in response to an to abide by this bylaw, said Ghanem. The parliamentary invitation by the Arab Parliament preparatory meeting also discussed future President Dr Meshaal Al-Salami. His dele- of democracies in the world and relations meet gation includes MPs Ali Al-Deqbasi, Askar Kuwaiti Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanem arrives in Cairo for an Arab parliamentary meet. between IPU and the UN, he said. Al-Enezi, Mohammad Al-Huwailah and Ghanem and Amal Al-Qubaisi, speaker of Khaled Al-Otaibi. They were welcomed the UAE parliament, represented the Arab upon arrival by the State of Kuwait achieved through an ‘all-encompassing challenges facing the region, the Arab group in the preparatory meetings. He Ambassador to Egypt Mohammad Al- vision’ that aims to keep collective security world’s top lawmaker cited unemployment hoped the conference would have fruitful talks focused on the parliamentary cooper- Dhuwaikh, the Kuwaiti Permanent Delegate intact. Solidarity among Arab nations is as a lingering dilemma, besides other crucial outcome that would be in interest of the ation between Kuwait and Uganda and at the Arab League Ambassador Ahmad Al- needed to stave off any ‘foreign meddling’ sectors such as healthcare and education. Arab and Islamic affairs. coordination of stances of the Arab and Bakr and a number of diplomats. The that can be detrimental to their interests, He went on to say that a key objective in the Meanwhile, Ghanem met with the United African groups of states on the agenda top- speaker flew in from Geneva, where he was Salami said amid high-level talks bringing talks is to ensure that Arab nations remain a Nations refugee agency’s protection chief ics of the committee meeting. Ghanem rep- seen off by Ghunaim and members of the together top lawmakers and officials from cohesive unit in the face of these growing Volker Turk and the President of the Inter- resents the Arab geopolitical group of Kuwaiti mission. The third session of the around the region. He pinpointed the Israeli- challenges, particularly at this critical junc- Parliamentary Union (IPU), Gabriela Cuevas states at the meeting while Kadaga repre- second legislative term of the Arab Palestinian conflict as the most ‘perennial ture. Some of the Arab region’s most notable Barron, in Geneva yesterday. The meeting, sents the African one. Separately, Ghanem Parliament is scheduled on February 10-12. concern,’ in addition to other Arab countries and influential officials have turned up for which was held on the sidelines of held a meeting with his Cypriot counterpart Salami had stated that getting countries enmeshed in political and economic turmoil, the meeting, making the talks all the more Ghanem’s participation in the first meeting Demetris Syllouris, as they discussed coor- in the region on the same page could be naming Lebanon as a case in point. On the significant. — KUNA

NATO lauds Kuwait’s positive role in enhancing NATO-GCC relations

KUWAIT: The Ambassador of the Czech Republic to Kuwait Martin Dvorak visit- ed Kuwait Times recently and discussed matters of mutual concern with Editor- in-Chief Abd Al-Rahman Al-Alyan. — Photo by Joseph Shagra

emony was held at KAC headquarters, Kuwait Airways and attended by KAC Board Chairman Yousef Abdul Hameed Al-Jassem, KAC BRUSSELS: Kuwait’s Ambassador to NATO, the EU, Belgium and Luxembourg Jasem Al-Budaiwi pose for a group photo with NATO Assistant staff covered CEO Kamel Al-Awadhi, Boubyan’s CEO Secretary General for Political Affairs and Security Policy Alejandro Alvargonzalez and Arab ambassadors. — KUNA and administrative affairs manager Waleed Al-Yaqout, Boubyan’s executive with health manager Khalil Al-Shami and deputy BRUSSELS: North Atlantic Treaty Mediterranean Dialogue (MD) and the NATO in many activities, such as workshops, Boubyan’s CEO Abdullah Al-Towaijri. Organization (NATO) has expressed its Istanbul Cooperation Initiative,” said the top training courses that not only benefit Kuwait insurance Speaking on the occasion, Jassem appreciation for Kuwait’s active role in the NATO official. “As we celebrate the 15th but the ICI member countries,” he said. stressed KAC’s keenness of providing Istanbul Cooperation Initiative (ICI) and for anniversary of the ICI and 25th anniversary Budaiwi noted that the Kuwaiti Deputy KUWAIT: Kuwait Airways Corporation the best services to its staff, and said boosting cooperation between the 29-mem- of the MD, I noted that NATO’s partnerships Foreign Minister Khaled Al-Jarallah last (KAC) recently signed a contract with that the insurance contract was renewed ber Alliance and the Gulf Cooperation have allowed us to progressively enhance November inaugurated Kuwait’s diplomatic Boubyan Takaful Insurance Company to to provide employees and their families Council (GCC) states. “I noted and expressed our political dialogue and practical coopera- mission inside the NATO premises in provide health and group insurance for with reasonably priced health services appreciation for Kuwait’s positive and active tion, contributing to improve regional securi- Brussels. “We are looking forward to boost its employees for 2019. The signing cer- in most private hospitals. role in the ICI Partnership, in particular as the ty to the benefit of all countries involved,” he and enhance our relations in every aspect,” generous host of the NATO ICI Regional said. Alvargonzalez added that his presenta- stated Budaiwi and added that Kuwait this Center,” Alejandro Alvargonzalez, NATO tion to the Arab ambassadors highlighted the year is planning to hold an important event to Assistant Secretary General for Political importance of cooperative security for mark the 15the anniversary of the ICI. The ICI Affairs and Security Policy, said yesterday. He NATO, which is one of its main three core was launched at the summit meeting of noted that the ICI Regional Center in Kuwait tasks along with collective defense and crisis NATO leaders in Istanbul in 2004 to foster “has been instrumental since its inception in management. practical security cooperation with Arab Gulf enhancing our practical and political cooper- Meanwhile, Ambassador Budaiwi said that countries. It currently includes Kuwait, ation with all NATO’s partner countries in the the luncheon came in line with the many Bahrain, Qatar and the UAE. Arab Gulf.” activities organized by the Kuwait embassy in In January 2017, NATO Secretary General In similar fashion last Wednesday, Brussels to bring the Arab world in closer Jens Stoltenberg led the North Atlantic Alvargonzalez delivered a speech at the connection with the international organiza- Council, which included the NATO permanent luncheon of Arab Ambassadors based in tions and European institutions based in the representatives, in celebrating the opening of Brussels, hosted by Kuwait’s Ambassador to Belgian capital. “Kuwait has a unique and his- the NATO-ICI Regional Center in Kuwait. NATO, the EU, Belgium and Luxembourg toric relationship with NATO,” he said point- During the inauguration ceremony, the NATO Jasem Al-Budaiwi at his residence. “I shared ing out the Kuwait was the first GCC country Chief highlighted the Center’s potential in with the Arab Ambassadors present, NATO’s to join the ICI. “We are the only country out- strengthening the partnership between NATO partnerships in the MENA (Middle East side the Euro-Atlantic area to host the and the Arab Gulf countries, including in the North Africa) region, under our regional NATO center. We are engaged with fight against terrorism. — KUNA 4 Sunday, February 10, 2019 Local MP donates $10,000 for family of Lebanese self-immolation victim Kuwait prepares first sustainable development report

By A Saleh and Meshaal Al-Enezi ministry staff members, noting that the ministry of awqaf is accounts and related parlia- prepare Kuwait’s first report and submit it to the UN in full of qualified and skilled staff members capable of mentary agreements, the gov- July. Speaking while presiding the sustainable develop- KUWAIT: MP Khalaf Dumaitheer recently donated the sum achieving its vision. Shula added that during his meeting ernment referred two bills to ment committee’s meeting which included representa- of $10,000 plus a monthly salary to the family of Lebanese open an extra credit for the oil tives from various government bodies, NGOs, the private man George Zreik, who killed himself outside his children’s and health ministries in the fis- sector and state auditing bodies, Mahdi hailed a number private school in Lebanon. Notably, Zreik self-immolated in cal year 2018-2019, which of government bodies that have already submitted their protest over depriving his daughter the right to get a score Education allows them to withdraw KD data, including the defense, justice and electricity and sheet because he had not paid the school fees. He died in 1,219,000,000 from the state’s water ministries, in addition to the National Guard, hospital with over 90 percent burns on his body. Ministry general reserves to settle up Central Bank, Kuwait University, the Public Authority for the two accounts. Head of the Manpower, Kuwait Fire Service Directorate and the Replacement plan urged to hire parliamentary budgets and Kuwait Credit Bank. The Ministry of Education (MoE) administrative affairs final statements committee MP sector urged assistant undersecretaries to prepare and more Kuwaitis Adnan Abdulsamad said the List of disabilities hand over lists of expat teachers, social workers and office MP Khalaf Dumaitheer committee would consult the Head of the kinetic disability assessment committee at porters to be included in the replacement plans so that State Audit Bureau on this the Public Authority for the Disabled Dr Salem Ali Al- proper measures could be taken at least three months pri- extra credit prior to discussing the government’s proposal. Kandari said the authority is fully committed to interna- or to terminating their contracts. Notably, the Civil Service Abdulsamad added that with the extra sum, the sum tional standards on assessing a disability by specialized Commission (CSC) had urged MoE in November to termi- with the ministry’s supreme planning committee, he asked declared by the finance minister as the new budget would doctors who thoroughly examine the patient and their nate the contracts of 1,186 expat teachers and administra- to adjust the charters of official missions and conferences increase by KD 1,219,000,000. medical reports and tests in addition to their case history. tive staff members to replace them with Kuwaitis. abroad in a way that guarantees staff rights and prevent Responding to an inquiry about disabled persons, specifi- profiteering and favoritism. “Missions will be restricted to Sustainable development cally on requests to list spinal-related problems among Vacant positions Kuwaiti employees only,” he underlined. Secretary General of the Supreme Council for the list of disabilities, Kandari added that some disc pains Minister of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs and Minister of Planning and Development Khaled Mahdi urged over 20 are curable except for those which have an impact on the State for Municipal Affairs Fahd Al-Shula expressed plans Extra credit government bodies to submit the information they have spinal cord and nerves, as some of those may lead to to fill vacant assistant undersecretaries’ positions with In a proactive measure to handle the state budget concerning executing sustainable development goals to paralysis and affect the patient’s daily routine.

local spotlight Police storm Amghara Anti-corruption garages used to repair strategy ‘reckless drivers’ cars

By Hanan Al-Saadoun

KUWAIT: Ahmadi and Jahra traffic department carried out By Muna Al-Fuzai a surprise inspection campaign in Amghara after discover- ing an industrial land allocated to repair sports cars was used by violators for reckless behavior. Residency viola- tors who were repairing the cars illegally were arrested. The area was raided and 18 vehicles were found, some [email protected] with Gulf plates, others forged and some without plates. A mechanic who was found without any ID was arrested.

he issue of corruption is not a new story or a Ceiling collapse solo incident of someone who uses his The kitchen ceiling of an apartment in Salmiya col- authority to seize state lands or public funds. lapsed, prompting Salmiya fire station to respond. They T found the cause of the accident was a cooking gas leak KUWAIT: Sports cars found in a garage busted for offering to repair reckless drivers’ vehicles. In a press conference held by Kuwait Transparency that led to an explosion but no fire. Firemen took out the Society announcing the results of the global stove and gas cylinder and secured the place. Separately, Corruption Perceptions Index 2018 issued by firemen from the Sulaibkhat and Farwaniya fire station sent out patrols to check for persons seen in a video circu- Road closed Transparency International, it showed Kuwait fought a blaze in an Andalus house. The fire, which had lated on social media gambling and drinking in Mahboula. The traffic department will temporarily close Fahd Al- Malik Road (208) today in both directions due to an activ- ranked 78th in the world, 8th in the Arab world and started on the second floor, was put out without injuries. Police arrested three persons in an area surrounded by fifth in the Gulf region on the index. trees and plants. Ahmadi detectives also arrested 14 ity by the education ministry from 7:30 am until the activi- ty is over. The education ministry in Mubarak Al-Kabeer Of course, corruption is an offense to the coun- Gamblers arrested Asians, including several who appeared in the video clip. try and people, and devastating if not combatted. I The gambling dealer and liquor seller were also arrested. education zone will make 4,000 students carry a Kuwaiti Ahmadi detectives, in cooperation with Fintas police, flag 2,019 m long, a Guinness world record. heard on the radio about an anti-corruption strate- gy launched by the Kuwaiti government. The strat- egy is for a period of five years from 2019 to 2024 and is based on four main axes and objectives, including 13 priorities distributed over 47 initiatives for achieving better rates in sustainable develop- ment indicators and combatting corruption. I think the plan is a step in the right direction, but I wonder how this strategy will be implement- ed and who is the party that will arrest these cor- rupt people or agencies, regardless of their social status and positions and insist on bringing them to justice without interventions and wasta? What will be the role of the media on this issue, especially social media? I guess people may rush to voice opinions through social media either to support or reject the measures. The chairman of the Kuwait Transparency Society said that the reasons for Kuwait’s progress in the Corruption Perceptions Index are many, such as the conflict of interest law and the Cabinet deci- sion to form a committee of 16 bodies to review the indicators and prepare the necessary measures to amend the country’s ranking in the global Corruption Perceptions Index. The comparative analysis of data on democracy This photo released by the Interior Ministry shows sus- pects arrested on charges of gambling. Heavy damage left by a fire in an Andalus house. in the world reveals a correlation between corrup- The collapsed kitchen ceiling of an apartment in Salmiya. tion and the level of democracy, as the index showed the weakest rate for authoritarian regimes, which registered only around 30 points in the mitted their requests stands at 16, including Corruption Perceptions Index. Four candidates one woman. During an inspecting tour to The Corruption Perceptions Index is related to the department’s headquarters, Interior the extent of corruption in the public sector, apply on 3rd day Ministry’s Undersecretary Lieutenant specifically corruption by officials, public servants General Essam Al-Naham stressed the and politicians. But some aspects are not measured ministry’s keenness on employing all by the index, like perceptions of citizens or their of nomination potentials to render the balloting process a experiences with corruption. real success. I believe that people’s views on the subject of Candidates continue submitting their KUWAIT: A total of four candidates have bids until February 16, the ministry said. On corruption are essential. It is natural that every submitted their applications in the third February 4, the government assigned the country in the world wants to be the first in the day for nomination to run for the upcoming Interior Ministry to prepare for organizing fight against corruption, so it is necessary to place parliamentary by-elections slated for by-elections for 2nd and 3rd constituencies specific measurements to take into account the March 16. Elections affairs department on March 16 after the Court of Cassation experiences of the public and their opinions, and received applications of four candidates, slammed prison sentences on two MPs. incorporate the changes they notice to be part of two for the second constituency and two The two seats became vacant after the the final assessment of each country. for the third constituency, the Interior Court of Cassation sentenced two MPs, The executive director of Transparency Ministry said in a statement yesterday. The during a session on July 8, 2018, for three International said the international community number of candidates who have so far sub- and a half years behind bars. — KUNA should make greater efforts to strengthen democ- racy and protect the rights of citizens, especially when corruption seeps into democratic systems Prime Minister and State Minister for and ultimately weakens them. I believe that the Audit bureau Cabinet Affairs Anas Al-Saleh, according relationship between democracy and corruption to a SAB statement. must be studied carefully, because the two must The talks also grouped the minister of work together to achieve real success. reviews 2017-18 finance, minister of commerce and indus- Transparency International called on all govern- try, minister of oil and minister of elec- ments to make real progress in fighting corruption accounts tricity and water and state minister for and promoting democracy around the world, economic affairs. The results were based bridge the gap between the enactment of legisla- on the standards of the Vienna-based tion on corruption, its implementation on the KUWAIT: After reviewing state body International Organization of Supreme ground and its provisions, which will enhance accounts and records for the 2017-18 fiscal Audit Institutions (INTOSAI), a non- political participation and control public opinion year, the State Audit Bureau (SAB) advised governmental organization which pro- on government spending. I believe that true suc- increasing support for internal oversight vides governments with auditing advice bodies, encouraging accountability and cess in combating corruption does not come KUWAIT: Kuwait National Guard celebrated the graduation of beginners that and know-how. Kuwait Transparency through good speeches and wishes, but practical corporate governance and issuing dead- Society’s report into the reasons behind included security, administrative and practical training on shooting and fighting, lines for development projects. This came application as an indicator of success. in addition to physical fitness exercises. Kuwait’s two-spot leap on the annually- as SAB discussed its findings with minis- published Corruption Perceptions Index ters during a meeting chaired by Deputy was also raised. — KUNA 5 Local Sunday, February 10, 2019 Fawziya Mansour Amir Ali named winner of Gulf Bank’s Yearly Salary Account Draw Gulf Bank launches 2019 Kuwaiti Salary Offer

KUWAIT: A group photo of Gulf Bank’s team.

A general view of the audience. The ‘Sons of Yusuf’ band performs on stage.

KUWAIT: Gulf Bank unveiled the winner of its yearly mitment of the bank to its customers. The event was a draw for Kuwait’s largest salary prize live at Al- great success, and we would like to thank everyone Murooj, on Thursday February 7, 2019. Fawziya for attending and taking part, we would also like to Mansour Amir Ali was announced as the winner of a thank Sons of Yusuf for treating us to a fantastic per- cash prize of KD 250,000. The draw was held in the formance on the night.” presence of a representative from the Ministry of The salary account gives new customers the Commerce. opportunity to receive either a KD100 cash gift upon The event kicked off at 5:00pm, and saw growing transferring their salaries to Gulf Bank or an interest- crowds participate in the fun activities on offer, with free loan of up to KD10,000. Customers must have a Gulf Bank’s much-loved ‘Catch the Cash’ game prov- minimum salary of KD500 and will be eligible for the ing to be a crowd favorite. Guests were also treated offer following their first salary transfer to Gulf Bank. to a special performance by ‘Sons of Yusuf’ and Customers can also enjoy additional benefits like a enjoyed a selection of delicious food and beverages free of charge Visa or MasterCard credit card for a throughout the evening. The draw was also broadcast year, as well as a chance to apply for a loan of up to live on 88.8 FM Kuwait Pulse radio station. KD70,000, or a consumer loan of up to KD25,000. Ahmad Al-Amir, Assistant General Manager for With the new 2019 Kuwaiti Salary Offer existing External Communication, Gulf Bank, said: “Gulf Bank and new customers, who transfer their salaries to Gulf congratulates Fawziya as the winner of another suc- Bank are automatically enrolled in the monthly draws, cessful year of the Salary Account Draw. We are also giving them the chance of winning cash prizes of up Gulf Bank’s Ahmad Al-Amir, Mohammad Al-Qattan and Lana Al-Drami with the Ministry of Commerce’s proud to announce the launch of the 2019 Kuwaiti to 12 times their salary, and a yearly draw of Kuwait’s representative. Salary Offer, which demonstrates the ongoing com- largest salary prize of up to 100 times their salary.

Thousands of bikers join hands to express patriotism before National Day KUWAIT: Over 2,000 motorcyclists from the country and the wider Gulf region united in Kuwait for a drive along the Arabian Gulf Road as part of Kuwait Riders’ ninth bike show, the amateur enthusiast group said on Friday. The bikers began their journey from Kuwait Towers, the country’s iconic landmark, days ahead of the February 25-26 National Day celebrations. The event included a competition dedicated to the most striking-looking exterior. More than 100 bikes took part in the event, one of whom was selected to represent the Arab region at Week Bike Euro. —KUNA International SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2019 China protests Modi’s visit to disputed area Page 9 Instagram curbs self-harm posts after teen suicide Page 8

This handout photo provided by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) official website via SEPAH News shows the new ‘Dezful’ missile during its inauguration ceremony at an undisclosed location. — AFP Europe not to be trusted: Iran Iran celebrates 40th anniversary of Islamic Revolution TEHRAN: Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei America means death to (President Donald) Trump, tions from God. Despite 10 days of annual celebrations anniversary and showcase its latest equipment and capa- said yesterday that Europe “cannot be trusted”, a week (National Security Advisor) John Bolton and (Secretary of launched on February 1, today’s Islamic Republic faces bilities. At shows dubbed “40 years of defensive achieve- after the EU launched a trade mechanism to bypass US State Mike) Pompeo. It means death to America’s rulers ... acute economic challenges as it struggles with a mix of ments”, Tehran has unveiled a new made-in-Iran cruise sanctions on Tehran. “These days there’s talk of the we have nothing against the American people,” he said. domestic hardships and US sanctions. missile which it said had been “successfully” tested. Europeans and their proposals. My advice is that they The rial has sharply devalued against the dollar, driving up Washington and its allies accuse Tehran of working to shouldn’t be trusted, just like the Americans,” he said at a 40th anniversary prices, while the reimposition of sanctions has blocked foreign enhance its missile capabilities, threatening the whole meeting with air force officials, his website reported. Iran celebrates the 40th investment and limited Iran’s oil Middle East, although Iran insists its weaponry is solely for “I’m not saying we shouldn’t have relations with them. anniversary of the Islamic sales. In response Iranian authorities defensive purposes. Billboards boasting of the revolution’s This is about trust,” he added. Britain, France and Germany Revolution’s victory tomor- have warned against “infiltrators” achievements have sprouted all across Tehran, ranking Iran last week launched a special payment mechanism called row at a time of heightened Khamenei who would threaten the country first in “peaceful nuclear research in the Middle East”, INSTEX to help save the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran tensions with the United from within and called for “national ninth in the world in the number of books published each and world powers. It would allow Tehran to keep trading States and a sharp economic accuses unity”. Iran is also grappling with an year, and fifth in “cyberspace security”. with EU companies in spite of US sanctions renewed after downturn. On February 11, the environmental crisis, brought on by In a show of technological progress, Iran last month Washington quit the accord last year. Tehran has cautious- state has organised a march Europe of a mix of air pollution, soil erosion, launched a satellite called Payam (message in Persian) but ly welcomed INSTEX as a “first step”, but US officials said to Tehran’s Azadi (freedom) drought and desertification. The it failed to reach orbit. Speculation is mounting that Iran the new entity would not have any impact on efforts to Square to mark the day the hypocrisy country has “progressed in many could launch another domestically-manufactured satellite exert economic pressure on Iran. monarchy was officially top- areas in 40 years”, its environmental during the final phases of the annual celebrations. Iran’s Khamenei also accused Europe of hypocrisy over human pled 10 days after the tri- organization head Isa Kalantari has supreme leader, the late Khomeini’s successor Ayatollah rights, criticizing France’s treatment of protesters in Paris. umphant return from exile of said, singling out the sectors of Ali Khamenei, has agreed to pardon a “large number” of “They (anti-riot police) attack protesters in Paris streets and the revolution’s leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. health, industry, services and education. But its environmental prisoners for this year’s anniversary, according to state blind them, then they have the audacity to make human It will be a who’s who of Iranian politicians and public track record is simply “indefensible”, he warned. television. Judiciary chief Sadegh Amoli Larijani, quoted rights requests of us,” he said. Turning to the United States, figures, with President Hassan Rouhani expected to deliver in the Iranian media, has put at 50,000 the number of Khamenei said Iranians would chant “death to America” as a speech at a rally. Iran has played up this year’s anniver- Revolution’s achievements prisoners to be released. Iran held over 217,000 prison- long as Washington kept up its hostile policies, but the slo- sary as 40 is symbolic of maturity in the Islamic tradition On the military front, a source of pride for Iran, it has ers in March 2017, according to official figures from the gan was not directed at the American people. “Death to and the age at which Prophet Mohammed received revela- timed two arms exhibitions in Tehran to coincide with the judiciary. — Agencies

Turkey building Severe storm collapse death lashes Sydney toll rises to 17 SYDNEY: Thousands of Sydney homes were without power yesterday after severe storms hit Australia’s largest city, causing transport hold-ups, inundating ISTANBUL: The death toll from the collapse of an apartment vehicles with floodwater and delaying a national building in Istanbul rose to 17 as President Recep Tayyip football match. Heavy rains and lightning storms Erdogan said yesterday that authorities have “lessons to learn” lashed parts of Sydney late Friday, with close to 60 from the incident. The eight-storey block in the Kartal district millimeters (nearly two and a half inches) of rain on the Asian side of the city collapsed on Wednesday but the falling in some areas. In Sydney’s west, which experi- cause is not yet clear. Erdogan yesterday visited the site and enced some flash flooding, one suburb saw nearly 42 said the death toll had risen to 17 with 14 injured. The toll is up millimeters fall in a short downpour lasting just 30 from a figure of 15 on Friday with 13 injured. “We have a great minutes. “It was a slow-moving storm with that number of lessons to learn from this,” the president told warm humid air moving along the coast... that reporters. “We will take the necessary measures”. allowed for that increase of moisture,” Byron Doyle Dozens of rescuers worked at the site, as a crane lifted huge from the New South Wales Bureau of meteorology blocks of concrete to clear the rubble to search for the said. Images of cars submerged in floodwaters on remaining victims. The president also went to the hospital to main roads, broken traffic lights and fallen trees cir- talk to the survivors, and then attended the funeral of the nine culated on social media. members of one family who lost their lives in the disaster. Energy companies reported that more than Turkish authorities said 43 people were registered as living in 40,000 customers were affected by power outages the building. Turkish media said three of the eight floors had at the peak of the storm overnight, with more than been illegally built-a common practice in the metropolis of 5,000 still without power yesterday. Emergency some 15 million people. services fielded over 1,000 requests for assistance, The collapse fanned criticism of a government amnesty grant- including nine flood rescues in the Sydney area. The ed last year to people accused of illegal building-a measure rescues were “all for vehicles in flood water,” a New SYDNEY: Photo shows storm clouds gathering over Bondi Junction in Sydney. — AFP announced ahead of municipal elections this March. Engineers South Wales state emergency services spokesperson and architects regularly sound the alarm against illegal addi- told AFP. Flights were delayed at Sydney’s airport, stopping the game during a reported blackout. The being broken in some towns. Eastern inland areas tional storeys to buildings which they say weaken the con- while the storm caused havoc on some of the city’s Sydney storm comes as recovery efforts continue in have been experiencing a severe drought, while fire- structions’ structure, and put them at greater risk in the event train lines. Australia’s flood-ravaged northeastern state of fighters in the country’s southern states have been of an earthquake. A four-storey structure in Istanbul crumbled The start of a national Australian rules football Queensland, which over the past week has seen recently battling bushfires. High temperatures are not last year following violent thunderstorms. In January 2017, two women’s match was delayed twice, pushed back 45 record-breaking rainfall, forcing hundreds of evacua- unusual in the Australian summer, but climate change people died when another building collapsed in a working minutes as heavy rain and lightning pummeled the tions and thousands of requests for help. has pushed up land and sea temperatures and led to class part of the city. — AFP oval. Several light towers then went out mid-match Extreme heatwaves during the southern hemi- more extremely hot days and severe fire seasons, sci- during the live television broadcast, temporarily sphere summer have also led to temperature records entists say. — AFP 7 International Sunday, February 10, 2019 Chaos, mud, cards: Nigerians frustrated ahead of election Logistical snafus frustrate potential voters LAGOS: Angry voters queuing for hours and entire parts of difficult. At the centre in the sprawling Lagos suburb of the country rendered war zones: pitfalls abound for Lekki, where Tobiloba and thousands of others waited on Nigeria’s fast-approaching general election. With just over a Friday, INEC workers announced names over a dilapidated week until the February 16 opening of polls, logistical snafus sound system. “We are bringing more PVCs, remain here have frustrated potential voters. Across the country on and stay calm,” a staffer called out to the increasingly Friday, Nigerians made last-minute attempts to pick up bio- impatient crowd. Soldiers were deployed in the muddy metric identification cards needed to cast ballots on what courtyard. Earlier in the day they had to quell an angry was to be the last day for collection. But many were unable crowd attempting to storm its gates before distribution to collect their Permanent Voters Card (PVC), in a sign of began, an INEC official said. Friday was Francis Ojah’s the challenges ahead for the 84 million people registered to fourth attempt to collect his PVC-but again he was frus- vote in presidential and legislative polls that will decide the trated. “They didn’t find it. They told me that I should come balance of power in Africa’s most populous country. after the elections. Can you imagine?” he said. Meanwhile “They are sabotaging our efforts to vote and elect the another woman left with two cards, saying one was for her, candidate of our choice. It’s unfair,” said 27-year-old and the other for her husband. Tobiloba, who had waited in an unseasonal downpour since 5:30 am to pick up his PVC at a distribution centre Complaints abound in Lagos. By the end of the day the Independent National Nigerians have complained on social media of being Electoral Commission (INEC) had extended distribution unable to pick up their cards despite repeated attempts. over the weekend until Monday. “We will continue to take “We have been inundated by calls, from Nigerians to every necessary step to ensure that no registered voter is review the current process of collection of” PVCs, Yakubu LAGOS: A crowd at one of the Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) collection points listens attentively for names to disenfranchised,” the INEC chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, acknowledged Friday in justifying the extended distribu- be called out over a megaphone to receive their voting card in Lagos. — AFP said. President Muhammadu Buhari is vying with his main tion. But bungled organization isn’t the only challenge the challenger, former vice-president Atiku Abubakar, for a elections may face. There is poor infrastructure and unreli- second four-year term. able electricity. lion. Observers, including the United States in a January able to vote,” particularly those living in areas Boko Haram Potholed roads make access difficult to many of the statement, have expressed fears that Boko Haram could rules near Lake Chad. Another area of concern is Nigeria’s Verging on chaos nearly 120,000 polling stations across a country one-and- target polling places. Borno state in the northeast has been bread basket Middle Belt region, where clashes between PVCs played a major role in the historic 2015 election, a-half times the size of France. ravaged by the violence, and there INEC said it will open nomadic herdsmen and farming communities have killed where Buhari beat the incumbent Goodluck Jonathan, in Organized crime, banditry, kidnapping and insurgencies polling stations to serve 400,000 people in eight of the thousands and displaced tens of thousands since early the first victory at the ballot box for a Nigerian opposition are also major issues. Nowhere has been as severely dozens of camps for Boko Haram displaced. 2018. In the hard-hit states of Benue and Plateau, many candidate. The cards serve as proof of a voter’s identity affected as the country’s northeast, where a decade of vio- Speaking on condition of anonymity, a humanitarian families lost everything when their houses were burnt in and are intended to reduce fraud that has marred previous lence caused by the Islamist Boko Haram insurgency has worker based in the state capital Maiduguri said this the clashes, including the documents they would need to votes. Yet getting them into the hands of voters has proven killed some 27,000 people and displaced around 1.8 mil- would mean “hundreds of thousands of people will not be collect their PVCs and vote. — AFP

churches, mosques, state entities and security forces. Some Zreik reportedly took the desperate step after the Boko Haram: From Boko Haram members are thought to have trained with Al- Lebanese man school refused to give him a certificate attesting that his Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) in northern Mali in daughter was a student, the state-run National News 2012 and 2013. Among the group’s most notorious acts was Agency said. He needed the certificate to transfer her to Islamist sect to the April 2014 kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls from the remote dies after setting another institution. The school withheld the document northern town of Chibok in Borno state. Fifty-seven fled in because Zreik had failed to pay fees he owed the manage- armed threat the immediate aftermath, and more than 100 of the 219 who himself ablaze ment, the report said. spent years in captivity have since been released, found or The school said in a statement that it had granted LAGOS: Nigeria’s Boko Haram started out as an Islamic anti- escaped. The mass abduction brought world attention to the Zreik’s two children free tuition since they enrolled in 2014. corruption group but mutated into an IS affiliate waging a BEIRUT: A Lebanese man died from severe burns Friday insurgency at a time when Boko Haram was seizing territory But the father still had to pay for the bus service, sta- lethal insurgency. Here is some background about the after setting himself on fire at his daughter’s school over a across the northeast, which became a largely no-go area, with tionery and extracurricular activities, it said. The school jihadists, whom Muhammadu Buhari vowed to defeat when he fee dispute with the management, state media said. George the violence spilling over into Cameroon, Chad and Niger. In said it had sent four written notices since the start of the became president in 2015 but remain a threat as he seeks a August 2014 Shekau proclaimed a “caliphate” in the Borno Zreik doused himself with petrol and set it ablaze second term. Thursday at Our Lady of Kaftoun secondary school in the school year asking him to settle outstanding payments. town of Gwoza, and in March 2015 pledged allegiance to the Lebanon’s newly-appointed Education Minister Akram Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria. Koura district of north Lebanon, the doctor who treated Hardline him said. Gabriel al-Sabaa, head of the surgery depart- Chehayeb opened an investigation into the incident and Boko Haram aims to create a hardline Islamic state in ment at the al-Salam hospital in Tripoli, said that “burns pledged to cover the cost of educating Zreik’s two chil- Fight back dren, a statement said. — AFP northeastern Nigeria. Its campaign has cost at least 27,000 The violence has destroyed property and farmland in the covered 90 percent of his body”. lives since 2009 and displaced 1.8 million people. The name mainly rural northeast and sparked a humanitarian crisis and loosely translates from the Hausa language as “Western edu- acute food shortages. An offensive since 2015 by regional cation is forbidden”. Its founder and spiritual leader armies-troops from Nigeria and backed by others from Muhammad Yusuf pinned the blame for Nigeria’s ills on Cameroon, Chad and Niger-drove jihadists from most of the Western values left by colonial master, Britain. He also areas they had seized. But regular bloody raids and suicide accused the country’s secular leaders of corruption and bomb attacks continue. Mass court action for people sus- neglecting development in Muslim regions. Yusuf came to the pected of being members of Boko Haram started in October attention of authorities in 2002 when he began to build a fol- 2017. Most were released, largely due to lack of evidence, lowing among disaffected youths in Maiduguri, the Borno and more than 100 convicted of belonging to the group and state capital in northeast Nigeria. Yusuf was killed in police taking part in attacks. custody in 2009 after an uprising in Maiduguri that prompted a military assault. Some 800 people died in the action, and Split Boko Haram’s mosque and headquarters were left in ruins. A faction led by the son of Muhammad Yusuf, Abu Mus’ab Many of its supporters fled the country. al-Barnawi, broke away in opposition to Shekau’s indiscrimi- nate targeting of civilians. Barnawi’s faction, which has the Violent turn backing of IS, targets the armed forces and has since July Boko Haram was broadly peaceful before Yusuf’s death. 2018 carried out numerous attacks on military bases. But his successor, his right-hand man Abubakar Shekau, Shekau’s faction is meanwhile responsible for unrelenting sui- undertook a violent campaign of deadly attacks on schools, cide bombings targeting civilians. — AFP

ABUJA: A woman walks to the campaign headquarters of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) party, display- ing campaign posters of their candidate for re-election, President Mohammadu Buhari, in Abuja yesterday. — AFP

compromising documents” were vehicles. On Friday, the group said it Chadian army also seized,” the statement added had suffered “damage” after the without giving further details. French strikes, according to one of President Idriss Deby on its members Mahamat Doki Warou. captures more Thursday said the column of Another source from the group told rebels had been “destroyed” in a AFP that ten fighters had been than 250 rebels series of strikes carried out by killed. The UFR was created in French warplanes. Acting in con- January 2009 from an alliance of junction with Chad’s government, eight rebel groups. N’DJAMENA: The Chadian military French Mirage 2000 jets targeted In February 2008, a tripartite yesterday said it had captured more the convoy on Sunday, Tuesday insurgent group, moving in from the than 250 rebels, including some top and Wednesday, destroying about east, reached the gates of the presi- leaders, after an operation against 20 of roughly 50 pickup trucks the dential palace in N’Djamena before an convoy of militants trying to rebels started out with, the French being repulsed by Deby’s forces. cross into the country from Libya in armed forces said in a statement. Chad, a vast and mostly desert late January that also involved Chadian forces had already tried country with more than 200 ethnic French airstrikes. In a statement to stop the column with airstrikes groups, has suffered repeated coups issued by army staff the Chadian at the beginning of February, and crises since it gained independ- military said the sweep would con- before asking France for warning ence from France in 1960. Under tinue in the region of Ennedi, in the passes and then strikes. Deby, a former head of the armed northwest border with Libya and An armed forces spokesman said forces, the country has taken a lead- Sudan, near where the armed col- the convoy had crossed 400 kilo- ing role in the fight against jihadism umn of rebel vehicles was brought meters (250 miles) of Chadian terri- in the Sahel region. It is part of a to a halt in early February. The tory before being halted between West African coalition fighting the statement said some 250 “terrorists, Tibesti and Ennedi in the northwest. Boko Haram insurgency, and a mem- including four main leaders” were An anti-Deby rebel group, the ber of the French-backed G5 Sahel detained, while more than 40 vehi- Union of Resistance Forces (UFR), anti-terror alliance, which also cles were destroyed and hundreds claimed to have crossed into north- includes Burkina Faso, Mali, of weapons were seized. “Several ern Chad with “three columns” of Mauritania, and Niger. — AFP 8 Sunday, February 10, 2019 International Instagram curbs self-harm posts after teenage suicide Britain urges others to join Instagram’s curbs

LONDON: Britain has urged all social media platforms to lovely daughter,” Ian Russell told The Times last month. He encourage suicide or self-harm. But it will now ban “graph- scrutiny as they expand in reach and cultural influence. join Instagram and curb self-harm posts after a UK teen called Instagram’s decision Thursday “encouraging”. “I hope ic self-harm” images and remove references to less explicit Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg said last year that he who went online to read about suicide took her own life. that the company acts swiftly to implement these plans and posts about people hurting themselves from its searches thought more regulation of the industry was “inevitable” The Facebook-owned picture sharing platform’s ban on make good on their commitments,” and recommendations. It will because of the internet’s size. “My position is not that “graphic” content was announced following a meeting Ian Russell said. also clamp down on hashtags- there should be no regulation,” Zuckerberg told an April Thursday between its global chief Adam Mosseri and UK words featuring a “#” that 2018 US congressional hearing. “But I also think that you Health Secretary Matt Hancock. British teen Molly Russell Cry for help Teen who mark a trending topic-relating have to be careful about regulation you put in place.” took her own life in 2017. The 14-year-old’s social media Instagram’s Mosseri said the to suicide. The measures are Instagram’s Mosseri told The Telegraph that he supported history revealed that she followed accounts about depres- changes followed a comprehen- went read meant to make such posts statutes being considered by the British government “as a sion and suicide. The case sparked a vigorous debate in sive review involving experts more difficult to find for concept”. Britain about parental control and state regulation of chil- and academics on children’s about suicide depressed teens who might “There is a lot of regulation already,” said Mosseri. “We dren’s social media use. British Prime Minister Theresa mental health issues. “I joined have suicidal tendencies. “We think it’s important to collaborate with policymakers so May welcomed the move “and encourages other platforms the company more than 10 years took her life are not removing this type of that ... whatever legislation or processes they put in place to take the same approach,” her spokeswoman said Friday. ago and we were primarily content from Instagram entire- work, make sense.” The UK government will this month Molly’s parents did not directly blame Instagram for the focused on all of the good that ly,” said Mosseri. “We don’t publish a “white paper” on harmful online behavior that loss of their daughter. But her father Ian cited the easy access came out of connecting people,” want to stigmatize or isolate will be used as guideline for possible oversight rules. “The to such posts on Instagram and Pinterest-a newer site also Mosseri told The Telegraph newspaper. “But if I am honest people who may be in distress and posting self-harm relat- task is to design a system of oversight that preserves what built around images-as a contributing factor that platforms we were under-focused on the risks of connecting so ed content as a cry for help.” is best and most innovative about the online companies must not ignore. “The more I looked (into her online accounts), many people. That’s a lesson we have learned over the last but which also insists that they do what they can to keep the more there was that chill horror that I was getting a few years.” ‘Careful regulation’ the users of their services safe,” Culture Minister Jeremy glimpse into something that had such profound effects on my Instagram has never allowed posts that promote or Social media platforms are coming under increasing Wright wrote in The Times. — AFP

News in brief Jihadists get life US Muslim executed for deadly 2015 WASHINGTON: A US Muslim man has been executed after the Supreme Court denied a request to halt the Tunisia attacks sentence over his demand to be accompanied by an imam to the death chamber. Domineque Ray, 42, was TUNIS: A Tunisian court has sentenced seven jihadists to put to death in the southern state of Alabama for the life in prison over attacks at a museum and on a beach in 1995 rape and murder of Tiffany Harville, 15. “Due to 2015 that killed 60 people, many of them British tourists, the nature of his crime, the decision of a jury to con- prosecutors said yesterday. Dozens of defendants faced demn him to death and because our legal system has two separate trials over the closely linked shootings, which worked as designed, Mr Ray’s sentence was carried occurred just months apart in Tunis and Sousse, but many out,” Alabama Governor Kay Ivey said in a statement. were acquitted. Four were sentenced to life in prison for The execution occurred Thursday after the country’s the shooting rampage at a Sousse tourist resort in June highest court denied a request for a stay of execution. 2015, which killed 38 people, mostly British tourists. Alabama carries out the death penalty by lethal injec- Five other defendants in the Sousse case were handed tion. The Supreme Court’s ruling lifted a last-minute jail terms ranging from six months to six years, while 17 stay which Ray had won on Wednesday from a federal were acquitted, prosecution spokesman Sofiene Sliti said. appeals court. — AFP Three were given life sentences for the earlier attack in March 2015 at the capital’s Bardo National Museum, in which two gunmen killed 21 foreign tourists and a Tunisian 7 Muslim men jailed security guard. Others found guilty of links to the Bardo attack were sentenced to prison terms ranging from one to NEW DELHI: An Indian court has sentenced seven 16 years, and a dozen defendants were acquitted, Sliti said. TUNIS: In this file photo, roses are seen on bloodstains in front of the National Bardo Museum in Tunis on March Muslim men to life in prison for the murder of two The prosecution will appeal, he added. One of the 19, 2015 during a demonstration in solidarity with the victims of an attack on the museum. — AFP Hindu men in 2013 in the northern state of Uttar lawyers for relatives of French victims in the Bardo attack, Pradesh, an incident that had sparked religious riots Gerard Chemla, expressed “enormous bitterness” that the nationals, four Italians, three Japanese and two Spaniards watched the live feed of Friday’s hearing, said it had helped killing about 65 people and displacing thousands. The families had not been given more input into the proceed- were among those killed in the Bardo attack, before the two them to turn the page. “It was important for us to see, and riots began in the district of Muzaffarnagar, 130 km ings. He said a live feed of Friday’s hearing had brought gunmen, armed with Kalashnikov assault rifles, were them- especially to hear-to try to understand the role” of each northeast of New Delhi, and spread to other areas in some degree of comfort but lamented that the relatives of selves shot dead. Investigations showed one of the gunmen, defendant, said one French survivor. “Arriving at the end of the country’s most populous state months before the those killed had not been compensated. Chemla said he Yassine Laabidi-who was born in 1990 and was from a poor the process will help us to turn the page, even if we can 2014 election won by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s was “satisfied” that the court had handed down no death district near Tunis-had amphetamines in his body. His fellow never forget.” The Sousse attack, which killed 30 Britons, Hindu nationalist party. A court in Muzaffarnagar sen- sentences, even though Tunisia retains the death penalty attacker Jaber Khachnaoui, born in 1994 and from Tunisia’s is also the subject of proceedings in front of the Royal tenced the men after they were found guilty of killing for terrorism offences despite carrying out no executions deprived Kasserine region, had travelled to Syria in Courts of Justice in London, which is seeking to establish the two Hindus in the village of Kawal on Aug. 27, 2013, since the 1990s. December 2014 via Libya. what happened. After holding inquests into the British prosecutor Rajeev Sharma said. — Reuters One suspect questioned in court, Tunis labourer deaths in January and February 2017, judge Nicholas ‘Duty to IS’ Mahmoud Kechouri, said he had helped plan the Bardo Loraine-Smith concluded that the response of Tunisian The court heard that the two attacks, both claimed by the attack, including preparing mobile phones for Sandi, a police was “at best shambolic, at worst cowardly”. 5 killed in Ukraine Islamic State group (IS), were closely linked. Several defen- neighbor and longtime friend. Kechouri, 33, said he was There have been significant improvements in security at dants pointed to the fugitive Chamseddine Sandi as master- driven by a “duty to participate in the emergence of the Tunisian tourist resorts since the massacre and, in July DONETSK: Pro-Russian separatists in eastern mind of both. According to Tunisian media, Sandi was killed caliphate,” that IS supremo Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi pro- 2017, Britain lifted its warning against “all but essential Ukraine said yesterday that four of their fighters had in a US air strike in neighboring Libya in February 2016, claimed in June 2014 across swathes of territory the travel” to the North African country. The attacks and been killed by Kiev’s forces, while Ukraine announced although there has been no confirmation. Among those who jihadists controlled in Iraq and neighboring Syria. Other resulting travel warnings dealt a devastating blow to the death of one of its soldiers. The toll in the last 24 were facing trial were six security personnel accused of fail- defendants accused of helping prepare the attack said Tunisia’s vital tourism sector from which it has taken time hours was the highest since the latest fragile ceasefire ing to provide assistance to people in danger during the they had only discussed ideas with friends. Several alleged to recover. Since a 2011 uprising that toppled dictator Zine entered force in the war-torn region on December 29. Sousse attack. That shooting was carried out by Seifeddine they were tortured in detention. El Abidine Ben Ali, jihadist attacks in Tunisia have killed The conflict between the Ukrainian government and Rezgui, who opened fire on a beach before rampaging into a dozens of members of the security forces. Thousands of breakaway Moscow-backed rebels began in 2014 after high-end hotel, where he continued to fire a kalashnikov and ‘Helps turn the page’ Tunisians have also travelled abroad to join jihadist organ- Moscow annexed Crimea and has already claimed throw grenades until being shot dead by police. Four French Survivors and relatives in France and Belgium, who izations, according to the United Nations. — AFP some 13,000 lives. Senior rebel representative Eduard Basurin said that four fighters were killed by Ukrainian forces on Friday in the south of the Donetsk region. He fathers and their three children died in the blaze, said no civilians were injured. Dmytro Gutsulyak, press 15 killed in New police said on the Twitter-like Weibo platform. A secretary of Ukraine’s defense ministry, said at a brief- few hours after the incident police arrested the US in contact with ing yesterday that “one of our troops was killed” on Year knife suspect, who had just tried to kill himself. Friday as rebels carried out nine “provocative During the same night, a man surnamed Guo, Venezuelan army, shellings” of Ukrainian positions. — AFP who suspected his wife of adultery, stabbed rampage and eight people to death and injured seven in a vil- lage in the northwest province of Gansu, urging defections Massive drug bust arson attack according to police in the commune of Baiyin. The man, aged 49, has been arrested. The identities of the victims have not been released. WASHINGTON: The United States is holding direct communications with SYDNEY: Australian and US authorities yesterday members of Venezuela’s military urging them to abandon President Nicolas announced they had seized around a billion dollars BEIJING: Fifteen people were killed in China on Knife attacks are common in China, where the the night of the Lunar New Year in two family carrying of firearms is strictly regulated. Violent Maduro and is also preparing new sanctions aimed at increasing pressure worth of methylamphetamine-or “ice”-in a bust that on him, a senior White House official said. The Trump administration revealed new ties between Mexican cartels and Aussie tragedies, after one man started a fire and crime has been on the rise as the economy has another went on a knife rampage. As people boomed in recent decades and the gap between expects further military defections from Maduro’s side, the official told biker gangs. The Australian Federal Police said that a Reuters in an interview, despite only a few senior officers having done so joint investigation led the US Immigration and Customs celebrated to welcome in the Year of the Pig rich and poor has widened rapidly. Studies have also described a rise in the prevalence of mental since opposition leader Juan Guaido declared himself interim president last Enforcement to uncover 1.7 tonnes of drugs in Monday night, a man surnamed Lu set fire to disorders, some of them linked to stress as the month, earning the recognition of the United States and dozens of other California last month. US authorities said the illicit car- the home of his brother in the northern province pace of life becomes faster and support systems countries. go-with a street value of AUS$1.29 billion, or US$900 of Shaanxi, killing seven, according to police in the town of Baoji. The brother, his wife, their wither. — AFP “We believe these to be those first couple pebbles before we start real- million-was hidden in two shipping containers carrying ly seeing bigger rocks rolling down the hill,” the official said this week, audio equipment bound for Australia. After a series of speaking on condition of anonymity. “We’re still having conversations with raids this month, two US nationals and four Australians members of the former Maduro regime, with military members, although were arrested this week in the Melbourne and Sydney those conversations are very, very limited.” areas. They face various charges, including attempting The official declined to provide details on the discussions or the level at to import illegal drugs, and face maximum sentences of which they are being held, and it was unclear whether such contacts could life in prison in Australia if convicted. — AFP create cracks in the Venezuelan socialist leader’s support from the military, which is pivotal to his grip on power. With the Venezuelan military still apparently loyal to Maduro, a source in Washington close to the opposi- Palestinian arrested tion expressed doubts whether the Trump administration has laid enough groundwork to spur a wider mutiny in the ranks where many officers are JERUSALEM: A Palestinian suspected of having killed suspected of benefiting from corruption and drug trafficking. a young Israeli woman has been arrested in a raid in Members of the South American country’s security forces fear they or the West Bank city of Ramallah, an Israeli police their families could be targeted by Maduro if they defect, so the US would spokesman said yesterday. The body of Ori Ansbaher, need to offer them something that could outweigh those concerns, said 19, was found on Thursday evening in the south of Eric Farnsworth, vice president of the Council of the Americas think tank in Jerusalem, and she was buried on Friday in the Israeli Washington. “It depends on what they’re offering,” Farnsworth said. “Are settlement of Tekoa. The suspect comes from the flash- there incentives built into these contacts that will at least cause people to point city of Hebron in the south of the occupied West question their loyalty to the regime?” Guaido says the May 2018 vote in Bank, police said. All other details of the woman’s which Maduro won a second term as president was a sham and on Jan. 23 killing remain the subject of an Israeli gag order. invoked a constitutional provision to declare himself president, promising Previous Israeli statements about her murder came free and fair elections. only from top diplomats and politicians. Israel’s ambas- The US government also sees European allies as likely to do more to sador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, accused prevent Maduro from transferring or hiding Venezuela government assets the UN Security Council of staying silent in the face of held outside the country, the U.S. official said. Major European countries what he charged was the complicity of the Palestinian have joined the United States in backing Guaido but they have stopped Authority (PA) of president Mahmud Abbas in such short of the sweeping oil sanctions and financial measures that Washington attacks. — AFP BEIJING: People burn incense as they pray for good fortune at the Yonghegong, or Lama has imposed. — Reuters Temple in Beijing on the fifth day of the Lunar New Year. — AFP 9 International Sunday, February 10, 2019 Nude protest and black flags greet India’s Modi in Assam China protests Modi’s visit to disputed area GUWAHATI: A second day of protests yesterday he said the bill, which still needs approval from Narendra Modi to the Indian state of Arunachal tainted Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to India’s upper chamber, was a “national commitment” Pradesh, a contested region located on the border northeast India where proposals to change a to the minorities. between the two countries. “The Chinese govern- nationality law have sparked outrage. Protesters “The passage of the bill will ensure that those ment has never recognized the so-called ‘Arunachal waved black flags and burned effigies of the Hindu people who... love India more than their lives will be Pradesh’ and is firmly opposed to the Indian nationalist prime minister while some students accommodated in India. It is a responsibility of leader’s visit,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesper- staged a nude protest outside the state government India to accept those people,” he said. Modi said son Hua Chunying said in a statement. complex in the Assam capital of Guwahati. Media citizenship will only be granted after thorough “China urges the Indian side to... refrain from any reports said the nude protesters were detained checks on each applicant. While groups in Assam action that may lead to the escalation of disputes or while Assam student groups said police baton want to block all outsiders, human rights activists complicate the boundary question,” added Hua, charged another group of activists. have condemned the government law for not cover- some hours after Modi’s visit to the contested area, Black flag protests-considered a strong insult- ing Muslims. They say it will be the first time reli- during which he inaugurated building work for two greeted Modi when he arrived in Guwahati on gion has been a criteria for nationality in India, airports. Relations between New Delhi and Beijing Friday night to start the tour of Assam, Arunachal which is officially secular. have been marked by distrust since a brief but Pradesh and Tripura as he prepares to call a nation- Last year the Assam government released the first bloody 1962 border war, during which the two al election. His nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party draft of a state citizens’ register that rejected four fought over Arunachal Pradesh, with Chinese troops (BJP) has faced a severe backlash in the region over million mainly Muslim residents who were unable to temporarily capturing part of the Himalayan territo- NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi makes a proposed change to a 1955 citizenship act which prove they were living in the state before 1971, when ry. The dispute remains unresolved, with India con- remarks at an inauguration event for development proj- would give Indian nationality to Hindus and other millions fled Bangladesh’s war of independence. sidering Arunachal Pradesh one of its northeastern ects in Itanagar in northeastern Arunachal Pradesh state. minorities who have fled the neighboring Muslim Modi said that his government was speeding up states while China claims about 90,000 square India lost territory in Arunachal Pradesh to China in a 1962 countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan. efforts to seal the India-Bangladesh border. An elec- kilometers of the territory. war and tensions remain high between the neighbors as Assam, a state of 33 million, has been plagued by tion is expected to be called for April-May and the “Indian leaders visit Arunachal Pradesh from both sides claim parts of the rugged border region. —AFP decades of tensions between local tribal and indige- BJP’s hopes in the northeastern states have been time to time, as they visit other parts of India. This nous groups and settlers from outside, including badly damaged by the new law, analysts said. consistent position has been conveyed to the army sent troops to stop the construction of a mili- many Muslims and Hindus from nearby Bangladesh. Chinese side on several occasions,” India’s foreign tary road by China. After two tense months, the Modi insisted that his government will ensure that China protests ministry said in a statement yesterday. In 2017, the troops from both countries withdrew and last April, the amended law does not harm Assam and neigh- In another development, China yesterday two Asian giants were involved in a high-altitude Modi met with Xi Jinping in an effort to reset bilat- boring states however. Addressing one public rally, protested the visit by Indian Prime Minister standoff in Bhutan’s Doklam region after the Indian eral relations. —Agencies

settlement in Afghanistan. US peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad think-tank. Afghanistan’s envoy to Washington, Roya Rahmani, Pakistan begins held six days of talks - perhaps the most productive to date - said that any Pakistani shift in behavior was still not apparent with the Taleban in Doha last month and is due to meet from Kabul, which has yet to participate in the talks. “For us, it India’s Jet Airways Taleban representatives again on Feb 25. Speaking after still remains to be seen,” she told Reuters in an interview. behind-scenes aid Reuters reported the shift, Khalilzad confirmed at a forum in Washington that “there is a positive change in recent times” by Pullout pressure grounds 4 planes Islamabad. “Pakistan has tried to facilitate talks between the Pakistani sources suggest that the driver behind their coun- to US-Taleban talks Taleban and the United States and also favors inter-Afghan try’s support for the talks is not US aid but growing concerns MUMBAI: India’s Jet Airways has grounded four planes WASHINGTON: Pakistan, long at odds with the United States dialogue including between the Taleban and the (Afghan) gov- over the regional economic shockwaves that could follow an after failing to pay lessors, the airline said, in the latest ernment,” he said. abrupt US pullout from Afghanistan. Those concerns have been evidence of financial distress at the debt-laden carrier. over the war in Afghanistan, has begun to play a behind-the- scenes but central role in supporting US peace talks with the Taleban sources said Pakistan’s role in bringing the Taleban strengthened by Trump’s surprise decision in December to The airline-India’s second-largest by market share-is Afghan Taleban, including by facilitating travel to negotiations, to the negotiating table was instrumental. In one instance, withdraw completely from Syria, despite objections from the buckling under the weight of debts worth $1.1 billion and US officials and Taleban sources said. The Pakistani assistance, Islamabad sent a message to the militants through religious Pentagon. There are only about 14,000 US troops in is urgently seeking funds to continue flying. which has not been reported in such detail before, also leaders that they had to talk to the United States or risk a cut- Afghanistan, but their presence ensures a continuous flow of The Mumbai-based carrier has been badly hit by fluc- includes exerting pressure on Taleban leaders who fail to off in ties. They detained Taleban members’ families as a way US financial assistance to Afghanistan. Islamabad, running short tuating global crude prices, a weak rupee and fierce com- cooperate, including by detaining members of the militants’ to pressure them, a Taleban leader said. “I haven’t seen of foreign exchange reserves and in talks with the International petition from budget rivals which has sparked price wars. families, the insurgents say. Pakistan so serious before,” the senior Taleban leader said. The Monetary Fund over what would be its 13th bailout since the Millions of dollars have been wiped off its market capital- Pakistan’s role in the peace negotiations is a delicate one, Taleban leader, who declined to be identified, said Pakistan 1980s, says it cannot afford to see Afghanistan slide into chaos ization over the past year. “Four aircraft have been with Islamabad seeking to avoid demonstrating the kind of had kept “unprecedented pressure” on the militants and their just as Pakistan is trying to attract foreign investors to shore up grounded due to non-payment of amounts outstanding to broad influence over the Taleban that Washington has long close relatives over the past few months. its own economy. “That is our main worry in all of this,” said a lessors under lease agreements,” the carrier said in a accused it of having. Sources caution its help could be tempo- “They made it clear to us that we (Taleban) have to talk to senior official who is closely involved in cross-border relations. statement to the Bombay Stock Exchange late Thursday. rary. The Taleban also do not want to appear beholden to the US and Afghan government,” the Taleban leader said. To “We have enough economic issues of our own to deal with “The company is actively engaged with all its aircraft Islamabad, which has long denied US accusations that it pro- be sure, current and former US officials still are highly skepti- already.” One of the most notable public signs of Pakistan’s cal of Islamabad and do not see any steps by Pakistan that willingness to aid the negotiations was the release of Taleban lessors and regularly provides them with updates on vides safe haven and assistance to insurgents as a way to pre- could not be easily reversed. Washington appears for now to leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar. efforts undertaken by the company to improve its liquidi- serve influence in neighboring Afghanistan throughout its more than 17-year-old war. US President Donald Trump has be sticking to a total freeze in US assistance to Islamabad Now the newly appointed chief negotiator, Baradar is ty,” it added. Jet Airways first hit turbulence in August imposed over a year ago over its suspected support to the expected to fly from Pakistan to attend the next round of when it failed to report its quarterly earnings or pay its repeatedly signaled his intention to wind down America’s longest conflict, declaring this week in his State of the Union Taleban. Trump at the time accused Islamabad of rewarding negotiations in Doha on Feb 25. Dan Feldman, a former US staff, including pilots, on time. Chief executive Vinay past US aid with “nothing but lies & deceit.” special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, said he Dube later reported a loss of $178 million for July- address that “great nations do not fight endless wars.” One senior US official, who declined to be identified, said of “There’s some self-interest obviously involved here ... I believed Washington was still hesitant to become too hopeful September and announced a cost-cutting programme would be wary of taking that and extrapolating off that and about Pakistan’s change in posture. “There is cautious appreci- amounting to 20 billion rupees ($280 million) over the Pakistan’s role in the talks: “We know it just wouldn’t be possi- ble without their support.” “They’ve facilitated some move- saying they’re now on board with the peace process,” said ation for the fact that Pakistan has seemingly done more than next two years. In January the airline admitted it had ment and travel to the discussions in Doha,” the official said. Jason Campbell, who was the Pentagon’s Afghanistan country before to be helpful,” Feldman said, before adding that it did failed to meet debt payments to banks as it seeks invest- Trump’s administration has accelerated talks for a political director until last year and is now at the RAND Corporation not “suggest a sea change in Pakistan’s position.” —Reuters ment to help turn around its fortunes. Jet has been in talks with Etihad Airways over an injec- tion of cash that would see the Abu-Dhabi-based airline bushfire threatened houses, and fire- mainly bush and pine forest since erupt- a good place strategically today, but we increase its stake. Jet is also in negotiations with India’s New Zealand village fighters said they were “in the hands of ing in the tinder-dry rural district on are in the hands of God when it comes to biggest lender, the State Bank of India, about turning debt God”. A state of emergency has been Tuesday. the wind. If we have winds that are any- into equity. India’s passenger numbers have grown six- ‘in hands of God’ declared around the town of Wakefield The regional police commander, Zane where near 50 kilometres (30 mph) fold over the past decade and the country’s aviation sec- as the fire, which has had been raging Hooper, confirmed they had successfully today, we’re in trouble.” Helicopters tor is projected to become the world’s third-largest by as fire threatens across parched countryside in the completed “the orderly evacuation of being used to fight the fire have at times 2025. But airlines-including India’s largest by market Nelson region, at the top of the South Wakefield”, while fire chief John Sutton been diverted to douse other flare-ups in share, IndiGo-and loss-making national carrier Air India WELLINGTON: An entire village of Island, moved within 10 kilometres (six said the critical danger point could come the region, including one on tree-cov- are struggling to turn demand into profit. —AFP more than 3,000 people was evacuated miles) of the residential area. It had today. “I’m worried about tomorrow, to ered hills bordering Nelson city which is in New Zealand yesterday as a huge swept across about 2,100 hectares of be honest,” Sutton said. “We are in quite home to about 50,000 people. —AFP 10

Sunday, February 10, 2019 Analysis

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Washington Watch Events surrounding Pope Francis’ UAE visit were important

By Dr James J Zogby

his past week, I delivered one of the opening addresses at a conference in Abu Dhabi dedi- Tcated to creating understanding and building relationships and mutual respect among the world’s religious leaders. The conference coincided with Pope In this file photo taken on Sept 27, 2018 extracts of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh’s high school yearbook are displayed as he testifies before the US Senate Francis’ historic visit to the United Arab Emirates and Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington. — AFP his signing with the Sheikh al Azhar, Ahmed Al- Tayyeb, of a document committing them both to work- ing to build “Human Fraternity”. I was pleased to have been there and to have had the opportunity to participate in these events - Yearbook: US politicians’ ticking time bomb because if I had to rely on the Washington Post’s non- account of the Pope’s visit, I would never have under- idden away in dusty drawers or stuffed in boxes long quips. But there are also images of the white robes and ing her confirmation hearings because in her Princeton stood the significance of what transpired over those forgotten in the attic, a danger lurks for US politi- pointed hoods used by the KKK, a racist organization that yearbook, she had quoted Norman Thomas, a former pres- three historic days. Hcians: their yearbooks. Often featuring the frat boy terrorized black communities in the American South. idential candidate who ran on a Socialist Party ticket. The New York Times was the only US daily to cov- humor - or worse - of their youthful selves, the collections Northam’s page features a picture of someone in KKK The exhumation of these yellow-paged mementos has er the visit - and its treatment was mostly fair. The of old photos and writings are coming back to haunt attire, standing next to another person in blackface, the raised the question among political observers: is there an Times did address the importance of the visit, while America’s elected leaders. The latest high-profile victim makeup used once used to mock and belittle African expiry date on the errors of youth, and is a 55-year-old to still insisting on seeing the combination of the Pope has been Virginia’s Democratic Governor Ralph Northam, Americans. be held accountable for the actions of their 18-year-old and the UAE as convenient pegs for remarks about the whose medical school yearbook featured a photograph of After initially admitting he was in the picture, the gover- selves? UAE’s opulence, the war in Yemen, the Catholic a person in blackface next to another dressed in a Ku Klux nor then denied he was one of those in the image. He has church’s sex abuse problem, and Pope Francis’ con- Klan robe and hood. resisted mounting pressure from his own party to resign, yet A History of Racism flicts with his conservative opposition. As pressure mounted on him to quit, one of the men in seems unlikely to survive in his post for long. The scandal Behavior that today would meet with instant oppro- All of those issues are important and should be line to replace him, Virginia’s attorney general Mark has prompted a wave of scrutiny of yearbooks from past brium would have quite often been unremarkable in the covered (or it may be more correct to say “have been Herring, admitted that he too had painted his face black in decades, bringing other similarly racist material to light. past, noted Philip Cohen, a sociology professor at the covered many times over”), but certainly not at the his school days. The scandal came just months after Brett Kavanaugh’s high school yearbook was dusted off last University of Maryland. Students in the 1980s “were the expense of diluting the enormity of what was unfold- Kavanaugh almost saw his nomination to the Supreme September during confirmation hearings after President children of people raised in the 1940s and 1950s, the era ing during Francis’ short visit. Court derailed by allegations of sexual assault when he Donald Trump nominated the conservative judge to the of Jim Crow segregation. They grew up with legal job In the first place, the Pope came to the Arabian was in high school, a charge that led to his school year- highest court in the land, prompting a California profes- and housing discrimination,” he said. “Outside of the his- Peninsula, to a Wahhabi Muslim country, to celebrate book being gone over with fine-toothed comb. sor to accuse him of having sexually assaulted her when torically black colleges, there was no black president of mass in a stadium - with 35,000 in attendance inside Yearbooks - relics of a pre-digital age when people she was 15 and he was 17. The allegations brought his a major university or college until 1995,” he noted, the stadium and another 100,000+ assembled outside. wrote postcards and took photos on actual cameras, rather yearbook - from an expensive Catholic school in adding that in 1980, “the House of Representatives was This was too big and too historic to be dismissed, as than posting on social media - feature pictures of class- Bethesda, just outside the capital Washington - under four percent black and there were no black US senators. some suggested, as a PR stunt by the UAE to “burnish mates and parties, school trips, fraternities and moments of humiliating scrutiny, bringing to light the binge drinking Half of adults opposed the new federal Martin Luther their image as a tolerant society that promotes reli- sporting glory. Students usually have a personal page and sexual mockery of female classmates that the wealthy King holiday in 1983.” gious freedom” or as a way for the Pope distract where they pose with their best friends, reminisce about schoolboys indulged in. Back then, Cohen said, a “big difference was the accept- attention from the church’s sex abuse scandal. their school days, or feature dedications or verse. The yearbook convinced many critics that he did not ability of racist attitudes and behavior”. “If yearbooks were How big was it? Just ask the UAE’s nearly one mil- have the right character to take a seat on the Supreme a way for people to show off their ‘fun’ side, it is not sur- lion Catholics. For them, it was not only the excitement White coats, white hoods Court, and the case split the country before Kavanaugh prising at all that this would include the kind of racist dis- of seeing their beloved Francis, it was also a validation In the 1984 yearbook of the Eastern Virginia Medical was finally nominated, after a tearful defense before plays that are now coming out,” he said. The difference of their faith and as a clear a message as could be ever School, there are plenty of pictures of young interns in Congress. He joined eight other justices on the bench, these days, he said, is that now “we can force a politician to be sent that their freedom of religion is secure in the white doctors’ coats, smiling at each others’ waiting room including Sonia Sotomayor, who was herself criticized dur- resign for being racist. That’s progress.” — AFP UAE. What they found especially heartening was the fact that the UAE government ministers attended the mass and exchanged with others the “kiss of peace” as a gesture of solidarity. Roberts emerges These weren’t the first such signs of respect shown For Catalan separatists, by the UAE for the Christian community. In the mid- as US Supreme 1960s Sheikh Zayed built the first church for Catholic trial of leaders is personal expats living in Abu Dhabi. There are currently 40 churches (and, in addition to Catholics, there are Court swing vote Protestants, Orthodox, and Evangelicals). And UAE ith vigils and concerts outside prisons, Catalan independence government officials frequently attend services on supporters for months have shown their backing for 12 separatist ivotal votes cast by US Chief Justice John Christmas and other special events. In the face of leaders who go on trial on Tuesday over their bid to break the Roberts in abortion and death penalty W growing concerns with extremism and violence region away from Spain. Now that the highly anticipated trial is finally about cases have underscored his new standing against Christians, the Pope’s visit and the reaffirma- P to get underway at Spain’s Supreme Court in Madrid, they have vowed to as the Supreme Court’s ideological center and tion of official support for the community were deeply Supreme Court Justices John Roberts (center) step up their protests in another show of solidarity. While just 12 leaders will the outsized role he may play in major rulings affirming. attends the State of the Union address at the US sit in the dock over their role in the failed 2017 independence bid, many for years to come. Roberts, a genial 64-year-old On the day before the Mass in the Zayed Stadium, Capitol in Washington on Feb 5, 2019. — AFP Catalan separatists feel they are also being put on trial for having taken part Pope Francis and the Sheikh al Azhar cosigned the Abu conservative appointed in 2005 by Republican in a banned referendum held on October 1 that year. Dhabi Declaration - entitled a “Document on Human President George W Bush, sided with the nine- “I’m a lifelong separatist and I voted on October 1, it’s as if I was being member court’s four liberals on Thursday night modest - important, but modest - role,” Fraternity”. In that document, both clerics call on their Roberts added. tried,” said retired teacher Eugenia Fernandez at a recent vigil held for the co-religionists to “stop using religion to incite hatred, in blocking a restrictive Louisiana abortion law detained Catalan leaders at the picturesque Plaza de la Vila de Gracia violence, extremism, and blind fanaticism and to from taking effect. He also sided on Thursday square in Barcelona. “We’re here because of the huge injustice that our night with the four other conservative justices in More abortion cases refrain from using the name of God to justify acts of The court on Thursday granted an emer- government is in jail or exile for doing what we asked them to do - fight to murder, exile, terrorism, and oppression”. allowing the execution of a Muslim convicted set up a Catalan republic,” the 67-year-old said. murderer in Alabama. gency application by Shreveport-based abor- In his statement before signing the Declaration, tion provider Hope Medical Group for Women The vigil Fernandez took part in has been held every Monday evening for Tayyeb urged countries in the region to “Continue to His vote in the abortion case was particular- the past 15 months at the square in Gracia, a bohemian district of the ly noteworthy because it represented a turn- to stop Louisiana’s law from taking effect. The embrace your brothers from Christian sects every- justices, however, did not rule on the merits of Catalan capital which is also its most pro-separatist. People held up large where, as they are our partners in the homeland.” around from his vote in a 2016 abortion case in black and white images of the Catalan leaders, as well of those who fled which he had joined two other conservatives in the case. The Supreme Court is now likely to Christians, he added should not be viewed as “minori- take up the clinic’s appeal of a lower court rul- abroad after the failed independence bid, along with the word “freedom” in dissent when the Supreme Court ruled 5-3 to Catalan and English. Only the chime of a clock on top of an imposing 19th ties”, but as equal citizens. In his remarks Pope ing allowing the law, with a decision on the strike down similar regulations targeting abor- century tower in the center of the square broke the silence. Nine of the Francis not only spoke out against the scourge of war, merits possible in 2020, just months before the tion doctors in Texas. The role of Supreme leaders have been charged with rebellion, with some also accused of misuse specifically mentioning devastating conflicts in Yemen, U.S. presidential election. Whether Roberts will Court swing vote had been filled by Justice of public funds. They have all been in pre-trial detention for months, some of Syria, Iraq, and Libya, he also echoed the Imam’s call oppose the Louisiana abortion restrictions as for “societies where people of different beliefs to have Anthony Kennedy, who sided with its liberal them for more than a year. bloc on divisive issues including abortion and well as others pursued in conservative-leaning the same rights of citizenship.” states remains an open question. The Declaration affirms this point, saying “The con- gay rights before retiring last July. Following Unifying cause Trump, seeking re-election next year, has cept of citizenship is based on equality of rights and Republican President Donald Trump’s appoint- “This is a reaction against the brutality of this trial, which is not against a seized on the abortion issue, which appeals to duties, under which all enjoy justice. It is therefore ment in the past two years of Justice Brett few people but is instead against Catalan political feeling,” said award-win- his conservative base and evangelical Christian crucial to establish in our societies the concept of full Kavanaugh, who replaced Kennedy, and Justice ning Catalan writer Ramon Solsona, who read some poems at the vigil. voters who are among his most ardent support- citizenship and reject the discriminatory use of the Neil Gorsuch, Roberts now appears to be the Similar events have been held across the northeastern region, where the ers. Trump on Tuesday urged US lawmakers in term minorities which engenders feelings of isolation most centrist of the five conservative justices leaders have obtained near-martyr status among many separatists who see his State of the Union address to pass legisla- and inferiority.” who make up the court’s majority. them as “political prisoners”. The 12 defendants face prison sentences of tion banning late-term abortions. The court will There is no doubt that these two prominent figures “He’s now the center, and the center has between seven and 25 years if convicted, with former Catalan vice president decide soon whether to hear Indiana’s bid to meeting and committing to work to promote religious moved to the right,” American Civil Liberties Oriol Junqueras at risk of the longest sentence. revive a state ban on abortions performed due freedom, mutual respect, and full inclusion of all faiths Union lawyer Jennifer Dalven said. Most court- Catalonia’s president at the time of the secession bid, Carles Puigdemont, to the sex or race of the fetus or evidence of as equal citizens in their countries can have an impact. watchers expect Roberts to side with his fellow is not among those on trial since he fled to Belgium where he regularly But the “icing on the cake” was the two day long conservatives on a wide range of issues including disability. Indiana this week asked the Supreme receives visits from top Catalan separatists. With Catalan separatist parties “Conference on Human Fraternity”- a gathering of 600 business disputes, challenges to Trump’s actions Court to hear another abortion case concerning divided over strategy - some calling for more civil disobedience while oth- religious leaders and opinion shapers that concluded and divisive social issues beyond abortion. a law to require fetal ultrasounds before abor- ers favor dialogue with Spain’s central government - the cause of the jailed with the meeting of the Pope and Sheikh. Among the Roberts takes his institutional role seriously tions take place. Catalan leaders helps keep them united. participants were Christians, of all denominations, and is a defender of the federal judiciary at a Those cases do not turn on the 2016 prece- Polls show the region remains split over the issue of independence, and Muslims, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, and Jains. time when Trump often criticizes judges and dent, meaning Roberts may feel less inclined to separatist protests - which in the past drew over a million people - appear In recent years, there have been a number of inter- accuses the courts of political motives. As chief side with the liberals. “I think it’s still quite likely to have lost strength. Pro-independence groups have responded by holding faith sessions in the UAE involving the three justice, the federal judiciary’s highest-ranking that he will be voting and casting a fifth and smaller events to show support for the detained separatist leaders. The Abrahamic faiths. This effort, however, was more judge, Roberts presides over oral arguments in decisive vote to uphold a variety of abortion defendants were moved from prisons in Madrid to jails in Catalonia shortly expansive and its rhetoric was bolder in scope. It was cases before the court and leads private meet- regulations that fall short of outright prohibi- after Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez came to power in June in what about finding the common ground and respect neces- ings among the justices. During an appearance tions,” Cornell Law School professor Michael was seen as a goodwill gesture. Since then separatists have gathered regu- sary to build a human family. on Wednesday at Belmont University College Dorf said. The court has a handful of major cas- larly outside of the Catalan jails where they were being held, holding con- NOTE: Dr James J Zogby is the President of the of Law in Tennessee, Roberts spoke of the es during its current term, which ends in June, certs, camping outside overnight and forming human pyramids, called Arab American Institute “great responsibility” that comes with the job. that will test to what extent Roberts differs “castells”, a Catalan tradition. — AFP “You do kind of have to keep in mind that it’s a from Kennedy on key issues. — Reuters Established 1961

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2019 Kuwait real estate market KIB reports KD 21 millionBusiness in net NBK-Bahrain reports net profits of 12strength extends into 4Q18 13 profit for 2018, a growth of 18% 14 KD 95.2m for 2018, up 26% y-o-y

TAIPEI: People stand near a logo of Chinese telecoms giant Huawei at the Syntrend Creative Park in Taipei yesterday. —AFP Giant Chinese firms shaping world’s industries

EU defeats bid by Alstom and Siemens to forge industrial champion

PARIS: It was fear of being dominated by a weigh the three Western heavyweights to compete with French and US models, as well as Dutch Nidera. China’s WH Group manufacturer of home appliances with Chinese behemoth that sparked an attempt Bombardier, Siemens and Alstom, each of selling to Argentina and Pakistan. Chinese became the world’s largest meat producer in around 10 percent of the market, ahead of by large French and German rail companies which brings in around nine billion a year. solar panel manufacturers Jinko, Trina and 2013, when it purchased major hot dog pro- rivals Whirlpool and Electrolux. Haier even to join forces to create a European industri- Solar dominate the global market. And ducer Smithfield Foods Inc. purchased the appliances arm of US giant al champion. Agrichemicals Chinese oil companies-CNOOC, CNPC and General Electric in 2016. The merger by Alstom and Siemens was The state-owned ChemChina became Sinopec-are investing heavily even as their Drones vetoed by the EU on Thursday, but concerns one of the world’s seeds and pesticide pro- global rivals cut spending. Founded by a Chinese university student Batteries about the overwhelming power of vast, often ducers when it acquired Swiss pesticide in 2006, DJI has become the world’s top Chinese firm CATL, which supplies bat- state-backed Chinese companies is not lim- giant Syngenta for $43 billion in 2017, put- Aviation civilian drone maker with 70 percent of the teries for car titans Volkswagen, Ford and ited to the rail industry. Here are some of ting it in competition with Monsanto and China’s state-owned plane-maker Comac market, outpacing its French rival Parrot. Daimler, is battling with Japan’s Panasonic areas in which Chinese companies control a DowDupont. It was the biggest overseas expects to deliver its first home-made pas- for the world’s lithium electric car battery large piece of the global market. acquisition by a Chinese firm yet, ahead of senger jet to a customer in 2021, as it seeks Smartphones top spot. Its production capacity will the $15.1 billion purchase of Canada’s to challenge the dominance of Boeing and Chinese smartphone makers are taking a increase fivefold by 2020 due to a mammoth Rail Nexen Energy by China’s state oil firm Airbus. The company says it has received a larger slice of the global market, with new factory in China, and the firm has China’s state-backed CRRC is the world’s CNOOC in 2013. ChemChina also controls thousand orders for its 168-seater C919 Huawei at 15 percent, Xiaomi 8.7 percent announced a huge factory in Germany to largest train manufacturer, with locomotives Italian tyremaker Pirelli and German plane. and Oppo 8.1 percent. Phone sales by supply European customers. and wagons ordered across the globe from machinery firm KraussMaffei. Huawei and Oppo surged by 30 percent last Boston to Philadelphia, Cambodia to Food year, defying a downward trend that hit Freight Colombia, and customers including the Energy The state-owned food giant COFCO is rivals Apple and Samsung. The state-owned Cosco Group is the iconic London Underground and Germany’s The state-run China National Nuclear playing an increasing role in world grain world’s third biggest shipping company with Deutsche Bahn. Its annual revenues of 26 Corp (CNNC) launched its locally devel- trading after purchasing the agricultural arm Home appliances 50 container ports across the globe, including billion euros (29 billion dollars) alone out- oped Hualong One nuclear reactor in 2015 of Singaporean commodities trader Noble China’s Haier Group is the world’s leading Greece’s Piraeus and Spain’s Bilbao. — AFP

forming debts decreased to 1.99 percent, Al-Nahedh: 92% of as per the CBK’s accounting principles, compared to 2.65 percent for last year. The coverage ratio of provisions and col- KFH’s total profits made laterals for non-performing debts stood at Trump’s World Bank pick echoes 520.14 percent and 247.07 percent for in 2018... sustainable KFH solo and the Group respectively. At the end of 2018, total provisions reached calls for reform from other critics KUWAIT: The Group Chief Executive Officer at Kuwait Finance KD 619.6 million for the Group. WASHINTON: President Donald Trump’s House (KFH), Mazin Saad Al-Nahedh said that KFH’s sustainable Al-Nahedh pointed out that the contri- choice to lead the World Bank is a firebrand profits reached 92 percent of the total profits recorded in 2018. Mazin Al-Nahedh bution of KFH subsidiaries in the net critic of the world’s largest anti-poverty This affirms the success of KFH’s strategy that focuses on core operating income rose to about 39.2 per- lender-an institution he has called wasteful, banking business and reflects the record net profits growth. cent, mainly from KFH Turkey with a 34 corrupt and overly generous to China. Al-Nahedh added during TV interviews to comment on the percent contribution. Despite the decline in the value of the Those criticisms are similar to those financial results for 2018 that the profit was mainly driven by rev- Turkish lira, KFH Turkey continues to maintain strong and sus- expressed by others in the development enue increase from the core business. Net financing income tained growth rates at all levels of its financing portfolio, community. But that does not mean they increased by 18.5 percent from KD 82.4 million the previous year deposits, total assets and profits. KFH Turkey registered the sec- have found a new ally in David Malpass, the to KD 527.3 million in 2018. Total operating income increased by ond lowest non-performing financing ratio in Turkey, at around senior US Treasury official who has pledged 4.6 percent to KD 746 million, while total operating expenses 1.82 percent. to reform the bank. decreased by KD12.6 million or the equivalent of 4.1 percent. Net Al-Nahedh said that all the financial indicators of KFH Turkey Nancy Pelosi, the newly reinstalled David Malpass operating income increased by 11.1 percent to KD 453.5 million. exceeded the minimum regulatory requirements and stand at Democratic speaker of the US House of He further said that the Group’s financing portfolio increased good levels, pointing out that the recent reforms and the Representatives, says Trump’s choice alleged human rights failures and scandals, by 1.8 percent in 2018, despite the decline in the Turkish currency improvement of the currency value will help stabilize the finan- threatens to “undermine the institution’s and saying projects all too often left the rate against the Kuwaiti dinar, especially during the third quarter. cial situation in Turkey. mission.” world’s poorest even worse off, harmed the The drop had an impact on the consolidated balance as of the Al-Nahedh expected KFH to exit non-core assets of nearly And Liberia’s former minister of public environment or entrenched the power of date of the consolidated financial statements. Excluding this KD 150 million in 2019. The bank achieved KD 21.9 million prof- works W. Gyude Moore tweeted that “an oligarchies and despots. impact, the financing portfolio increased by 7.4 percent, along its of the total exiting deals that reached KD 90 million at the incorrigible arsonist will now be our fire Those critics might well have nodded with the increase of all types of financing, in particular the corpo- end of 2018, compared to KD 57.6 million in 2017. chief.” Still Malpass’s many criticisms of the their heads in accord in 2017 when Malpass rate financing. Retail financing under KFH Kuwait was 3.5 per- Meanwhile, KFH achieved a net profit of KD 227.4 million for Washington-based lender echo familiar said international financial institutions such cent, higher than the market’s 2.9 percent growth rate, according the year 2018, in comparison to KD 184.2 million last year, an refrains. Many activists have long called for as the World Bank “spend a lot of money” to the latest data by the Central Bank of Kuwait (CBK). increase of 23.5 percent. EPS reached 36.36 fils compared to reforms at the World Bank, citing a litany of but are “not very efficient.”—AFP As quality of KFH’s assets improved, the Group’s non per- 29.46 fils in 2017, an increase of 23.4 percent. 12 Established 1961

Sunday, February 10, 2019 Business

NBK Economic Report Kuwait real estate market strength extends into 4Q18 Investment sector sales reached KD470 million in 4Q18, up 19% Q/Q

KUWAIT: Kuwait’s real estate sales rose to their strongest levels in cent y/y, while the NBK investment real estate price indices were four years in 4Q2018. Sales were in excess of KD1 billion (up 23 up by an average of 1.5 percent q/q and 3.7 percent y/y, led by percent q/q, 91 percent y/y), marking the fifth consecutive quar- multi-unit buildings. The rise in investment sector prices was likely terly rise in sales and reinforcing the positive trend that started to helped by more stable rents compared to 2017 and early 2018 emerge in late 2017. The strength came primarily from the invest- when rents were falling. The sector could face headwinds in the ment (i.e. apartment) sector, helped by rising prices. near to medium term from new supply in the pipeline, and from a The residential sector also saw a rise in prices. Meanwhile, the possible increase in interest rates in 2019. But there are potential commercial sector has benefitted from higher demand helped by tailwinds, too: possibly higher government capex and project business-friendly reforms by the Ministry of Commerce and awards in 2019 may stimulate non-oil growth and boost employ- Industry, giving rise to better sentiment and renewed demand in ment, which could in turn boost demand in the rental market. this sector. For 2018 overall, all three sectors saw a significant rise The residential sector registered sales of KD368 million, up 16 in sales from 2017 levels, and NBK real estate price indices (cover- percent q/q and 33 percent y/y. The rise in sales was driven by a ing land, homes, apartments and multi-unit buildings) have posted higher number of transactions and a rise in prices. Transactions year-on-year gains. The improvement was likely driven by a better rose by 26 percent q/q and 46 percent y/y. Prices, slightly nega- economic backdrop relative to 2017, higher average oil prices tive in 1Q-3Q18, surged by nearly 8 percent q/q in Q4, helping res- which lifted sentiment, rising employment and slightly faster growth idential prices cross into positive year-on-year territory from in the expatriate population which may have supported rental November for the first time since 2016. Higher prices were likely demand. At this juncture, the real estate market appears to be in a helped by improving demand, reflected in much higher activity lev- good state. Volumes and liquidity have been mostly restored to els relative to 2017. Downside risk in this sector may emerge in the pre-slump levels (2014), while prices have been stable since mid- form of large government housing distributions planned for 2019, commercial sector was the scene of a big improvement in activity tion size, suggesting that relatively larger properties or more prime 2018 and are now on a mildly positive trend. Housing rents have coupled with a potential rise in financing costs. Meanwhile, a draft and sales in 2018. After showing encouraging signs earlier in the locations, or higher quality properties were traded in Q4 com- also been steady since mid-2018. These positive trends have been mortgage law is under consideration by the National Assembly. year, the sector gained traction, with the fourth quarter being the pared to Q3. For instance, a commercial building of 5,800 sqm was consistent for some time, with the market gradually improving since The law, if passed, should boost demand in the residential sector strongest of the year. Commercial sales in 4Q18 reached KD185 traded in Sharq for a value of KD 45 million, much higher than the 4Q17. Investment sector sales reached KD470 million in 4Q18, up with citizens benefitting from improved access to financing. The million, the highest in two years, and gained over 50 percent on a sector average. The sector has benefitted from various business 19 percent q/q and more than triple the level of 4Q17. Higher sales law will also help lower the growing backlog of government hous- quarterly and annual basis. The number of transactions surged 139 friendly reforms by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the were driven by a rise in transaction volumes, coupled with an ing applications. percent y/y in 4Q18, but were unchanged from the previous quar- latest of which is the launch of an electronic system for the issue of increase in prices. Transactions rose 18 percent q/q and 127 per- Commercial sector benefits from business-friendly reforms. The ter. Higher sales in 4Q18 were driven by a rise in average transac- commercial licenses. VIVA wins US-China trade Sharjah Gulf tensions could Top 10 Business hit African Award 2018 KUWAIT: VIVA, Kuwait’s fastest-growing and most devel- growth: AfDB oped telecom operator, announced that it has been awarded Sharjah Economic Excellence Network Award to be among ADDIS ABABA: Persisting trade tensions between eco- the top ten Gulf companies for 2018 at the Sharjah Economic nomic superpowers the United States and China could Excellence Network Award of 2018 organized by the Sharjah shave 0.7 percent from Africa’s GDP in 2019, a senior Chamber of Commerce and Industry at Expo Center, held in official at the African Development Bank (AfDB) said on Sharjah on February 6, 2019 under the patronage of HH Friday. Hanan Morsy, director of the AfDB’s macroeco- Sheikh Abdullah bin Salem bin Sultan Al-Qasimi, Deputy nomic policy department, made the prediction on the Ruler of Sharjah. This unique honor coincides with VIVA’s sidelines of an African Union meeting in Addis Ababa as completion of a decade of success and growth. fresh doubts emerged over the prospects for US-China Sheikh Abdullah bin Salem Al-Qassimi, Deputy Ruler of trade war negotiations. She was speaking after the Sharjah and Abdullah Sultan Al-Owais, Chairman of Sharjah release of the bank’s African Economic Outlook 2019 Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI), presented the business and plans of the company. VIVA’s CFO, said: “This prestigious award reinforces report, which said the continent registered growth of 3.5 award to VIVA representatives Mishary Abdullah Al-Hamad, “He added:” VIVA’s reaping of the Sharjah Economic VIVA’s position as one of the best financial and operating percent in 2018, and was expected to grow 4 percent in Customer Management Director and Wassim Mohammed El-Hayek, Investor Relations and M&A Director. Excellence Network Award for 2018 and its position among companies in the GCC. During 2018, the company achieved 2019. This is higher than most regions of the world but On this occasion, Eng Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al- the top ten Gulf enterprises is a great achievement we are record financial results and many operational achievements still insufficient to address persistent fiscal and current Badran, VIVA’s CEO said: “This honorable honor, which proud of which is reflection of the great effort exerted by at all levels driven by successful strategic plans. VIVA is account deficits and “unsustainable debt”. we are proud of by the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce the executive management and guidance of the Board of committed to implementing the best standards that are Furthermore, the ongoing trade battle between the and Industry and under the patronage of Sheikh Abdullah Directors of the company, as well as the implementation of consistent with our principles, values and professional US and China could “have a negative impact of 0.7 per- bin Salem Al-Qasimi, Deputy Ruler of Sharjah, is the VIVA to the best standards at all levels of operational, principles that lead our business to the benefit of our val- cent of GDP from Africa. This impact will be through lack result of VIVA’s keenness to achieve excellence and lead- financial and quality in customer service, which are all to ued shareholders and to satisfy our valued customers. We of trade and investment flows”. ership not only at the operational level but also in the satisfy our customers and the interest of the shareholders always strive to focus our efforts on achieving the desired “AfDB in particular expects a noticeable impact in the implementation of best practices and professional stan- of the company. results through an integrated team in a timely and profes- tradeable sectors, including export commodities like dards, in all its sectors and departments supporting the On his part, Mohammed Bin AbdulMohsen Al-Assaf, sional manner.” minerals, oil and food related products,” she added. The United States has threatened to more than double exist- ing tariffs on Chinese goods at the start of March if there ment surrounded by captivating views of which will form a part of the Assoufid Club, which has established itself as one is no agreement on measures to reform China’s trade URC, Marriott to the Atlas Mountains. The resort is owned Golf Resort, will include 80 luxuriously- of the best courses in Africa. For guests practices, which Washington says are deeply unfair. by Assoufid Properties Development SA appointed guestrooms and villas, all to experience all that the vibrant desti- US President Donald Trump said Thursday he did not introduce iconic and developed by URC, part of the offering spectacular views of the Atlas nation has to offer, the resort will be just expect to meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping Kuwait Projects Company (KIPCO) Mountains. It will also feature hallmarks a short drive to the Medina of before the March 1 deadline, leading to a slump in world St Regis brand group of companies. of the renowned brand, including the Marrakech, The Berber Market and stock markets. Top White House economist Larry “The signing of The St. Regis signature St. Regis Butler Service. Jemaa el-Fnaa and is easily accessible Kudlow told Fox Business on Thursday that while Trump in Marrakech Marrakech Resort underscores the “We are delighted to start our rela- from the Marrakech Menara was “optimistic” about prospects for a deal, there demand and opportunity for luxury tionship with Marriott International by International Airport. With leisure facili- remained a “sizeable distance” separating the two sides. properties across Morocco and North working together on The St. Regis ties such as a spa, pool, and a state-of- MARRAKECH: United Real Estate A lack of a breakthrough could weaken the global Africa,” said Jerome Briet, Chief Marrakech Resort. The property will tie the-art fitness center, The St. Regis Company (URC) and Marriott economy, with already gloomy growth forecasts from the Development Officer, Middle East & in seamlessly with the rich cultural iden- Marrakech Resort will also feature six International yesterday announced that European Commission on Thursday which predicted Africa for Marriott International. “With tity of Marrakech and charming natural distinct culinary experiences, including they have signed a resort that will intro- lower than expected growth of 1.3 percent in the euro- its growing portfolio, the St. Regis brand surroundings, all while offering guests two specialty restaurants and the iconic duce the iconic St. Regis brand to zone this year. A slowdown in the global economy could continues to welcome a new generation the exceptional St. Regis experience that St. Regis Bar, inspired by the King Cole Marrakech and further expand their lux- lead to a decline in demand for Africa’s exports, more of luxury travelers into the region and the brand is renowned for globally,” said Bar at the brand’s flagship property in ury portfolios in Morocco. Expected to than 60 percent of which head to the US, China and Morocco as a destination in particular is Tariq Abdulsalam, Chairman of Assoufid New York. Meeting planners will also open in 2024, The St. Regis Marrakech Europe, said the AfDB report. The report said that in a great fit for the brand as it enchants Properties Development SA. find ample options for events, whether Resort will rise south west of Marrakech, 2019, 40 percent of African countries are projected to luxury travellers with its rich heritage Offering the ideal escape from the corporate gatherings, special events or an exclusive enclave in the expansive see growth of at least 5 percent. —AFP and cultural legacy.” city, the resort will be located near the weddings, with a 400-square-meter high-end Assoufid mixed-use develop- The St. Regis Marrakech Resort, award-winning, 18-hole Assoufid Golf ballroom.

EXCHANGE RATES

Yemen Riyal/for 1000 1.220 Turkish Lira 58.835 Chinese Yuan 0.043604 0.047104 Al-Muzaini Exchange Co. Tunisian Dinar 103.630 Singapore dollars 224.696 Hong Kong Dollar 0.037017 0.039767 Jordanian Dinar 428.370 Indian Rupee 0.003726 0.004498 EUROPEAN & AMERICAN COUNTRIES Lebanese Lira/for 1000 0.022 Indonesian Rupiah 0.000017 0.000023 US Dollar Transfer 304.250 Syrian Lira 0.000 Japanese Yen 0.002689 0.002869 Euro 348.520 BAHRAIN EXCHANGE COMPANY WLL Morocco Dirham 32.372 Korean Won 0.000261 0.000276 Sterling Pound 397.200 Canadian dollar 231.110 Malaysian Ringgit 0.070951 0.076951 CURRENCY BUY SELL Nepalese Rupee 0.002608 0.002948 Turkish lira 59.080 Dollarco Exchange Co. Ltd Europe Swiss Franc 306.860 Pakistan Rupee 0.001567 0.002337 British Pound 0.387417 0.401317 Philippine Peso 0.005780 0.006080 US Dollar Buying 296.950 Rate for Transfer Selling Rate Czech Korune 0.005377 0.014677 Singapore Dollar 0.219139 0.229138 US Dollar 303.740 ASIAN COUNTRIES Danish Krone 0.042174 0.047174 Sri Lankan Rupee 0.001340 0.001920 Canadian Dollar 231.700 Japanese Yen 2.774 Euro 0. 337924 0.351624 Taiwan 0.010155 0.010335 Sterling Pound 396.045 Indian Rupees 4.276 Georgian Lari 0.131976 0.131979 Thai Baht 0.009352 0.009902 Euro 348.870 Pakistani Rupees 2.220 Hungarian 0.001147 0.001337 Vietnamese Dong 0.00013 0.00013 Srilankan Rupees 1.706 Swiss Frank 306.235 Norwegian Krone 0.031367 0.036587 Bahrain Dinar 807.755 Nepali Rupees 2.663 Romanian Leu 0.065191 0.082041 UAE Dirhams 83.100 Arab Singapore Dollar 225.960 Russian ruble 0.004641 0.004641 Qatari Riyals 84.335 Bahraini Dinar 0.792459 0.808959 Hongkong Dollar 38.775 Slovakia 0.009092 0.019092 Bangladesh Taka 3.576 Saudi Riyals 81.895 Egyptian Pound 0.017108 0.019708 Swedish Krona 0.028852 0.033852 Philippine Peso 5.839 Jordanian Dinar 429.690 Iranian Riyal 0.000084 0.000085 Thai Baht 9.700 Egyptian Pound 17.187 Swiss Franc 0.298158 0.0309158 Iraqi Dinar 0.000211 0.000271 Malaysian ringgit 77.813 Sri Lankan Rupees 1.705 Jordanian Dinar 0.424827 0.433827 Indian Rupees 4.245 Australasia Kuwaiti Dinar 1.000000 1.000000 GCC COUNTRIES Pakistani Rupees 2.195 Australian Dollar 0.207824 0.219824 Lebanese Pound 0.000157 0.000257 Saudi Riyal 81.187 Bangladesh Taka 3.620 New Zealand Dollar 0.199503 0.209003 Moroccan Dirhams 0.021728 0.045728 Qatari Riyal 83.620 Philippines Pesso 5.806 Omani Riyal 0.783942 0.789622 Omani Riyal 790.773 Cyprus pound 18.070 America Qatar Riyal 0.079280 0.084220 Bahraini Dinar 808.420 Japanese Yen 3.765 Canadian Dollar 0.224094 0.233094 audi Riyal 0.080047 0.081347 UAE Dirham 82.891 Syrian Pound 1.590 US Dollars 0.300150 0.305450 Syrian Pound 0.001290 0.001610 Nepalese Rupees 2.659 US Dollars Mint 0.300650 0.305450 Tunisian Dinar 0.095680 0.103680 ARAB COUNTRIES Malaysian Ringgit 75.350 Turkish Lira 0.051375 0.062875 Egyptian Pound - Cash 19.850 Egyptian Pound - Transfer 17.167 Chinese Yuan Renminbi 45.510 Asia UAE Dirhams 0.081411 0.083111 Thai Bhat 10.705 Bangladesh Taka 0.003051 0.003852 Yemeni Riyal 0.000989 0.001069 13

Business Sunday, February 10, 2019 KIB reports KD 21 million in net profit for 2018, a growth of 18% Deputy CEO: Performance reflects KIB’s improvement in key business areas

KUWAIT: KIB’s Deputy Chief Executive Officer banking experience to the next level and delivering much 76 percent a year ago, reflecting the strengthening of registered a growth of 10 Mohamed Said El Saka, stated during the 2018 earnings more than just ‘banking’ in the traditional sense. KIB core business activities as KIB does not operate an active percent in 2018 compared call for the listed companies classified under the category always strive to meet the ever-changing needs of our investment trading book as per it’s conservative risk to 2017, largely due to our “Premier Market” in Boursa Kuwait, which was held at customers. appetite. success in improving retail 2:00pm on Wednesday February 6th 2019, that KIB El Saka stated that, KIB’s asset quality matrices have Thomas added that KIB continued its investments in base, acquiring higher vol- reported a net profit of approximately KD 21 million for improved significantly in 2018 mainly due to continuous new branding and IT infrastructure in 2018 through umes through our innova- the year 2018; a growth of 18 percent compared to 2017. efforts in monitoring of existing and new portfolio. NPL upgrades for enhanced digital banking experience while tive deposit products In addition, financing income registered a growth of ratio stood below 1 percent, which is one of the lowest controlling its other costs. Operating expenses registered launches and various pro- 20 percent reaching KD 89.5 million compared to KD among peers while total coverage ratio at 343 percent in a marginal increase to support the business growth. motional campaigns sup- 74.6 million in 2017. KIB’s total assets increased by KD 2018 is one of the highest in the region. Thomas also highlighted that In terms of core ported by better profit 253 million to reach KD 2.2 billion, a growth of 13 percent Also, KIB plans to increase its distribution to assets/liabilities’ growth, KIB achieved growth in total rates. In equation, this compared to 2017. shareholders as the Bank’s Board of Directors recom- assets by 13 percent to reach KD 2.2 billion in 2018, as mainly contributed to high- Regarding the strategy update, El Saka pointed out mended cash dividends of 11 percent i.e. 11 fils per compared to KD 1.9 billion in 2017; achieved through er customer trust and bet- that KIB’s strong financial performance reflects its signifi- share and bonus shares of 4 percent i.e. 4 shares for growth in financing receivables, which reached KD 1.6 ter brand visibility within Mohamed Said El Saka cant improvement in a number of business areas, in line every 100 shares; which is subject to the approval by billion in 2018 a growth of 23 percent as compared to the market”. with its newly implemented strategy. KIB’s strategy the Bank’s shareholders’ general assembly and regula- KD 1.3 billion as at 31 December 2017. With regards to the sig- implementation is forging ahead, taking the customer tory authorities. KIB’s investment portfolio increased by 14 percent to nificant improvements in asset quality, Thomas stated: Furthermore, General Manager Financial Control and reach KD 166 million primarily through increased expo- “We are pleased to report a significant improvement in Planning / CFO, Mr. Ajai Thomas, shed light on KIB’s sure towards high quality sukuks, compared to KD 145.7 our asset quality as reflected in lower NPL ratio and strong set of numbers for the financial year ended 31 million by end 2017. Investment income was lower com- higher total coverage ratio. Asset quality matrices have HIGHLIGHTS December 2018 as bearing testament to successful pro- pared to 2017 due to certain one off offloads of non- improved significantly in 2018 due to our continuous l 18% growth in net profit gression of the strategy KIB adopted and is looking to core investments during 2017. monitoring and follow up of existing loan book and new continue to 2019. He also presented the results in detail, Customer deposit growth has been sustained due to exposures resulting in one of the lowest NPL ratios in l 20% growth in financing income pointing out that KIB reported stellar bottom line growth KIB’s various successful product launches/campaigns the region; which was below 1 percent”. l 13% growth in total assets of 18 percent to reach around KD 21 million for the year supported by attractive profit rates; resulting in an Furthermore, regarding the loan growth expectation l 2018 as compared to KD 17.7 million in 2017, mainly driv- increase of KD 115 million or 10 percent to reach KD 1.3 for 2019, El Saka noted that KIB registered an impres- 23% increase in financing receivables en by the topline growth of financing income (20 per- billion compared to KD 1.2 billion by end 2017. sive growth in the financing portfolio, in excess of 23 l NPL ratio stood below 1% cent), to reach KD 89.5 million as compared to KD 74.6 With regards to the response to the inquiries from percent compared to 2017. KIB’s financing portfolio l The total coverage ratio at 343% million in 2017. The strengthening of the Bank’s core busi- participating analysts, Thomas explained on the outlook grew in excess of KD 300 Million (23 percent) com- l ness has helped KIB achieve this remarkable perform- for retail deposit growth: “At KIB, we are continuing our pared to previous year. KIB also actively participated in 11% cash dividend and ance during the year. efforts to become the “Bank for Life” in line with our high quality syndications locally and in GCC region with l 4% bonus shares for YE 2018 Net financing income comprised of 81 percent of the strategy, and as part of that, we provide our customer focus on oil & gas, telecom and hospitality sectors. and total operating income during the year, as compared to with a better banking experience. Customer deposits expect a similar trend to continue.

‘Enormous pressure’ from US underlines the economic headwinds facing Pakistan which is holding EU states adopt Combined with the planned TurkStream pipeline Pakistan slashes discussions over a possible bailout from the International Monetary across the Black Sea, Nord Stream 2 would mean Fund. When the original estimate was reported in April by the gov- Russia could bypass Ukraine in providing gas to ernment of Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, it was hailed as French-German Europe, robbing Moscow’s new foe of transit fees and 2017/18 growth the strongest growth in 13 years. a major strategic asset. A EU diplomat said US offi- The office, in a statement issued after a meeting of the formula on Russia cials lobbied their European counterparts until just national accounts committee late on Friday, said gross domes- before the start of Friday’s meeting in a bid to block estimate to 5.2% tic product in the 2017/18 financial year to June rose 5.22 per- the gas pipeline. cent compared with a previously reported 5.79 percent. gas pipeline ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has revised its economic growth figures Growth in the industrial sector was revised to 5.01 percent “Washington has put enormous pressure on EU for the last financial year to 5.2 percent from a previously report- capitals in recent days to prevent Nord Stream 2,” the from a previously reported 5.8 percent in the provisional esti- ed figure of 5.8 percent, after a sharp cut in the figure for large- mate. The biggest change came in the large-scale manufactur- BRUSSELS: European Union member states adopted a diplomat said on condition of anonymity. “The fact Franco-German compromise on Friday allowing Berlin scale manufacturing, the statistics office said. ing segment, which saw growth revised to 5.01 percent from that the gas directive was then almost passed by con- to remain the lead negotiator with Russia on the Nord The revision of figures reported by the previous government 6.13 percent previously. —Reuters sensus is also due to the growing displeasure among Stream 2 gas pipeline to Europe. the EU states over the attempted US influence.” France, a pivotal player in the EU gas talks, had said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in Moscow earlier it would support European Union oversight of that Washington was spearheading efforts to under- new offshore energy pipelines. This had raised con- mine fair competition. “This international project is cerns in Berlin that resistance from other EU members necessary for Russia and the EU, but it is constantly could undermine plans for the undersea pipeline attacked by third countries, more specifically by the between Russia and Germany. United States,” Peskov said. But Paris and Berlin now agree that chief responsibili- Peskov accused Washington of “underhanded ty lies with Germany, the “territory and territorial sea of the member state where the first interconnection point is competition” by trying to encourage Europeans “to located,” according to a text seen by AFP. The pipeline is buy more expensive American gas”. due to emerge at the German Baltic port of Greifswald, Russia will “follow developments very closely”, from where gas will be distributed to other EU countries. Peskov said, adding “we hope that the EU mem- “There was indeed an agreement which was only possi- ber countries will know how to settle this issue ble thanks to close cooperation between France and themselves”. Germany,” German Chancellor Angela Merkel told reporters in Berlin when asked about Nord Stream 2. ‘Purely economic project’ The compromise text replaces older wording stipu- French President Emmanuel Macron’s office said lating the EU rules on gas imports will be applied by the compromise puts Nord Stream under “European “the territory of the member states” and or the “territo- oversight”. “It will challenge a certain number of proj- rial sea of the member states”. ect parameters which will have to provide transit The new text was adopted as part of reforms for gas guarantees via Ukraine as well as transit through market rules at a meeting of EU ambassadors in Slovakia,” an official said. Brussels. “The French-German compromise was adopt- The draft compromise sought to tackle concerns ed pretty much unanimously,” one diplomat said. over Ukraine saying: “We consider a (gas rules) Romania, current holder of the rotating EU presidency, directive in this spirit indispensable for a fruitful dis- said it “was given the mandate... to enter negotiations cussion on the future gas transit through Ukraine.” with the European Parliament on the amendment of the Merkel has so far insisted that the pipeline is a EU gas directive.” “purely economic project” that will ensure cheaper, France’s earlier support for giving EU countries more reliable gas supplies. She has said there will be more say in the pipeline project appeared likely to shift no dependence on Russia if Europe diversifies at the the balance away from Germany. Nord Stream 2 faces same time. Construction has already begun, involving opposition from many countries in eastern and central companies such as Germany’s Wintershall and Uniper, Europe, the United States and particularly Ukraine Dutch-British Shell, France’s Engie and Austria’s because it risks increasing Europe’s dependence on OMV. Gas is due to start arriving in Germany by the Russian natural gas. end of the year. —AFP

factors explain why the US economy is one of very few UK suffers Brexit holding up well in recent months - massive stimulus mainly from tax cuts and the fact that it is relatively closed and not dependent on foreign trade. In the very reality check as short term, the government shutdown, which could resume next Friday, and the polar vortex of late US sails on January could rein in first quarter expansion. Longer term though, even the Federal Reserve has become more hesitant, signalling last month at least a pause to despite trade war its monetary policy tightening due to a cloudier out- look and growing risks. BRUSSELS: The two best performers among the Group The labor market is still glowing, but the impact of of Seven economies in the third quarter almost certainly tax cuts will fade and the nation will hit a debt ceiling took separate paths in the fourth, as Britain suffered a in March, which could ultimately lead to a debt default. Brexit reality check, while the United States sailed on UniCredit’s Bandholz says slower growth could expose despite the trade war it has sparked. The world’s largest the very high debt of corporates, weakening invest- economy is expected to have grown by an annualized 2.6 ment spending and possibly spilling over into other percent in the final three months of 2018. Even if that is parts of the economy. down from the 3.4 percent of the third quarter, it is still a “All these factors combined will be enough to push healthy clip. A first estimate should have been released the US economy into a mild recession in 2020,” he by now, but the US Bureau of Economic Analysis said said. For now, US strength in the face of economic on Thursday the release had been pushed back to Feb. slowdowns elsewhere may well be helping President 28 due to the government shutdown. Donald Trump’s trade push. Forecasts though equate to a quarterly 0.6 percent, Trump said on Thursday he did not plan to meet triple the growth rate of the eurozone in the same peri- Chinese President Xi Jinping before a March 1 dead- od. Growth in China, while far higher, cooled to a 28- line set by the two countries to achieve a trade deal. year low in 2018. Japan, the world’s third largest econ- Other countries, notably Germany, are awaiting a omy has yo-yoed between contraction and expansion Commerce Department report due Feb. 17 on throughout the year, with a 0.4 percent growth reading whether auto imports are security risk. Bank of seen for Thursday. America Merrill Lynch wrote on Friday that this Harm Bandholz, chief US economist at UniCredit, should not in the end lead to tariffs, although believes says that despite unstable politics in Washington, two “some brinkmanship” is likely. —Reuters 14 Established 1961 Sunday, February 10, 2019 Business NBK-Bahrain reports net profits of KD 95.2m for 2018, up 26% y-o-y Al-Sager: NBK-Bahrain’s solid performance affirms success of Group’s expansion strategy KUWAIT: National Bank of Kuwait-Bahrain (NBK NBK-Bahrain is a testament to the success of its vision enjoys strong and historical relationships with the major Bahrain), reported net profits of BHD 118 million (equiv- aimed at affirming its position in the Bahraini market, Bahraini and international companies, Al-Fardan added. alent to KD 95.2 million) for the year 2018 compared which is one of the main growth markets for NBK NBK continues to enjoy collectively one of the high- with BHD 93.5 million (equivalent to KD 75.3 million) Group, given its promising growth opportunities and est ratings among all banks in the Middle East from the in 2017, a growth of 26 percent year-on-year. positive prospects”. three international rating agencies Moody’s, Fitch As of end of 2018, NBK-Bahrain’s total assets “Our diversification extends to the product and Ratings and Standard and Poor’s. The Bank’s ratings are increased by 9 percent y-o-y to BHD 6.3 billion, com- service offering, growth in existing geographies, our supported by its high capitalization, prudent lending pared with BHD 5.8 billion in 2017. While total share- approach to new business opportunities, and our com- policies, and its disciplined approach to risk manage- holders’ equity increased by 14 percent y-o-y to BHD mitment to a digital transformation that will position the ment, in addition to its highly recognized and very sta- 683.3 million. Customer deposits increased by 7 per- Bank for future growth,” Al-Sager added. ble management team. NBK was also named among cent y-o-y to BHD 3.2 billion Isam Al-Sager, NBK Ali Fardan, NBK-Bahrain General Manager, said Global Finance’s list of the 50 safest banks in the world Group Chief Executive Officer said “The Bank’s strong “This strong performance reflects our conservative for the twelve consecutive times and was awarded as results affirm the success of NBK Group’s regional management as we have consistently focused on our the Best Bank in Kuwait in 2017 by the Banker, expansion strategy that is built on a culture of pru- core business and ways to diversify sources of income. Euromoney and Global Finance. dence and strict risk management practices.” Al-Sager We continue to grow our operations locally by devel- NBK enjoys the widest banking presence with a Isam Al-Sager Ali Fardan pointed out that the strength of NBK-Bahrain’s profits oping new products to serve our customers benefiting local and international network reaching 4 continents. stems primarily from being operationally. from the support of NBK Group.” NBK’s international presence spans many of the Europe, GCC, Middle East, Singapore as well as Al-Sager added: “the strong growth achieved by NBK has been present in Bahrain since 1977 and world’s leading financial centers including New York, China (Shanghai).

concerns, however, Kuwait which was the largest The Port Fund investor in The Port Fund, continued to block its release. On December 30, 2018, the Kuwait Attorney General, Dherar Ali Al-Asousi, submitted a letter to Warba Bank secures release Dubai Attorney General, Essam Issa Al-Humaidan, for- mally requesting the money’s release to allow the fund announces 5 of $496 million to pay its investors and other beneficiaries. “It has taken over a year of diligent effort, but we are pleased that both Kuwait and Dubai have recog- winners of frozen in Dubai nized the lawful nature of our successful management of The Port Fund,” said Mark Williams, investment Sunbula draw KUWAIT: The Port Fund is pleased to announce that it director of the fund. “The Port Fund nearly doubled Kuwait, the same funds that had been frozen at Noor has finally secured the release of $496 million in our investors’ original capital before the money was Bank when the fund was attempting to pay investors. investor funds that have been frozen at Noor Bank in KUWAIT: Warba Bank, “the Best investment Bank” frozen, ranking it in the top quartile of private equity “Now that the Kuwait government investors in The Dubai for over 14 months, allowing the fund to immedi- and “Best Corporate Bank” in Kuwait, held its funds started before the global recession. We can now Port Fund have been paid, we look forward to Kuwait’s ately begin repaying its investors. weekly Sunbula draw number 6. The draw distribute the benefits of our hard work and start to immediate dismissal of all the false charges filed The money consists of proceeds earned by The Port announced the 5 lucky winners in the presence of mitigate the significant financial damage caused by against Marsha Lazareva and Saeed Dashti,” added Fund through the 2017 sale of a development project in representatives from the Ministry of Commerce freezing those funds. We thank our investors and Williams. “Payment of the Kuwait investors clearly the Philippines. In November 2017, as the proceeds of and Industry and bank officials. The bank proudly stakeholders for their patience and trust in our man- exonerates our colleagues, although it has always been that sale were being transferred to the Port Fund’s announced the lucky five winners of the KD 1000 agement team.” obvious that the funds were never misappropriated, account at Noor Bank, they were frozen, leaving prize: Humoud Jassim Mohammad Al-Falah, Sayed Kuwait has also been prosecuting two Port Fund but frozen in Dubai. The two executives should be investors empty handed. Mohammad Faleh Al-Rasheedi, Helail Sanad Helail executives for over a year, under charges that they mis- thanked for their successful stewardship over these Dubai subsequently cleared the money of any legal Al-Harbi, Amr Atef Sayyah Masoud, and Khaled appropriated the public funds invested by the State of public funds rather unjustly prosecuted by Kuwait.” Mohammad Khaled Al-Mutairi. Al-Sunbula both account and fixed deposits are the perfect choices for customers who wish to save money and achieve steady returns while at the same Burgan Bank time have the opportunity to win cash prizes through- out the year. In line with the bank’s mission to develop announces winner and differentiate its offerings, Warba Bank has enhanced its Sunbula campaign for 2019 with more cash and prizes reaching more than KD 1 million. of Al-Thuraya Warba Bank will continue its weekly draws for five winners of KD 1,000 each. What’s new in 2019 are the “Mega Draws” which will be held every salary account draw quarter to reveal five winners, the 1st winner will KUWAIT: Burgan Bank, announced yesterday Ahmed get KD 100,000! The four winners thereafter will Hussain Hassan Ali as the lucky winner of the Al- each get the latest Land Cruiser VXR. Furthermore, Thuraya Salary Account monthly draw. The draw the final Mega draw held in January 2020 will fea- rewards new and existing customers who transfer their ture 2 more Land Cruiser VXRs! salary to Burgan Bank by offering them a chance to As for the chances for winning, each customer is win a Nissan Patrol SUV every month. With every KD eligible to enter the draw against each KD 10 in the 10 available in the account, the customer receives one Sunbula Account. Nevertheless, Sunbula Fixed chance to enter the draw. Deposit investors also get chances in the Sunbula The Al-Thuraya account holders have the option to draws along with high expected returns that reach hold money in Kuwaiti dinar and other major curren- up to 3.5 percent distributed either monthly or at cies and can access account-related services such as maturity upon the customer’s preference. standing orders, loans and credit cards, and benefit from the discounts and offers throughout the year.

Dell EMC expands Gold & Diamonds also operates in Lulu Hypermarket, Malabar Gold & Amir Fawaz in Jeddah. data protection Already having a showroom in the holy city of Mecca, Malabar Gold & Diamonds is all set to open Diamonds opens its their new showroom in the holy city of Madina at Al- capabilities Munawara on 07th Feb, 2019. The new showroom is 13th showroom in located in the holy shrine of Al-Masjid Al-Nabawi, HOPKINTON, MA: Dell EMC announced new and enhanced near Gate #17. This is the 14th showroom of Malabar capabilities to the Dell EMC Data Domain and Integrated Gold & Diamonds in KSA. Data Protection Appliance (IDPA) portfolio of backup stor- Al-Balad, Jeddah Both the outlets unveil a significantly large collection age appliances designed to offer organizations real-world of traditional as well as contemporary designer jew- flexibility and value with expanded multi-cloud capabilities JEDDAH: Malabar Gold & Diamonds, one among the ellery. The new showrooms showcases the exquisite and improved performance. The enhancements also provide largest jewellery retailers globally with a strong retail collection of gold jewellery in 18K, 22K and 24K along- mid-sized organizations and remote offices of larger organi- network of 250 outlets spread across 10 countries has side Diamond, Uncut diamond and precious gem jew- zations with more choice and options in obtaining enterprise- with the previously announced increased capacity for DD launched its new store in KSA. The 13th Showroom in ellery handpicked for the jewellery lovers in KSA. To level data protection. VE - up to 96TB per instance - ensures customers will Saudi Arabia was inaugurated on 06th Feb, Wednesday celebrate the launch of 2 new stores, company has According to IDC, 92 percent of organizations have receive the same level of protection within their growing by MP Ahammed, Chairman, Malabar Group in the announced some amazing inaugural offers. Customers adopted a cloud environment with 64 percent adopting a cloud environments as they receive from their on-premis- presence of Dr. PA Ibrahim Haji, Co-Chairman, Malabar who make diamond jewellery purchase for every SAR multi-cloud approach. With a mix of different clouds, pro- es Dell EMC appliances. Group, Wasim Mohammed Al-Qahtani, Partner Malabar 3,000 will get 1 gm gold coin absolutely free. Not only tecting data across workloads while meeting compliance Additionally, Native Cloud Disaster Recovery is now Gold & Diamonds, KSA, Shamlal Ahamed, Managing that, customers can avail Zero Deduction on 22K (GCC) and security requirements is a critical challenge for many available across the entire IDPA family, enabling customers Director - International Operations, Malabar Gold & gold jewellery exchange as well. These inaugural offers organizations. to cost-effectively failover to a cloud environment with Diamonds, Abdul Salam KP, Group Executive Director, are only valid at the Jeddah Al-Balad stores and Madina In fact, according to a study conducted by IDC for Dell end-to-end orchestration. Customers no longer have to Malabar Group, Gaffoor Edakkuni, Regional Director, Munawara store until 23rd February, 2019 only. EMC, cross-cloud support was the highest recognized data bear the expense and management of setting up and main- Malabar Gold & Diamonds, other Directors, manage- Malabar Gold & Diamonds also offers exquisite and protection deficiency for IT transformation. Dell EMC taining a secondary site for disaster recovery and can ment team members, media and well-wishers in Gold beautiful jewelry as a part of various brands presented recognises this challenge and continues to enhance its data failover to public clouds with ease in case of a disaster Souk Al-Balad, Jeddah. at Malabar Gold & Diamonds’ namely Ethnix - protection appliances to help customers mitigate risk and event and failback when the issues are resolved. With this The new showroom in Jeddah which is conveniently Handcrafted Designer Jewellery, Era - Uncut Diamond protect their most valuable asset - their data - in multi- expansion, all Data Domain and IDPA models support AWS, located at Al-Balad Building, Gold Souk, Al-Balad is Jewellery, Mine - Diamonds Unlimited, Divine- Indian cloud environments. including VMware Cloud on AWS, and Microsoft Azure for the 2nd showroom of Malabar Gold & Diamonds in Al- Heritage Jewellery, Precia - Gem Jewellery and Starlet Cloud Disaster Recovery. Balad and the 3rd showroom in Jeddah City. Malabar - Kids Jewellery. Multi-cloud capabilities Organizations will also find peace of mind in that all Dell Data Domain OS 6.2 and IDPA 2.3 software now provide EMC data protection appliances provide modern, simple- customers with even more choice to extend their data pro- to-manage user interfaces. Also, administrators can easily tection to public clouds with expanded Cloud Tier support to manage multiple Data Domain and DD VE appliances - on- Google Cloud Platform and Alibaba Cloud, thereby, enabling premises or in public clouds - from a single user interface more flexibility for long-term retention. This is in addition to with the Data Domain Management Center. support already offered across AWS, Microsoft Azure, Dell EMC Elastic Cloud Storage, Virtustream, Ceph, IBM Cloud Enhanced performance Open Storage, AWS Infrequent Access, Azure Cool Blob Updates to the IDPA family now provide more perform- storage and Azure Government Cloud. Also, a new Free- ance for Instant Access and Restore with an enhanced data space Estimator Tool for Cloud Tier helps enable more effi- cache that results in up to four times more inputs/outputs cient capacity management to help reduce on-premises and per second (IOPS), providing up to 40,000 IOPS with as cloud storage costs. little as 20 milliseconds latency. Dell EMC also expanded its ecosystem of supported Also, Data Domain appliances provide faster restores public cloud providers for Data Domain Virtual Edition from an on-premises appliance and faster recalls from pub- (DD VE), which provides software defined data protection lic clouds. Given these enhancements, organizations can on-premises and in public clouds, to AWS GovCloud, now restore their data up to two-and-a-half times faster JEDDAH: The 13th showroom of Malabar Gold & Diamonds in Saudi Arabia is being inaugurated in Gold Souk Al- Azure Government Cloud and Google Cloud Platform. This from a Data Domain appliance and recall their data up to Balad, Jeddah. adds to the already supported platforms AWS S3 and four times faster from the cloud to a Data Domain appli- Azure Hot Blob. The expanded cloud ecosystem combined ance, allowing them to meet more stringent SLAs. 15 Established 1961

What’s On Sunday, February 10, 2019

Kuwait Towers offers a flavorful experience of genuine Kuwaiti Cuisine at Horizon Restaurant

n celebration of Kuwait’s rich heritage, the Touristic Making its debut ahead of Kuwait’s Independence Commenting on the new initiative, the General international customers with a first-of-its-kind fine din- Enterprises Company announces the launch of an and Liberation Day festivities, the restaurant will cele- Manager of Kuwait Towers, Jarrah Al Omani said: “We ing destination, while ensuring an exceptional experi- Iexclusive Kuwaiti buffet at Horizon Restaurant at the brate the country’s local culture, reflected in its dishes, are delighted to launch our national themed buffets as ence from 82 meters above sea level.” A delectable Kuwait Towers. Offering a menu of authentic traditional decor and service. Complete with an Arabic coffee and the country prepares to welcome the joyous occasion infusion of flavors, Horizon restaurant will serve tradi- cuisine, the special lunch and dinner buffets will be dates station, customers can indulge in the original of National and Liberation days. This new concept tional sumptuous Kuwaiti dishes such as, Machbous, available to diners every Monday starting from 11 taste of local culinary delights and breathtaking views seeks to celebrate the Kuwaiti culinary traditions Jireesh and Quzi cooked in the traditional Kuwaiti style, February 2019 (tomorrow). of Kuwait City. beyond the national holidays and provide our local and every Monday from 1:00pm to 11:30pm. GUST to host philosophy conference with 23 international scholars

ulf University for Science and Technology (GUST) GUST Associate Professor in the Humanities & Social is set to host a two day philosophy conference on Sciences Department and Event Organizer, Dr Thorsten Gits campus on the 7th, 8th and 9th of February, Botz-Bornstein, said, “We have to understand that certain organized by the Department of Humanities and Social ideas and concepts are fluid, and need to be revisited Sciences. The conference will bring together over 20 periodically in order to gain a more thorough and well- leading figures from the realm of philosophy, such as Prof rounded understanding of them. By bringing together Elizabeth Susanne Kassab from the Doha institute for such notable minds, we continue to realize GUST’s vision Graduate Studies, and Professor Michal J Sauter, from of becoming a true knowledge-hub.” CIDE in Mexico, under one roof to discuss and deliberate Presenting findings on behalf of GUST will be various topics which fall under the conference theme: “The Thorsten Botz-Bornstein, with his seminar on “The Concept of ‘unity’ between East and West.” Return of Organic Unity in Contemporary Philosophy”, The conference, the first of which to be hosted by Mohammed Habib, with his discussion on “Hegel and GUST will reflect upon and debate how the idea of “unity” the Divine Unity in Islam”, Dr Gavin Wilson who will or “totality” has a natural link to smaller related ideas. The lead a seminar on “Immediacy and (dis)unity out of the conference will also shed light on how starting in the 20th later life of Abduh: The shifting focus of the filmic century, these innate links were wholly neglected, even in ECU”, and finally Dr. Martha Tryzna, who will discuss fields such as biology, which made distinct separations “Language as a Tool for Totalitarian Control: A between macro and micro biology. Sociolinguistic Perspective”. Another modern concept that will be discussed at the The philosophy conference at GUST is the second to conference is “cosmopolitanism”, which references how an take place at the university, with the previous one having individual citizen lives in accordance with the law of the taken place in 2012, and follows the footsteps of other ACK students hosted for internship at city as a whole, but the individual also helps creating the leading conferences recently hosted by the university, whole. Starting this century, scientists have revisited these such as the International Federation for Information links, and a new slant is now beginning to form, and this is Processing Conference which assembled approximately Think Tank Management Consulting what the conference aims to shed light on through a series 75 scholars from around the globe to present their of seminars and panel discussions over the two days. research findings. our Australian College of Kuwait outside the box, which helped them (ACK) students were hosted for an refine their skill-sets and learn more Finternship by Think Tank effectively during their internship. Management Consulting and Dr Manal Al- The comradely between the company’s Hasawi at their company’s premise. During employees also left a positive impact on the internship the students were tasked the interns, who appreciated the good with the planning and hosting of different relationship between the employees and events at Think Tank Management their managers. “Overall I really liked Consulting. working there, the workplace is like a fami- The experience provided valuable ly between the employees and managers,” insight for the trainees in event planning said Abdullah Al Shammari, one of the and management. According to the interns. ACK strives to increase opportuni- interns, the value of the experience was ties for students to take part in vocational further strengthened by the positive training in order to better develop their work environment at Think Tank professional skills. It offers many opportu- Management Consulting. The interns nities for students in different majors to get remarked that the work environment hands-on practice in their field before they enabled flexibility and the art of thinking graduate.

International day celebrated at KNES

tudents in Secondary celebrated tries represented included Italy, International Day on the 4th of Ireland, Spain, Mexico, India, Japan, SFebruary 2019. The event organ- France, Kuwait and the USA. ized by the student council aimed to Competitions were held for the best create intercultural understanding. The costume, best performance and the event turned out to be a splendid one best display. The winners were with students and staff all involved. Best costume: 11 A (India) Every form class from years 7 to 12 Best Display/Stall: 7 C (USA) represented a country and had colorful Best Performance: 11 B (Japan) and attractive stalls displaying impor- The highlight of the day was a taek- tant facts about the countries. wondo performance by Pouya Masjedi, Students were dressed in traditional Soaud Al Kashthi and Mohammed costumes of the countries they were Hashem of 11 B which entertained the representing. A wide variety of culi- audience and impressed the judges. nary delights from all over the world Trophies and medals were then given were also on offer. Some of the coun- out to the winners. 16 Health Sunday, February 10, 2019 Miracle treatment or risky drug? Indonesia cashes in on Kratom Compounds found in Kratom are opioids

PONTIANAK: The sweltering backwaters of consumption of the plant and its derivatives to dozens Europe and America, where it is usually consumed as a Indonesian Borneo have become the unlikely ground of deaths, warning it could aggravate a deadly opioid tea or in capsules. zero for the global production and export of Kratom, a epidemic gripping parts of the country. The US is struggling with an opioid epidemic, fueled tree leaf hailed by some as a miracle cure for every- Compounds found in Kratom are opioids, which by addiction to prescription painkillers as well as street thing from opioid addiction to anxiety. Part of the cof- expose users to the same risks of addiction and death drugs like heroin and synthetic versions such as fen- fee family, the leaf has been used for centuries in as illicit opiates, according to the US Food and Drug tanyl. Kratom is legal in 43 states, but the FDA is push- Southeast Asia and Papua New Guinea for its pain- Administration. But for farmers in Kapuas Hulu, West ing for greater restrictions and has already put an relieving and mildly stimulating effects but it is now Kalimantan — the centre of production — demand for import alert on it, which means shipments entering the sold in powder form and exported worldwide — alarm- Kratom is such that they have moved away from tradi- US can be confiscated. ing some health regulators who have raised concerns tional commodities such as rubber and palm oil to start In a statement, the organization warned consumers about safety. growing the tree, turning it into a major cash crop. not to use the drug and said it was “concerned that Kratom stimulates the same brain receptors as mor- And at the main post office in Pontianak, the key Kratom appears to have properties that expose users phine, although it produces much milder effects. “I take trading post for this part of Indonesian Borneo, it’s to the risks of addiction, abuse, and dependence.” Kratom and have had no problems. Every strain has its clear the health warnings have done little to dampen Scientists say that while Kratom may have positive benefits - some help you relax, others can treat insom- interest. “Around 90 percent of our shipments from attributes, very little research has been done into the nia or treat drug addiction. Some help increase stami- West Kalimantan province are Kratom that’s been drug. “It has great potential as a remedy for pain and na,” grower Faisal Perdana said. Fellow farmer Gusti sold to the United States,” post office head Zaenal opioid addiction given its pharmacology and its poten- PONTIANAK: This picture taken on December 25, 2018 Prabu, who now exports 10 tonnes of the drug a month, Hamid said. tial accessibility,” Michael White, head of the depart- shows Indonesian kratom grower Gusti Prabu tending agreed. “Our ancestors used Kratom and there were no As many as five million Americans use the drug and ment of pharmacy practice at the University of to his plants at a farm. — AFP negative side effects. It can help eliminate drug addic- that number is growing, according to the American Connecticut, said. “It is promising and not proven,” he tion and help people detox,” he explained. Kratom Association. Data from 2016 showed that the added. Advocates insist it’s a safe alternative to pre- see how the regulatory battle in the US unfolds. And But its popularity is causing concern — the drug is region was shipping some 400 tons abroad every scription drugs and can actually help opioid addicts. while bad weather and a salmonella scare dented unregulated, and has had little clinical testing to assess month — worth about $130 million annually at current “Of the 44 deaths on record involving Kratom, they exports in 2017, provisional data showed Kratom ship- its safety or side effects. Kratom is already banned for global prices of some $30 a kilogram. Most Kratom all involve poly-drug use,” said Ryan Leung, a ments bounced back strongly last year. Kratom farmer domestic consumption in Indonesia, Malaysia and customers are reached through online platforms such spokesman from kratom lobby group Botanical Prabu insisted: “The Kratom market has been very Thailand, though the former allows its export in as Facebook, Instagram and Chinese e-marketplace Education Alliance (BEA). “The FDA health warnings... good over the past decade and it still has potential in unprocessed form. Health authorities in the United Alibaba. The trend for alternative medicine has been (have) proven to be misguided by multiple experts,” he the years ahead.” He added: “People will see its useful- States — now the drug’s top importer — have linked credited with increasing interest in Kratom from added. For now, Indonesian producers are waiting to ness, sooner or later.” — AFP

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CROSSWORD 2132 STAR TRACK

Aries (March 21-April 19) Libra (September 23-October 22)

Though you’re thinking with clear-headedness, you may find yourself Your friends are leaned on by you to help you make the decisions you at odds with someone in authority. This is because you’re not sure you want to have wanted to make for the last few days. All they need to do is say, uh-huh. That’s give in today but this would be the day to do it, Aries. “Pride goes before the fall” even if they really haven’t been listening to your words. You want to feel as if you’ve or so they say although you’re not in the mood for any of those old colloquialisms had an agreement to what you’ve clear-headedly already decided. “It’s time to now. Keep your tongue and your pride flexible today because you don’t want to move on in work and with a lover,” is what you think and you’re moving. Libra, bite off more than you can chew. Give yourself a breather here and ready yourself you’re able to intrigue others with your ideas about the unique and unusual so that for tomorrow or in other words live for today. at least one may join you on your quest to move to a new area and start a new life.

Taurus (April 20-May 20) Scorpio (October 23-November 21) There is a lot of mental pressure weighing on you today but you aren’t thinking as clearly as you generally do. And to top that, you have work and Don’t rock the boat at home or at the job just now. Be sensitive to oth- home pushing you to get more done. A vacation day would be good but you can’t ers motivations and go the extra mile to make people feel better on the job. You always take one when this intellectual heaviness strikes. Though all of these issues want more than you have now and you feel a strong urge to take care of business. mean a great deal to you today, Taurus, be careful that you make the best decision By the time you get home today, you’ll be glad you left work, Scorpio. Burn off you can under the circumstances. Better yet, try to put off any important conclu- sexual energy and create a more harmonious time at home now just because you sions to work you answered today. can. You need the relief. Go out to dinner and enjoy your family and friends.

Gemini (May 21-June 20) Sagittarius (November 22-December 21)

Gemini today is a day for being with friends and not just any friends, You’re using your quick wit and intelligence to fend off anyone try- your best friend whether that’s your lover or another. You need the emotional under- ing to really get close to you now. It’s because you’re unsure of just who you are right now. Something you’ve always relied on, your imagination and creativity, ACROSS 6. A soft gray malleable metallic element standing that only a best friend can bring. You’re still in the process of examining your life and you need an impartial observer who has your best interest at heart. Because seems miles away from you and really unusable. You feel as if you’ve lost your- 1. (computer science) The rate at which that resembles tin but discolors on you might become hurt by words today, it’s best if it comes from someone you love self, Sagittarius, but others don’t notice this unless they’re really close to you. data is transferred (as by a modem). exposure to air. and know isn’t trying to hurt you on purpose. Wear black to keep your energy in and You’re looking for answers and don’t know where to look. There’s confusion 4. Capable of being acted. 7. One of the three prairie provinces in feel secure. This psychic thinks you may need it today but tomorrow will get better. because your usual manner in which to get your answers seems to be missing. It’s 11. Informal terms for a mother. western Canada. not. Slow down and think. Work is looking better because it represents stability. 15. Resinlike substance secreted by certain 8. A man who is the lover of a girl or young lac insects. woman. 16. An Irish girl. 9. United States tennis player (born in Cancer (June 21-July 22) 17. (Babylonian) God of storms and wind. Czechoslovakia) who won several sin- Capricorn (December 22-January 19) 18. A loose sleeveless outer garment made gles championships. from aba cloth. 10. Either extremity of something that has Free yourself of letting others get on your nerves today. They may length. not mean to but you find yourself thinking differently from others when it comes Homelife and love life aren’t what you expect today. You’re like a bull 19. Military action involving the use of to thoughts and ideas. Know that you can have your opinions without others electromagnetic energy to determine 11. Covered with paving material. in the china shop when this sensitive part of life surfaces. This isn’t something you 12. (Philippine) A dish of marinated vegeta- being able to infringe upon them just because you believed as they did yester- can sweep under the rug now. Take charge gently and face it head on. Seek out or exploit or reduce or prevent hostile day. It’s a new day. Tell those that want a confrontation to back off and seek out bles and meat or fish. friends and family as the best source to assist you in understanding what’s wrong use of the electromagnetic spectrum. your own friends for comfort, Cancer. They’re the ones you can trust most often. 13. The arch of bone beneath the eye that and how to repair it, Capricorn. Why can’t social life be as good as your work 20. An unofficial association of people or You’re appreciated by those that know you for your practical outlook on life and forms the prominence of the cheek. life? It’s hard to believe that this part of your life is so difficult. Work will become groups. living. Take time for you tonight. 14. Chief port of Yemen. the center of your attention again shortly. Try to smile and at least act happy now. 21. A hardy cabbage with coarse curly 23. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug leaves that do not form a head. (trade names Acular and Toradol) that 22. A small cake leavened with yeast. is administered only intramuscularly. 24. A person who makes deceitful pretens- 25. 100 seniti equal 1 pa'anga. Leo (July 23-August 22) es. 26. (Irish) Ancient Irish god (probably a Aquarius (January 20- February 18) 27. A cry or shout of approval. god of the sun). Friends need you today. You may help someone you care for with 29. A mountain peak in the Andes in What you consider disciplined work might find you pushing too hard. 28. A unit of power equal to 746 watts. their resume or in working manually such as around the house, in the yard or Argentina (20,997 feet high). This could cause illness in you or problems where workmates are concerned. 30. A river in north central Switzerland that with coaching a team outdoors. Whatever you do, you approach the task with a 31. Someone who lives at a particular place Though you think you’re right, is it about being right or getting the work done in a runs northeast into the Rhine. more conservative style which may mean you’re not sure of what you’re work- timely, good manner, Aquarius? People you love mean more to you now. You need for a prolonged period or who was 32. A high-crowned black cap (usually ing on but you be sure that you’ll give it your best. Someone you love may need the comfort of being close to others who love you too. They’re your security blan- born there. made of felt or sheepskin) worn by a shoulder to cry on and since you’ve been thinking about your own life’s issues, ket. After the last few days, you may need the warmth of your sanctuary and safe- 34. Title for a civil or military leader (espe- men in Turkey and Iran and the you may give just the right advice, Leo. You shine in a practical way today. ty on the home front. Take a hot bath or enjoy a hot tub with your lover tonight. cially in Turkey). Caucasus. 37. The season when the leaves fall from 33. Clear to the mind. the trees. 35. A soft whitish calcite. 38. A plant hormone promoting elongation 36. An island of central Hawaii. Virgo (August 23-September 22) of stems and roots. 39. The blood group whose red cells carry 40. A member of the Siouan people for- both the A and B antigens. Pisces (February 19-March 20) merly living in the Missouri river valley 41. A bachelor's degree in library science. You’ve got a knack for putting just the right person in the right job at work. You could become someone who facilitates new jobs for others. You 43. A person who rides a pedal-driven If you ask you shall receive. You seem to have a way of getting exact- in NE Nebraska. even feel like a wheeler and a dealer. There’s excitement in your work life you ly what you want. You are most persuasive today. Your words are sweet like 42. (British) An old shabby movie theater. vehicle (as a bicycle). haven’t noticed in a while. It feels good, Virgo, and you love it. You’ll hate for this honey. This is one of those days that seems to fall right into place for you. Enjoy 45. Date used in reckoning dates before 44. (of linens or clothes) Smoothed with a day to end but all good things come to a close but that doesn’t mean it has to go because it just doesn’t get much better than this. A great evening to spend time the supposed year Christ was born. hot iron. forever. Meet with friends tonight and continue your good times over dinner or a with someone you love. This could be very beneficial to your relationship. 47. A decree that prohibits something. 46. A monocotyledonous genus of the beverage. Romance can be in the air too. 48. A cut of pork ribs with much of the family Iridaceae. meat trimmed off. 49. A signer of a 1679 address to Charles 51. The sense organ for hearing and equi- II in which those who petitioned for librium. the reconvening of Parliament were Wordsearch Puzzle Friday’s Solution 52. An uproarious party. condemned and abhorred. 55. A crystalline metallic element not found 50. Adorned by inlays. in nature. 53. Any of numerous hairy-bodied insects including social and solitary species. 60. A Scottish word. 54. A highly unstable radioactive element 64. Be earlier in time. (the heaviest of the halogen series). 66. Any of various plants of the genus 56. The face or front of a building. Ursinia grown for their yellow- or 57. A gonadotropic hormone that is orange- or white-rayed flowers. secreted by the anterior pituitary. 68. Measuring instrument in which the 58. Any of numerous trees of the family echo of a pulse of microwave radiation Cupressaceae that resemble cedars. is used to detect and locate distant 59. Tropical American trees with palmately objects. compound leaves and showy bell- 69. (folklore) Fairies that are somewhat shaped flowers. mischievous. 61. Not set afire or burning. 72. A marine turtle. 62. Owing or owed feudal allegiance and 73. Toward the mouth or oral region. service. 76. One of the most common of the five 63. Israeli general and statesman (1915- major classes of immunoglobulins. 1981). 77. Being nothing more than specified. 65. Not widely known. 78. Dried bark of the cascara buckthorn 67. Large genus of tropical subshrubs or used as a laxative. herbs some of which yield fibers of 79. Being one more than nine. mucilaginous substances. 70. A form of address for a married DOWN woman. 1. Divulge information or secrets. 71. Committee formed by a special-inter- 2. A metabolic acid found in yeast and liver est group to raise money for their cells. favorite political candidates. 3. Someone who works (or provides work- 74. A radioactive element of the actinide ers) during a strike. series. 4. (informal) Of the highest quality. 75. An official prosecutor for a judicial dis- 5. Fruit or seed of the cowpea plant. trict.

Friday’s Solution

Daily SuDoku Friday’s Solution Established 1961 Lifestyle

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 10 , 2019

Malaysian indigenous Mah Meri tribesmen wear a traditionally crafted mask gather before heading to the sea during the “Puja Pantai” ritual, a thanksgiving ritual praying to the spirits of the seas, in Pulau Carey on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur. — AFP

Pop superstar Ariana Grande Rappers, women aim big at drops album Grammys after past snubs amid Grammys spat usic’s biggest stars gather in Los Angeles today ‘It has to start with us’ Radicalized categories for the Grammy Awards, and this year observers As the gala approached, controversy was brewing, with a Despite rap’s strong number of nominations, most experts eigning pop queen Ariana Grande dropped M are hoping the hip-hop and women artists lead- slate of superstars declining to perform at the Staples are not expecting a quick revolution, saying successful black her highly anticipated album overnight ing the pack will get their due. The industry’s annual gala Centre. Drake, Lamar and Childish Gambino have all report- artists have long been restricted to wins in categories like RFriday after slamming the producer of the draws eye rolls every year from critics who say the win- edly turned down offers to perform, while Ariana Grande Best Rap Album. “It’s not so much that black people are Grammys for “lying” about her decision not to ners are too white and too male, but for the second con- withdrew from the show over creative difference with invisible or not innovating-it’s about those innovations being perform at music’s biggest night. The chart top- secutive year black hip-hop artists dominated the nomina- organizers. Even Grammys producer Ken Ehrlich has admit- contained to radicalized categories,” said Guthrie Ramsey, a per released her fifth album “Thank U, Next” tions across the board. ted the “problem” over hip-hop artists who feel undervalued musicologist at the University of Pennsylvania. before lashing out at Ken Ehrlich after the Rapper Kendrick Lamar-who won a Pulitzer Prize for by the Academy, which includes more than 13,000 music After last year’s shutout, Jay-Z dissed the Academy in Grammys boss told US media the woman of the his album “DAMN.” but not a Grammy for Album of the professionals. Lamar once again has a chance to win the “APES**T”-his track with wife Beyonce-vying on Sunday moment “felt it was too late for her to pull some- Year-earned eight nominations, while Canadian rapper prestigious Album of the Year award after three prior losses- for Best Music Video, along with four other boundary-push- thing together.” Drake snagged seven. Women artists scored nods in all this time for masterminding the soundtrack for the block- ing black nominees. But for others, part of rap’s appeal is “I’ve kept my mouth shut but now you’re lying of the top categories after being largely snubbed a year buster superhero film “Black Panther.” The lead song off the that it remains non-conformist. “So much of rap music histo- about me,” tweeted Grande with a screenshot of ago, with rapper Cardi B, pop diva Lady Gaga, pop soundtrack-”All the Stars”, which he performed with R&B ry has been about resistance and counterculture-a win also an Associated Press article. “I can pull together a futurist Janelle Monae and folk rocker Brandi Carlile singer SZA-is in the running for both Record of the Year, means the approval of mainstream culture,” said Akil performance over night and you know that, Ken. among the frontrunners. which honors best overall song, and Song of the Year, which Houston, a hip-hop scholar at Ohio University. “In a way, It was when my creativity & self expression was In the Best New Artist category, six of the eight nomi- awards songwriting. then you lose that outsider edge.” stifled by you, that I decided not to attend.” “I nees are women. But skepticism lingers that nods will Drake, who has sparred with the Recording Academy in hope the show is exactly what you want it to be actually translate into wins, after rap mogul Jay-Z left past years, nabbed nominations across the top categories for Representation is everything and more. <3” empty-handed last year despite eight nominations. That his album “Scorpion” and inescapable 2018 hit “God’s Plan.” Today’s ceremony, hosted by songstress Alicia Keys, Grande, 26, then said she “offered 3 different show sparked a major backlash-even retro-funk star Women snagged five of the eight Album of the Year nomina- will feature performances by Gaga, Cardi B, Carlile and songs” before axing the performance. “It’s about Bruno Mars’s surprise sweep in the top categories was tions: Cardi B, Carlile, Monae, R&B prodigy H.E.R. and Monae. “Representation is everything,” Carlile said at a collaboration. It’s about feeling supported. It’s divisive, as it was seen as somewhat out of touch with the country star Kacey Musgraves are in the running. Lady pre-Grammy gala honoring country legend Dolly Parton. about art and honesty. Not politics. Not doing more groundbreaking work on offer. Gaga boasts five nominations including for both Record and “If there’s a little girl waiting up late to see me sing on the favors or playing games,” she continued. “It’s just In response, the Recording Academy-which organizes Song of the Year for her heart-pounding hit “Shallow,” which Grammys, then I’m happy I’m here.” A tribute to the late a game y’all.. and I’m sorry but that’s not what the gala-created a diversity task force and expanded the she performed in the film “A Star Is Born” with co-star Aretha Franklin is also planned. The Grammys gala will air music is to me.” Images of the record-smashing four top categories from five nominees to eight. “The Bradley Cooper. Carlile-this year’s most-nominated woman- today from 5:00 pm.—AFP singer have featured on billboards in Los Angeles industry and the Recording Academy do understand that said women must promote each other to bring about change. promoting the gala, which will air Sunday from they have a problem on their hands,” Murray Forman, “We can blame men, and we can blame the industry and we 5:00 pm (0100 GMT Monday). who studies pop music at Boston’s Northeastern can blame commerce, but it has to start with us,” the 37- Grande’s smash hit “thank u, next”-the lead University, told AFP. year-old told Variety. single off her just-released album-came out after this year’s nomination deadline. She did receive two nominations in the pop categories, however: Grande’s album “Sweetener” is up for best pop vocal album, while the sultry jam “God is a Woman” is nominated for best pop solo performance. The pop princess’s fifth album sees the star sharpen her brand of bubblegum pop with a bit- ing personal edge. Several songs allude to her tumultuous past year of love that saw her break up with rapper Mac Miller-who died age 26 in September-and end a brief but heavily publicized engagement with comedian Pete Davidson. In “Ghostin” Grande gets raw on mourning lost love, appearing to reference Miller: “Though I wish he were here instead/Don’t want that living in your head/He just comes to visit me/When I’m dreaming every now and then.” In the bouncier bop “Bloodline” she turns hardheaded, likely referring to Davidson: “Don’t want you in my bloodline, yeah/Just wanna have a good time.”—AFP

In this file photo US rapper Cardi B performs on stage during the Z100’s iHeartRadio Jingle In this file photo Childish Gambino performs on stage during the iHeartRadio Music Festival at Ball show at Madison Square Garden in New York City. — AFP photos the T-Mobile arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. 20 Established 1961 Lifestyle Movies Sunday, February 10, 2019 Contested film on church abuse scandal moves Berlin film fest

ne of France’s most acclaimed directors always resistance,” he said. “I don’t think this is Devaux said that Ozon’s approach to the vic- Opresented a wrenching new drama happening by accident, because it is a film which tims’ painful experiences had been “very humane Friday based on real-life victims of ram- is trying to break an omerta, and which deals and very passionate” given the fact that for them pant sexual abuse in the Catholic church, as an with the silence.” The scandal first broke in 2015 and their families, they had been like “time accused priest tried to block the picture’s release when a former scout, Francois Devaux, went bombs” waiting to go off. later this month. Francois Ozon, 51, worked for public with allegations that Preynat had abused years in secret on “By the Grace of God”, which him as a child 25 years earlier. Preynat was sus- Painful revelations was warmly applauded at a press preview at the pended by the church later that year and it even- Ozon said he wanted to show the “negative Berlin film festival ahead of its gala premiere. It is tually emerged that the cardinal had confronted repercussions (victims can suffer) and the dis- the most-high profile dramatization of the sys- him about “the rumors” in 2010 but the priest tressing boomerang effects on their partners, tematic cover-up of widespread sexual molesta- claimed he had changed. children, families and friends”. Asked about tion by clergy since the Oscar-winning Four years later Barbarin went to the Vatican Preynat’s bid for an injunction, Ozon insisted “Spotlight”, set in Boston and released in 2015. about him without contacting the police. The film there were no major factual revelations in the film But even before the premiere, a priest accused traces those events but sticks close to their emo- for anyone who has been following the case. “We of molesting more than 80 boys, Bernard tional impact on three victims-turned-activists, are facing some pressure regarding the release of Preynat, has gone to court to demand that the who begin to confront their trauma publicly with the film but everything in it is already well-known film not be shown in France until after his trial, the generally strong support of their families. in France,” he told reporters in Berlin. which is due to start later this year. A lay volun- Ozon said he had consulted several members of “Most of the people attacking us haven’t seen tary worker for the Lyon diocese, Regine Maire, the survivors’ group, La Parole Liberee (Freed the film yet.” The filmmaker hopes his intimate has also issued a legal challenge to have her Speech), Devaux set up, which has gathered the portrait of the victims’ fight for justice will spark name removed from the picture. testimony of 85 people who claim to have been greater understanding of a difficult subject that The movie’s premiere comes as Cardinal abused by Preynat in Lyon. mainstream cinema has rarely confronted. Ozon Philippe Barbarin, the archbishop of Lyon, and But the director said he tried to be “as even- said the reaction from several French bishops and five others including Maire await a verdict on handed and objective as possible. It is not a film senior clergy who have seen the film had been charges of covering up the abuse. Ozon-best of goodies and baddies, it is much more com- positive, adding that he hoped it would provoke known for “Swimming Pool” and “8 femmes”-told plex than that for the affected families and the debate beyond France. “The church seems to be AFP he had hoped the tortuous series of cases institution itself, and I tried to show that”. “By changing its stance on the scourge of pedophilia would have finished by now, but the film should the Grace of God” centers on Devaux and and the silence hanging over it,” he said.—AFP (Left to right) French actor Melvil Poupaud, French producer Eric Altmayer, French actor Denis be shown for “the public good”. Alexandre Dussot-Hezez, “a fervent Catholic Menochet, French director Francois Ozon, French actor Swann Arlaud, French producer who discovers at the age of 40 that a priest Nicolas Altmayer, Berlinale Director Dieter Kosslick and French actress Aurelia Petit pose as Breaking the silence who abused him is still alive and has access to they arrive on the red carpet for the premiere of the film Grace a Dieu (By the Grace of God) “When you try to break the silence, there is children” through the church. during the 69th Berlinale film festival in Berlin. — AFP

Mongolian expanse inspires Berlinale meditation on mortality ould humans go the way of the dinosaurs? Are Chumans too far from nature? The empty expanse of the Mongolian steppe caused Chinese director Wang Quan’an to meditate on such existential questions in Ondog, which premieres at the Berlinale on Friday. The first Mongolian work in the Berlin Film Festival’s main competition section came from the desire of a citizen of the world’s most populous country to test the limits of his creativity in one of the emptiest corners on Earth, Wang Director and screenwriter Wang Quan’an and actors told reporters. Dulamjav Enkhtaivan and Norovsambuu Batmunkh pose dur- “Like a lot of city people I have a fascination with the ing a photocall to promote the movie Ondog at the 69th natural environment,” he said, adding that the vastness of Berlinale International Film Festival in Berlin. — Reuters the Central Asian prairie-lands had helped him reflect on Film Festival director Dieter Kosslick signs gender equality pledge on behalf of the Berlinale at the 69th Berlinale International the fleeting span of the human race. “The film says Filmed with wide shots that are often reminiscent of Film Festival in Berlin. — Reuters mankind will have its time and then go again,” said Wang, classic Westerns by Mandarin-speaking French cine- who said he made the film as a “farewell gift” for Dieter matographer Aymerick Pilarski, the film is unafraid to let Kosslick, the Berlinale’s outgoing director. “What’s more ant-sized characters inch across the landscape for min- The festival will aim to have more women in its jury, important is how to coexist with nature.” film line-up and staff. Of the 17 films competing for the utes at a time. The ondog of the title - supposedly Berlin festival aims for Starring amateur actors recruited by Wang from tradi- Mongolian for dinosaur egg - is the fertility symbol that Golden Bear award this year, seven have female directors. tional nomadic communities, the film stars a herdswoman “We never had this in our history, and it proves that it shapes the film, looming in the background as a cow goes (Dulamjav Enkhtaivan) who lives alone in the emptiness into labor and at the end of the film, when Wang hints was the right decision,” said Kosslick. Gale Anne Hurd, tending a flock of sheep. Her interactions - with the young gender equality with producer of hits like “Terminator,” “Aliens” and “The that the herdswoman’s solitary existence might be com- policeman (Norovsambuu Batmunkh) she tends through ing to an end.—Reuters Walking Dead” said the gender equality pledge sends a the chilly night he spends watching over the corpse of a half of films by women signal that the film industry needs to change so that suc- woman found dead on the steppe, and a neighbouring cessful female directors and producers are no longer herdsman who wants to start a family with her - are the exceptions. he Berlin Film Festival has made a pledge to pro- core of the film. “The Berlin festival is actually doing much better than mote gender equality, taking the first step toward T let’s say Venice or Cannes,” said Hurd, the special guest that goal by screening almost an equal number of at this year’s event. “Sometimes you have to shame peo- movies directed by women as by men. Out of the 400 ple into doing the right thing, I don’t necessarily believe films to be screened at this year’s Berlinale, almost half that that’s the best thing, which is why this initiative is ‘Angry Young Man’ actor have female directors. “We still have a lot to do to encouraging people,” she said.—Reuters achieve gender equality,” said festival chief Dieter Kosslick, who on Saturday signed the pledge to promote Albert Finney more women in the film industry. dies aged 82 eteran actor Albert Finney, who He was a regular at London’s Old Vic the- found fame as one of Britain’s atre, which said Friday: “His performances in V“Angry Young Men” of the 1950s plays by Shakespeare, Chekhov and other and 60s and went on to star in films includ- iconic playwrights throughout the 60s, 70s ing “Murder on the Orient Express” and and 80s stand apart as some of the greatest “Erin Brockovich”, has died at the age of 82, in our 200-year history.” He was honored a family spokesman said Friday. Finney, who by the British Academy of Film and received four best actor Oscar nominations Television Arts with the BAFTA Fellowship and won three Golden Globes, “passed lifetime achievement award in 2001. away peacefully after a short illness with Finney racked up 13 BAFTA nomina- those closest to him by his side”, the tions-nine for film and four for television. He spokesman said. won two: most promising newcomer for A Shakespearean actor, he mixed his “Saturday Night and Sunday Morning” in movie career with television roles and 1960, and in 2002 for his portrayal of acclaimed stage performances. He made his Churchill in “The Gathering Storm”. BAFTA name in the gritty kitchen-sink drama said it was “deeply saddened” to hear of his “Saturday Night and Sunday Morning” in passing. 1960, becoming part of the wave of work- ing-class actors and writers who revolu- Bond swansong tionised British film and television at the His Golden Globes were awarded for (Left to right) Producer Teddy Schwarzman, actress Anna Pniowsky and US actor and director Casey Affleck walk over the red time known as the “Angry Young Men”. “Tom Jones”, “Scrooge” and “The In this file photo British actor carpet as they arrive for the premiere of the film ‘Light of My Life’ during the 69th Berlinale film festival in Berlin. — AFP He gave memorable portrayals of Belgian Gathering Storm”, which also earned him an Albert Finney arrives to attend the premiere of his who features solely in flashbacks - said: “I think it is par- detective Hercule Poirot, British prime min- Emmy Award. At the London stage Olivier ister Winston Churchill, Charles Dickens’ Awards, he won the best actor gong in 1986 new film’”Erin Brockovich’ new tially about showing that women are critical in this world.” in Los Angeles. — AFP Casey Affleck’s Affleck, who divorced his wife Summer Phoenix in miser Ebenezer Scrooge and pope John for “Orphans”. In “Skyfall”, Finney played 2017, said he was finding it hard to adjust to life as a single Paul II. Finney’s more recent films included the Bond family’s gamekeeper Kincade. film explores fatherhood parent when working on the movie and got the idea for it “The Bourne Ultimatum” (2007), “The Daniel Craig, who played Bond, said: “The from stories he had told his children and conversations he Bourne Legacy” (2012), and the James Bond world has lost a giant. “Wherever Albert is had with them. Affleck - the younger brother of actor and film “Skyfall”, out the same year. now, I hope there are horses and good in world without women director Ben Affleck - has been accused of sexual harass- His four best actor Academy Award company,” he added, referencing the film. ment by female crew members on an earlier film. Two law- nominations were for “Tom Jones” (1963), The movie’s director Sam Mendes suits alleging unwanted advances were settled out of court as Poirot in “Murder on the Orient Express” added: “He really was one of the greats: a new film about a father-daughter relationship in a (1974), “The Dresser” (1983) and “Under brilliant, beautiful, big-hearted, life loving world without women was shaped by Casey for undisclosed sums. An attorney for Affleck denied the accusations at the time. the Volcano” (1984). He was also Oscar- delight of a man. He will be terribly AAffleck’s own struggles with becoming a single par- nominated for best supporting actor for his missed.” Bond producers Michael G ent, the Oscar-winning actor said at the Berlin Film He said “Light of My Life” had been conceived before the #MeToo movement that took off in 2017 in response performance as a gruff lawyer in “Erin Wilson and Barbara Broccoli added that Festival where “Light Of My Life” is premiering. In the Brockovich” (2000). were “heartbroken”. A tweet on the official movie, which Affleck directs, he plays a father who isolates to accusations of sexual assault and harassment in the entertainment industry. But he added: “I think everyone James Bond account quoted them as say- his daughter from society in a desperate attempt to pro- Staple of stage and screen ing: “We are heartbroken at the loss of tect her from a pandemic that has wiped out most women. out there has had to do some sort of self-reckoning and think about culturally what part they play and how they Born in 1936, Finney, a bookmaker’s son, Albert Finney. It was a privilege to work In this dystopia, the father and daughter - dressed as a grew up in Manchester, northwest England with him and an honor to have had him as boy - fear discovery and plan escape routes wherever can play a positive role no matter how much they like to think of themselves as one of the good guys.” and graduated from the Royal Academy of part of our Bond family.” they stop. They trek through rain and snow, camping in Dramatic Art in 1955. He started out in Finney had a son, Simon, with his first woodland and seeking shelter in an abandoned house, a Asked whether the movie reflected difficult times in his own life, Affleck said that as an actor, “your private life has Shakespeare plays before portraying the wife, actress Jane Wenham. His second wife church and a home with three religious men. Affleck, who titular hero in the Oscar-winning adven- in the 1970s was the French actress Anouk won the best actor Oscar in 2017 for his performance in been sort of invaded”, and he had wondered whether to wait until his children were older to pursue his career. “It’s ture-comedy “Tom Jones”, which made him Aimee. His son and his third wife Pene the family drama “Manchester by the Sea”, said some a major film star. Shortly before his “Tom Delmage were at his bedside in London’s ideas in the new film could be considered feminist but his definitely difficult sometimes - you know I’ve developed a pretty thick skin but then you have kids and they don’t Jones” breakthrough, he turned down the Royal Marsden Hospital, where he had been goal had not been to make a film with a political message. title role in the epic “Lawrence of Arabia”, for the past month. Finney’s funeral will be “It’s certainly about a young woman sort of asserting have such thick skin and you have to do a lot of explaining to them about the world prematurely,” he said.—Reuters which went to Peter O’Toole. held in private.—AFP herself as the storyteller and beginning to define herself Finney appeared and sang in “Scrooge” with the narrative that she chooses to tell,” Affleck told a (1970) and “Annie” (1982), in which he news conference. Anna Pniowsky, who played the daugh- played tycoon Oliver “Daddy” Warbucks. ter - the only female in the movie other than her mother, Established 1961 21

Sunday, February 10, 2019 Lifestyle Fashion Models walk the New York runway to fight LGBT+ suicide

odels strut the runway during New York’s semi- Project, a suicide-prevention group for LGBT+ people Mannual Fashion Week to help prevent suicide under age 25. The funds raised will contribute to the among LGBT+ teens, taking advantage of the organization’s daily operations, which include multiple crowds and attention to raise awareness of the risk to emergency phone banks and chat systems that youth more than1 million young people. Dubbed #YOLO: You considering suicide can call for help, Trevor Project Only Live Once, the show yesterday is aimed at raising leader Amit Paley said. money for the anti-suicide cause, organizers said. “I think it’s really important and will help save lives,” According to the Centers for Disease Control and Paley said. Paley started working at the Trevor Project as Prevention, nearly a third of LGBT+ high school students a volunteer on the phone lines, the organization’s first line seriously considered suicide in 2015 compared to 6 per- of defense, and said he was surprised by the effective- cent of heterosexual youth. On Saturday, the show by ness a conversation can have in preventing suicide. “In Supermodels Unlimited Magazine, a beauty industry many cases, it is the first time that they are hearing some- publication for women, hopes to reach the upscale and one say, I see you for who you are. I am proud of you for trendsetting crowd to talk about stopping suicide. being who you are,” said Paley. “As a society, we don’t talk about it,” Kimberly Clark, This weekend’s event has already garnered support Supermodel Unlimited’s editor in chief said. “It’s OK to from models, musicians and reality TV stars personally (Left to right) Kiki Layne, Sadie Sink, Julia Garner, and be sad. It’s OK to not be OK. Let’s break the stigma.” affected by suicide and allies of the LGBT+ community. Maggie Gyllenhaal attend the Kate Spade AW19 Clark described suicide as an epidemic that has touched Fashion photographer and reality star Erika Barker will Collection at Cipriani 25 Broadway during New York everyone in the industry in some way. Even industry walk the runway to honor transgender military members. Fashion Week in New York City. — AFP photos leaders like Kate Spade, who took her life in June, feel America’s Next Top Model contestant Jeana Turner will they cannot talk about their pain, Clark said. also walk, and singer and American Idol contestant Effie “If somebody like Kate Spade can’t talk about what Passero will close the show.—Reuters she’s going through, how can we teach these kids to talk about it; All the proceeds of the show go to The Trevor

Models walk the runway at the Kate Spade AW19 Collection at Cipriani 25 Broadway in New York City.

Kate Spade Creative Director Nicola Glass walks the runway at the Kate Spade AW19 Collection at Cipriani 25 Broadway in New York City. 22 Established 1961 Sunday, February 10, 2019 Lifestyle Features Basic black tuxes are out: A-list men experiment on red carpet

he basic black tux is a thing of the past. Bring on the can see a guy in a tuxedo with sneakers, or with a sweat- flowery harnesses, patterned jackets and brightly col- shirt under a tuxedo.” “It just shows that they’re more in Tored hats. The men of Hollywood and the music biz touch with their creative side,” Lilic added. are no longer letting their female peers grab all the atten- Singer and music producer Pharrell Williams and tion on the red carpet. The more experimental sartorial Oscar-winning actor Jared Leto were among the first to statements by entertainers and athletes at high-profile adopt a looser, more evocative style. And of course, the events is a sign of a new age in men’s fashion, one that is fashion OGs are Spike Lee and Mickey Rourke. At the free of stereotypes. Golden Globes, Lee rocked an all-purple look. “We now live amongst a generation who thrive to see what new trends male celebrities bring to the red carpet,” said stylist Danyul Brown, who has notably worked with singer John New age in Legend and rapper Tyga. “It’s just as competitive today to get ‘Best Dressed’ for a man, as it is for a woman.” men’s fashion Evolving societal norms This men’s liberation movement on the red carpet signi- fies a wider societal trend-a redefinition of masculinity A decade ago, at the 2009 Oscars, the men on the red and the blurring of boundaries between the sexes. “People In this file photo Spike Lee carpet looked like a colony of penguins-white shirts and now have the ability to express their gender, however they In this file photo Darren Criss In this file photo Mahershala Ali poses in the press room dur- arrives for the 76th annual black tuxedos, all in a row. But at the Golden Globes in identify, in broader terms,” said Gelwicks. “The way we arrives for the 76th annual ing the 25th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine Golden Globe Awards at the January 2019, change was everywhere: from Timothee dress is a huge part of how express our identity.” Attitudes Golden Globe Awards, at the Auditorium in Los Angeles. — AFP photos Beverly Hilton hotel in Beverly Chalamet’s sparking Louis Vuitton harness to Idris Elba’s are quickly changing, industry experts say. “Women are Beverly Hilton hotel in Beverly Hills, California. bright green jacket and Bradley Cooper’s white suit. Then allowing men to get more in touch with their creativity Hills, California. at the Screen Actors Guild awards, “Black Panther” stars without thinking, ‘He stole something from my closet’ or Chadwick Boseman (brown Zegna leaf print jacket) and ‘It’s very feminine,’” Lilic explains. Michael B. Jordan (floral Vuitton harness over a blue suit) Another factor is the culture of working out, and the celebrities with fashion labels clamoring for them to wear opt for a more ‘out-there’ tie or shoe.” Lilic says that styl- took it up a notch. “skinny” trouser trend pioneered by Hedi Slimane. “Men their fun creations. “The red carpet-and not forgetting the ists dressing men now must “put the same work and The Grammys are on Sunday and the Oscars are on are looking after themselves more and more,” Lilic says. designers and stylists that work behind the scenes-are at thought into it as we do for women.” February 24, so the men of showbiz have a few more key And the explosion of social media has inspired men and the forefront of inspiring the rest of us when choosing “You can’t just come with a tuxedo. You have to think moments this awards season to strut their stuff. “There women to adopt a more personal style-to stand out from what to wear,” Brown says. Stylists-who were long about the person that he is, that he wants to be and what have always been some men who have dressed outside the the rest of the people posting their outfit of the day on searching for the coolest basic tux, even though most of story he wants to tell at this very moment by expressing box, but only within the past two years or so has this Instagram. “Men want attention-they want to be recog- them looked similar-say their business has totally changed. himself through his clothes,” he says. “Yes, it is more work become more accepted in mainstream media,” says nized and written about,” says Brown. “They enjoy it when “I’m now able to experiment with so many other for us but it is actually very nice because we get to do our Andrew Gelwicks, a stylist to young celebrities. For they are complimented on their appearance.” options,” says Gelwicks. “Certain clients are of course work-we get to play with the clothes.”—AFP Sascha Lilic, who has worked with Lenny Kravitz and The revolution on the red carpet has taken these more open to pushing the boundaries than others, but Adrien Brody, men “sort of speak to the theme, but you changes up to the next level-well beyond a small group of even men I work with who want to do a suit and tie will

called Pantone 18 1663TP. “Christian Louboutin warmly trademark referred mainly to the color. Louboutin has welcomes this new judgment, which further strengthens marketed the red-bottomed shoes for more than a quar- Louboutin wins Dutch the favorable decisions regarding the validity of the red ter of a century and the glam footwear was featured on sole trademark already issued in many countries,” the the consumerism-worshipping television series “Sex and court battle over company said in a statement. the City”. The Hague district court said in an order issued on Louboutin has faced a series of legal battles over the red-soled shoes Wednesday that Van Haren’s 2012 shoe model Fifth distinctive soles. A Paris appeals court in May 2018 Avenue by Halle Berry “infringes the trademark rights of ordered the French shoe company Kesslord to pay rench luxury shoe designer Christian Louboutin said the French designer.” It ordered the Dutch firm to Louboutin damages after it sold red-bottomed shoes. In Friday he has won a long-running legal battle destroy all existing copies of the shoe and to provide 2012 a US court also said that Louboutin could trade- Fagainst a Dutch company that copied his signature details of all outlets in which they were sold. The Hague mark the red soles, reversing an earlier ruling that would red-soled high-heeled shoes. A court in The Hague ruled court had asked the ECJ, the European Union’s highest have allowed rival Yves Saint Laurent to paint its outsoles that Dutch shoe maker Van Haren must stop selling the court, to decide on the principle of whether Louboutin’s scarlet. But one year before that Louboutin lost a sepa- look-alike footwear, which went on the market in 2012, 2010 trademark for the soles was valid. rate case in France against the Spanish clothing chain and pay damages to Paris-based Louboutin. In a case that vexed the EU’s top legal minds, Van Zara.—AFP An Inuit artisan sews a parka coat for Canada Goose’s new The Dutch court ruling follows a general decision last collection. — Reuters Haren had argued that it was impossible to trademark a year by the European Court of Justice that Louboutin shape. Louboutin argued, and the ECJ agreed, that the From parkas to luxury could trademark the soles and their use of a red pigment silk, businesses tackle and museums and archives worldwide. Mandela’s life and “My grandfather, during his presi- cultural appropriation dential years, he wore a watch, a legacy celebrated in Philippe Patek watch, and I’ve made that watch available because he gave ne of the fashion’s most enduring trends is to draw London exhibition me that watch and I think because he inspiration from other cultures’ traditional arts and was such a committed person and O always on time,” grandson Mandla crafts. But the extent to which fashion houses profit or a man who spent nearly three Mandela told Reuters. “Even when he from these designs without acknowledging their origins has decades in prison, the passage of sparked accusations of cultural appropriation in recent travelled abroad his watch remained Ftime was no doubt important to on South African time which we found years. Amid this growing backlash, luxury outdoor brand Nelson Mandela. So it is perhaps fit- Canada Goose is paying homage to the Inuit, who originally hilarious as a family, but that watch is ting that an exhibition opening in also here on display.” created the fur-lined cold-weather parka coat that the com- London on Friday about his life and pany has become famous for selling. London is the first city to host the legacy features his watch, which was touring show “Mandela: The Official This week it launched a new business venture, Project always kept on South African time Atigi, which aims to acknowledge and support Inuit com- Exhibition” before it is permanently wherever he travelled in the world as mounted in Mandela’s birthplace munities in Northern Canada. Canada Goose commissioned the country’s first black president. 14 Inuit seamstresses to each make a coat of their own Mvezo. “It’s our generation’s respon- The interactive exhibition takes a sibility to ensure that we record his- design, using fabrics selected by the company. The seam- journey though Mandela’s life includ- stresses own the copyright for their coats, rather than tory for generations to come to ing his upbringing in rural Eastern understand the character and to Christian believers pray over the Stone of the Anointing, inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre Canada Goose. “As we’re moving forward into modern Cape as the son of a chief, his 27-year times, indigenous cultures are being acknowledged for their understand the glorious human that is traditionally believed to be the site of Jesus’ crucifixion, burial and resurrection, in incarceration and the end of apartheid achievement of Nelson Mandela,” Jerusalem’s Old City. — AFP photos ingenuity and their craft,” Mishael Gordon, one of the when he became president in 1994. Project Atigi seamstresses, told the Thomson Reuters Zelda La Grange, his personal presi- Mandela died in 2013 aged 95. It fea- Foundation. “I felt like this was an example of appreciation dential aide and the exhibition’s tures previously unseen footage of indigenous culture, not appropriation,” she said. Canada guest curator, said. — Reuters alongside more than 150 artifacts such Goose set up Project Atigi as a social enterprise, which is a ‘Prison of Christ’ reopens in as clothes, campaign posters and business that seeks to do good as well as make profit, so it travel documents on loan from the would benefit the Inuit directly. The seamstresses were paid family of the Nobel Peace Prizewinner Jerusalem’s Holy Sepulchre for their work and all the profits will go to a charity that works to improve the health and wellbeing of Inuit in Canada. chapel built on a site where The chapel houses two holes dug into Christians believe Jesus was rock that were used, according to tradi- $900 coats Mini mice architecture Aimprisoned by Roman soldiers tion, to bind the feet of Jesus. The two Dani Reiss, president and chief executive of Canada ahead of his crucifixion has reopened holes are protected by a window and are Goose, said the company had a responsibility to help the after repairs, a Church official said Friday. adorned by an icon representing Jesus’ northern region of Canada, where the company originates draws crowds in Sweden The site-in the Church of the Holy hobbled feet and hands. The chapel is from, to prosper. “We know that ‘the north is open for busi- Sepulchre-was repaired over a period of under the sovereignty of the Greek ness’ and this is our way to create social entrepreneurship ith a grin spreading across his sented themselves as Yasha Mousekewitz several years after a fire caused major Orthodox Church. The site is also revered in the region,” he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation in face, a man bends down to take a told AFP in an email. They wanted to try to damage. “It is in this prison that Jesus was by the Armenian Church, as well as by an email. Canada Goose, which was founded in Toronto 62 W photo of a miniature rubbish bin reproduce a microcosm of that world. detained after he carried the cross along representatives of the Catholic Church. years ago, sells coats for about $900. The Inuit designs are and street sign at the foot of a building in “We thought it would spread joy among the Via Dolorosa,” a senior Greek According to tradition, the Holy Sepulchre on display in its New York store and will be sold online this the southern Swedish town of Malmo. Lost passersby. But it took on even bigger pro- Orthodox official said Friday, asking not stands on the site of Jesus’ crucifixion and month at between$5,000 and $7,500. items from a dollhouse? No, the Lilliputian portions, so we decided to continue,” to be named. “Since the end of January, it burial. The site is in the old city of Israeli It is the company’s first foray into social enterprise and- objects are the latest installation from the Mousekewitz said. “I like to see unexpect- has once again become a place of prayer annexed east Jerusalem.—AFP follows protests by animal rights activists over the use of artist’s collective Anonymouse, known for ed things in the city, well thought-out, fun- and contemplation”, the official said. furand duck feathers in its coats. Gordon explained animal its urban architecture for mice with intri- ny things. I like it,” said passerby Jenny fur was still widely used in Inuit culture to protect them from cate decor worthy of an animated film like Berg. Even under a glacial rain, pedestrians the cold. She said she believed Project Atigi was not moti- “Ratatouille”. stop to admire the details inside the “Paw vated solely by good publicity and would benefit the Inuit “One morning, there was a crowd of to Paw” shelter, the chair at the “Hair and people. “They are making themselves look great, but they people outside the building and we Furever” barbershop, and Mama are making Inuit seamstresses look great as well, because couldn’t understand why,” says 74-year- Mousekewitz dance studio. they are showcasing our artwork,” she said. But Riley old resident Irene Bengtsson. “We came Anonymouse have set up more than 10 Kucheran, an expert on indigenous fashion design, said the down to the street and we saw this little contribution to charity amounted to “a drop in a very large installations so far, including an amusement bucket”. “The partnership does some good work in bringing installation,” she told AFP, visibly tickled park, travel agency and antiques shop, with attention to the brilliancy of Inuit design, but I think Canada by the creative initiative. Built into the three to seven artists involved depending Goose could do more,” said Kucheran, who is studying for a building’s air vent at pavement level are on the project. The group has also done PhD at Ryerson University in Toronto, in an email. “We’ll two little pastel-colored storefronts that other installations in other cities in have to wait and see if it’s truly a reciprocal relationship.” would fit into a shoebox. There’s a dance Sweden, as well as in Bayonne in south- school for mice on the top floor, over a western France and the Isle of Man. The Beg, borrow or steal? barbershop and a shelter for “lost and installations use materials the artists find or Awareness of cultural appropriation is growing, but travelling” mice. have collected. “Then we try to think, big brands still trip up. Designer Isabel Marant was As is their custom, Anonymouse ‘What would a mouse be able to use this accused of copying an indigenous Mexican design for a installed the piece in utmost secret. The for?’,” Mousekewitz said. The artworks are dress in 2015. Two years later, Chanel was accused of collective presented their first artwork-a occasionally vandalized, and if that hap- appropriating Aboriginal culture when it started selling at restaurant and nut shop-in December pens, “then we take them down.” The luxury boomerang for $1,930. Because social enterprises 2016. “We were a group of friends sitting Malmo project was unveiled in mid- typically reinvest profits back into the business or a and talking about our shared love of tales December.—AFP cause, they are in a position to address this wrongdoing where animals live in a world parallel to by directly giving back to the workers or communities ours, where they take care of things we that build them. —Reuters lose,” an Anonymouse member who pre- A picture shows Jesus’ pillory inside the church of the Holy Sepulchre. Classifieds Sunday, February 10, 2019

lost. Anyone finding the LOST same or claiming any interest in it should com- Original document policy municate with the Sabah Hospital 24812000 No. 633003889 Saghir Manager Kuwait State Life Ahmed DV the State Life Office - Ph: 22452208. Amiri Hospital 22450005 Insurance Corporation of (C5443) Pakistan, Gulf Zone is 8-2-2019 Maternity Hospital 24843100 reported to have been Mubarak Al-Kabir Hospital 25312700 Automated enquiry Chest Hospital 24849400 about the Civil ID card is Farwaniya Hospital 24892010 1889988 112 Adan Hospital 23940620 Ibn Sina Hospital 24840300 Al-Razi Hospital 24846000 Physiotherapy Hospital 24874330/9 Airlines Kaizen center 25716707 Kuwait Airways 171 Rawda 22517733 Jazeera Airways 177 Wataniya Airways 22 066 536 Adaliya 22517144 Turkish Airlines 1884918 Khaldiya 24848075 American Airlines 22087425 22087426 Kaifan 24849807 Jet Airways 22924455 Shamiya 24848913 FlyDubai 22414400 Qatar Airways 22423888 Shuwaikh 24814507 KLM 22425747 Abdullah Salem 22549134 Royal Jordanian 22418064/5/6 British Airways 22425635 Nuzha 22526804 Air France 22430224 Industrial Shuwaikh 24814764 Emirates 22921555 Air India 22438184 Qadsiya 22515088 Sri Lanka Airlines 22424444 Dasmah 22532265 Egypt Air 22421578 Swiss Air 22421516 Bneid Al-Gar 22531908 Saudia 22426306 Shaab 22518752 Middle East Airlines` 22423073 Lufthansa 22422493 Qibla 22459381 PIA 22421044 Ayoun Al-Qibla 22451082 Bangladesh Airlines 22452977/8 Indian Airlines 22456700 Mirqab 22456536 Oman Air 22958787 Sharq 22465401 Turkish Airlines 22453820/1 Aeroflot 22404838/9 Salmiya 25746401

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Arrival Flights on Sunday 10/2/2019 UAE 871 Dubai 12:50 Departure Flights on Sunday 10/2/2019 SAW 702 Damascus 13:30 Airlines Flt Route Time MSR 610 Cairo 13:10 Airlines Flt Route Time JZR 113 Doha 13:30 JZR 254 Amman 00:05 AXB 393 Kozhikode 13:15 AIC 988 Hyderabad/Chennai 00:05 JZR 123 Dubai 13:40 JAI 572 Mumbai 00:15 QTR 1078 Doha 13:35 TRQ 231 KRT 00:30 MSR 611 Cairo 14:10 KAC 102 London 00:50 KAC 774 Riyadh 14:00 FDB 072 Dubai 00:40 UAE 872 Dubai 14:15 JZR 734 Cairo 00:50 KAC 792 Madinah 14:05 BBC 044 Dhaka 00:45 AXB 394 Kozhikode 14:15 THY 772 Istanbul 00:50 FDB 059 Dubai 14:20 JAI 571 Mumbai 01:15 JZR 103 Bahrain 14:40 PGT 858 Istanbul 01:00 KAC 672 Dubai 14:25 JZR 111 Doha 01:45 QTR 1079 Doha 15:00 DLH 625 Dammam 01:25 KAC 364 Colombo 14:30 KAC 677 Dubai 01:50 FDB 060 Dubai 15:10 UAE 853 Dubai 01:45 KAC 618 Doha 14:40 KAC 363 Colombo 01:50 GFA 222 Bahrain 15:25 THY 764 Istanbul 01:50 GFA 221 Bahrain 14:40 DLH 625 Frankfurt 02:25 KAC 673 Dubai 15:40 IGO 1757 Kochi 01:55 SVA 500 Jeddah 14:45 THY 773 Istanbul 02:30 SVA 501 Jeddah 15:45 JZR 722 Alexandria 02:15 KAC 692 Muscat 14:55 PGT 859 Istanbul 02:55 KAC 775 Riyadh 15:50 ETH 620 Addis Ababa 02:15 KNE 529 Jeddah 15:05 IGO 1758 Kochi 02:55 KNE 530 Jeddah 16:00 RBG 551 Alexandria 02:25 KAC 788 Jeddah 15:10 ETH 621 Addis Ababa 03:05 KAC 615 Bahrain 16:05 KLM 446 Bahrain 02:30 ETD 303 Abu Dhabi 15:15 RBG 552 Alexandria 03:05 KAC 619 Doha 16:10 GFA 211 Bahrain 02:30 JZR 222 Riyadh 15:30 UAE 854 Dubai 03:40 KAC 563 Amman 16:10 QTR 1086 Doha 02:40 KAC 562 Amman 15:35 KLM 446 Amsterdam 03:55 ETD 304 Abu Dhabi 16:20 OMA 643 Muscat 02:55 OMA 645 Muscat 15:35 OMA 644 Muscat 03:55 KAC 283 Dhaka 16:30 RJA 648 Amman 02:55 UAE 857 Dubai 15:45 THY 765 Istanbul 04:00 OMA 646 Muscat 16:35 KKK 1268 Istanbul 03:05 JZR 732 Cairo 15:50 QTR 1087 Doha 04:00 KAC 785 Jeddah 16:40 ETD 305 Abu Dhabi 03:05 SAW 705 Damascus 16:00 KKK 1269 Istanbul 04:00 ABY 128 Sharjah 16:45 PGT 860 Istanbul 03:10 KAC 118 New York 16:05 ETD 306 Abu Dhabi 04:05 SAW 706 Damascus 17:00 MSR 612 Cairo 03:15 ABY 127 Sharjah 16:05 MSR 613 Cairo 04:15 KAC 675 Dubai 17:05 JZR 1736 Cairo 03:30 KAC 516 Tehran 16:20 PGT 861 Istanbul 04:25 KAC 503 Beirut 17:15 KAC 414 Bangkok 04:00 JZR 212 Jeddah 16:25 JZR 701 Asyut 04:30 FDB 052 Dubai 17:40 QTR 1076 Doha 04:00 KAC 502 Beirut 16:30 LMU 511 Cairo 05:00 UAE 858 Dubai 17:45 LMU 510 Cairo 04:00 KAC 542 Cairo 16:30 IGO 1752 Chennai 05:10 QTR 1073 Doha 17:50 IGO 1751 Chennai 04:10 QTR 1072 Doha 16:35 KAC 103 London 05:10 JZR 721 Alexandria 18:00 KAC 418 Manila 04:25 FDB 051 Dubai 16:40 QTR 1077 Doha 05:30 KAC 331 Trivandrum 18:00 KAC 784 Jeddah 04:30 JZR 114 Doha 17:10 FDB 070 Dubai 05:50 KAC 343 Chennai 18:00 JZR 406 Kochi 04:45 SVA 510 Riyadh 17:15 JZR 215 Jeddah 06:00 JZR 733 Cairo 18:10 FDB 069 Dubai 05:00 GFA 215 Bahrain 17:30 JZR 713 Sohag 06:15 SVA 511 Riyadh 18:15 KAC 382 Delhi 05:05 JZR 104 Bahrain 17:45 JZR 121 Dubai 06:35 GFA 216 Bahrain 18:20 KAC 1544 Cairo 05:10 JZR 214 Jeddah 17:45 THY 771 Istanbul 06:40 KAC 621 Doha 18:25 JZR 404 Hyderabad 05:10 UAE 875 Dubai 18:00 GFA 212 Bahrain 07:15 JZR 127 Dubai 18:35 THY 770 Istanbul 05:10 FDB 063 Dubai 18:15 RJA 649 Amman 07:15 JZR 403 Hyderabad 18:40 KAC 284 Dhaka 05:15 JZR 302 Istanbul 18:15 KAC 171 Frankfurt 08:10 JZR 501 Lahore 18:40 QTR 8512 Doha 08:40 JZR 112 Doha 05:25 JZR 124 Dubai 18:20 KAC 381 Delhi 18:55 KAC 332 Trivandrum 05:40 MSR 620 Cairo 18:30 FDB 054 Dubai 08:50 KAC 501 Beirut 09:00 JZR 253 Amman 19:15 KAC 344 Chennai 05:50 QTR 1080 Doha 18:30 FDB 064 Dubai 19:20 JZR 402 Mumbai 06:05 SYR 341 Damascus 19:00 KAC 787 Jeddah 09:05 KAC 613 Bahrain 09:05 UAE 876 Dubai 19:30 KAC 302 Mumbai 06:25 RJA 640 Amman 19:00 MSR 621 Cairo 19:30 QTR 8511 Doha 06:40 ABY 123 Sharjah 19:25 JZR 731 Cairo 09:10 BAW 156 London 09:10 QTR 1081 Doha 19:55 KAC 678 Dubai 06:55 RBG 555 Alexandria 19:25 RJA 641 Amman 20:00 BAW 157 London 07:05 KAC 616 Bahrain 19:30 KAC 791 Madinah 09:10 KAC 691 Muscat 09:20 SYR 342 Damascus 20:00 KAC 204 Lahore 07:10 KAC 156 Istanbul 19:30 RBG 556 Alexandria 20:05 JZR 708 Luxor 07:15 GFA 217 Bahrain 19:30 KAC 541 Cairo 09:30 ABY 124 Sharjah 20:05 KAC 358 Kochi 07:35 KAC 776 Riyadh 19:50 KAC 561 Amman 09:40 GFA 218 Bahrain 20:15 FDB 053 Dubai 07:50 FDB 057 Dubai 19:50 ABY 126 Sharjah 09:45 KAC 384 Delhi 08:00 KAC 104 London 19:55 KAC 741 Dammam 09:45 FDB 058 Dubai 20:35 KAC 304 Mumbai 08:20 KAC 620 Doha 20:15 KAC 671 Dubai 09:45 KAC 301 Mumbai 20:35 UAE 855 Dubai 08:35 OMA 647 Muscat 20:20 KAC 101 London 09:45 KAC 345 Ahmedabad 20:40 JZR 408 Ahmedabad 08:45 KAC 674 Dubai 20:35 UAE 856 Dubai 10:00 JZR 401 Mumbai 20:55 ETD 301 Abu Dhabi 09:05 KAC 166 Rome 20:35 JZR 301 Istanbul 10:05 KAC 353 Bengaluru 20:55 ABY 125 Sharjah 09:05 QTR 1088 Doha 20:35 ETD 302 Abu Dhabi 10:10 KAC 357 Kochi 21:00 QTR 1070 Doha 09:30 DLH 624 Frankfurt 20:45 KAC 773 Riyadh 10:10 OMA 648 Muscat 21:20 IRA 665 Shiraz 09:40 KAC 172 Frankfurt 21:15 FDB 056 Dubai 10:35 DLH 624 Dammam 21:30 FDB 055 Dubai 09:40 ETD 307 Abu Dhabi 21:20 KAC 617 Doha 10:35 QTR 1089 Doha 22:00 IGO 1753 Ahmedabad 09:40 ALK 229 Colombo 21:20 JZR 211 Jeddah 10:40 ETD 308 Abu Dhabi 22:10 IRC 528 Ahwaz 10:00 MEA 402 Beirut 21:20 IGO 1754 Ahmedabad 10:40 KAC 203 Lahore 22:15 SVA 512 Riyadh 10:00 UAE 859 Dubai 21:35 IRA 664 Shiraz 10:40 KAC 1543 Cairo 22:15 GFA 213 Bahrain 10:40 KAC 676 Dubai 21:45 QTR 1071 Doha 10:45 MEA 403 Beirut 22:20 JZR 702 Asyut 11:05 GFA 219 Bahrain 21:45 KAC 155 Istanbul 10:45 ALK 230 Colombo 22:25 JZR 122 Dubai 11:10 KAC 564 Amman 21:55 IRC 529 Ahwaz 10:55 GFA 220 Bahrain 22:30 JZR 116 Doha 11:10 JAI 574 Mumbai 22:00 SVA 513 Riyadh 11:00 KAC 383 Delhi 22:30 QTR 1074 Doha 11:35 QTR 1082 Doha 22:05 GFA 214 Bahrain 11:25 KAC 303 Mumbai 22:30 JZR 216 Jeddah 11:45 ETD 309 Abu Dhabi 22:15 KAC 117 New York 11:25 KAC 783 Jeddah 22:55 MEA 404 Beirut 11:55 AIC 981 Chennai/Ahmedabad 22:25 JZR 221 Riyadh 12:00 UAE 860 Dubai 23:00 KAC 614 Bahrain 12:25 KAC 622 Doha 22:30 KAC 515 Tehran 12:00 JAI 573 Mumbai 23:00 SAW 701 Damascus 12:30 KAC 786 Jeddah 22:45 JZR 213 Jeddah 12:00 KAC 411 Bangkok 23:00 JZR 714 Sohag 12:35 JZR 128 Dubai 23:15 MEA 405 Beirut 12:55 ETD 310 Abu Dhabi 23:05 KAC 742 Dammam 12:50 FDB 071 Dubai 23:45 QTR 1075 Doha 13:00 QTR 1083 Doha 23:25 24 Established 1961 News Sunday, February 10, 2019 Thai princess premiership bid scuttled as party obeys king

BANGKOK: Thai Princess Ubolratana’s unprecedent- Others expressed unhappiness with groups such as is a constitutional monarchy and has not had a royal run ed attempt to become the country’s next prime minister Thai Raksa Chart linked to Yingluck and her brother for frontline office since 1932. The 67-year-old princess was abruptly nixed yesterday after her party agreed to Thaksin, who was ousted in a 2006 coup. An activist has yet to address the rebuke head on. She thanked comply with a command from the king opposing the who called himself Champ 1984 said he was “disap- supporters yesterday on her widely followed Instagram plan. The party’s announcement effectively blocking pointed” with the idea of a pro-democracy party enlist- account, saying vaguely that she wanted Thailand to Ubolratana’s candidacy came after an extraordinary ing a royal family member and would now vote for a “move forward”. The king did not criticize the princess rebuke by her brother King Maha Vajiralongkorn, and different party. directly and seemed to focus blame on political party removes a hurdle for the ruling junta to hold onto pow- Analysts say the events of the past day will help the members who brought her on board. er after the March 24 vote - the first since a 2014 coup. military to consolidate power and tilt the odds in favor Both Yingluck and Thaksin live in self-exile to avoid The Thai Raksa Chart party, affiliated with the pow- of junta chief Prayut Chan-O-Cha. Prayut is standing as charges which they say are politically motivated. erful Shinawatra political clan, had announced the premier for the Phalang Pracharat party, a group Observers had said Thaksin and the party would not princess as their candidate Friday morning. The move aligned with the regime. The military has “gained the have teamed up with the princess without royal rattled the status quo and threatened the ambitions of upper hand”, said professor Anusorn Unno from approval. But the bold play appears to have backfired the generals who have controlled Thailand since they Thammasat University, adding that it is poised to per- dramatically on Thaksin. “After last night the king’s toppled the administration of Yingluck Shinawatra form well in the vote. intervention had an effect of discrediting Thaksin,” almost five years ago. But the Thai king torpedoed his Even before Thai Raksa Chart’s reversal, many Anusorn said. sister’s bid in a sharply worded statement the same day warned the palace statement had ended the princess’ Ubolratana is the first-born of former king Bhumibol that said bringing senior royal family members into pol- chances. “The palace disapproval invalidates her candi- Adulyadej. She gave up her royal titles when she mar- itics was against tradition and “highly inappropriate”. dacy,” said Puangthong Pawakapan, professor of politi- ried an American in 1972, but they divorced and she Thai Raksa Chart responded swiftly, cancelling a cal science at Chulalongkorn University. An Election moved back to Thailand. Ubolratana is an unusually campaign event yesterday and issuing a statement say- Commission official said it is reviewing all candidate public figure for a royal, having starred in movies and ing it “complies with the royal command”. Thailand has applications and will finish the process this week, maintaining an active social media footprint. While she some of the most severe lese majeste laws in the world though few expect it to divert from the royal order. said she was exercising her rights as a commoner to and the king’s word is seldom challenged. Royalist Thais Historian Chris Baker said that while he could not stand for prime minister, the statement from the palace BANGKOK: An official of Raksa Chart party submits the and celebrities praised the intervention on social media predict what would happen next, the language in the said she is she is “still a member of the House of registration document of Thai Princess Ubolratana to after the order, writing “long live the king”. palace statement was strong and “very firm”. Thailand Chakri”, referring to the name of the dynasty. — AFP election commission officials in on Friday. — AFP

allegations “easily could fall into possible violations of fed- Sex, plots and eral criminal statutes involving extortion or wire fraud,” president. Sisi is due to take the helm at the AU’s the attorney said. Bloomberg News reported that federal Sisi set to chair biannual heads of state assembly, which takes place prosecutors were already reviewing the matter, including on Feb 10 and 11 at the AU’s gleaming headquarters blackmail: Toxic ... whether the tabloid breeched its immunity agreement. in Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa. Continued from Page 1 Former federal prosecutor Renato Mariotti said howev- African Union As usual, the continent’s multiple security crises er on Twitter he didn’t believe they would pursue the com- what they sent me, despite the personal cost and pany. “Was AMI’s action slimy? Yes,” Mariotti posted. “Is CAIRO: Nearly six years after the African Union will be high on the VIPs’ agenda. Rwanda’s ambitious funding proposal will also likely be on the table. But embarrassment they threaten,” Bezos wrote. it consistent with some of the questionable practices that shut it out in the cold, Egypt will take the organiza- He maintained that the Enquirer demanded that he and AMI engaged in on behalf of Trump and others? Yes. But tion’s helm - and strengthening multilateral powers is it has met resistance not only from Egypt, but other member states, so may fail to pass. Reform of the AU his security consultant Gavin de Becker, who is leading the is this the sort of case federal prosecutors would charge as unlikely to be on the agenda. Cairo’s tenure “will probe, publicly state they had “no knowledge or basis for extortion? No.” probably concentrate on security and peacekeep- Commission is an even more sensitive topic. In Nov 2018, most states rejected a proposal to give the suggesting that AMI’s coverage was politically motivated The case highlights a politically-tinged feud between ing”, said Ashraf Swelam, who heads a think tank or influenced by political forces”. The revelations appear the Post owner and the supermarket tabloid, with Bezos linked to the country’s foreign ministry. Incoming AU head of the AU’s executive organ the power to name deputies and commissioners. to show the gossip tabloid trying to smear Bezos - whom asserting that he would not be intimidated. Releasing the chair President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi will likely focus Trump has repeatedly attacked as the owner of The email exchanges, he said, shows “the precise details of less on “financial and administrative reform” than his But the Egyptians are “fully engaged” in pushing other AU reforms, according to an AU official. One Washington Post, a paper he claims is biased against him. their extortionate proposal: They will publish the personal predecessor, Swelam added. Bezos meanwhile hinted he may have been targeted by photos unless Gavin de Becker and I make the specific Such reform was the cornerstone of outgoing AU key initiative backed by Cairo is the Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA), an initiative agreed by 44 of 55 pro-Trump forces in part because of the Post’s coverage false public statement to the press... And there’s an associ- chairman Paul Kagame’s year in the role. The ated threat: They’ll keep the photos on hand and publish member states in March 2018. The single market is a of the murder of its contributor Jamal Khashoggi, stran- Rwandan president has pushed for a continent-wide them in the future if we ever deviate from that lie.” flagship of the AU’s “Agenda 2063” program, con- gled and dismembered by Saudi agents in the kingdom’s import tax to fund the AU and reduce its depend- “If in my position I can’t stand up to this kind of extor- ceived as a strategic framework for socioeconomic Istanbul consulate in October. “The Post’s essential and ence on external donors, who still pay for more than tion, how many people can?” Bezos wrote on Medium. The transformation. However, the trade pact has met unrelenting coverage of the murder of its columnist Jamal half the institution’s annual budget. An African diplo- bombshell from Bezos brought a tidal wave of reactions, resistance from South Africa. Khashoggi is undoubtedly unpopular in certain circles,” he mat told AFP that Egypt - along with fellow heavy- many praising his decision to face down Pecker and the Sisi will therefore need to push hard for ratifica- wrote. Pointing at connections between Pecker, AMI and weights South Africa and Nigeria - does not want a Enquirer. “Not everyone can stand up to bullies, thugs and tion of this accord, if it is to come into effect. For the government of Saudi Arabia, Bezos said he learned that powerful AU. extortionists, but if you can, you should,” said rival tech Elissa Jobson, head of Africa advocacy at the “Pecker is ‘apoplectic’ about our investigation,” and that This diplomat, who has been tracking AU affairs entrepreneur Pierre Omidyar, founder of eBay. Until International Crisis Group, Sisi can be expected to “the Saudi angle seems to hit a particularly sensitive for over a decade, said Cairo has “never forgotten” recently, Bezos had been seen as a bookish but determined “use the presidency to increase his country’s stand- nerve”. its suspension in 2013. The near year-long lock out American Media said in an emailed statement that it entrepreneur, running his businesses with ruthless deter- ing among other African states”. “This is not a from the AU came after Egypt’s army deposed “believes fervently that it acted lawfully in the reporting of mination but avoiding the limelight - steering clear of con- departure from previous administrations”, particular- Islamist president Mohamed Morsi, who in 2012 had the story of Mr Bezos” and made “good faith negotiations” fronting Trump after a series of attacks by the president. ly that of the outgoing chairman, she added. — AFP become the country’s first democratically elected with the US billionaire but had decided nonetheless to But the disclosures are likely to deepen the rift between “promptly and thoroughly investigate the claims” by the Bezos and Trump, who claims that the tech entrepreneur is Amazon CEO. Bezos pointed out that Pecker recently using the newspaper for his own purposes. Taking aim last entered into an immunity deal with federal prosecutors on month at Bezos, Trump alluded to Enquirer reporting of his role in so-called “catch and kill” stories - in which the billionaire’s relationship with the former news anchor face Bissonnette at a parole hearing in the future and reports are quashed by paying off sources - about Trump and entertainment reporter, Lauren Sanchez. “So sorry to Quebec mosque relive the tragedy, mosque president Boufeldja and his alleged mistresses. hear the news about Jeff Bozo being taken down by a Benabdallah said: “We are completely stunned.” On Jan But Pecker and his Enquirer colleagues could face fresh competitor whose reporting, I understand, is far more 29, 2017, Bissonnette burst into the Quebec City criminal investigations based on the Bezos allegations, accurate than the reporting in his lobbyist newspaper, the shooter gets life... mosque and unleashed a hail of bullets on the 40 men according to former federal prosecutor Jacob Frenkel. The Amazon Washington Post,” he tweeted. — AFP Continued from Page 1 and four children who were chatting among themselves after evening prayers. But he also noted the killer’s “visceral hatred of Muslim Security video footage showed a cold-blooded killer immigrants”. “You killed six of your compatriots whose strategically and methodically firing dozens of shots, unashamedly embraces the couch potato life. only crime was to be different than yourself,” Huot said in retreating to a safe area to reload his nine-millimeter Fast-food fan Not for Trump the basketball sessions that Barack court. “With your hatred and racism, you’ve ruined their pistol at least four times, “like he was playing a video Obama sweated through in the White House, or the bike lives, yours and your parents’, and the crime you’ve done game”, recounted one witness. Six men were killed and Trump in ‘very rides of George W Bush. Trump loves the more sedate deserves the greatest denunciation,” he said. five were seriously injured. The victims were all dual game of golf, but rides a cart between holes and has said A university student at the time of the shooting, nationals who emigrated to Canada over recent that anything more strenuous is actually bad for your Bissonnette appeared to have been seduced by decades: Two Algerians, two Guineans, a Moroccan and good health’ health. “All my friends who work out all the time, they’re nationalist and supremacist ideologies into committing a Tunisian. They were a scholar, a butcher, a daycare going for knee replacements, hip replacements - they’re this “unjustified and deadly” massacre that sought to operator, a food industry worker, a public servant and a WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump, who a disaster,” Trump told The New York Times in 2015. “undermine our fundamental societal values”, the computer programmer - all connected by faith. delights in confounding health experts with his junk Aides said he now eats more fish than he used to but judge said. The attack at the Quebec Islamic Cultural Introverted and educated, Bissonnette had been food cravings and disinclination to exercise, is “in very still enjoys steaks, well done with ketchup on the side, and Centre in the quiet Sainte-Foy neighborhood of described after his arrest as a white supremacist good health”, his doctor declared Friday following an fried potatoes prepared by the chefs at the White House Canada’s oldest city, he concluded, will go down in opposed to Muslim immigration but not affiliated with annual medical checkup. “I am happy to announce the and at the Trump International Hotel in Washington. president of the United States is in very good health Canadian history “written in blood” as one of this any group. At the start of his trial in 2017, he said he had Trump also has long had a well-documented fond- and I anticipate he will remain so for the duration of his ness for fast food. Trump has admitted he has not hewn country’s worst tragedies. been suicidal, “swept away by fear and by horrible presidency, and beyond,” chief physician Sean Conley closely to his diet plan. Nor has he been known to enter As the 246-page verdict was read over a six-hour despair”, and deeply regretted his “unforgivable” said in a memorandum released by the White House. the White House gym for a workout. period, Bissonnette sat quietly in the packed courtroom, actions. He also told the court he hoped for a “ray of The Marine One helicopter returned the 72-year-old “The president received a diet and exercise plan last gazing at his feet while his parents and several friends hope at the end of the long, dark tunnel in which I lost head of state to the White House from the Walter Reed year after his annual physical, but the president admits and family of the victims wiped tears from their eyes. myself on January 29”. National Military Medical Center in the Washington he has not followed it religiously,” White House Outside the courtroom, Aymen Derbali, who was left Survivors testified about those harrowing moments suburb of Bethesda after a full four hours of prodding, spokesman Hogan Gidley said. Trump daily takes a 10 quadriplegic in the shooting, said he was “very upset under fire and their suffering since the shooting: One poking and testing. Dressed in a long dark overcoat, mg dose of the drug Crestor to lower cholesterol, 81 mg and astonished” that Bissonnette did not get more time. leaving a trail of smeared blood on the floor while drag- Trump gave a thumb’s up, but did not respond to of aspirin for cardiac health, and 1 mg of the drug “I had hoped for justice for the victims, for the people ging himself to a hiding spot, another still feeling pain reporters’ questions about how he was feeling. It Propecia for prevention of male pattern hair loss. who died, and that the sentence reflected the serious- from bullet debris left in his leg after surgery. Many said remained unclear how many of the test results would Trump has described his chief exercise as walking ness of the crime,” he said. “This was a very serious they are struggling with anxiety, including one man who eventually be made public. around the White House compound and standing up at attack in a place of worship.” said he now plots a safe exit whenever he goes out to a Last year, everything from the president’s cholesterol public events. The 45th president’s diet, reportedly Surrounded by members who lamented having to coffee shop or a store. — AFP levels (high) to weight (too high 108 kg) was released. involving legendary amounts of Coke and red meat, Trump’s then chief physician, Ronny Jackson - who has also seems to defy most doctors’ orders. In January, since run into trouble over alleged ethical misconduct - Trump hosted the strapping athletes of America’s inseparable part of attaining a permanent peace. also held an unusually detailed press conference in champion college football team, the Clemson Tigers, Kuwait calls to The Kuwaiti diplomat stressed the importance of which he declared Trump to be in “excellent health”. On with a mountain of hamburgers and pizzas. According bolstering close cooperation between the UN Action the plus side, Trump doesn’t smoke and is a noted teeto- to Jackson last year, Trump’s secret is genes. Against Sexual Violence in Conflict and member-states taler. He says he’s never even had a beer. Less good: the “Incredibly good genes,” he said. “It’s just the way God empower women... in order to empower survivors to obtain justice and former real estate tycoon and reality TV performer made him.” — Agencies compensations, respect to their cultures, care for their Continued from Page 1 physical, mental and social health, and economic sup- port to reach sustainable justice. renewable energy in the coming decades, in line with the and families, and secure their safety when testifying He also expressed his country’s support and IMF warns Paris Agreement on climate change, which stipulates a in court against assault criminals, he added. Munayyekh encouragement of the efforts exerted by a number of reduction in greenhouse emissions. The IMF last month mentioned regional and non-regional organizations’ international bodies specialized in monitoring most lowered its economic growth forecasts for Saudi Arabia - role in stopping sexual violence in conflict, lauding dangerous crimes and violations around the world, of high Arab... the world’s top crude exporter - and the wider Middle Arab League’s recent efforts to stop all forms of vio- including sexual violence, and bringing their perpetra- Continued from Page 1 East and North Africa region due to a renewed fall in oil lence against women, particularly sexual assault, and tors to justice. prices, low output and geopolitical tensions. provide all necessary resources to rehabilitate sexual Next year will mark the 20th anniversary of UNSC of GDP, accelerated by the crash in oil prices around Lagarde welcomed both spending and revenue violence victims. Achieving justice for war and conflict resolution 1325, Munayyekh noted, hoping to con- five years ago, Lagarde said. “The oil exporters have not reforms, including the introduction of a value added-tax survivors is an inseparable part of attaining effective tribute with UN partners in the forthcoming period to fully recovered from the dramatic oil price shock of (VAT) and excise duty by Saudi Arabia and the United accountability, which would prevent and stop hideous attain a quantum leap in empowering women effective- 2014,” she said. “Modest growth continues, but the out- Arab Emirates. But she urged more reforms, anti-corrup- crimes against humanity, he said, adding achieving jus- ly to achieve peace and stability in the world, particu- look is highly uncertain.” tion measures and transparency. “The economic path tice for victims of sexual violence in conflict is also an larly the Middle East region. — KUNA Lagarde said oil producing countries should look to ahead for the region is challenging,” she added. — AFP Established 1961 25 Sports Sunday, February 10, 2019 Jansrud denies Svindal dream finale to win downhill gold

Denies team mate Svindal a fairytale finish to his career

ARE: Kjetil Jansrud led a Norwegian one-two to win “We’ve been lucky enough to share a few one- gold in a weather-hit men’s downhill at the Alpine twos,” Jansrud said in the finish after Austrian Hannes skiing world championships yesterday, denying team Reichelt, the 45th starter despite wearing bib number mate Aksel Lund Svindal a fairytale finish to his one, failed to threaten to spoil the Vikings’ party. career by the narrowest of margins. “I had missed a (world gold) until now so that Jansrud, 33, made light of the falling snow and makes it bigger. Doing this in Aksel’s last race is a poor visibility to win by 0.02 seconds and claim a real honour. It’s a perfect day. “I brought everything I first world title, reversing the result at last year’s had in my heart and mind today.” The race had been Winter Olympics when Svindal came out on top in delayed for an hour with low cloud at the top of the the blue-riband event. course but organisers decided to run it, on a lowered Svindal, who will end his glittering career after the start, despite heavy snow falling throughout. championships, came agonisingly close to becoming Super-G winner Dominik Paris, who came sixth, the first man to win three downhill world titles but a suggested the race should not have been run. “It was small mistake in the closing stages of his descent tough with the weather,” the Italian said. “I’m happy probably cost the 36-year-old. for Aksel in his last race but maybe they shouldn’t “I was ready today, it’s been an emotional couple have started today. It was foggy, then it started of weeks and I wanted to get it over with,” Svindal, snowing hard and there was too much snow on the who has battled persistent knee injuries, said. Svindal race line.” becomes only the third man to win medals at six dif- Reichelt, one of the quickest in the training runs, ferent world championships. had deliberately given himself a low starting place by Austria’s Vincent Kriechmayr was third, 0.33 sec- not showing up for the bib ceremony, but his gamble onds back, to earn his second medal of the week backfired as he got snagged in some soft snow and after sharing silver with Johan Clarey in the Super-G. lost time. After silver medals in combined and Super-G in the Switzerland’s Beat Feuz, who was bidding to last two world championships, Jansrud, who has become the first man to successfully defend the ARE: (L-R) Second placed Norway’s Aksel Lund Svindal, winner Norway’s Kjetil Jansrud and third placed Austria’s struggled in the speed events this season, finally downhill world title since compatriot Bernhard Russi Vincent Kriechmayr celebrate with a Norwegian flag during the flowers ceremony after the Men’s Downhill event made it one step further up the podium as he beat his won in 1970 and in 1972, was fourth. — Reuters of the 2019 FIS Alpine Ski World Championships. — AFP great friend and rival.

Vonn, long lost Norwegian adopted by Aksel Svindal’s Davis needs extra ‘Attacking Vikings’ time to make ARE: US ski star Lindsey Vonn bows out from skiing weight for title this weekend at the same time as Aksel Lund Svindal, a Norwegian legend two years her senior whom she has defense described as her “life coach”. Vonn has decided to hang up her catsuit at the age of 34 after Sunday’s downhill, her 82 World Cup wins tan- LOS ANGELES: Gervonta Davis needed an tilisingly short of the record held by Ingemar Stenmark extra half hour to make weight Friday for his (86). The multi-medalled Svindal, 36, will also shelve his World Boxing Association super featherweight skis and move on from the global circuit. world title defense against Mexican veteran Hugo As the end nears, the two skiers are increasingly Ruiz. hampered by niggling knee injuries. “We’re both going Davis, unbeaten with a record of 20-0 with 19 through the same thing at the exact same time,” said knockouts, came in at 130.2 pounds in his first Vonn, whose accolades include a record 20 World Cup appearance on the scale, but returned to weigh in titles, including four overall, along with 2010 Olympic under the 130-pound limit at 129.8. downill gold and seven world medals, two of which The powerful southpaw was supposed to be were gold. The American has trained extensively with defending against three-division champion Abner the Svindal-led Norwegian ski team, dubbed the ARE: File photo shows Lindsey Vonn (C) of the US gets help after she crashed during the women’s Super G event Mares. “Attacking Vikings”. “I train with them quite a bit, proba- of the 2019 FIS Alpine Ski World Championships at the National Arena in Are, Sweden, on February 5, 2019. — AFP But the 33-year-old Mares (31-3-1, 15 knock- bly more than the US men,” said Vonn, whose great- outs) pulled out two weeks ago after learning he great grandmother hails from the Norwegian town of had suffered a career-threatening detached retina Laudal. and also at the same places as the US women’s team, for the men for instance. in his right eye in a sparring session. “They’ve always pushed me and always resepcted me example in Chile, in Portillo, during the summer. We “No matter if you grew up in the desert or on the Ruiz, a former super bantamweight world title as much as I respect them and I find that to be very spend a lot of time together. snow, that’s something you can relate to: a girl taking holder with a record of 39-4 with 33 knockouts, motivating. “They’re always smiling, working hard and “She’s a great girl. She’s fun and has a way of looking on the guys. “That would have been great marketing for replaced Mares on 10 days’ notice. “The oppo- very gracious on and off the slope. It’s been a privilege at this sport which is very healthy for the mind: it’s the sport and would have a reach that goes beyond nent change didn’t really affect me,” Davis said to spend time with them.” everything but you’re also having fun and very relaxed snow-covered mountains.” this week. “I had been sparring someone taller Svindal and teammate Kjetil Jansrud, 32, have with what you’re doing. We’ll miss her.” Jansrud added: “She was welcome to do it, but it than me in training camp anyway. I think a fighter enjoyed a longevity on the World Cup circuit with Vonn Vonn acknowledged that she shared a technical talk- ended up being a thing of politics. “If ever there was a should be ready and able to adapt to anything which means the trio have also become good friends ing point with the Norwegian men. “I talk about their girl who could, then Lindsey in her prime would be that is in front of him in the ring. and confidants. Svindal was effusive in his praise for skis with them because I’m on men’s skis!” she said. there. “Just having the question in the mix, ‘Should I “I’m ready and I hope Ruiz is too. He’s been Vonn, saying: “She’s been a great profile for skiing on Throughout her career, Vonn long argued with the race against the men?’, tells you something about how telling the media he’s going to knock me out, so I and off the hill. “She has a reach that goes beyond just International Ski Federation (FIS) that she be allowed to good she is. There are not many (women ski racers) hope we get an action packed fight.” Ruiz will be racing and that is something everyone involved in skiing compete against men, something the governing body has throughout history of whom you could have asked that fighting just three weeks after posting a unani- should be grateful for because it’s important for the so far refused to agree to. question.” Vonn admitted to bittersweet feelings going mous 12-round decision over Alberto Guevara on sport to have those profiles.” into her final weekend of racing, but underlined that she the undercard of Manny Pacquiao’s 12-round ‘BAD MISTAKE’ had at least had someone to whom she could relate. “I demolition of Adrien Broner in Las Vegas. AN INSPIRATION Svindal and Jansrud consistently gave full backing to don’t think a lot of people understand the emotions I’m “I’m in rhythm and in shape,” he said. “Davis Jansrud added: “She’s the record-breaking woman Vonn’s dream, the former calling FIS’ refusal a “bad going through,” she said. is a tremendous champion, but he doesn’t intimi- out there and has been a source of inspiration for every- mistake”. “She’s done some pretty ballsy stuff,” Svindal “Aksel is in the same position as I am. We’re both date me.” — AFP body including all the men and us as a team. “We have said of Vonn. “If I was representing the sport at the accepting of where we are. “We both said maybe we spent a lot of days training together with the US team highest level, I would have allowed her to ski against should finish out in Are and have a big party!” — AFP

Guptill set to Pakistan’s Amir set return for NZ, for Essex return

Bangladesh LONDON: Pakistan fast bowler Mohammad Amir is set to join up with Essex again for a spell in the forth- to miss Shakib coming domestic Twenty20 Blast competition, the English county announced Friday. The 26-year-old left-arm quick helped Essex win DHAKA: New Zealand opener Martin Guptill is set to the first-class County Championship in 2017 during a return from a back injury for the upcoming one-day stint that saw him take career-best figures of 10 for 72 international series against Bangladesh, selectors said against Yorkshire at Scarborough. yesterday. Amir will be available for eight games in this year’s Guptill was ruled out of the ongoing Twenty20 Blast, including Essex’s opener against Middlesex at series against India after aggravating a disc in his lower Lord’s on July 18. “I’m very excited to return to back, but was named for the three-game series against Chelmsford and re-join my Essex team-mates,” Amir Bangladesh, which starts in Napier on Wednesday. told the county’s website. “I thoroughly enjoyed my “We’re delighted to have Martin back on the park time here in 2017 and I’m looking forward to playing for this series. He’s a world-class player and an inte- my role in the club’s success this season.” gral part of our one-day side,” selector Gavin Larsen HAMILTON: File photo shows New Zealand’s Colin de Grandhomme (L) and Martin Guptill celebrate the wicket of Due to family commitments, Amir will miss the said in a statement. India’s Dinesh Karthik during the fourth one-day international cricket match between New Zealand and India at games against against Surrey and Kent while his final Guptill will undergo a fitness test on Sunday after Seddon Park in Hamilton on January 31, 2019. — AFP match for Essex is set to be against Glamorgan on which a final decision will be taken on whether he August 16. can partner Henry Nicholls at the top of New Essex coach Anthony McGrath added: “Mo is one of Zealand’s order. Skipper Kane Williamson is to be rested for the final affected area will now have to be immobilised for the most exciting bowling talents in the world and I’m “He and Henry did a good job opening up in ODI with Colin Munro standing in as captain. around three weeks,” said Debashis Chowdhury, the ecstatic he’s going to be back with us.” Amir’s career Hamilton against India and they’re a combination we Bangladesh will be without all-rounder Shakib Al Bangladesh Cricket Board’s chief physician. looked finished when he was given a five-year ban and want to see some more of in this series,” Larsen added. Hasan, who has been ruled out of the series after frac- New Zealand squad: Kane Williamson (captain), jailed for involvement in a spot-fixing ‘sting’ during Mitchell Santner and Todd Astle are the specialist turing a finger during the Bangladesh Premier League Todd Astle, Trent Boult, Colin de Grandhomme, Lockie Pakistan’s 2010 Test against England at Lord’s. spinners in the squad, with Colin de Grandhomme final on Friday. Ferguson, Martin Guptill, Matt Henry, Tom Latham, But he returned to international cricket in 2016 and and Jimmy Neesham taking the pace-bowling all- “An X-ray was done after the match and the results Colin Munro, Jimmy Neesham, Henry Nicholls, Ross has now played 36 Tests, 49 one-day internationals and rounder spots. have confirmed a fracture on the left ring finger. The Taylor, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee. — Reuters 42 Twenty20s. — AFP 26 Established 1961 Sports Sunday, February 10, 2019 Biggest story of NBA trade deadline was a trade that never happened East powerhouses add key pieces ahead of the playoffs

By Ahmad Jabr starting lineup, the Bucks adds another three-point shooting specialist to create more spacing and open KUWAIT: On a day that saw Eastern Conference pow- the lanes even more for Giannis Antetokounmpo to erhouses retool ahead of the NBA Trade Deadline, punish their opponents’ defense. arguably the biggest story on Thursday was the New In the meantime, Toronto traded for the Memphis Orleans Pelicans deciding to keep their embattled Grizzlies’ long-time Center Marc Gasol, adding a brand- Center Anthony Davis and wait until the summer to pos- new dimension to their already highly-efficient offense. sibly deal their disgruntled superstar. The Raptors look forward to utilize the 12-year veter- The Los Angeles Lakers, whose last offer to the an’s vast offensive arsenal, including his top-notch post Pelicans would have seen young prospects including moves, great playmaking abilities, and decent three- Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball and Kyle Kuzma in addi- point shooting, and hope that adding a former NBA tion to multiple draft picks move to New Orleans, cited Defensive Player of the Year will come in handy espe- the latter’s ‘outrageous’ demands for pulling out of cially in the playoffs. But by giving away three players in trade talks. Meanwhile, the Pelicans could have become the trade (in addition to two others in separate deals), more tempted to wait for potentially better deals in the the Raptors are left with a thin bench that they likely are summer, especially with the Boston Celtics reportedly going to fill through the buyout market. willing to include anyone on their roster in trade talks. And in perhaps the most impactful move among The Celtics, who could not trade for Davis due to an Eastern Conference teams in terms of its immediate NBA rule that bans teams from having two players on effect, the 76ers improved their already stacked-up contracts extended under the so-called ‘Rose Rule’ starting lineup by adding Los Angeles Clippers’ leading (they already have Kyrie Irving signed to such deal), scorer Tobias Harris. Furthermore, Philadelphia opted to hope they can pair Davis with Irving who is going to be end the Markelle Fultz experience by trading the 2017 a free agent in the summer. In the meantime, the number 1 overall pick to the Orlando Magic for depth Pelicans are almost certainly going to demand that (Jonathan Simmons) and future assets (a protected 2019 Jason Tatum be included in any trade for Davis, and the first-round pick and a 2019 second-round pick). The NEW ORLEANS: In this file photo taken on January 7, 2019 Anthony Davis #23 of the New Orleans Pelicans drives the Celtics have reportedly showed willingness to discuss a trade also gives Fultz the chance to revive his injury ball around Marc Gasol #33 of the Memphis Grizzlies at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana. Marc trade involving their top young prospect and multiple marred career by starting over with a team that desper- Gasol and Markelle Fultz were reported to be on the move on February 7, 2019 as the NBA’s trade deadline expired first round picks. ately needs Point Guard help. with no deal for New Orleans Pelicans star Anthony Davis. — AFP Part of the reason the Celtics are waiting for the While most major moves were executed by Eastern summer to retool is perhaps realizing that, barring any sides, a few big deals were made by Western surprises, they likely face the toughest road to the finals Conference teams as well. In one of the biggest moves freed up enough cap space to pursue two maximum- Rodney Hood. The Utah Jazz failed in their bid to this year compared to their peers at the top echelon of this year, the Dallas Mavericks acquired Kristaps contract players this summer, when players such as acquire Memphis’ Mike Conley, who did not find any of the Eastern Conference, especially after other top Porzingis in a trade with the New York Knicks. Dallas Golden State’s Kevin Durant, Toronto’s Kawhi Leonard the offers made and centered around Ricky Rubio and teams in the East - the Milwaukee Bucks, Toronto will have to wait until next season to have Porzingis in and Philadelphia’s Jimmy Butler are slated to be unre- Derrick Favors enticing enough to part ways with their Raptors and the Philadelphia 76ers - have all executed their lineup as he recovers from a torn ACL, but the stricted free agents. The Knicks are another team to star Point Guard. The Lakers, who ended the trade major deals before the trade deadline to boost their prospect of his pairing with rookie phenom Luka watch for in the summer, as they also can offer maxi- deadline in controversial fashion by dealing promising rosters (the Indiana Pacers made a minor move as well Doncic leaves Mavs fans with a lot of reason to be opti- mum deals to two players and are heavily expected to Center Ivica Zubac to the Clippers, have been linked to by adding the bought-out Wesley Matthews to some- mistic for the future. make a hard push to sign Durant and Irving in specific. free agent forward Carmelo Anthony for some time, and what fill the void left by Victor Oladipo’s injury). The The Clippers, despite trading away their highest Some teams made minor moves to prepare for their are widely expected to sign the former Rocket as they Bucks have acquired Power Forward Nikola Mirotic achieving player this year, have probably came out bet- playoff campaigns, including the Houston Rockets which make a playoff push. Among the other top names in the from the Pelicans in a three-team trade that saw their ter after their trade with the 76ers. Not only did they traded for Sacramento Kings’ three-point shooter Iman buyout market which are expected to join playoff candi- estranged backup Center Thon Maker sent to the acquire future assets including Miami Heat’s highly- Shumpert, and the Portland Trail Blazers who also went dates in the coming weeks are Enes Kanter, Markieff Detroit Pistons. By incorporating Mirotic into their valuable unprotected 2021 first round pick, but they also for another sharpshooter in the Cleveland Cavaliers’ Morris, Zach Randolph, and Marcin Gortat.

won in their first game since making a block- BRIEFS Davis returns but buster deal with the Los Angeles Clippers before the Thursday trade deadline. Jimmy Butler added 22 points, and newly acquired Beckham to be honoured sits out end of Tobias Harris had 14. Joel Embiid had 15 points and 12 rebounds for his league-leading LOS ANGELES: Former England Pelicans’ win 45th double-double of the season. The Sixers captain David Beckham will become snapped a two-game skid on a night when the first Major League Soccer player NEW ORLEANS: Anthony Davis returned they retired Moses Malone’s No. 2 jersey. honoured with a statue, which will be from a three-week absence to score 32 points Nikola Jokic led the Nuggets with 27 points, unveiled outside LA Galaxy’s stadium before his New Orleans Pelicans teammates 10 assists and 10 rebounds for his 11th triple- prior to their season opener on March took over in the fourth quarter of a 122-117 double of the season. Jamal Murray added 23 2, the team said on Friday. In 2007, the victory over the visiting Minnesota points, but Denver dropped its third in a row. former Manchester United and Real Timberwolves on Friday night. Davis, who Madrid midfielder became the first big was booed during his pregame introduction BUCKS 122, MAVERICKS 107 European name to join the MLS, and whenever he touched the ball during his Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 29 points where he won back-to-back champi- first appearance since asking for a trade and and grabbed 17 rebounds to lead visiting onships in 2011 and 2012 during his six recovering from a finger injury, made 11 of 15 Milwaukee over Dallas. The Bucks’ Khris years and 98 appearances with the field-goal attempts and 10 of 11 free-throw Middleton did not play, nor did Nikola Galaxy. Beckham’s MLS stint helped attempts. He also grabbed nine rebounds. The Mirotic, who was acquired from New Orleans give the American league credibility NEW ORLEANS: Taj Gibson #67 of the Minnesota Timberwolves shoots the ball against the New All-Star forward sat out the final 15-plus min- at the trade deadline. Mirotic, who still must and paved the way for other top Orleans Pelicans on Friday at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana. — AFP utes of a close game, but there was no indica- pass a physical, missed his last seven games European players to make the leap in tion of a health issue as he stayed on the with the Pelicans because of a calf strain. subsequent years. The 43-year-old is bench. Jrue Holiday had 27 points, rookie Milwaukee didn’t need either Middleton or leading by as many as 17 points in the first and 20 rebounds, and Blake Griffin had 26 currently the owner of expansion side Kenrich Williams added 19 and Tim Frazier Mirotic in winning its sixth consecutive game, quarter and 94-88 after a hoop by Kelly points as host Detroit handed New York its Inter Miami CF, which is set to join the and Julius Randle had 12 each for New as the Bucks shot 54.3 percent from the field. Oubre Jr. with 8:35 left in the game. The 15th consecutive loss. Drummond overcame MLS in 2020. Orleans. Karl-Anthony Towns had 32 points Rookie Luka Doncic led the Mavericks with Warriors won for the 14th time in their past 15 early foul trouble to shoot 12-for-15 from for the Timberwolves. Jeff Teague, who came 20 points. games despite losing Draymond Green at the the field while Griffin recorded the same off the bench in his return from an eight-game start of the fourth period after he drew his numbers from the free-throw line for the No rift with Vardy: Puel absence caused by a foot injury, scored 12. WARRIORS 117, SUNS 107 second technical foul. Klay Thompson led Pistons, who scored a season-high 41 points Stephen Curry saved 10 of his 20 points Golden State with 25 points, and Kevin in the first quarter. Detroit won for the LONDON: Leicester City manager 76ERS 117, NUGGETS 110 for a fourth-quarter rally that enabled Golden Durant added 21. Oubre (25 points, 12 fourth time in five games and produced its Claude Puel has dismissed talk of a rift JJ Redick scored 34 points to lift new-look State to overtake Phoenix for its 11th consec- rebounds) and Deandre Ayton (23 points, 12 sixth straight victory versus New York. with Jamie Vardy, saying he had no Philadelphia past visiting Denver. The Sixers utive win. Phoenix lost its 13th straight despite rebounds) paced the Suns. Dennis Smith Jr. scored 19 of his career-high problem with the striker’s angry reac- 31 points in the first half for the NBA-worst tion following last week’s 1-0 Premier WIZARDS 119, CAVALIERS 106 Knicks, who have dropped 23 of their past League defeat by Manchester United. NBA results/standings Bobby Portis scored 30 points in his debut 24 games overall. Smith shot 9-for-15 from Television cameras captured Vardy with Washington, which beat visiting the field and added a team-high eight appearing upset as Puel spoke to New Orleans 122, Minnesota 117; Dallas 107, Milwaukee 122; Brooklyn 106, Chicago 125; Sacramento 102, Cleveland to end a three-game losing streak. assists. United midfielder and fellow Miami 96; Phoenix 107, Golden State 117; Detroit 120, New York 103; Philadelphia 117, Denver 110; Washington 119, Cleveland 106. Obtained along with Jabari Parker in a trade Frenchman Paul Pogba, but the manag- with the Chicago Bulls for Otto Porter Jr. ear- BULLS 125, NETS 106 er said his striker was merely showing Eastern Conference Western Conference lier this week, Portis made 12 of 18 field-goal Lauri Markkanen collected 31 points and his frustration after the narrow defeat. W L PCT GB W L PCT GB attempts. Bradley Beal had 25 points and 13 18 rebounds for his 10th double-double of “I have a good relationship with Jamie. Milwaukee 41 13 0.759 - Golden State 39 15 0.722 - Toronto 40 16 0.714 2 Denver 37 18 0.673 2.5 assists for Washington. Parker had seven the season and fifth in six games as visiting We know Jamie after a loss he is angry, points, 11 rebounds, nine assists and three Chicago led most of the way in beating it’s normal for a player,” Puel told a Indiana 36 19 0.655 5.5 Oklahoma City 35 19 0.648 4 Boston 35 20 0.636 6.5 Portland 33 21 0.611 6 steals in 23 minutes. Collin Sexton scored 27 Brooklyn. Markkanen’s third straight 30- news conference ahead of Sunday’s Philadelphia 35 20 0.636 6.5 Houston 32 22 0.593 7 points and Jordan Clarkson added 24 for the point showing helped the Bulls snap a six- league trip to Tottenham Hotspur. “If I Brooklyn 29 28 0.509 13.5 Utah 31 24 0.564 8.5 Cavaliers, who have lost three straight and 21 game losing streak to the Nets and also win thought one of my players was disre- Charlotte 26 28 0.481 15 San Antonio 32 25 0.561 8.5 of 24. Forward Kevin Love returned after for the third time in 19 games since Dec. 30. spectful to me or the club there would Miami 25 28 0.472 15.5 LA Clippers 30 26 0.536 10 Detroit 25 29 0.463 16 Sacramento 29 26 0.527 10.5 missing 50 games because of a left foot Otto Porter Jr. helped the Bulls stretch the be a sanction. But that is not the case injury. He started the game and played six floor by contributing 18 points and hitting with Jamie.” Washington 23 32 0.418 18.5 LA Lakers 28 27 0.509 11.5 Orlando 23 32 0.418 18.5 Dallas 25 29 0.463 14 minutes in his first action since Oct. 24, scor- four 3-pointers in his team debut after being Atlanta 18 36 0.333 23 Minnesota 25 30 0.455 14.5 ing four points. acquired from Washington on Wednesday. Chicago 13 42 0.236 28.5 New Orleans 25 31 0.446 15 D’Angelo Russell scored 23 points for the Folau signs four-year deal Cleveland 11 44 0.200 30.5 Memphis 22 34 0.393 18 Nets, who lost for the fourth time in five New York 10 44 0.185 31 Phoenix 11 46 0.193 29.5 PISTONS 120, KNICKS 103 Andre Drummond collected 29 points games. — Reuters MELBOURNE: Australia outside back Israel Folau has extended his Wallabies contract until 2022, ending Stamford Bridge, said he was already enjoying playing midfield instead of in his natural holding role, but Hazard speculation of a switch back to rugby alongside the former Real Madrid and Napoli striker. “I’ve believes the Frenchman has to adapt. league. The 29-year-old’s deal will also Hazard relishing only played two games with Higuain and I know we can do “N’Golo’s a clever guy, one of the best in his position, keep him at Super Rugby club New something great together, not only with him but also with maybe the best in the world. N’Golo now plays six months South Wales Waratahs for four years, partnership the other strikers, the other winger,” Hazard told The Times in the different position. He needs to adapt,” Hazard said. Rugby Australia said yesterday. “I’m ahead of Sunday’s league meeting with Manchester City. “When we win, everyone will say, ‘yes, he plays in his (best) really grateful to Rugby Australia and “Chelsea is not about Higuain and Hazard, it is about 25 position, and if we lose everyone will say, ‘no, he needs to the Waratahs for all they have done for with Higuain players. But Higuain is a fantastic striker.” Victory over go a bit behind’. Depends only on the result.” me,” Folau said in a statement issued Huddersfield followed league defeats by Arsenal and Hazard said Chelsea still need time to adapt to Sarri’s by the governing body. “When I made LONDON: Chelsea playmaker Eden Hazard is convinced Bournemouth where midfielder Jorginho was man-marked possession-based style of play, which contrasts to the the switch to rugby five years ago, I that he can form a great partnership with the club’s new to nullify the Italy international’s influence. counter-attacking football of previous managers Antonio could never have dreamed that it striker Gonzalo Higuain after playing two matches togeth- “If one guy is marking him all the time, we need to adapt Conte and Jose Mourinho. “Sometimes we keep possession, would have gone this well. “The World er. Chelsea signed Higuain on loan from Juventus last also. Jorginho is always trying to be free to take the ball to and I understand the fans want us to go forward (more Cup is a big target of mine this year month and the Argentina striker scored twice in last week’s create something. He’s a fantastic player,” Hazard said. directly), but it is part of the football,” Hazard said. and I believe this Wallabies group can 5-0 thumping of the Premier League’s bottom club Manager Maurizio Sarri has also faced questions about his “We are still learning about his concept. We are doing go a long way if we keep on improving. Huddersfield Town. Hazard, who also scored two goals in that game at insistence on playing N’Golo Kante on the right side of well. I like this kind of football.” — Reuters Established 1961 27 Sports Sunday, February 10, 2019 Iwobi, Lacazette lead Arsenal to win at Huddersfield Zaha earns Palace a point at home to West Ham

LONDON: Arsenal returned to winning ways with points from safety. a 2-1 victory over bottom side Huddersfield Town In another game Wilfried Zaha’s deflected goal yesterday, but remain the only side without an away earned Crystal Palace a 1-1 draw at home to fellow clean sheet in the Premier League this season. Londoners West Ham United in the Premier Arsenal had suffered four defeats in their last League yesterday. It had looked as though Mark nine league games, including a 3-1 loss at Noble’s 27th-minute penalty and Palace’s profliga- Manchester City last week, but Alex Iwobi put them cy in front of goal would condemn Palace to a ahead in the 16th minute with a deflected shot. damaging loss in their bid to climb away from rele- Huddersfield pressed and harried but rarely trou- gation trouble. bled the Arsenal goal in the first half, with the dif- But Zaha eventually beat West Ham’s keeper ference in quality showing as the visitors doubled Lucasz Fabianski with a shot that looped up off the their advantage through Alexandre Lacazette’s 10th boot of Issa Diop. West Ham had been the better league goal of the season a minute before halftime. side before the break with Noble calmly putting Adama Diakhaby had two good chances to get them ahead from the spot after Palace keeper Huddersfield-who had drawn once and lost 11 of Vincente Guita hauled down Michail Antonio. their previous 12 league games-back into the Palace, who began the day four points and four match, but failed to really test Bernd Leno in the places above the bottom three, were much Arsenal goal. Sead Kolasinac put through his own improved in the second half and created numerous net in stoppage time to give Huddersfield late chances to equalise. Substitute Michy Batshuayi hope, scoring Huddersfield’s first goal in over nine should have scored before James McArthur struck hours of football in all competitions, but the visi- the post with only Fabianski to beat. tors held on for the win. The draw left Palace with 27 points from 26 LONDON: Arsenal’s Nigerian striker Alex Iwobi (R) shoots but fails to score during the English Premier League foot- Victory moved Arsenal level on points with fifth- games, three points above the relegation zone ball match between Huddersfield Town and Arsenal at the John Smith’s stadium in Huddersfield, northern England placed Chelsea, who play Manchester City on while West Ham, in 10th place, have now gone five yesterday. — AFP Sunday, while Huddersfield stayed bottom, 13 games without a win all competitions. — Reuters

was last week. ISSF agenda. 161 shooters Al-Ruwaisan thanked KSSC It was clear that shooters’ preparations were high Board of Directors due to their in the ladies trap event, as Omani shooter Reem Al- support for Kuwaiti referees Housani said she trained hard for the tournament as participate in and remove all obstacles, in she seeks the gold medal. Phillips strikes addition to nominations to par- She said Omani women shooters have been com- Amir’s Shooting ticipate in international events. peting for seven years and won gold in the Arab Gulf late to send Leeds Qatar federation head of the competitions. She said she is familiar with Kuwait technical committee Abdallah ranges. Grand Prix Al-Hammadi lauded the out- Qatari shooter Khouloud Al-Khalaf said she hopes top in Championship Hamad Al-Ruwaisan standing organization of a to win a medal during this Grand Prix, as per her rep- LONDON: Winger Jack Clarke was taken to hos- tournament that has a clear resentations. She said competitions will definitely be By Abdellatif Sharaa pital as Kalvin Phillips’ header in the 11th minute of name HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah fierce during the second day of qualifying. Al-Khalaf added time salvaged a 1-1 draw for Leeds United Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. He said competitions said her ambition is to qualify for the Tokyo 2020 at Middlesbrough to send them to the top of the KUWAIT: The third day of HH the Amir of Kuwait 8th will be hard between shooters, because it is on the Olympics. International Shooting Grand Prix, being held at second tier Championship yesterday. Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Olympic Shooting Complex, The huge amount of injury time was due to will see three gold medals given to shooters of 10m air Leeds’ highly-rated 18-year-old Clarke being tak- rifle for men and women, 50m pistol for men. en ill and after undergoing medical attention was The Grand Prix will also see qualifying rounds for stretchered off while being given oxygen and tak- men and women in the 10m pistol and trap, in addition en to hospital. to the three position rifle for men. “What we know is that he didn’t feel well,” Head of the shotgun referees committee Hamad Al- Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa said. “We don’t Ruwaisan said 161 shooters of both genders are par- know the reasons yet. But when he was taken to ticipating in the shotgun events of the Grand Prix, 84 the dressing room he was better. He was taken to in the trap and 77 in the skeet, as the Double Trap has hospital to see if he is alright.” been scrapped internationally. Leeds later issued a statement reassuring fans He said that an elite group of world shooters and about Clarke, who had been taken off at half-time. Olympians are keen to participate in the tournament, “The player is responsive and attending hospital as it became well known on the international shooting with the club’s head of medicine and performance. federation agenda on annual basis. “On behalf of everyone at Leeds United, we He said a large number of Kuwaiti referees are offi- would like to thank the medical staff from both ciating the Grand Prix, 17 of whom are international, clubs for their response to the incident.” and this has been achieved through courses organized The draw sends Bielsa’s side a point clear of by Kuwait Shooting Sport Club, the latest of which Norwich at the top though the Canaries can reclaim that position if they beat East Anglian rivals bottom-placed Ipswich Town today. Sheffield United lie in third position-three points Dortmund surrender off Leeds-after missing a golden opportunity of Matches on TV going top themselves surrendering a 3-0 lead on Friday to be held 3-3 by Aston Villa. three-goal lead in (Local Timings) ‘Boro had taken the lead through Lewis Wing two minutes into the second-half, slotting home Hoffenheim draw ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE from George Friend’s cut-back. Leeds-who have Tottenham Hotspur v Leicester City 16:30 had a poor run of late losing four of their last six beIN SPORTS HD 2 matches coming into Saturday’s game-should have BERLIN: Despite a dazzling display from Jadon Sancho, Manchester City v Chelsea FC 19:00 levelled in the 71st minute. Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund threw away a three- beIN SPORTS HD 2 Patrick Bamford returning to his former club- goal lead at home yesterday as Hoffenheim’s stunning late for whom he scored a hat-trick against Leeds last fightback forced a 3-3 draw. SPANISH LEAGUE year-fired wide from four yards out with the goal Dortmund could have gone 10 points clear of Bayern CD Leganes v Real Betis 14:00 gaping. Middlesbrough’s Ireland goalkeeper Munich, who host Schalke later on Saturday, with victory. beIN SPORTS HD 3 Darren Randolph also kept the hosts noses in Sancho opened the scoring, set up two goals and hit Valencia C.F v Real Sociedad 18:15 front with some stunning saves, thwarting Kemar the post as the hosts dazzled over 70 minutes at Signal beIN SPORTS HD 3 Roofe twice. — AFP Iduna Park. Sevilla FC v SD Eibar 20:30 However, with the leaders cruising at 3-0 up thanks to beIN SPORTS HD 3 goals by Sancho, Mario Goetze and Raphael Guerreiro, Athletic de Bilbao v FC Barcelona 22:45 Hoffenheim came off the ropes with Algeria forward Ishak beIN SPORTS HD 3 Belfodil netting twice. Cardiff lead Despite the draw, Dortmund are eight points clear at the ITALIAN CALCIO LEAGUE top of the table. Bologna FC v Genoa CFC 14:30 The result will give Mauricio Pochettino food for thought beIN SPORTS HD 4 Premier League before his Tottenham team host Dortmund on Wednesday at Atalanta v spal 17:00 Wembley in the Champions League, last 16, first leg. Torino FC v Udinese Calcio 17:00 tributes to Sala In the absence of top-scorer and playmaker Marco Reus, beIN SPORTS HD 8 sidelined with a thigh injury, Sancho stepped up with one of UC Sampdoria v Frosinone Calcio 17:00 beIN SPORTS HD 4 his best performances since joining Dortmund from LONDON: Cardiff City led the Premier League’s tributes US Sassuolo Calcio v Juventus FC 20:00 Manchester City in August 2017. to Emiliano Sala yesterday in the first round of English beIN SPORTS HD 4 The 18-year-old looked to have scored a fortuitous top-flight matches since his death was confirmed earlier AC Milan v Cagliari Calcio 22:30 opener when the ball bounced off him and into Hoffenheim’s this week. The Argentinian’s body was formally identified beIN SPORTS HD 4 net with 11 minutes gone, but the video assistant referee by a coroner in Dorset, southwest England, on Thursday, a spotted the ball had hit his upper arm. day after it was recovered from underwater wreckage in DORTMUND: Dortmund’s French defender Abdou Diallo and GERMAN BUNDESLIGA Undeterred, Sancho scored on 32 minutes, taking a the English Channel. Hoffenheim’s German goalkeeper Oliver Baumann vie for the SV Werder Bremen v FC Augsburg 17:30 return pass from Lukasz Piszczek and fired home from a The plane carrying Sala from the French city of Nantes ball during the German first division Bundesliga football beIN SPORTS HD 5 tight angle. to Cardiff, his new club, disappeared near the British match Borussia Dortmund vs TSG Hoffenheim in Dortmund, Fortuna D¸sseldorf v VfB Stuttgart 20:00 He helped double Dortmund’s lead two minutes before island of Guernsey on January 21. Pilot David Ibbotson western Germany, yesterday. — AFP beIN SPORTS HD 5 the break when Axel Witsel found him with a long-range remains missing. His family have launched a fundraising pass and although Sancho’s shot was parried, Goetze FRENCH LEAGUE campaign to find his remains. tapped in the rebound. after losing 3-0 at home by Hertha Berlin as Salomon Kalou, Montpellier HSC v AS Monaco FC 17:00 The Welsh club hoped Sala would help them avoid rel- The pair combined for Dortmund’s third, Goetze sprint- playmaker Ondrej Duda and Davie Selke scored. beIN SPORTS HD 6 egation from the world’s most lucrative league this season ing after Sancho’s audacious backheel to square for In the basement battle, Hanover climbed off the bottom Toulouse FC v Stade Reims 17:00 after signing him from Nantes for a club record fee. Guerreiro to make it 3-0 on 67 minutes. with a 2-0 home win at Nuremberg, who took their place as beIN SPORTS HD 10 Cardiff, away to Southampton yesterday, had been giv- However, just after Sancho then hit the post, Hoffenheim last in the table, with former Germany striker Nicolai FC Nantes v Nimes Olympique 17:00 en permission by the Premier League to wear shirts fought back, Belfodil tapped home his first goal from a cross Mueller scoring both goals. beIN SPORTS HD 7 embroidered with a yellow daffodil, the national emblem by Pavel Kaderabek. Fourth-placed RB Leipzig were held to a goalless draw Stade Rennais v Saint Etienne 19:00 of Wales and the team colour of Nantes. The Czech midfielder made it 2-0 with a bullet header at home by Eintracht Frankfurt, who are just one place beIN SPORTS HD 6 Bluebirds manager Neil Warnock and his players eight minutes from time. behind them. EA Guingamp v LOSC Lille 19:00 bowed their heads as a minute’s silence was impeccably Belfodil completed the comeback and claimed a point for Mid-table sides Freiburg and Wolfsburg shared a point beIN SPORTS observed before kick-off at St Mary’s Stadium. “Our Hoffenheim when he launched himself at a free-kick and his in an entertaining 3-3 draw as Gian-Luca Waldschmidt OGC Nice v Olympique Lyonnais 23:00 thoughts remain with the families of Emiliano and David header beat goalkeper Roman Burki on 87 minutes. equalised for hosts Freiburg two minutes from time as his beIN SPORTS HD 6 Ibbotson,” said a message on Cardiff’s club Twitter Elsewhere, Borussia Moenchengladbach slipped to third side came back from 2-1 down. — AFP account shortly before kick-off. — AFP Established 1961 Sport

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2019

Jansrud denies Svindal dream Davis returns but sits out Iwobi, Lacazette lead Arsenal 25finale to win downhill gold 26 end of Pelicans’ win 27 to win at Huddersfield

LIVERPOOL: Liverpool’s Senegalese striker Sadio Mane jumps to win a header during the English Premier League football match between Liverpool and Bournemouth at Anfield in Liverpool, north west England yesterday. — AFP Liverpool back on top of EPL table Manchester United climb into fourth place

LONDON: Liverpool returned to winning ways and fortable 3-0 win away to Fulham. Liverpool had Anthony Martial strike, as United made it 10 wins in 11 Deeney had scorned Silva in the build-up by saying the top of the Premier League table while Manchester dropped points in successive 1-1 draws against game since former striker Solskjaer was put in tempo- “the people at Everton are fantastic, not the manager” United climbed into fourth place yesterday as English Leicester and West Ham, sparking questions over the rary command. and Andre Gray’s first goal since September meant football paid tribute to the late Emiliano Sala. resolve of Jurgen Klopp’s side as they bid to end a 29- Chelsea could regain a spot among the Champions Deeney did not have to eat his words. First-half goals from Sadio Mane and Georginio year wait to once again be crowned champions of League qualifying places against Manchester City Meanwhile London rivals Crystal Palace and West Wijnaldum and Mohamed Salah’s 48th-minute effort England. Mane, however, settled early nerves among today. But United, 11 points adrift of the top four when Ham drew 1-1. Hammers captain Mark Noble’s first-half gave Liverpool a 3-0 win over Bournemouth at Anfield. home fans at Anfield when he headed in a James Milner Jose Mourinho was sacked in December, are back in penalty gave the visitors the lead at Selhurst Park Victory meant Liverpool, who had been second on cross to score for the fourth game in a row. the hunt now. before Palace striker Wilfried Zaha marked his return goal difference, leapfrog Manchester City by three Liverpool doubled their lead in through Wijnaldum’s “The top four is a big thing. There are so many from suspension with an equaliser 14 minutes from time. points ahead of the reigning champions’ match at home delightful 34th-minute lob before Egypt striker Salah games left, but we hope to stay in the top four. We can’t Brighton face a Burnley side hovering above the rel- to Chelsea today. sealed victory with a curling effort. worry about what other teams do,” said Solskjaer. egation zone. Third-placed Tottenham welcome Meanwhile United’s revival under caretaker manager In London, Paul Pogba scored two goals-including a Elsewhere Everton manager Marco Silva’s return to Leicester to Wembley today, with in-form Wolves at Ole Gunnar Solskjaer continued with an equally com- second-half penalty-either side of an emphatic Watford ended in a 1-0 defeat. Watford striker Troy home to Newcastle tomorrow. — AFP

The Welshman’s goal, his 100th for Real Saul Niguez in midfield ahead of the more Real jump above Madrid, will not have been lost on coach defensive Rodrigo. His team were fired up Santiago Solari and ended Atletico’s hopes of and first to everything early on, as Griezmann a comeback after Sergio Ramos’ penalty put and Thomas unleashed shots while Dani Atletico after Real in front at half-time, with Antoine Carvajal and Sergio Reguilon were rushed Griezmann earlier cancelling out Casemiro’s into panicked clearances. acrobatic opener. But Real survived and, with virtually their winning By the time Thomas Partey was sent off first attack, scored. Ramos rose high at a cor- with 10 minutes left, the game was up, and ner and the ball was flicked to the back post four-goal derby Courtois could have been forgiven for where the unmarked Casemiro threw himself breathing a sigh of relief at the final whistle. into the air, and bicycle kicked it in from six MADRID: Thibaut Courtois overcame the The Belgian, who spent three years at yards. Atleti were still snarling as Karim jeers and Gareth Bale delivered a timely Atletico, was playing in the white of Real Benzema was shoved into the hoardings and reminder of his talents as Real Madrid beat for the first time at the home of his former Reguilon tumbled into the cameras. Jose Atletico Madrid 3-1 in a feisty city derby club. He was whistled when he came out Gimenez clashed with Vinicius, a scuffle that yesterday. alone to warm-up, when he emerged again would resurface again soon after. Real’s fifth league win in a row means they with his team-mates and then before kick- First, though, Griezmann equalised, sent sit second for the first time since September, off too, as the Atletico ultras behind the through by Angel Correa, who was fortunate above Atletico, and just five points behind goal hurled dozens of toy rats towards his not to be penalised for a robust challenge on Barcelona. Barca could restore that gap to head. A sign read, ‘Thibaut - Rata’, just to Vinicius. Griezmann, just onside, poked the eight by overcoming Athletic Bilbao on underline the point. ball through Courtois’ legs. Vinicius’ pace MADRID: Real Madrid’s Welsh forward Gareth Bale (C) vie for the ball with Atletico Madrid’s Sunday but another impressive performance Alvaro Morata had gone the opposite had been a constant thorn in Atleti’s side but Colombian defender Santiago Arias (L) and Atletico Madrid’s Uruguayan defender Jose at the Wanda Metropolitano, aided by some way, also via Chelsea, now for Atleti after Gimenez refused to be beaten, diving in from Gimenez during the Spanish league football match Club Atletico de Madrid against Real fortunate decisions, puts Real back in the starting out at Real Madrid. He was cheered behind when he had little chance of getting Madrid. —AFP thick of the title race. and, despite a quiet game, would have scored the ball. The foul might have been committed Bale had been left out of the starting line- but for VAR ruling out an impressive lob in outside the box but VAR disagreed, and up for the second time in four days, after he the second half. Isco was left out completely Ramos whipped the penalty into the corner. ond, only for his superb lob over Courtois to be felt aggrieved, after Morata fell over a clumsy was also a substitute against Barca in the after pulling up with a back complaint in Morata had barely featured in the first half ruled out by VAR for offside. Bale came on for Casemiro challenge in the box. Referee Estrada Copa del Rey on Wednesday. training on Friday. Diego Simeone picked but he was celebrating a goal early in the sec- Vinicius but Atletico were on top and again, Fernandez gave Real a free-kick. — AFP