BUSINESS | Page 1 SPORT | Page 1 Expect amazing as Rublev Better connectivity and takes on infrastructure help Qatar Moutet residential market expand in fi nal published in QATAR since 1978 SATURDAY Vol. XXXX No. 11424 January 11, 2020 Jumada I 16, 1441 AH GULF TIMES www. gulf-times.com 2 Riyals In brief QATAR | Phone call Deputy PM holds talk with Pakistan minister Iran denies HE the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Defence Aff airs Dr Khalid bin Mohamed al-Attiyah held yesterday morning a telephone conversation with Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Defence Pervez Khattak. its missile During the call, they discussed the latest developments in the region, and the necessity of reducing escalation, emphasising the importance of stability in Iraq. QATAR downed | Reaction Qatar slams blast at mosque in Pakistan Qatar has strongly condemned A group of children releasing balloons at the show yesterday. PICTURE: Shaji Kayamkulam the explosion which targeted a Ukraine jet mosque in Quetta in southwestern Pakistan, killing a number of people and wounding others. It AFP day: “Our team has now access to the also condemned the attack on a Tehran black boxes”. military base in northern Mali and The Ukrainian team also had ac- a military base in Niger. In separate Aspire Lake Festival cess to the radio exchanges between statements yesterday, the Ministry ran’s civil aviation chief denied the UIA pilots and air traffi c control of Foreign Aff airs reiterated Qatar’s yesterday that a missile downed a and were receiving “full co-operation” firm position on rejecting violence IUkrainian airliner which crashed from Iran, said Prystaiko. and terrorism, regardless of the killing all 176 on board, rejecting West- The team, granted access to plane motives and reasons. It stressed mesmerises spectators ern claims of a catastrophic mistake by fragments and the crash site, will start Qatar’s rejection of targeting places Tehran’s air defences. analysing the contents of the black of worship and intimidating peaceful By Joseph Varghese lowed. The festival featured musical happening place. The performers Ukraine said its experts had been boxes and their conclusions will be people. Staff Reporter and artistic entertainment performed also made a formation with the word granted access to the black box fl ight made public, he added. on the Aspire Lake. The world-class ‘DOHA.’ The backdrop also showed recorders, as US Secretary of State Pompeo, echoing several world lead- BRITAIN | Royals show took the audience on a magical the changing face of Doha and high- Mike Pompeo repeated it was “likely” ers including Canadian Prime Minis- Harry’s wife Meghan he spectators at the third As- journey fi lled with surprises, fun, and lighted the skyscrapers at Doha Cor- an Iranian missile had downed the ter Justin Trudeau and British Prime returns to Canada pire Lake Festival were treated excitement. niche and West Bay. plane. Minister Boris, said “we do believe it’s Tto a fantastic light show yes- The scintillating show started with The beautifully synchronised per- Iran’s latest denial came as Tehran likely the plane was shot down by an Prince Harry’s wife Meghan has terday with the theme ‘Tree of Life’ a group of children playing to sooth- formance made the spectators clap faced mounting international pressure Iranian missile”. returned to Canada following the that culminated with spectacular ing music with the lyrics, ‘light the again and again and enjoy the per- to allow a “credible” investigation into “We are going to let the investigation couple’s bombshell announcement fi reworks at Aspire Tower. candle for peace; light the candle for formance thoroughly. They, time and the crash, which several Western gov- play out before we make a fi nal deter- that they were quitting their The galleries around Aspire Lake love’ and released white balloons to- again, cheered the performers and sa- ernments have blamed on an acciden- mination,” he added yesterday. frontline royal duties, it emerged were fully packed with hundreds of wards the end. voured the show. tal missile strike. Trudeau said intelligence sources yesterday, as the monarch held spectators who had gathered at the At the backdrop of the perform- An audience member said it was a “One thing is for certain, this air- indicated an Iranian surface-to-air urgent talks with her family to venue well ahead of the show. Meant ance, scenes kept changing, showing great treat for the eyes. “I had come plane was not hit by a missile,” Iran’s missile downed the aircraft after it resolve the crisis. The Duke and for all ages, the event entertained how the tree of life nurtured the living very early with my family so that I civil aviation chief Ali Abedzadeh said, took off from Tehran. Duchess of Sussex spent an the crowd with various formations of the people and contributed to the could get a convenient seat to watch after Tehran invited the US, Ukraine, “We know this may have been unin- extended Christmas holiday in of light at the centre of the lake and development of Doha. the show. My children had a great Canada and others to join the investi- tentional. Canadians have questions, Canada with their son before showcasing the growth of Doha as a The subsequent segments of the time enjoying the surprises in the gation. and they deserve answers,” he said. returning to break the news this thriving city. show described the growth of the show and the fi reworks that followed The Boeing 737 crashed on Wednes- Abedzadeh rejected the claim.”Any week that they would “step back” A mesmerising fi reworks in dif- city and the last one showed how the the show, was a greater treat after a day shortly after Iran launched mis- remarks made before the data is ex- their royal roles. Page 8 ferent colours and formations fol- city has emerged as a dynamic and fantastic show,” he noted. Page 16 siles at US forces in Iraq in response tracted (from the plane’s black box to the killing of top Iranian general fl ight recorders) is not an expert opin- Qassem Soleimani in a US drone strike ion,” he said.” in Baghdad. Video footage, verifi ed by The New It is Iran’s worst civil aviation dis- York Times, emerged that appeared to aster since 1988 when the US military show the moment the airliner was hit. Thousands join Ooredoo Doha Marathon 2020 said it shot down an Iran Air plane over It shows a fast-moving object rising the Gulf by mistake, killing all 290 at an angle into the sky before a bright people on board. fl ash is seen, which dims and then con- By Peter Alagos that more than 5,000 runners partici- provided a pleasant run for all partici- “We always look forward to this The majority of the passengers on tinues moving forward. Business Reporter pated in the event, which was attend- pants, making it all the more enjoyable, marathon, which it is obviously Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) Several seconds later an explosion is ed by Ooredoo Group CEO Sheikh especially for the children who ap- marked in our calendar. Not only is Flight PS752 were dual national Ira- heard and the sky lit up. Saud bin Nasser al-Thani and Oore- peared to had the most fun, according it a time to get fi t but an opportunity nian-Canadians but also included Iran said a 10-member Canadian arly morning showers greeted doo Qatar CEO Waleed al-Sayed, as to Carlos, a European national who had to bond with my family, especially Ukrainians, Afghans, Britons and delegation was on its way to help with participants of the 2020 Oore- well as other special guests. two of his kids joining the run. my children and for us to forge new Swedes. the probe, a rarity since the two coun- Edoo Doha Marathon yesterday The event kicked-off with the 42.2km The annual sporting event delivered friendships with other runners and Vadym Prystaiko, the foreign min- tries cut diplomatic relations in 2012. but the rains failed to dampen their full marathon followed by the 21km, an exciting and festive mood; with a marathon lovers,” explained Ahmad, ister of Ukraine which has sent around Tehran also invited US plane maker spirits as thousands of runners fl ocked 10km, 5km, and 3km races. The 2020 long stretch of the Doha Corniche who has been joining the marathon 50 experts to Tehran to take part in the Boeing to “participate” in the investi- to the Museum of Islamic Arts (MIA) to instalment of the marathon culminated closed to vehicular traffi c, many of the for the past three years. Iran-led inquiry, told reporters yester- gation. participate in the annual event. with the 1km children’s fun run. participants even took the time to take Aside from the corniche, the MIA Despite the rains, it was estimated Cloudy skies, though rainy at times, selfi es during and after the marathon. Park, where the start and fi nish lines were located, was also jam-packed with post-marathon activities for Snow in Lebanon both kids and adults alike. It was also a venue for the participants to take group pictures and selfi es beside life- size numbers representing the kilo- metre they fi nished. “We’re not professional runners but my friends and I managed to join and complete the 3km marathon. It is a feat considering we are not that ac- tive in sports, but I commend events such as this because it promotes an active lifestyle and being healthy, and most importantly, it serves as an op- portunity for people to get together and be one family,” said Michelle, a fi rst time participant of the Ooredoo Doha Marathon.