1.55 mn transactions by General Directorate of Passports in ...

TRIBUNE NEWS NETWORKDOHA

THE General Directorate of Passports of the Ministry of Interior (MoI) com-pleted a record 1,556,867 transaction in June.

The figure represents transactions completed by all the departments of General Directorate of Passports such as Nationality and Travel Documents Department, Expatriates Affairs De-partment, Borders Passports Depart-ment, Search and Follow-up Depart-ment, Unified Services Department, Airport Passports Department, and Administrative Affairs Department.

The Expatriates Affairs Depart-ment executed 61,432 transactions, while the Unified Services Department

completed 212,763 transactions. The number of transactions com-

pleted by the Borders Passports De-partment amounted to 3,768, while Airport Passports Department saw (1,188,034) transactions. The Search and Follow-up Department completed 42,922 transactions.

The service center of Al Rayyan completed 41,436 transactions in

June, followed by Al Wakra (26,025) and Mesaimeer Service Center (24,233) .

The total number of transactions for traffic services and fingerprint-ing in June reached 27,667, of which 21,035 were related to traffic. There were a total of 6,632 transactions re-lated to stamp.

According to statistics, 718 trans-

actions were completed for the elderly and persons with disabilities, while the number of transactions exempted from fees for some services provided to people with special needs and pen-sioners reached 1,270.

A total of 186,862 transactions were made through electronic services.

Of the 186,862 transactions, 287 were e-government transactions, 104,136 were through the Ministry of Interior’s website and about 82,439 through Metrash2 app.

The MoI continuously strives to develop and improve its services to the public through its specialised depart-ments, in addition to following up the various transactions to ensure that the transactions can be conducted with ease and and in record time.

1.55 mn transactions by General Directorate of Passports in JuneMoI continuously improves its services for public through specialised departments

QNADOHA

A joint campaign to remove abandoned cars in the Munici-pality of Al Shahaniya kicked off on Monday.

The campaign is being car-ried out by the Committee for Removing Abandoned Vehicles and the Mechanical Equipment Department of the Ministry of Municipality and Environment and the security authorities concerned.

Director of Al Shahaniya Municipality Jaber al Jaber said the campaign comes within the framework of main-

taining the aesthetic of urban sights of Al Shahaniya Munici-pality.

He said the municipality will continue to cooperate with other relevant parties until the completion of the drive.

He called on the owners of these vehicles to remove them as soon as possible.

Deputy Head of the Com-mittee for Removing Aban-doned Vehicles Saleh Hassan al Kuwari said the campaign targets abandoned vehicles located within the administra-tive boundaries of Al Shahani-ya Municipality, reviewing the procedures and preparations

that preceded its launch to in-clude a number of other mu-nicipalities.

Marzouq al Mesaifir, As-sistant Director of Mechanical Equipment Department, who is also a member of the com-mittee, said about 180 to 200 abandoned cars have been spotted within the boundaries of Al Shahaniya Municipality.

A total of 4,800 abandoned cars have been removed from different parts of the country since the beginning of the year. The committee removes about 12,000 vehicles annually.

Drive to remove abandoned cars kicks off in Al Shahaniya

Abandoned cars being removed from Al Shahaniya.


FORMER Prime Minister and Foreign Minister HE Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor al Thani has said the unity and stability of GCC countries are important for the survival of this region.

“I am convinced that sta-bility and unity of all the GCC countries are important for the survival of this region,” Sheikh Hamad said in a tweet.

“We thought that the big countries in our region could secure the Gulf and its water-ways. We were surprised that these countries now aim at big powers to secure the Gulf corridor as an international corridor. I do not object to this as this is the truth. These countries started hosting US troops,” he said.

“But what surprised me is that the memory of these

countries is short. They ridi-culed Qatar for the presence of the American base and the Turkish base. They said Qa-tar cannot protect itself. My question now is what justi-fication they will use for this quick turnaround,” he said.

The former PM said, “They have the right to use foreign forces, but this is a question that needs an ex-planation for their people. They also need to explain the continuation of Yem-en war for years and they promised their people to en-ter Sanaa within weeks, let alone transfer the battle to Tehran.”

“Today, they talk about negotiating to resolve the crisis politically, whether with Yemen or Iran. These countries must respect their people and they must know that internal reconciliation within the GCC will benefit everyone.”

Unity of GCC countries must for survival of the region: Former PM

CATHERINE W GICHUKIDOHA

THE Ethiopian government has lifted the restrictions im-posed on the employment of Ethiopians as domestic work-ers in Qatar and Middle East. The first group of workers arrived in Doha about two weeks ago.

The group was welcomed at the embassy by the Ethio-pian Ambassador to Qatar HE Samia Zekaria, Chairman of the Ethiopian Community Association and representatives of private employment agencies.

The ambassador said this is the first group of domestic workers that arrived in Doha since 2012.

Ethiopia declared an Overseas Employment Proclama-tion on February 2016 to strengthen lawful overseas em-ployment and prevent human trafficking.

Qatar and Ethiopia signed a bilateral labour pact in De-cember 2012. According to the agreement and the procla-mation, Ethiopians who seek job in Qatar are now going through all the legal procedures and taking necessary train-ings at Technical and Vocational Training institutions.

The ambassador said about 30 Qatari Private Employ-ment Agencies have secured the licence to legally recruit and supply the Qatari labour market with Ethiopians.

They are working with their Ethiopian counterparts.Among these, two agencies — Al Taquet Trading and

Manpower Services and Honest Manpower — have started supplying Ethiopians to the Qatari labour market, bring-ing the first team of workers recently.

The ambassador advised Ethiopians in Qatar work with licensed private employment agencies.

She said the embassy will work closely with the agencies and the Qatari government authorities to monitor and follow up the implementation of the pact, and making sure that Ethiopians are working in a fa-vourable condition.

Ethiopia govt lifts restrictions on Qatar-bound

domestic workers

The first group of Ethiopian domestic workers arrived in Doha two weeks ago.

Qatari arbitrarily detained in Saudi Arabia released

QNADOHA

THE National Human Rights Committee (NHRC) has wel-comed the release of Qatari citizen Mohsen Saleh Saadoun al Korbi, who was arbitrarily detained by the Saudi authori-ties since April 21, 2018, and was deprived of his most basic rights to contact his family or lawyer.

His family was not able to know the place of his deten-tion nor the charges made against him.

In a statement issued on Monday, the NHRC said it has been in constant contact with UN bodies, international or-ganisations and the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention to demand the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to determine the Qatari citizen’s whereabouts and location and to release him.

The committee called on the Saudi authorities to com-pensate the Qatari citizen for the harm he suffered during his enforced disappearance.

The NHRC also called on the Saudi authorities to imme-diately release Qatari student Abdulaziz Saeed Abdulla, who has been arbitrarily detained in Saudi prisons since July 2018 without trial.

The committee called upon UN bodies and interna-tional organizations to con-duct extensive investigations into Saudi authorities’ gross and systematic violations of human rights and discrimina-tory measures against Qatari citizens.

The NHRC also called on the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention to take swift measures for re-lease the Qatari student arbi-trarily detained by the Saudi authorities.

Israel demolishes Palestinian homes near separation wall

ISRAEL demolished a number of Palestinian homes near its separation barrier south of Jerusalem on Monday in a move that drew international condemnation.

Palestinian leaders slammed the demolitions in the Sur Baher area which straddles the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem, but Israel defended them as essential to its security and noted they had been approved by its supreme court.

UN officials and the European Union condemned the demolitions and called for an immediate halt to the policy.

Before dawn, hundreds of Israeli police and soldiers sealed off buildings in the area close to the Israeli separation barrier which cuts off the West Bank. Residents and activists were dragged out of homes, though most of the buildings under demolition orders -- a total of 10 -- were still under construction.

Earthmovers then demolished at least three multi-story buildings. They were also preparing to destroy an eight-story building still under construction. (AFP) PAGE 7

QATAR has condemned the demolition of Palestinian houses in the town of Sur Baher, southeast of oc-cupied Jerusalem, by the Israeli occupation army.

In a statement on Mon-day, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the demolitions violate the historical rights of the brotherly Palestin-ian people and is a crime against humanity that reflects the Israeli govern-ment’s disregard for interna-tional laws and resolutions of international legitimacy.

The statement said this crime calls for urgent international intervention to oblige the Israeli entity to stop the demolitions and to provide protection to the Palestinian people.

The statement reiter-ated Qatar’s full support for the Palestinian cause and the steadfastness of the Palestinian people until all their legitimate rights are restored, foremost of which is the establishment of their independent state on the borders of 1967 with East Jerusalem as its capital. (QNA)

Qatar condemns demolition of

Palestinian homes

See also page 16

Continued on page 2

61,432 transactions by Expatriates Affairs Department

212,763 transactions by Unified Services Department

3,768 transactions by Borders Passports Department

1,188,034 transaction by Airport Passports Department

42,922 transactions by Search and Follow-up Department

EPA

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HBKU launches second online programme via edX partnershipTRIBUNE NEWS NETWORK

DOHA

HAMAD Bin Khalifa University (HBKU) has launched a new online programme as part of its ongoing agreement with edX, a global pro-vider of massive open online cours-es (MOOCs) created by Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

The professional certificate programme in ‘Sustainability and Major Sport Events’ – designed in partnership with Josoor Institute – addresses the critical sustainabil-ity aspects of planning and hosting large-scale sporting events in Qatar and around the world.

The programme aims to equip students with the knowledge and

skills needed to plan and execute a sustainable major sport event, ap-plying sustainability factors such as infrastructure, environmental im-pact, social and human considera-tions and governance.

Josoor Institute, a sports and events expertise hub created by the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy (SC), is tasked with build-ing the capabilities of professionals in the sports and events industries to successfully deliver major sport-ing events in Qatar and the MENA region, including the 2022 FIFA World Cup and beyond.

Through certification and re-search, Josoor Institute equips in-dustry professionals with the know-how and creativity required to deliver every facet of world-class high-pro-

file sporting and leisure events. The programme instructors in-

clude experts from HBKU entities, Josoor Institute and the SC, who are directly involved in the delivery of the upcoming FIFA World Cup.

Dr Marwan Khraisheh, senior research director at HBKU, said:

“Our partnership with edX has en-abled HBKU to transcend borders and make our unique academic of-ferings accessible in all parts of the world. The launch of the ‘Sustaina-bility and Major Sport Events’ pro-gramme marks the second phase of our successful partnership.

“The programme is specifically tailored to build human capacity for the growing number of interna-tional sporting events being held in Qatar and to support the country as it prepares to host the region’s first FIFA World Cup.”

The ‘Sustainability and Major Sport Events’ programme com-prises two courses - ‘Sustainability and Major Sport Events – Princi-ples’, which focuses on the five pillars of sustainability: human,

social, economic, governance and environmental; and ‘Sustainability and Major Sport Events – Imple-mentation’, examining event or-chestration, event planning and ex-ecution, strategy, action planning and implementation, sustainability reporting, procurement, legacy and development, and communication.

Afraa al Noaimi, executive di-rector of Josoor Institute, said: “Sustainability is a significant as-pect of every global sports event and Josoor Institute has the op-portunity to train professionals who will lead Qatar’s efforts to ad-vance sustainability throughout the planning and delivery of our mega event.

“The programme, and our part-nership with HBKU, marks an-

other important step towards the professional advancement of the world-class expertise we need from everyone involved in delivering an outstanding 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The partnership also strengthens our endeavours to cre-ate an enduring legacy that will support the sustainable socio-eco-nomic development of Qatar and the region well after 2022.”

The programme is designed for event organisers; sustainability and environmental professionals; sports professionals who interact with players, fans and spectators; those responsible for sports infra-structure, including stadiums and sports fields; professionals in mar-keting and public relations; and project managers.

Contact US: Qatar Tribune I EDITORIAL I Phone: 40002222 I ADMINISTRATION & MARKETING I Phone: 40002155, 40002122, Fax: 40002235 P.O. Box: 23493, Doha.

FM sends written message to Hungarian counterpartMINISTER of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary Peter Szijjarto has received a written message from Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs HE Sheikh Moham-med bin Abdulrahman al Thani pertaining to bilateral relations and the ways of enhancing them. The message was handed over by Ambassador of Qatar to Hungary HE Mohammed bin Hamad al Khalifa during a meeting with Assistant Foreign Minister for the Development of Relations with the South in Hungary Laszlo Varadi. (QNA)

Marine shooting range to be active from August 1 to 17THE marine shooting range (OTD-28) located 40 kilometres east of Mesaieed near Fasht Al Hadid, will be active every day from August 1 to 17, from 6am to 5pm, the General Command of the Qatar Armed Forces has announced. The area is at 105 degrees east of Mesaied port and extends all the way to the south of Shuraawa Island. The General Command warned that those who frequent the area must take precautions for their own safety. (QNA)

Quick read


YOUNG participants at the second annual Hamad Medi-cal Corporation (HMC) Ham-ad Summer Camp ‘Amazing’ 2019 (HSCA) were treated to demanding and lifesaving functions of doctors, nurses, labs, test tubes, helicopters, emergency drills, robots, fire safety, ambulances, and a Wellbeing Souq.

With more than 60 children, all of whom have a parent work-ing at HMC, participating in the initiative, registration for this year’s camp included attendees being fitted and issued with a special Hamad white coat, HMC ID and code of conduct.

During HSCA, the children observe the same protocols as HMC staff; protection of pa-tients’ rights and acting in a manner that supports the best care always are among the val-ues promoted.

Held over two weeks – from July 7 for children aged seven to 10 years old and from July 14 for children aged 11 to 14 years old – the week-long camps began with a full day at Al Wakra Hospital.

Children learned firsthand how a hospital delivers its ser-vices and the role staff plays in saving lives and supporting patients and their families. A highlight of the camp was par-ticipation in an emergency ac-

tivation drill. Fatima Haidar, HMC’s

Chief Human Resources Of-ficer, said the camp’s activi-ties were designed to both promote an early interest in healthcare careers among youth and also to highlight the importance of establish-ing healthy lifestyle patterns.

“My vision for 2019 is that this year’s camp will be the foundation for a health sector initiative extending to Amaz-ing 2022,” said Haidar.

The main activities for HSCA were hosted on a pur-pose-built ‘Amazing’ campus inside Hamad Bin Khalifa Medical City’s Bayt Al Dhiya-fah facility.

Children walking to the camp’s registration desk made their way through a themed arched entrance step-

ping onto a floor to ceiling ‘lightning bolt yellow’ hall-way. This entrance led to the Islamic Golden Age of Sci-ence timeline room as well as medical sciences and future technology rooms. There was also a Wellbeing Souq with information about healthy liv-ing and eating, a games room, and a working greenhouse.

The summer camps in-cluded field visits to the Qatar Rehabilitation Institute and Ambulance Service. This year HSCA has built on the plan to become a health-sector wide event with the involvement of government and private sec-tor stakeholders, including the Museum of Islamic Art, Qatar Foundation, Microsoft Gulf, Qatar National Library, the Ministry for Municipalities and Environment, Gourmet

Fruits Company, Lulu Qatar, Qbake, Bakemart, Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, Gulf Centre, and Doha Import and Export Fish Supplies.

‘Amazing’ is built on three key objectives; encourage chil-dren to make healthier choic-

es, i.e. consume less sugar, ask for natural food snacks; share the importance of the work their parents undertake in the health sector; and showcase for the HSCA children the role they can play in the future of healthcare in Qatar.

More than 60 children of Hamad Medical Corporation employees took part in the summer camp

The children observe the same protocols as Hamad Medical Corporation staff.

HMC camp helps stir up interest of students in healthcare career

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kyrgyzstan Genghis Aidarbekov has received a written message from Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al Thani pertaining to bilateral relations between the two countries and the means of developing them. The message was handed over by Ambassador of Qatar to Kyrgyzstan HE Ab-dullah bin Ahmed al Sulaiti during his meet-ing with First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kyrgyzstan Noran Niyazliev. (QNA)

FM SENDS MESSAGE TO KYRGYZ COUNTERPART Respect Qatari laws, envoytells Ethiopian expat workers

Continued from page 1

ACCORDING to the ambassa-dor, the embassy is tasked with the protection of the rights and interests of Ethiopi-ans working in Qatar.

“Ethiopian expatriates are known for their diligence, competence and kind behav-iour,” she said.

The envoy advised the ex-patriates to maintain a good image and act responsibly re-specting the laws of the coun-try.

She said emphasis would be given to exploring the po-tential market opportunities for Ethiopian professional workers.

“I would like to express my gratitude to the Amir His

Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al Thani and all other government authorities for their generous support for our expatriates and strengthening of the bilateral relations.”

She said the Qatar govern-ment is working to open its visa centre in Addis Ababa.

PHCC offers tips on ways to overcome fatigue in summer


NOT sure what’s causing your fatigue? Then, the Pri-mary Health Care Corporation (PHCC) has some tips for you on how to overcome energy zappers during the summer.

Fatigue is normal dur-ing summer so it’s important to overcome it to maintain a healthy body. Recognising the implications of fatigue on health, PHCC has suggested ways to overcome it.

Dr Wadha Ahmed al Bak-er, manager of Wellness Pro-grams, said, “Sugary breakfasts only provide energy initially, until your blood sugar levels reach their peak after which it quickly drops. In a sugary breakfast, patients lack protein which is the best source of en-ergy in the morning.”

Dr Baker suggested having high-fibre, low-fat foods such as eggs, beans or berries.

She also recommended having water instead of energy drinks or coffee, as they only give a small energy boost, but increase blood pressure and disturb sleep.

Poor posture is another cause for fatigue. With bad pos-ture, not only does one require more energy to stay upright, it also damages the alignment of spine. While sitting and stand-ing, it’s necessary to ensure the head is in line with the body and one are not in a hunching position. Furthermore, stretch-ing in between sitting for long periods of times also awakens

the body. Physicians at PHCC also

advise against sitting for pro-longed periods because the body equates stillness with going to sleep and as a result causes tiredness. Moreover, research shows that excessive sitting slows the rate of me-tabolism, affecting the regula-tion of blood sugar and blood pressure. Stretching regularly and taking breaks after sitting for long periods of times helps prevent the daily exhaustion.

In addition to this, exer-cise also gives the body an en-ergy boost.

According to Dr Baker, regular exercise requires an increased consumption of ox-ygen. Exercise enhances aero-bic capacity, delivering more oxygen to the brain and body which leads to more alertness and less fatigue.

Dr Baker advised every-one to spend at least 30 min-utes a day doing some kind of physical activity.

Dr Wadha Ahmed al Baker.

The programme aims to equip students with the knowledge and skills needed to plan and execute a sustainable major sport event, applying sustaina-bility factors such as infrastruc-ture, environmental impact, social and human considera-tions and governance.

Ethiopian Ambassador to Qatar HE Samia Zekaria.

Nation 03Tuesday, July 23, 2019

AILYN AGONIADOHA

PREPARATIONS for the first Doha concert of Filipino singers Juan “JK” Karlos and Kat Velarde next month are in full swing, according to Doha City Event Management CEO and Managing Director Victor Magnipes.

Speaking to the local media on Monday, Magnipes said that they are hoping to attract Filipino youth and families,as well as other music lovers to the event titled ‘Summer Jam in Qatar 2019’, which will be staged at Al Jewan Hall of Al Dana Club on August 9.

The concert is produced by DC Event in partnership with July Dela Cruz.

“We want to be part of the thriv-ing event management industry in Qatar. Before our re-branding, we

have already produced a number of successful events for the communi-ty. This year, our focus is on bring-ing some of the best talents of the Philippines to Qatar to promote our music scene and at the same time to provide quality entertain-ment for the Doha audience.

Producing a show is not an easy task but we, Filipinos, are known for our creativity, attention to de-tails and dedication to our craft. And those qualities are what set apart DC Event from other event management companies in the country”, said Magnipes.

In January, DC Event brought to Qatar the World Tour of Philip-pine Pop Star Sarah Geronimo. It was followed by the Middle East tour of Philippine concert king

Martin Nievera and Asia’s night-ingale LaniMisalucha held in June. Magnipes reiterated the mission of DC Event to continue to celebrate Filipino talents.

“JK and Katrina are among the most sought after perform-ers in our country today. Katrina is also widely popular among in-ternational voice coaches and reactors on Youtube. JK’s song ‘Buwan’ is a mega hit. We believe they are a perfect combination on stage”,Magnipes added.

Around 2000 people are ex-pected to watch the Summer Jam in Qatar 2019. Aside from the fea-tured artists, the concert will also feature Doha-based talents includ-ing Beats & Bytes New Breed and Verve dance groups.

Preparations in full swing for JK & Kat Velarde concert in Doha


ORYX Rotana, the five-star luxury business hotel in Doha, has launched a sizzling sum-mer offer for sports enthusi-asts to indulge in a unique and distinctive experience and to soak up in many live sports ex-citement this summer.

Gather together with your family and friends and watch live broadcast of all inter-national games and football matches on multiple large screens at the hotel’s Al Na-fourah Garden tent, which will provide visitors and guests the comfort of a modern air-con-ditioning system.

Through the ‘Red card’, ‘Magic of the ball’ and ‘The final whistle’ packages, guests will be able to satisfy their senses with a wide variety of

Lebanese delicacies and ap-petisers as they follow their favourite matches in the air conditioned tent or from the wooden larch which is spe-cially designed to give privacy to the visitors.

On this occasion, Ghas-san Dalal, general manager of Oryx Rotana, said: “We always strive to meet the needs of our guests and visitors to please them with innovative offers and promotions. Our main objective is to bring together families and friends to en-joy the summer holidays in a comfortable venue and watch their favourite team compete. The summer offer yet again emphasises the hotel’s status and highlights its facilities as a favourite haven for all peo-ple seeking to stay away from work stress and enjoy a special time with their loved ones.”

Oryx Rotana launches sizzling summer offer for sports enthusiasts

QNADOHA

A team of students from the State of Qatar will participate in the 51st International Chem-istry Olympiad 2019 in Paris, France. The competition will continue until July 30.

This is the first time that stu-dents from Qatar are participat-ing in this international science competition, which consists of two theoretical and practical ex-aminations in chemistry.

Fatima al Rashid, head of the science curriculum team at the Department of Educational

Guidance at the Ministry of Ed-ucation and Higher Education, said in a press statement that the International Chemistry Olympiad is an annual competi-tion to test students’ knowledge of chemistry.

The competition aims to stimulate students’ interest in chemistry through independent and creative solving of chemical problems.

It also aims to promote co-operation among students of different countries in the field of chemistry and facilitate ex-change of pedagogical and sci-entific experience in chemistry.

Qatar students set out for Int’l Chemistry OlympiadQatar will make its debut in the 51st edition scheduled to be held in Paris, France


THE Doha Chapter of the In-stitute of Chartered Account-ants of India (ICAI) organised a CPE seminar on the topic ‘The Union Budget of India 2019-20 – An Expert Analy-sis’. The seminar was held at Holiday Inn–The Business Park recently.

More than 140 attendees comprising dignitaries, mem-bers and Indian business pro-fessionals attended the event.

Speaking on the occasion, the Ambassador of India to Qatar HE P Kumaran touched upon the landmark initiatives of the Indian government and some of the provisions outlined in the budget, aim-ing to translate the vision into reality. He lauded the newly promulgated Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code, initiatives to ensure financial inclusion and the thrust on building the robust infrastructure network.

Chapter Chairperson CA Rukkaiya Pachisa, in her opening remarks, expressed her views on the budget and updated the attendees on the robust progress of the chapter and the contribution it is mak-ing towards the larger section of the society.

The keynote speaker CA Praveen Garg, who is working as additional secretary and fi-nancial advisor to the Ministry of Environment, Forest & Cli-mate Change, India, termed the Union Budget 2019-20 as the “Blueprint for the sus-tained growth”.

He described how the In-dian economy is poised to surge and on the track to being a $5 trillion economy by 2025.

Garg also presented a detailed analysis of how the economic initiatives will result in the transformation of the Indian

economy. He said the direct tax col-

lection is set to increase by 78 percent over the next five

years. Dr R Seetharaman, Group

CEO, Doha Bank, appreci-ated the Budget 2019-20, de-scribing it as the roadmap for building a strong economy and achieving sustainable growth with the robust infra-structure network, successful Make in India programme, improvement in the ease of doing business, digital govern-ance, co-operative federalism, one nation-one tax and efforts to uplift the marginalised sec-tions of the society.

The attendees were wel-comed by CA Nirlep Bhatt, secretary, while the vote of thanks was offered by CA Sandeep Chowdhary, vice chairman.

There was also a lucky draw sponsored by the event sponsor 360 Realtors.

ICAI Doha discusses merits of Indian budget 2019-20

CARTOON CORNER By: Saad al Mohannadi

Juan Karlos is a Filipino rock band from Manila, Philippines.

Internet sensation Katrina Velarde

Oryx Rotana, Al Nafourah Garden

Ambassador of India to Qatar HE P Kumaran receives an award during the CPE seminar of Doha Chapter of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) in Doha recently.


THE Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI), in col-laboration with Skyline Au-tomotive, dealer of Hyundai vehicles in Qatar, has an-nounced the recall of Hyun-dai Santa FE 2.4L MPI model of 2019.

According to a MoCI press release on Monday, the vehi-cle may encounter intermit-tently engine cut off, while driving in an area affected by sandstorm. The ministry con-firmed the recall campaign

comes within the framework of its ongoing efforts to pro-tect consumers and ensure that car dealers follow up on vehicle defects and repairs.

The ministry said it would coordinate with the dealer to follow up on the maintenance and repair works and will communicate with customers to ensure that the necessary repairs are carried out.

Meanwhile, the ministry urges customers to report vi-olations to its Consumer Pro-tection and Anti-Commercial Fraud Department through its authorised channels.

MoCI recalls Hyundai model4th Local Dates Festival kicks off today with 80 participantsTRIBUNE NEWS NETWORK

DOHA

THE best date in town this Summer in Qatar may well be the 4th Local Dates Festival to be held at Souq Waqif from July 23 to August 3 from 4pm to 10pm.

Organised by the Ministry of Municipality and Environ-ment and Souq Waqif, the fes-tival will feature over a dozen local varieties of dates from over 80 local farms, nearly four times more than the num-ber of participants the previ-ous year.

Part of Summer in Qatar, curated by Qatar National Tourism Council (QNTC), the Local Dates Festival is part of a wider initiative to promote home-grown products, pro-viding local producers with a platform to market their goods and reach out to consumers. It is also part of the strategy to diversify offerings for both residents and visitors to Qatar, showcasing local businesses and providing authentic expe-riences and traditional prod-ucts.

Summer in Qatar includes a plethora of retail offerings

across participating malls, as well as entertainment for all, summer camps for children and youth, thrilling experienc-

es and sporting tournaments in addition to exciting travel and hospitality promotions running until August 16.

Unprecedented numbersOrganised by the Ministry of Municipal-ity and Environment and Souq Waqif, the festival will feature over a dozen local varieties of dates from over 80 local farms, nearly four times more than the number of participants in the previous year

Qatari students participating in the International Chemistry Olympiad.

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Ministry of Public Health

1265-2019PUBLIC HEALTH CONFERENCE EVENT

- For more information : www.MOPH.gov.qaAnnouncement

500 40,000Two

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Sunday 28TH of July 2019

12:00 hrs

1266-2019QATAR PATIENTS SAFETY WEEK EVENT


500 50,000Two

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TC/B/60/1252/2019 Guard and security services for Umm Salal Municipal buildings and parks for three years - for (Municipality of Umm Salal) 3,800 380,000

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TC/B/62/1254/2019 Purchase and supply of bee hives and its accessories -for (Department of Agricultural Affairs) 2,700 270,000



04 Tuesday, July 23, 2019 Nation

SriLankan’s Travel Fest offers up to 40% discounts on Business Class air tickets


SRILANKAN Airlines is of-fering a discount of 40% on Business Class to over 35 des-tinations booked through its online channel www.srilan-kan.com, following the launch of ‘SriLankan Travel Fest’.

Also, an upcoming promo-tion will also offer a discount of 25% on Economy class tick-ets when booked through the airline’s official online plat-form.www.srilankan.com.

This offer gives travelers the freedom to travel anytime over a lengthy period from 27 July 2019 to 15 July 2020 on Business Class. This promo-tion can only be booked over a 9-day period which started on Saturday and is ending on July 28.

The SriLankan Airlines “Travel Fest” for Economy

Class travel that would follow shortly enables passengers to enjoy travels from 15 Septem-ber 2019 to 15 July 2020.

More than 35 destinations are up for grabs in this offer, with limited numbers of seats for certain destinations and discounts being awarded on a first-come-first-served basis.

With enhanced user con-

venience and added features, srilankan.com aims to give its passengers the ultimate customer experience when making their bookings online. With exclusive fares, more flexibility on date changes and a world of other ben-efits, srilankan.com also al-lows customers to stay in charge of their own bookings

by bringing the world to their fingertips. Passengers can even indulge in a host of other facilities including booking their preferred seat in ad-vance, bidding for a Business Class seat and booking their favorite meals when making their ticket bookings online.

A member of the oneworld global airline partnership, SriLankan Airlines operates a route network of 111 cities in 48 countries from its hub in Colombo and also connects to over 1,000 cities in 160 coun-tries through its one world partner airlines.

Sri Lanka’s national car-rier has won a string of recent international awards includ-ing ‘World’s Leading Airline to the Indian Ocean’ at the World Travel Awards; and ‘Asia’s Leading Airline to the Indian Ocean’ at World Travel Awards Asia Australasia.


CITY Centre Rotana Doha (CCRD), one of the leading hospitality proper-ties in town, will be offering culinary arts class to teach the secret recipes of Thai cooking with Chef Chanchai Khumkhrong.

To be held on July 24 from 6pm to 7:30pm by chefs of the hotel’s award-winning upscale restaurant, Teatro, the class will give Thai food lovers the opportunity to discover the secrets of Thai cuisine and the easi-est way to prepare the most delicious recipes by using essential ingredients in the dishes, which make them dis-tinctive and rich in flavours.

Chef Chanchai is also having a special dining experience every Thursday at Chanchai’s Thursday

Table.Commenting on the programme,

Martin Kendall, general manager of City Centre Rotana Doha, said: “City Centre Rotana Doha is passionate about sharing its love of food with the public and is now inviting one and all to indulge in a unique experience of Thai cooking. Visitors can roll up their sleeves and learn their favourite Thai cuisine in a step-by-step class by our talented chefs from Teatro.

“Thai cuisine is one of the most famous Asian cuisines with its har-mony and balance. Its dishes are treated as art pieces, the senses are filled with the rich colours and fla-vours of the dish when it is finished. The preparation of recipes with sim-ple ingredients and rich flavours will surely enrich the experience of our visitors in the Teatro restaurant.”

CCRD offers secrets of Thai cuisine to visitors


AS part of its commitment to help-ing Qatar’s businesses succeed in a digital world, Vodafone Qatar has recently connected International Limousine Service (ILS), one of the country’s leading chauffeur services, with its state-of-the-art Internet of Things (IoT) solutions.

ILS now relies on Vodafone Qa-tar’s Fleet Management solution to monitor its 240 cars and drivers. In addition, Vodafone Qatar has equipped all ILS vehicles with WiFi onboard to cater to the needs of the customers and provide them with a more enjoyable experience.

Vodafone Qatar was first in the country to launch an end-to-end Fleet Management Solution that enables the delivery of real-time in-formation such as traffic data, vehi-cle location, driver speeds, fuel con-sumption and employee work time.

Fleet Management solutions de-

liver faster response times through more efficient job allocation, reduc-tion in fuel costs due to shorter jour-neys and higher revenues as drivers can complete more jobs.

Drivers’ behaviour can also be monitored to encourage safer and more efficient driving and reduce in-surance premiums.

For all companies in this sector, IoT technology has been proven to

help companies meet regulatory and corporate sustainability targets by reducing fuel use and carbon emis-sions.

“We take pride in our global IoT expertise and in sharing this exper-tise with local organisations of all sizes in the country. Vodafone Qa-tar’s Business solutions are the key to answering organisational needs to optimise, automate and innovate us-

ing IoT technologies,” said Mahday al Hebabi, Business Services Direc-tor at Vodafone Qatar.

Earlier this year, Vodafone Qatar equipped 60 buses for the Shaffalah Center for Persons with Disability with Vodafone’s Smart Bus solution, including Fleet Management and Video Surveillance, helping make the children’s journeys safer and more efficient.

International Limousine Service uses Vodafone smart solutions

The International Limousine Service fleet of chauffeur service cars will be equipped with WiFi onboard to cater to the needs of customers and provide them with a more enjoyable experience.

ILS now relies on Vodafone Qatar’s Fleet Management solution to monitor its 240 cars and drivers

HEC Paris launches 2nd SBUM programmeTRIBUNE NEWS NETWORK

DOHA

HEC Paris, one of the world’s leading providers of Executive Education, has launched the second intake of its renowned Specialised Master in Strategic Business Unit Management (SBUM) Degree programme for the 2019-2020 Academic Year.

The launch of the second intake, which was held on the HEC Paris Doha Campus in Tornado Tower, welcomed 38 participants from various na-tionalities including United States of America, Pakistan, Jordan and Lebanon, in addi-tion to a large number of partic-ipants from Qatar. Addressing participants, Dr. Nils Plambeck, Dean and CEO, HEC Paris in Qatar, offered insights into the programme curriculum and briefed them on the importance of the Specialised Master for their career progression.

This Specialised Master co-hort represents various sectors from influential organisations

including Ministry of Defense, Qatar National Bank, Qatar Olympic Committee, Ooredoo, Qatar Airways, Q-Chem, Com-munications Regulatory Au-thority, Qatar Aluminium Lim-ited, Nakilat, Al Khaliji Bank, Qatar Central Bank, Qatar Na-tional Tourism Council, Qatar Gas, Qatar University, National Human Rights Committee, and WOQOD.

On the successful start of the next cohort of the special-ised Masters programme, Dr Nils Plambeck, dean and CEO, HEC Paris in Qatar, said: “We are pleased to welcome aboard such talented participants for the second intake of our Spe-

cialised Master Degree which is slated to further develop the participant’s skills in their re-spective fields. Over the years, HEC Paris in Qatar has been adjusting its program offerings as per changing market dynam-ics with a view to equip senior leaders to take good decisions and drive the growth and devel-opment of their organisations.”

“With the support of Qa-tar Foundation, HEC Paris can help participants develop new ideas, gain new insights or chal-lenge themselves. Our com-bined efforts contribute to the transformation of Qatar into a knowledge based-economy,” Dr Plambeck added.

The second intake of the Strategic Business Unit Management programme

Nation 05Tuesday, July 23, 2019


GHASHAM International RP Tech has joined the Ooredoo Money network of Premium Dealers, in addition to the existing Jumbo Electronics, Starlink and Al Anees, Oore-doo announced on Monday.

This means Ooredoo Money customers can now use selective branches of all four dealers to carry out Ooredoo Money trans-actions.

Selected branches of Ghasham International RP Tech, Jumbo Electronics, Starlink and Al Anees have been set up to provide cus-tomers with the services they need, including loading cash into their mWallets or reg-istering recipient details for sending money home.

Once registered and with a balance in their mWallets, customers will be able to send money home to more than 200 countries.

Ooredoo Money is the most convenient way for customers to easily access

everyday financial transac-tions, such as sending money home, topping up Ooredoo prepaid mobile accounts and depositing cash to their mWallets or even topping up prepaid mobile number in over 140 countries, purchas-ing data bundles or paying their DTH bills.

The service is simple, secure and offers some of the lowest fees and best ex-change rates in Qatar, and partners include the world’s most renowned money transfer companies such as MoneyGram and local ex-change house partners like AlDar Exchange.

Speaking about the lat-est addition to the Ooredoo Money network, Manar Khalifa al Muraikhi, direc-tor PR and Corporate Com-munications, said, “We’re very happy to expand our money services provider network with the addition of Ghasham International. This will make it even easier for our customers to access our services wherever and when-ever they need.”

Ghasham Int’l Techis new member ofOoredoo’s money services network

Ashghal wins GIS Excellence Award

QNADOHA

THE Public Works Authority ‘Ashghal’, represented by the Information Systems Depart-ment and the Engineering Services Department, has won the GIS Excellence Award for the use of GIS technology in Moazanah programme.

Ashghal received the award on the sidelines of the Esri Global User Conference 2019 held in San Diego.

Moazanah programme has been implemented to enable

governmental entities, includ-ing Ashghal’s departments,

to apply for projects that they wish to implement through Ashghal such as schools, hos-pitals, health centres, service buildings, infrastructure pro-jects and others.

Moazanah programme includes new additions and features that enable users to request projects, get approv-als and follow up their imple-mentation. They can also get integrated reports on projects in record time and much eas-ier way.

Through the programme, 522 budget projects have been requested for the first edition of next year projects with 70 percent less cost than in previous years. This was

done within three weeks com-pared to nearly three months in the past.

The authority has redevel-oped Moazanah system to fa-cilitate the process of submit-ting budget project requests, reviewing and adopting them in record time, in addition to following up financing with ministries and government agencies.

The Esri International Conference brings together thousands of GIS special-ists from 130 countries and provides them with an ideal opportunity to share experi-ences and showcase achieve-ments and strategies in the field of GIS.

Ashghal received the award on the sidelines of the Esri Global User Conference 2019 held in San Diego.

Moazanah programme recognised for the use of GIS technology

Customers can use select branches of Premium Dealers to use Ooredoo Money services

EAA participates in UN Economic and SocialCouncil Humanitarian Affairs Segment meet


EDUCATION Above All (EAA) Foundation’s programme Reach Out to Asia (ROTA), which focuses on imparting quality education, skill sets and knowledge development among underprivileged youth and communities across Asia, recently took part in the UN Economic and Social Council’s (ECOSOC) Humanitarian Af-fairs Segment (HAS).

Bringing together UN and other humanitarian agency rep-resentatives, as well as diplo-matic envoys and policymakers, the global knowledge exchange platform was held on June 24 for three days at Geneva’s Palais de Nations. Under the theme “Promoting action to save lives, reach those in need and reduce humanitarian risk, vulnerabil-

ity and need: looking towards the seventieth anniversary of the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949 and the climate summit called for by the Sec-retary-General”, the platform’s agenda featured debates, high-level panels and 15 side events.

At the HAS, the Qatari del-egation was represented by Shaheen Ali al Kaabi, assistant director of the Department of International Cooperation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), Arwa Musaaed, RO-TA’s acting director of the inter-national programmes, Ahmed al Lenjawi, a member of ROTA Youth Advisory Board (RYAB), and Omran Musa, member of MENA Youth Capacity Building in Humanitarian Action (MY-CHA ) Youth Advisory Group (MYAG) and MENA Regional Focal Point for Humanitarian Affairs for the UN Major Group

for Children & Youth. High-level topics discussed

during the forum covered the implementation of internation-al law, the combat of gender-based violence, the localisation of humanitarian efforts, as well as global climate change ac-tion. Represented by Kaabi, Qatar co-chaired, alongside Denmark, a side event titled “Youth: Advancing the Agenda” to discuss the inclusion and role of young people in global hu-manitarian systems and action.

“We recognise that agen-cies working in humanitarian affairs have a primary respon-sibility to support, develop and best guide young people in a bid to empower and sharpen their capacity to work together with policymakers and other key humanitarian actors. It is, therefore, paramount to support collective efforts that

recognise the role of youth as agents of change and as active players in laying the founda-tions for peace in their home countries and communities,” said Kaabi in his opening re-marks at the event.

During the event, ROTA’s MYCHA initiative, launched in 2017 and piloted among 250 young people in MENA, was presented as one of two suc-cess case studies in this direc-tion, alongside UNICEF and the Norwegian Refugee Coun-cil’s development of inter-agency guidelines for working with young people in humani-tarian settings.

In addition to its success-ful experience in its capacity building programmes, ROTA also shared the upcoming launch of a training toolkit for introducing youth to humani-tarian action.

Omran Musa shared his own experience foraying into the humanitarian world in Qatar, having left his crisis-laden home, Sudan. He said, “We mainly want to see agen-cies working in this sector do two things: one, change how they respond to adolescents’ and youth suggestions, in-novations and actions; and two, become more open, bet-ter at listening and show a genuine willingness to allow young people to influence processes so that our plights and voices are heard and [followed with action].”

During the session, the floor was also given to young leaders, who emphasised the need to empower their peers as catalysts and actors of positive change, and to engage young first-line responders in times of emergencies.

African Panorama

For events and press releases email [email protected] or call (974) 4000 2222

Catherine W Gichuki

Reports by


KENYAN GROUPS HOLD JOINT AGM

Three Kenyan groups recently held a joint Annual General Meeting. The groups included the Green Maasai Troupe, Kenyans Pamoja We Can and Karwa Future Dream. The gathering also observed the International Day of Cooperatives. (PHOTOGRAPHS BY JOHN SUMBUA) Chairman of the joint event Ramadan Mbugua addresses the participants.

Mandela Day is observed on July 18 to mark the legacy of South African anti-apartheid

icon and philanthropist Nelson Mandela, through volunteering and community service

South Africans donate items to Qatar Charity to mark Mandela Day

THE South African community donated several items to Qatar Charity through their embassy to mark Man-

dela Day on July 18. The community had collected

clothes and toys for the purpose. The items were handed over to Qa-tar Charity officials by the South African ambassador.

Speaking at the event, South African Ambassador to Qatar HE Faizel Moosa said Mandela Day, which is observed every year on July 18, was started by the Unit-ed Nations in 2009 to mark the legacy of the South African anti-apartheid revolutionary, political leader, and philanthropist Nelson Mandela (Madiba) and his values, through volunteering and commu-nity service.

People are encouraged to take 67 minutes of their time to do any-thing good. “It doesn’t have to cost money. People can engage with the community,” said the ambassador.

In South Africa, people engage in community activities such as painting of schools, beach clean-ing, donating food in poverty stricken areas, visiting homes for the elderly and orphanages, and engaging with children etc.

“If every person can help their neighbour, then nobody will need help.”

The envoy said that South Af-ricans, who are very charitable by nature, take their cue from Man-dela. They decided to collect items of use to be donated to charity this year. “We decided to partner with Qatar Charity to distribute what-ever we collect. We want to create a closer bond between South Africa and Qatar through Qatar Charity.”

The ambassador said several programmes have been lined up in association with Qatar Charity to take care of the needy.

As Qatar Charity has been sup-porting the communities in need, the South African community wants continued cooperation with the organisation. “We would like to partner with Qatar Charity. We have a programme at the embassy and we want Qatar Charity to be part of it. We’ll continue to engage with Qatar Charity to hand over whatever we collect,” he said.

The community will be cel-ebrating the South African festival of Ubuntu Bash on November 1 and there will be a charity compo-nent to it in partnership with Qa-tar Charity.

Qatar Charity Director of Gen-eral Services Department Abdul-lah Al-Dosari thanked the South African ambassador for inviting them to the Mandela Day celebra-tion and for making donations for the needy. He also praised Qatar’s ongoing cooperation with the em-bassy in charity work.

Al-Dosari said the donated items will be delivered to the ‘Taif’ project of the Department of Vol-

untary Donations in Kind of Char-ity for distribution to Syrian refu-

gees in Turkey and to people on the Syrian border as well as needy families in African countries. Qa-tar Charity, through the ‘Taif’ pro-ject, is seeking to help the needy and low-income groups.

‘Taif’ project collects in-kind donations such as clothing, fur-niture, electrical and electronic equipment etc. to present them at project exhibitions at nominal pric-es. The revenues are allocated to Qatar Charity projects within and outside the country. Donations are also sent directly to beneficiaries.

The programme receives in-kind donations through three easy methods -- voluntary funds, some of which are distributed in malls, commercial markets and public places; through donation bags to be distributed to homes and villas on a schedule; or through a special service devoted to the receipt of voluntary contributions.

South African Ambassador to Qatar HE Faizel Moosa (left) with Qatar Charity Director of General Services Department Abdullah Al-Dosari.

South African Ambassador to Qatar HE Faizel Moosa and Qatar Charity officials at the embassy.

The items donated by South African community to Qatar Charity.

Nelson Mandela

South African ambassador, Qatar Charity officials and community members during the event.

AFPMAARET AL-NUMAN

REGIME and Russian air strikes killed 43 people in northwest Syria on Monday, most of them in a crowded market, a war monitor said, in the latest violence to plague the opposition bastion.

In the town of Maaret al-Numan in Idlib province, men drenched in blood were carried away by residents and rescue workers, who used mattresses as makeshift stretchers, a pho-tographer said.

He saw the corpse of one man sprawled on the ground near a motorcycle, rubble sur-rounding his lifeless body.

With his eyes closed and his face covered in dust, an-other man clutched the arms of two people helping him out of the bombed area, the pho-tographer added. Thirty five

civilians and two unidentified people were killed in raids that hit the vegetable market and surrounding areas in Maaret al-Numan, according to the Syrian Observatory for Hu-

man Rights, which blamed the airstrikes on regime ally Rus-sia. Moscow, however, denied it was responsible, calling the reports “fake”. “The Russian air force was not carrying out

any missions in this part of Syria,” said a defence ministry statement. More than 100 oth-er people were wounded, ac-cording to the monitor, which said many of those injured were in a critical condition and people trapped under rubble.

The White Helmets res-cue group said one of its vol-unteers was killed during the raids, raising the number of rescue workers killed since April to at least 6.

The militant-run Idlib region, home to some three million people, is supposed to be protected by a months-old international truce deal, but it has come under increased bombardment by the Syr-ian regime and its ally Russia since late April. The spike in violence has killed more than 650 civilians and damaged or knocked out of service two dozen health facilities.

Airstrikes kill more than 40 civilians in northwest Syria

YAOUNDÉ: Cameroonian security forces are commit-ting “brazen crimes” against civilians, Human Rights Watch said on Monday, accusing the military of killing four people and raping a woman in the English-speaking northwest re-gion. “These latest crimes add to a long string of abuses by Cameroonian security forces,” said Central Africa director at HRW Lewis Mudge. “Instead of seeing that justice is done, Cameroon’s authorities deny that their forces are killing and raping people.” (AFP)

4 civilians killed and woman raped by army in Cameroon: HRW

NAIROBI: Kenya’s finance minister was arrested Monday on corruption charges linked to a mega dam project, a rare example of a sitting minister detained on such allegations in the graft-wracked country. Top prosecutor Noordin Haji had ordered the arrest and pros-ecution of the minister Henry Rotich and 27 other officials on charges of fraud, abuse of office and financial misconduct in the latest multi-million dollar corruption scandal. (AFP)

Kenya’s finance minister arrested on graft charges

SEOUL: Pirates attacked a South Korean-flagged cargo ship in the South China Sea early on Monday, stealing thousands of dollars in cash and even the sailors’ shoes, South Korean authorities said. Two people sustained minor injuries when seven pirates boarded the CK Bluebell and made off with $13,000 and belongings including mobile phones, clothes and shoes from the 22-strong crew, officials from the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries said. (REUTERS)

Pirates steal cash and shoes in Korean cargo ship robbery

REUTERSANKARA

TURKEY would retaliate against what it called an unac-ceptable threat of US sanctions over Ankara’s purchase of Rus-sian S-400 missile defences, its foreign minister said on Mon-day, adding he thinks President Donald Trump wants to avoid such measures.

Turkey began receiving deliveries of the surface-to-air S-400 systems earlier this month, prompting the United States to begin removing the NATO ally from its F-35 stealth fighter programme over security concerns. Washington says it is concerned that S-400 software will compromise its F-35s to the benefit of Russia. While several Republican and Democratic US lawmakers have pressed for sanctions, Trump has equivo-cated in recent days.

“If the United States por-trays an adversarial attitude to-wards us, we will take retaliatory measures, as we’ve told them. This is not a threat or a bluff,” Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavu-soglu said in an interview with broadcaster TGRT Haber.

“We are not a country that will bow down to those who show a animosity towards Tur-key,” he said, reiterating a threat of retaliation that Turkey made last month. Cavusoglu added that he did not expect the US ad-ministration to take such action.

“Trump does not want to impose sanctions on Turkey and he frequently says that his administration and the previous US administration is also re-sponsible for Turkey not being able to buy Patriot systems. This is true,” Cavusoglu said.

The US announced last week it was beginning the process of removing Turkey from the

programme for the F-35 stealth jets, the most advanced aircraft in the US arsenal, which is used by NATO and other partner countries.“Moscow and Ankara are holding consultations in the area of the licensed production of the S-400 air defense system component parts,” Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency quoted Chemezov as saying.

“Besides, Turkey is interest-ed in the latest Russian combat modules, air defense systems of various ranges, as well as anti-tank systems. Negotiations are underway for Russia to help the Republic of Turkey in cre-ating its national air defense and long-range missile defense systems,” he said. Chemezov added that Moscow was ready for various formats of techno-logical cooperation, including in such high-tech areas as the aerospace industry, helicopter construction, and energy

Turkey vows retaliation

if US imposes sanctions

over S-400s purchase

AFPTEHRAN

IRAN arrested 17 suspects and sentenced some to death after dismantling a CIA spy ring, an official said Monday, as ten-sions soar between the Islamic republic and arch-enemy the United States.

US President Donald Trump dismissed the report as “totally false”.

Security agencies “success-fully dismantled a (CIA) spy network,” the head of coun-ter-intelligence at the Iranian intelligence ministry, whose identity was not revealed, told reporters in Tehran.

“Those who deliberately betrayed the country were handed to the judiciary... some were sentenced to death and some to long-term imprison-ment.” The suspects were ar-rested between March 2018 and March 2019.

“The report of Iran captur-ing CIA spies is totally false. Zero truth,” Trump tweeted.

Tehran has been at logger-heads with Washington and its allies since May 2018, when Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from a landmark 2015 deal putting curbs on Iran’s nuclear programme in ex-change for sanctions relief.

The tensions have esca-lated since British authorities seized an Iranian oil tanker on July 4 on suspicions it was shipping oil to Syria in breach of EU sanctions.

In what was seen by Brit-ain as a tit-for-tat move, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards seized a British-flagged tanker in the strategic Strait of Hormuz on

Friday, angering the US ally.Iran said last month it

dismantled a network linked to the US Central Intelligence Agency, state news agency IRNA said at the time, saying it was conducted in coopera-tion with “foreign allies”.

On Monday, the counter-intelligence chief said 17 peo-ple suspected of espionage had been identified, all of them Iranians.

The suspects had been “employed at sensitive and crucial centres and also the private sector related to them, working as contractors or con-

sultants,” said the official.The intelligence ministry

released a CD with images of

what it said were CIA opera-tives abroad as well as busi-ness cards of US diplomats in

Austria, Finland, India, Tur-key and Zimbabwe allegedly involved in the network.

The announcement came as state television started broadcasting a “documentary” titled “The Mole Hunt”, a trail-er of which was on the disc.

It shows re-enactments of spy meetings with an action movie edit plus interviews with officials like intelligence minister Mahmoud Alavi.

Some of the spies had been recruited by falling into a “visa trap” set by the CIA for Iranians seeking to travel to the United States.

Iranian soldiers taking part in the “National Persian Gulf day” in the Strait of Hormuz, (top) and the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer (LHD 4) receiving a vertical replenishment-at-sea in the Arabian Sea, recently. (AFP)

The report of Iran capturing CIA spies is totally false, zero truth: Donald Trump

Arrests and death sentences in Iran as CIA spy network ‘busted’

REUTERSSUR BAHER

ISRAELI forces demolished a cluster of Palestinian homes near a military barrier on the outskirts of Jerusalem on Mon-day, in the face of protests and international criticism.

Israel said the 10 apartment buildings, most of them still under construction, had been built illegally and posed a secu-rity risk to Israeli armed forces operating along the barrier that runs through the occupied West Bank. UN officials, who had called on Israel to halt the demolition plans, said 17 Pales-tinians faced displacement.

Bulldozers accompanied by hundreds of Israeli police and soldiers moved into Sur Baher, a Palestinian village on the edge of East Jerusalem in an area that Israel captured and occu-pied, along with the West Bank, in the 1967 Middle East War.

Palestinians fear that the razing of buildings near what Is-rael describes as a security bar-rier against Palestinian attacks

will set a precedent for other towns along its route, which snakes through the West Bank for hundreds of kilometres.

The demolition is part of the latest round of protracted wrangling over the future of Jerusalem, home to more than 500,000 Israelis and 300,000 Palestinians. Israeli forces cut through a wire section of the barrier in Sur Baher under cov-

er of darkness early on Monday, and began clearing residents, before bulldozers and mechani-cal tore down homes. Palestin-ian owners said their buildings lay within areas run by the Pal-estinian Authority (PA), which exercises limited self-rule in the West Bank under the Oslo interim peace deals with Israel.

“I built this house stone by stone. It was my dream to live in

this house. Now I am losing eve-rything,” said Tareq al-Wahash, 37, his voice breaking as a bull-dozer destroyed his unfinished three-floor home.

“I had a permit to build from the Palestinian Authority. I thought I was doing the right thing,” he said. Israel’s Supreme Court ruled in June that the structures violated a construc-tion ban. Palestinians and rights

groups say Israeli building per-mits are nearly impossible to ob-tain. The deadline for residents to remove the affected buildings, or parts of them, was Friday.

In a statement, the Euro-pean Union said the structures, containing some 70 apartments, were in areas under PA jurisdic-tion and that Israel’s demolition policy in occupied territory was illegal under international law.

Israel demolishes Palestinian homes near West Bank barrier

Gulf / Middle East / World 07Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Turkish FM Mevlut Cavusoglu.

News in brief

Iran caught UK by surprise: Audio company

LONDON: The man behind the audio of Iran’s seizure of a British-flagged tanker in the Gulf says the episode played out over a cha-otic 20-40 minutes while a UK warship raced in from an hour away -- too far to be of any help.

The HMS Montrose “really didn’t have much chance of having an impact on the scene,” said Philip Diacon, head of Dryad Global, a London-based shipping risk management company.

Diacon refused to discuss how he obtained the audio of Friday’s high-seas drama over the Stena Impero. But he said the entire exchange was conducted over an open channel -- number 16 -- which is used globally by military and commercial vessels to send out calls. (AFP)

If the United States portrays an adversarial attitude towards us, we will take retaliatory measures, as we’ve told them. This is not a threat or a bluffMevlut Cavusoglu

Syrian civil defence, known as the White Helmets use an excavator to search for victims under the rubble following a reported Russian air strike on Maaret al-Numan in Syria’s Idlib, on Monday. (AFP)

17 people dead in Somalia bomb blast claimed by Al Shabaab

AFPMOGADISHU

SEVENTEEN people were killed and more than two dozen wounded when a car bomb exploded in Moga-dishu on Monday, the lat-est deadly attack on So-malia’s capital claimed by Al-Shabaab militants.

The blast, near a security checkpoint on the main road to the international airport, reverberated throughout the city and sent massive plumes of black smoke into the air.

Witnesses described scenes of carnage as a car veered out of traffic and detonated outside the main gate of a hotel with tre-mendous force. “I could see several people lying (on the

ground), some of them dead in a pool of blood,” said Ab-dikarim Mohamed, a wit-ness to the attack.

“The blast was huge. It did damage to several nearby buildings.” Suado Ali was walking out of a travel agency when she “was forced to the ground by the shockwave”. “I saw nearly ten people lying on the ground, some motion-less and others screaming for help”, she said.

Medina Hospital, the main trauma facility in the Somali capital, was inundat-ed by the dead and wounded. “The bodies of 17 people killed in the blast were taken to the hospital mortuary while 28 others were admitted for vari-ous wounds,” said Mohamed Yusuf, the hospital’s director.

An Israeli army bulldozer demolishes a building in the Palestinian village of Sur Baher, in East Jerusalem, on Monday. (EPA-EFE)

BRUSSELS: The European Union on Monday urged Israel to immediately halt the razing of Palestinian homes on the edge of Jerusalem, saying it undermined hope for a lasting peace in the region.

“In line with the EU’s long-standing position, we expect the Israeli authorities to immediately halt the ongoing demolitions,” said a spokesman for the EU’s foreign policy arm, which repre-sents the bloc’s 28 member states.

“The continuation of this policy undermines the viability of the two-state solution and the prospect for a lasting peace and seriously jeopardises the possibility of Jerusalem serving as the future capital of both States.”

Israel earlier Monday bulldozed a number of Palestinian homes it considers illegal south of Jerusalem. (AFP)

South Ethiopia unrest kills at least 18 people

AFPADDIS ABABA

AT least 18 people were killed in southern Ethiopia in days of clashes between soldiers and protesters agitating for the crea-tion of a breakaway state, hospi-tal officials said Monday.

The unrest stems from ef-forts by members of the Sidama ethnic group, the largest in the southern region, to establish a new semi-autonomous state–a project that put them on a col-lision course with the govern-ment of PM Abiy Ahmed.

Ethiopia is already parti-tioned into nine semi-autono-mous regions. The Sidama are part of the diverse Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples’ Region. The constitu-tion requires the government to organise a referendum for any ethnic group that wants to form a new entity within a year of them requesting it.

EU urges Israel to ‘immediately’ stop Palestinean home demolition

In 2019, What Is The Definition Of A Racist?

IT is astounding that 159 years after the end of the Civil War we are having a full-throated debate about whether the US president is a racist. Or is that surpris-

ing? Donald Trump’s tweet that four Dem-ocratic congresswomen of colour should “go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came.” (Three were born in the US; anoth-er is a legal immigrant) caused the House of Representatives to pass a resolution de-nouncing his comments. It was, perhaps not unexpected in this polarised nation, passed almost strictly along party lines, with only four Republicans voting with Democrats to vote for the slap on the wrist.

The resolution said Trump’s comments “legitimised and increased fear and hatred of new Americans and people of colour.” This leads to the question: In 2019, what is the definition of a racist? The diction-ary definition of a racist is “a person who shows or feels discrimination or prejudice against people of other races, or who be-

lieves that a particular race is superior to another.” Next, let’s check what Trump has done and said about race.

In 1973, the federal government twice accused Trump’s real-estate company of racial bias by denying black Americans rental apartments. The charges, said Trump were “absolutely ridiculous. We have never discriminated, and we never would.” But his company did, in fact, settle and was fined.

When Trump owned casinos, a former employee said that when he came to visit, all persons of colour were ordered off the floor so he would not see them.

Trump was known for his reality TV show but came to political prominence by advocating “birtherism,” the false claim that Barack Obama was not born an Amer-ican (he was born in Hawaii).

One of Trump’s first acts as president was to try to ban all Muslim immigrants from the country, also suggesting he want-ed to deport Muslim Americans legally here. He also excoriated Gold Star Muslim parents whose son was killed during the Iraq war.

The ‘Central Park Five’ was a group of black and Latino teens wrongly accused of raping a white woman in Central Park in 1989. Trump took out full-page ads in New York newspapers arguing the teens be given the death penalty. The teens were convicted of violent offences and sentenced to five to 15 years in prison. In 2002 another individual confessed and more evidence was found exonerating the

teens, who were awarded a settlement of $41 million. Trump has continued to argue they were guilty and called the settlement a “disgrace.” Trying to block Native Ameri-cans from opening casinos that could com-pete with his bankruptcy-bound casinos, Trump told a congressional hearing: “They don’t look like Indians to me.” Trump was quoted by a former executive as saying of a black accountant: “Black guys counting my money! I hate it. … I think that the guy is lazy. And it’s probably not his fault, be-cause laziness is a trait in blacks.

During a class action suit against Trump University for defrauding students, Trump said he couldn’t get a fair trial from the American judge because he had a Mex-ican name.

When Ku Klux Klansmen campaigned for him in 2016, Trump refused to re-nounce their support. During the white su-premacy march in Charlottesville, when a young woman protester was killed, Trump said there were good people on both sides.

Trump has referred to nations where people of colour predominate in the pe-jorative and said he’d prefer immigrants

from Norway.After the devastating Hurricane Maria

struck Puerto Rico, killing several thousand and destroying huge swaths of property, he called Puerto Ricans who criticised his administration’s slow response “politically motivated ingrates.” He once referred to a Hispanic Miss Universe as “Miss House-keeping.” Time after time, through all these incidents — and many more, including the latest charges against Trump of flagrant, open racism — Republican leaders have defended him, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Re-publican Leader Kevin McCarthy. Fewer than four years ago, Senator Lindsey Gra-ham said Trump was a “race-baiting, xeno-phobic, religious bigot.” Now he is one of Trump’s most ardent defenders.

As a reminder, let’s note the Repub-lican Party was the party of Lincoln, the president who freed the slaves.

The bottom line is that each one of us must decide the issue of Trump’s racism for ourselves in November of 2020. But to quote a cliché, if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, it’s a duck.

GOP leaders must remember that Abraham Lincoln, who freed the slaves, was a Republican and they mustn’t tolerate Trump’s racism

Opinion

THE VIEWS EXPRESSED ON THE OPINION AND ANALYSIS PAGES ARE THE AUTHORS’ OWN. QATAR TRIBUNE BEARS NO RESPONSIBILITY.

WHEN millions of people took to the streets of Hong Kong in re-cent weeks to protest an extradi-tion bill that would make it easier for people arrested in the city to

face trial elsewhere, including mainland China, several countries, such as Canada and the US, as well as the European Un-ion defended the protesters.

But perhaps no country is this more personal than Britain. As Hong Kong’s former colonial power, Britain played a primary role in the city’s return to Chi-nese sovereignty more than two decades ago. It’s also a signatory to the agreement guaranteeing Hong Kong’s limited au-tonomy from Beijing—a status protesters fear is now under threat. But the political impasse over Brexit is dominating British political discourse, ensuring that issues like Hong Kong remain in the foreign-policy periphery.

Still, British Foreign Secretary Jer-emy Hunt raised the topic in a statement marking the 22nd anniversary of Hong Kong’s handover to China.

“It is imperative that Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy, and the rights and freedoms of the Hong Kong people, are fully respected,” he said. “We have made our position on this clear to the Chinese Government, both publicly and in private, and will continue to do so.” For the Chinese, however, what may have been acceptable in the 1990s, when Bei-jing was still a rising power, is no longer acceptable now. Liu Xiaoming, the Chi-nese ambassador to London, framed Hunt’s remarks as improper interference in China’s internal affairs.

“In the minds of some people, they regard Hong Kong as still under Brit-ish rule,” he said in response, adding: “They forget … that Hong Kong has now returned to the embrace of the moth-erland.” Britain’s connection to Hong Kong isn’t tenuous. Prior to its return to Chinese sovereignty in 1997, the city was considered the last jewel of Britain’s colo-nial empire. When British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and Chinese Premier Zhao Ziyang signed the Sino-British Joint Declaration in 1984, setting the terms of Hong Kong’s eventual transfer to Chi-nese control, both sides agreed that Hong Kong would retain for 50 years follow-ing the 1997 handover certain rights and freedoms not seen in mainland China. Under this “one country, two systems” ar-rangement, Hong Kong enjoys a degree

of autonomy from Beijing, including an independent judiciary, and a separate fi-nancial and immigration system. Unlike residents of mainland China, for example, the people of Hong Kong have the right to freedom of expression and protest.

At the time, Britain envisioned that it would, if necessary, be able to help main-tain Hong Kong’s autonomy. In briefing notes that have since been declassified by the British Foreign Office, Thatcher was advised to reaffirm that Britain would have the “right to raise any breaches with China after 1997” and that it “would not hesitate to do so.” Despite London’s con-cerns over the proposed extradition bill (which was suspended in response to the protests, though not withdrawn com-pletely), it has stopped short of declaring the proposal a breach of the British-Chi-nese agreement—a charge that has only been made once, following the Chinese government’s crackdown on Hong Kong booksellers in 2016.

Some, such as Chris Patten, the last British governor to Hong Kong, have ar-gued that the efforts to undermine Hong Kong’s autonomy are enough to warrant further British action.

“The proposed legislation was at the very least a breach in the spirit of the

joint declaration,” Benedict Rogers, the founder of the British NGO Hong Kong Watch and the deputy chairman of the UK Conservative Party’s Human Rights Commission, told me, noting that a fail-ure to act could be interpreted by China as a “green light to continue encroaching on Hong Kong’s freedom.” Still, such action would likely be ignored by Beijing, which has already stated in recent years that the agreement, much like Britain’s hold on Hong Kong, is merely historical and no longer holds any “practical significance.” “There is nothing explicit in the joint dec-laration … no phrase that can be used to justify saying Britain has some legal re-sponsibility to Hong Kong anymore,” Tim Summers, a former British diplomat and a Hong Kong–based senior consulting fellow at Chatham House, a British think tank, told me, explaining that even if Brit-ain were to speak more forcefully on this issue, it lacks the leverage to change Bei-jing’s thinking. “More than what the UK says, Beijing is more sensitive to opinion and views in Hong Kong,” he said.

In any case, Britain’s responsibil-ity to Hong Kong may be irrelevant. The country’s diminishing international pres-ence—precipitated, in large part, by its political upheaval at home—hasn’t made its leverage any stronger. Its imminent exit from the EU, paired with its desire to strike bilateral trade deals around the world, has limited what Britain can (or is willing) to say to countries with whom it disagrees—so much so that the candidate tipped as most likely to become its next prime minister opted against defending Britain’s diplomat in Washington in order to please the American president.

“Britain would be in a stronger posi-tion if it can mobilise other countries to stand with it,” Rogers said. “What we can do alone is more limited than it used to be.” But Patten, who has remained a stri-dent critic of China’s influence in Hong Kong, as well as Britain’s response, or lack thereof, recently wrote that he sub-scribes to the “rather old-fashioned view that doing the right thing in foreign affairs is usually the right thing to do.” “Britain may have lost some of its soft power re-cently. It would be nice to think, however, that it still understands how to behave with integrity,” he wrote in the Financial Times. “Our own ‘golden age’ with China should put more emphasis on honour and less on ‘fear and greed.’ That is where our national interest really lies.”

(Yasmeen Serhan is a London-based staff writer at The Atlantic)

What Is UK’s Responsibility To Hong Kong?

YASMEEN SERHAN TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

Even if Britain were to speak more forcefully on its former colony’s extradition bill issue with China, its diminishing international

presence lacks the leverage to change Beijing’s thinking

(Tribune News Service)

GAVIN Newsom’s new $21.5 billion California wildfire fund is being seen as a big victory for the governor. With good reason. The legislation offers a

reasonable approach to solving the com-plex liability problem of who should pay when utilities cause destructive infernos.

But there’s a catch. And it’s a big one.The success of the bill hinges on forcing

PG&E to start putting safety before profits. The governor and the Legislature believe that incentives in the bill, AB 1054, com-bined with the appointment of a new Cali-fornia Public Utilities Commission presi-dent, Marybel Batjer, provide the tools to compel the utility to change its ways.

Good luck with that.When it comes to safety, PG&E has an

abysmal track record. Consider: — For a 14-year period, PG&E dumped more than 350 gallons of chromium-tainted wastewa-ter into unlined ponds around Hinkley. The ensuing contamination resulted in a class-action lawsuit by dozens of people with a range of illnesses. PG&E wound up agree-ing in 1996 to a $333 million settlement.

— In the wake of the 2010 San Bruno gas pipeline explosion, investigators dis-covered the utility had diverted ratepayer funds intended for gas pipeline mainte-nance to executive bonuses and sharehold-er dividends. The San Bruno tragedy killed eight people and destroyed a neighborhood. For that negligence, PG&E was convicted in federal court of six felony charges.

— PG&E knew for seven years prior to the deadly Camp Fire that the nearly 100-year-old transmission tower that caused the blaze needed to be replaced. But the utility did not fix the problem.

This level of ineptitude explains why we have repeatedly called on the governor and the Legislature to replace or break up the

utility. Instead, they are counting on the new legislation and the new president of the PUC to put a halt to the utility’s costly calamities.

In order to tap into the wildfire liabil-ity fund, the utilities would be required to spend $3 billion on safety measures to reduce the threat of wildfires. They would also be required to comply with an annual safety certification process.

Here’s where it gets sticky.Baltjer, the new PUC president, has a

track record of revamping state operations — she was most recently brought in to fix the state’s woeful Department of Motor Ve-hicles — but has zero experience on utility industry issues. Californians shouldn’t for-get that even Michael Florio, who brought a strong reputation as a consumer advo-cate when he was picked to become a PUC commissioner, was quickly swallowed up by the agency. It wasn’t long after his ap-pointment that he joked with a PG&E ex-ecutive in an email that he “had become an apologist for PG&E.” Baltjer will work with the newly created California Wildfire Safety Advisory Board, which is charged with re-viewing and approving a utility’s annual safety plan. In the event of a wildfire, the utility would have to prove that it complied with the safety plan in order to receive any of the $10.5 billion contribution from rate-payers into the wildfire fund. The governor will appoint five members of the seven-per-son board. The other two will be picked by the Assembly speaker and Senate Commit-tee on Rules.

It’s absolutely essential that the board have both the expertise and the willingness to hold utilities’ feet to the fire when both crafting and enforcing the safety plans. The alternative is continued failure on a massive scale at the expense of California ratepayers.

New California Wildfire Plan Has A Catch — And It’s A Big One When crafting and implementing safety plans,

it is crucial that the enforcing body is reliable and expert in the field

ESTABLISHED SEPTEMBER 3, 2006

HAMAD BIN SUHAIM AL THANI CHAIRMANADEL ALI BIN ALI MANAGING DIRECTORDR HASSAN MOHAMMED AL ANSARI EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

ANN MCFEATTERS TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE

Despite London’s concerns over the proposed extradition bill, it has stopped short of declaring the pro-posal a breach of the British-Chinese agreement—a charge that has only been made once, following the Chinese government’s crackdown on Hong Kong booksellers in 2016


AFPWASHINGTON

PRESIDENT Donald Trump on Monday offered to medi-ate the decades-long Kashmir dispute between India and Pa-kistan, signaling a shift in long-standing US policy that the is-sue must be solved bilaterally.

“If I can help, I would love to be a mediator,” Trump said at the White House, where he was hosting Pakistan’s Prime Min-ister Imran Khan. “If I can do anything to help, let me know.”

It is far from the first time that Trump has offered to in-tervene in a seemingly intrac-table international dispute. US mediation, which has long been sought by Pakistan, is likely to be rejected outright by New Delhi.

In February, a suicide bombing claimed by a Pakistan-based militant group killed 41 Indian troops in Indian-con-trolled Kashmir, prompting tit-for-tat air strikes between the two countries. Some 70,000

people, mostly civilians, have died over the past 30 years in Indian-administered Kashmir, monitoring groups say. US President Donald Trump was set to met Monday with Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan for talks centering on Afghanistan as the US seeks a peace accord with the Taliban to end more than 18 years of war.

The goal of the visit, said a senior Trump administration official, is “to press for concrete cooperation from Pakistan to advance the Afghanistan peace process.” The Trump adminis-tration also wants to encourage Pakistan to “deepen and sustain its recent effort to crack down on militants and terrorists with-in its territory,” the official said on condition of anonymity.

The United States is press-ing for a political agreement with the Taliban before presi-dential voting in Afghanistan in late September. This would clear the way for most US troops to withdraw from Afghanistan and bring an end to America’s

longest war. Washington and Kabul accuse Pakistan of sup-porting armed extremist groups such as the Haqqani network, which is an ally of the Taliban, by giving it refuge in Pakistani regions along the border with Afghanistan.

Pakistan denies providing such support and argues that, in fact, it has sustained huge losses in terms of lives and money as it fights extremism.

“We are concerned about the links between these groups and Pakistan’s intelligence services and military,” the ad-ministration official said, refer-ring to Jaish-e-Mohammed, Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and the Haqqani network.

Days before Khan’s visit, Pakistani authorities detained Hafiz Saeed, the founder of LeT and the alleged mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attacks, in a move hailed by Trump as a re-sult of the pressure applied by his administration.

But Saeed–declared a global terrorist by the United States and the United Nations -- has for years rotated in and out of detention, and Democratic law-makers later hit back at the pres-ident, tweeting: “Let’s hold the (applause) until he’s convicted.”

“One of the big storylines going into the Trump-Khan meeting is the sharp discon-nect in expectations,” said Michael Kugelman, deputy director of the Asia Program at The Wilson Center.

US mediation, sought by Pakistan for long, is likely to be rejected outright by India

Trump offers to mediate between India, Pakistan over Kashmir problem

AFPPARIS

PARISIANS were on Monday bracing for potentially the hot-test ever temperature in the French capital this week as a new heatwave blasted into northern Europe that could set records in several countries.

Temperatures were al-ready topping 30 degrees Cel-sius (86 degrees Fahrenheit) on Monday in Paris, but the mercury could soar beyond 40C on Thursday and topple a record dating back to 1947.

The severe heat, which forecasters say will only last a few days but will be exception-ally intense, is also expected to affect parts of Belgium, Lux-embourg and the Netherlands.

“It’s likely that these three

countries will see tempera-tures at or above 40C for the first time,” Francois Jobard, a forecaster from the French Meteo France weather office, said. The new blast of hot air

comes less than a month after a heatwave scorched Europe at the end of June, forcing new attention on the issue of cli-mate change.

“The heatwave that is too

much,” declared the head-line in Le Parisien newspa-per, highlighting that “Act II” of this summer’s severe weather would further hurt production of crops from po-tatoes to grapes.

Jobard from Meteo France said that Thursday was shap-ing up to be “a potentially his-torically hot day”.

“We are forecasting 41 or 42 degrees in Paris on Thurs-day and there is the strong chance of beating the record,” he added.

The highest ever tempera-ture recorded in Paris was 40.4 degrees Celsius (104.7 degrees Fahrenheit) in 1947. Since records began in 1873, this was the only time a plus-40 temperature was recorded in the French capital, he said.

Paris braces for record heat as Europe scorched again

REUTERSLONDON

A British minister and long-standing critic of Boris Johnson quit on Monday, the latest res-ignation before the presumed new prime minister takes of-fice with a “do or die” pledge to leave the European Union with or without a transition deal.

The departure of Alan Duncan, a junior foreign of-fice minister, underlines the strength of feeling in the gov-

erning Conservative Party and parliament against a no-deal Brexit that many businesses say would be catastrophic for Britain’s economy.

Attempting to launch a pre-emptive strike against John-son, Duncan tried to force an emergency vote in parliament on Tuesday to test whether the new premier could command a majority. Parliament’s speaker turned the request down, the BBC reported. Stalling eco-nomic growth - the National

Institute of Economic and So-cial Research (NIESR) said on Monday there was a one-in-four chance Britain has already tipped into recession - is fuel-ling many lawmakers’ worries about a no-deal Brexit.

Duncan follows Margot James, who stepped down as a culture minister last week, describing as “quite incredible” Johnson’s promise to leave the EU by Oct. 31 regardless of whether a deal is in place to smooth its departure.

UK minister quits before Johnson becomes PM

SRIHARIKOTA: India on Monday launched a low-cost rocket on a historic bid to put a landing craft on the surface of the Moon and join an elite space force. A week after an initial launch was halted just before blast-off, Chan-drayaan-2 -- or Moon Chariot 2 -- took off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre car-rying national pride and the hopes of Indian scientists. India is seeking to become just the fourth nation after Russia, the United States and China to land a space-craft on the Moon. (AFP)

India launches historic bid to put spacecraft on Moon

PARIS: Charities slammed Europe’s “campaign of criminalisation” towards ships which rescue mi-grants in the Mediterranean on Monday as ministers meeting in Paris failed again to find a new system of handling them. Humanitar-ian group SOS Mediterranee announced Monday that it would re-launch rescue efforts next month with its new ship called Ocean Vi-king, eight months after its former vessel the Aquarius stopped operating. (AFP)

NGOs attack Europe over migrant deadlock

MEXICO City: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Mexican counterpart Marcelo Ebrard will meet again in 45 days in Washington to evaluate Mexico’s commit-ment to stemming the flow of migrants heading to its northern neighbor, the foreign minister said on Monday. The agreement follows talks between Pompeo and Ebrard in Mexico City on Sunday, as part of the US government of-ficial’s four-nation trip to Latin America. (AFP)

Pompeo to meet Mexican counterpart again in 45 days for migration talks

News in brief

AFPHONG KONG

ANGER soared in Hong Kong on Monday over a vicious as-sault on pro-democracy pro-testers by suspected triad gangsters that left dozens wounded, a dramatic escala-tion of the political turmoil plaguing the Chinese city.

The financial hub’s roiling unrest took a dark turn late Sunday when gangs of men–most wearing white T-shirts and carrying bats, sticks and metal poles–set upon anti-government demonstrators returning from another huge march earlier that day.

Footage broadcast live on Facebook showed people screaming as the men beat multiple protesters and jour-nalists in Yuen Long station and inside subway trains, leav-ing pools of blood on the floor.

Hospital authorities said 45 people were wounded in the attack, with one man in critical condition and five oth-ers seriously injured.

Critics accused the city’s embattled police force of tak-ing more than an hour to reach the site and failing to arrest the armed assailants who stayed in the streets around the station

into Monday morning. Some men in white shirts were later filmed leaving the scene in cars with Chinese mainland number plates. Lam Cheuk-ting, a pro-democracy lawmaker, was one of those wounded in the melee, re-ceiving cuts to his face and arms. He criticised police for their re-sponse and accused “triad mem-bers” of being behind the attacks.

“Their very barbaric and violent acts have already com-pletely violated the bottom line of Hong Kong’s civilised society,” he told reporters. Furious fellow pro-democracy lawmakers held a press con-ference on Monday where they accused the city’s pro-Beijing leaders of ignoring the attacks.

“This is triad gangs beat-ing up Hong Kong people,” fumed legislator Alvin Yeung. “Yet you pretend nothing had happened?” City police chief Stephen Lo defended his force, saying his officers were busy dealing with violent anti-gov-ernment protests elsewhere.

‘Triad’ attack on HKprotesters sparks widespread anger

Pakistan’s PM Imran Khan meets with US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, on Monday. (REUTERS)

Afghan issueThe goal of Khan’s US visit, said a senior Trump administration official, is “to press for concrete cooperation from Pakistan to advance the Afghani-stan peace process.” The Trump administration also wants to encourage Pakistan to “deepen and sustain its recent effort to crack down on militants

A pro-government supporter scuffles with an anti-extradition supporter outside the office of pro-China lawmaker Junius Ho in Tsuen Wan in Hong Kong, China, on Monday. (REUTERS)

Hospital authorities said 45 people were wounded in the attack, with one man in critical condition and five others seriously injured

Duterte urges lawmakers to restore death penalty

AFPMANILA

PHILIPPINE President Rodri-go Duterte urged lawmakers on Monday to bring back the death penalty as part of his interna-tionally-condemned crackdown on narcotics in which police have already killed thousands.

Buoyed by exceptionally high approval ratings and a leg-islature dominated by his allies, Duterte used his annual State of the Nation address to urge ac-tion on a key unrealised plank of his tough-on-crime stance.

“I respectfully request con-gress to reinstate the death penalty for heinous crimes re-lated to drugs as well as plun-der,” he said referring also to the nation’s deep-rooted cor-ruption problem.

“My countrymen, it is a sad commentary that we cannot distinguish our need from our greed, our principles from prej-udices,” he told hundreds of as-sembled lawmakers, diplomats and celebrities in Manila. Am-

nesty International immediate-ly warned over the proposal’s impact on a nation where police claim to have killed more than 5,300 drug suspects, but activ-ists say the true toll is at least four times higher.

Philippines’ presidentdefends China gambit in annual addressMANILA: Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte launched a spirited defence of his relation-ship with China on Monday, insisting that his refusal to challenge its maritime asser-tiveness was not capitulation, but an avoidance of conflict. The firebrand leader devoted part of his annual state of the nation address to arguing that it was senseless to confront a country with claims to the same waters, and a far supe-rior military. “I will send our ma-rines to drive away the Chinese fishermen, I guarantee you, not one of them will come home alive,” he said. (REUTERS)

Boris Johnson.

People cool off at the Trocadero Fountains in Paris, on Monday. (AFP)

Monsoon toll tops 650 as rains unleash flood fury in South Asia

AFPNEW DELHI

SEVERE floods and light-ning have claimed the lives of more than 650 people across India, Nepal, Bangla-desh and Pakistan, officials said Monday as the annual monsoon took its toll on the rainfed region.

More than 10 million people in the South Asian countries have been affected by the deluge, which has also forced tens of thousands to flee their homes.

In India, heavy rains since the start of July have killed at least 467 people

with many districts in Ut-tar Pradesh, Bihar and As-sam states cut off because of flooding.

In Uttar Pradesh on Sun-day, lightning strikes killed 37 people in separate incidents, a disaster management offi-cial said. The latest fatalities took the northern state’s toll to 228 dead.

Eight children playing in the open in Bihar’s Nawada district were also killed by lightning on Friday, taking the toll in the eastern state to more than 100 as rivers over-flowed their banks and swept away people, houses and cat-tle. In Assam, 67 people have

perished but the situation was likely to improve with no heavy rains predicted in the coming days.

But the prospects were grim for southern India’s coastal state of Kerala where authorities Monday warned of “extremely heavy falls” in isolated places.

India’s coastal Kar-nataka, West Bengal and Himalayan Sikkim states were also bracing for heavy downpours. More than 70 people have also died in building collapses in Ma-harashtra and Himachal Pradesh states following substantial rainfalls.

Trump attacks Mueller ahead of testimony on Russia probeWASHINGTON: President Donald Trump attacked Robert Mueller on Monday, even as he insisted he would not watch the special counsel’s potentially damaging Congressional testimony this week about the two-year Russia investigation. Two days before Mueller testifies -- answering questions for the first time about his high-stakes probe into Russian election meddling and Trump’s alleged obstruc-tion -- the president repeated his longstanding claim it was a biased “witch hunt.” The US leader also repeated his false claim that Mueller’s final report, released in April, found no col-lusion with Russia by the 2016 Trump campaign team and no obstruction of justice by the president himself. (AFP)

Trump-Imran meet

Asia / Europe / Americas 09Tuesday, July 23, 2019


QATAR National Bank (QNB) Group recently received three prestigious awards by Asian Banking and Finance (ABF) Magazine during their awards ceremony in Singa-pore, the bank said in a state-ment on Monday.

QNB received, “Domes-tic Retail Bank of the Year - Qatar”, “Digital Banking Initiative of the Year – Qa-tar” and “Mortgage and Home Loan Product of the Year – Qatar” awards based on its continuous efforts to

provide an enhanced bank-ing experience and a unique range of products and inno-vative services tailor-made to its customers.

These awards highlight

the bank’s long-term com-mitment and success in de-livering its customers the best products and services, the statement said.

Recognised as a leading publication for banking and finance executives in Asia, Asian Banking and Finance magazine evaluates the most outstanding practices and innovative strategies in Asia.

QNB Group is commit-ted to expanding its interna-tional network in line with its goal to become a leading bank in the Middle East, Af-rica, and Southeast Asia by 2020.

QNB wins three prestigious ABF awards

The QNB headquarters building.

THE US Federal Trade Commis-sion is expected to announce a roughly $5 billion settlement with Facebook Inc as early as this week over its investigation into the social media company’s handling of user data, two sources briefed on the matter said Monday. The FTC, Justice Department and Facebook de-clined to comment. The FTC has been investigating allegations Facebook inappropriately shared information belonging to 87 mil-lion users with the now-defunct British political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica. Reuters and other outlets reported July 12 that the FTC had voted to approve the settlement but was awaiting the concurrence of the Justice Department. (REUTERS)

FTC to announce $5 bn settlement with FB by this week

BRITAIN on Monday postponed a decision on whether Huawei could participate in building next-generation 5G mobile networks until it had a clearer picture on the impact of US measures taken against the Chinese company. “These measures could have a po-tential impact on the future availability and reliability of Huawei’s products, together with other market impacts, and so are relevant considera-tions in determining Huawei’s involvement in the network,” Digital Minister Jeremy Wright told parliament. Until the US position was clearer, Britain had concluded it was wrong to make specific decisions in rela-tion to Huawei, but would do so as soon as possible, he said. Huawei, the world’s biggest telecoms equipment maker, is at the centre of a geopolitical tug-of-war between China and the United States. (REUTERS)

UK delays decision on Huawei’s role in 5G networks

Quick readOil prices rise over 1% after Iran seizes British tanker

REUTERSNEW YORK

OIL prices rose more than 1 percent on Monday, as inves-tors worried about possible supply disruptions in the ener-gy-rich Middle East after Iran’s seizure of a British tanker last week.

The move stoked fears of potential supply disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz at the mouth of the Gulf, through which flows about one-fifth of the world’s oil supplies, but no major escalation with Britain or the United States appears imminent.

Brent crude futures climbed $1 a barrel, or 1.6 per-cent to 63.47 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were up 56 cents, or 1 percent, at $56.19 a barrel.

Capping gains, force ma-jeure was lifted on loadings of crude at Libya’s Sharara oilfield, the country’s largest, whose closure since Friday had caused an output loss of about 290,000 barrels per day (bpd).

Last week, WTI fell over 7 percent and Brent lost more than 6 percent, weighed down by economic worries and the return of US production in the Gulf of Mexico after a hurri-cane.

“Some of the selling pres-sure from demand concerns seems to have evaporated this week,” said Gene McGillian, vice president of market re-search at Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut. “The fears about geopolitics seem to have halted some of that sell-ing pressure,” he said.

Last week, data showed shipments of crude from Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil ex-porter, fell to a 1-1/2-year low in May.

SATYENDRA PATHAK DOHA

GULF Warehousing Company (GWC), the leading provider of logistics and supply chain solutions in Qatar, has with-stood the blockade well with its freight forwarding segment showing significant growth in 2018, QNB Financial Services (QNBFS) has said in its latest report.

According to the QNBFS re-port, GWC’s logistics business also remains robust driven by contract logistics and increas-ing occupancy in Bu Sulba.

Based on the positive out-look, QNBFS said, it has re-tained bullish investment the-sis on GWC.

“GWC’s bottom line has risen 11.5 percent year-on-year (y-o-y) and 5.8 percent quar-ter-on-quarter (q-o-q) in the second quarter of 2019 in line with our estimate.

“GWCS reported net profit of QR63 million in the second quarter of 2019, in line with our estimate of QR60.5 mil-lion. For the first half of 2019, reported earnings came in at QR122.5 million, up 10.7 per-cent from QR110.7 million in the first half of 2018,” the re-port said.

“The company’s revenue came in at QR295.9 million in the second quarter of 2019, which represents a decrease of 5.8 percent y-o-y and 2.6 per-

cent on the quarterly basis. Re-ported revenue was modestly 3.2 percent below our estimate

of QR305.7 million,” the re-port said.

“No change to our esti-

mates for now. We remain comfortable with our QR247.7 million earnings estimate for 2019, which implies a slight 2.2 percent growth in the sec-ond half from first half. For 2019, we continue to expect 4.6 percent y-o-y growth in earnings,” the report said.

“We continue to rate GWC an accumulate with a price tar-get of QR5.10.

“The stock is up 33.4 per-cent year to date (YTD) on a total return basis. Growth post Bu Sulba with 90 percent oc-cupancy will decline, but as we had flagged previously, GWC has started generating sub-stantial free cash flow (FCF)

with FCF yield increasing from 1.5 percent in 2017 to 9.6 per-cent in 2018, reaching 16.3 percent in 2023,” the report said.

QNBFS has also forecast that GWC’s dividend yield of 3.9 percent for 2018 would grow to 5.7 percent by 2023.

With major capex already done, the report said, there could be upside to dividends in the medium-term.

Meanwhile the share price of GWC increased 5.91 per-cent from QR4.91 to QR5.2 on Monday after the company an-nounced impressive financial results for the second quarter of 2019 a day earlier.

The company reported net profit of QR63 mn in 2019 Q2

GWC freight forwarding segment shows significant growth: Report

According to the QNBFS report, GWC’s logistics business also remains robust driven by contract logistics and increasing occupancy in Bu Sulba.

QNB Group is committed to expanding its international network in line with its goal to become a leading bank in the Middle East, Africa, and Southeast Asia by 2020

REUTERS LONDON

ECONOMIC growth in Brit-ain has stalled and chances are one-in-four that the Brex-it crisis has already tipped the country into a recession, a leading think tank said on Monday.

Boris Johnson, the front-

runner to become prime minister this week, has said he will ramp up preparations for a no-deal exit to try to force the EU to make changes to the agreement Prime Min-ister Theresa May made with the bloc but which British lawmakers have voted down three times.

NIESR has previously es-

timated that Britain’s econ-omy contracted in the April-June quarter.

If Britain’s economy shrinks in the third quarter as well, that would be clas-sified as Britain’s first reces-sion since the global financial crisis.

Last week, Britain’s budget forecasting office also said the country might be entering a full-blown reces-sion. In a report published on Monday, it said prospects for the coming quarters were

fraught with danger.“The outlook beyond Oc-

tober, when the United King-dom is due to leave the Eu-ropean Union, is very murky indeed with the possibility of a severe downturn in the event of a disorderly no-deal Brexit,” it said.

NIESR cut its fore-casts for Britain’s economic growth in 2019 and 2020 to 1.2 percent and 1.1 percent, down from 1.4 percent and 1.6 percent previously.

It assigned a 30 per-cent chance that the world’s fifth-biggest economy would

contract in 2020, based on an average of all Brexit sce-narios.

“There is no palpable growth for some years to come following a no-deal Brexit,” NIESR director Jag-jit Chadha said at a news con-ference.

Even if Britain’s next prime minister strikes a Brexit deal, there will likely be a hit to the public financ-es, NIESR said.

“Some loosening of the public purse appears inevita-

ble and we expect public sec-tor borrowing to rise above 2 percent of GDP with the pos-sibility of substantial over-runs of the government’s fis-cal objectives in the event of a no-deal Brexit,” it said.

Both candidates to be-come prime minister have pledged to ramp up govern-ment spending, drawing crit-icism from current finance minister Philip Hammond.

The result of the leader-ship race is due to be an-nounced on Tuesday.

NIESR cut UK’s economic growth forecasts in

2019 & 2020 to 1.2% and 1.1% respectively

Stalling UK economy risks recession as Brexit nears: NIESR

Recession If Britain’s economy shrinks in the third quarter as well, that would be classified as Britain’s first recession since the global financial crisis.

QATAR STOCK EXCHANGE GAINS 41.02 PTS

QATAR Stock Exchange (QSE) index gained 41.02 points (0.39 percent) when the bourse closed trading at 10,542.24 points on Monday. The volume of shares traded increased to 53.45 million from the previous session’s 37.58 million, and the value of shares increased to QR155.86 million from QR84.55 million. From the 48 companies listed on the QSE, shares of 46 saw trading. From these, 18 gained, 24 closed lower, while four remained unchanged. Indices of six sectors ended in the green zone and one in the red. QSE Total Return Index gained 0.39 percent to 19,398.61 points, QSE Al Rayan Islamic Index increased 0.57 percent to 4,060.41 points and QSE All Share Index increased 0.47 percent to 3,113.25 points. (QNA)

Microsoft to invest $1 bn in OpenAI

AFP SAN FRANCISCO

MICROSOFT on Monday an-nounced a $1 billion invest-ment in an OpenAI ethical artificial intelligence project backed by Tesla’s Elon Musk and Amazon.

The partnership will be de-voted to developing advanced AI models on Microsoft’s Az-ure cloud computing platform while adhering to “shared principles on ethics and trust,” the companies said in a joint release.

OpenAI and Microsoft ex-

pressed a vision of “artificial general intelligence” (AGI) working with people to help solve daunting problems such as climate change.

OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman said the goal of the effort is to allow artificial intelligence to be “deployed safely and securely and that its economic benefits are widely distributed.”

Microsoft will become the preferred partner for com-mercialising new “supercom-puting” artificial intelligence technologies developed as part of the initiative.

TUESDAY, JULY 23, 2019

Equifax to pay $700 million over data breach, says US PAGE 12

LG unveils world’s first Arabic-enabled AI TVs in Qatar PAGE 12

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AFP WASHINGTON

US credit monitoring agency Equifax agreed to pay up to $700 million in a settlement stemming from a data breach that affected nearly 150 mil-lion customers, regulators said Monday.

The biggest-ever penalty in a data breach case was an-nounced by the Federal Trade Commission and state regula-tors following revelations that hackers had stolen the person-al details of millions, includ-ing names, dates of birth and social security numbers.

“Companies that profit from personal information have an extra responsibility to protect and secure that data,” FTC chairman Joe Simons said in a statement announcing the settlement.

“Equifax failed to take ba-sic steps that may have pre-

vented the breach that affected approximately 147 million consumers,” he added.

The settlement, subject to court approval, calls for at least $300 million of the penalty to go to affected consumers, and to provide extra credit moni-toring beyond what the com-pany has already offered.

Additional money will be added to this consumer fund based on the number of claims filed, officials said.

“As part of our settlement, Equifax will provide every American who had their highly sensitive information accessed with the tools they need to bat-tle identity theft in the future,” said New York state Attorney General Letitia James, one of the state regulators in the case.

“Equifax put profits over privacy and greed over people, and must be held accountable to the millions of people they put at risk.”

Some $175 million will be paid to states joining the litiga-tion and $100 million in civil penalties to the federal govern-ment to settle charges of unfair and deceptive practices.

According to documents filed in court, Equifax will offer affected consumers “cash com-pensation, credit monitoring, and help with identity restora-tion” and must spend at least

$1 billion to improve its data security.

Consumers may receive up to 10 years of free credit moni-toring or $125 cash to cover their own monitoring costs, the FTC said. Those who ex-perienced identity theft may receive up to $20,000 in com-pensation.

While Equifax does not deal directly with consumers, it handles sensitive informa-tion on them to help lenders determine borrowers’ cred-itworthiness in the United States and some other coun-tries including Britain. It is one of three large credit-reporting agencies in the United States.

Maryland state attorney general Brian Frosh said the breach was troublesome be-cause most consumers did not know their data was being col-lected or consent to it.

“We did not choose Equi-fax, Equifax chose us,” he told

a news conference in Wash-ington with FTC and other of-ficials.

“It collected our personal information... and it sold the product and some of the raw data to other people.”

The FTC said that Equifax learned of a vulnerability in its network in March 2017 but failed to patch its network or notify consumers until later in the year.

While not the largest breach -- attacks on Yahoo leaked data on as many as three billion accounts -- the Equifax incident could be the most damaging because of the nature of the data collected: bank and social security num-bers and personal information of value to hackers and others.

It remains unclear who was behind the Equifax hack, but some experts said it appeared to be the work of a state-spon-sored actor.

Equifax to pay $700 million over data breach, says USThe settlement calls for at least $300 million of the penalty to go to affected consumers

File photo of credit reporting company Equifax’s corporate office in Atlanta, Georgia. (REUTERS)

EY programme to recognise high potential women entrepreneursTRIBUNE NEWS NETWORK

DOHA

EY has launched the 2019 edition of its Entrepre-neurial Winning Women programme in the MENA region as part of its ongoing effort to recognise and sup-port women entrepreneurs who are contributing to their local economies.

The EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women programe recognises high poten-tial women entrepreneurs whose businesses exhibit potential to scale operations and provides them with an extensive network of men-tors and a knowledge shar-ing platform to enable them to fast-track their business growth to the next stage, EY said in a statement on Mon-day.

The 2018 edition of the Winning Women pro-gramme witnessed signifi-cant interest from women entrepreneurs in the region. The seven winners from last year’s edition gener-ated a combined revenue of $ million and collectively employed over 230 people. Their companies ranged across various sectors in-cluding pharmaceutical, cosmetics and skincare, technology, education and non-profit, and were based in geographies that included Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait and the UAE.

Sheikha al Fulaij, Part-ner, Entrepreneurial Win-ning Women MENA Pro-gramme Sponsor, EY, said, “We are witnessing a re-markable shift in the MENA region in terms of the role of women in the workforce – they are not only leading their own businesses but also claiming their place in the corporate boardroom.

“In addition, regional governments are recognis-ing the direct benefits of supporting women entre-preneurs, such as the boost to their local economies,

and are implementing vari-ous measures to foster their growth.

“This EY initiative is de-signed to support these long-term national objectives by offering entrepreneurial women in the region a pro-gram that provides advice from experienced mentors, as well as offering access to an established business net-work. We believe initiatives such as the Entrepreneurial Winning Women program are a great way to encourage unique business ideas while at the same time celebrating the role of women in the re-gion’s SME ecosystem.”

The free-of-cost, year-round programme offers women entrepreneurs with an exclusive mentorship programme designed to help accelerate and sustain the growth of their busi-nesses in order to become global market leaders. In-terested participants have until August 31, 2019 to ap-ply for the second edition of the programme.

To be eligible for the EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women MENA programme, applicants must be found-ing CEOs with at least 51 percent ownership of their company, in a registered business that is at least two years old. Additionally, the business should be head-quartered in the MENA region, and should have an annual revenue of $250,000 or more.

Payout Consumers may receive

up to 10 years of free credit monitoring or $125 cash to cover their own monitoring costs

Those who experienced identity theft may receive up to $20,000 in compensation

LG unveils world’s first Arabic-enabled AI TVs in QatarTRIBUNE NEWS NETWORK

DOHA

LG Electronics (LG) has unveiled its new OLED and NanoCell TVs, which highlight its latest innova-tions in television technology.

Bloggers and news outlets came face-to-face with LG’s OLED TVs (models: E9 and C9) and NanoCell TVs (models: SM90 and SM81), which have the ability to under-stand requests and commands in Arabic, using voice service sup-port. Natural Language Processing (NLP) enables LG’s new televisions to work using voice-activated con-trol in multiple languages.

Held at the Westin Hotel in Doha, the event gave over 120 at-tendees access to the company’s new lineup of TVs which are now available locally in Qatar.

Globally, LG continues to lead in terms of OLED production and sales. As part of its strategy for growth in Qatar, LG is focusing on providing residents with more be-spoke solutions that enable them to enjoy content with greater ease. To achieve this, LG has introduced its ThinQ AI platform with 2nd Gen-eration α9 Processor into a range of its televisions.

LG’s ThinQ AI technology is designed to listen, think, answer and evolve, in line with the user’s requests and personal tastes.

Additionally, the next genera-tion intelligent processor deploys a deep learning algorithm, enabling ThinQ AI to produce better picture and acoustic sound quality, by ana-lyzing content and optimizing out-put.

TVs equipped with LG’s ThinQ AI platform can also sense light-ing conditions and automatically adjust their brightness to enhance screen visibility.

Families in Qatar will now be able to experience unrivalled levels of comfort and ease-of-use, by sim-ply speaking to their TVs in the lan-guage that they most frequently use at home. Users can control their televisions and ask complex ques-tions.

With evolving communication, a user watching a movie can ask the television for more information pertaining to the TV content such

as the actor’s name, films they have starred in, the background score and more. LG’s OLED and Nano-Cell TVs come with support for a total of 15 languages, including

English, French, Portuguese, Span-ish, Russian and more – catering to the various expat communities liv-ing in Qatar.

Empowering consumers to live more efficiently, Open Connec-tivity Foundation (OCF) enables home appliances and entertain-ment devices to be controlled di-rectly from the TVs Home Dash-board.

Just as they would control the TV’s own settings from a webOS interface, homeowners can now also operate their speakers, wash-ing machines, air purifiers and more from the comfort of the liv-

ing room. Hongju Jeon, President LG

Electronics Gulf said, “It is with great pride that we are introduc-ing our most advanced TVs to consumers in Qatar. As a leading corporate citizen, LG Electronics is playing an active role towards providing solutions that speak to the local communities in which we operate. I believe that with our unique ThinQ AI platform and now the world’s first Arabic-enabled AI TVs, we can create more immer-sive entertainment experiences for families to enjoy in Qatar.”

Sajed Jassim Mohammed Su-

laiman, vice chairman and man-aging director, Jumbo Electronics, said, “The world’s first Arabic-en-abled AI TV’s from LG will surely change the way people interact with televisions and being able to do so by simply talking to it in a familiar language makes for one gratifying experience.

“Jumbo Electronics, a leading distributor and retailer in Qatar is happy to provide this expanded range of televisions from LG that are designed to provide customers with customized solutions to help them enjoy content with greater ease.”

Officials of LG and Jumbo Electronics at the launch of LG’s OLED and NanoCell TVs in Doha on Monday.

New OLED and NanoCell TVs Integrated with AI and Arabic Language Capabilities launched

LG’s ThinQ AI technology is designed to listen, think, answer and evolve, in line with the user’s requests and personal taste.

Families in Qatar will now be able to experience unrivalled lev-els of comfort and ease-of-use, by simply speaking to their TVs in the language that they most frequently use at home. Users can control their televisions and ask complex questions

The free-of-cost, year-round programme offers women entrepre-neurs with an exclusive mentorship programme designed to help accelerate and sustain the growth of their businesses in order to become global market leaders

Economy & Business12 Tuesday, July 23, 2019

AFPLAS VEGAS

FATHER Time may be unde-feated, as the old boxing saying goes, but Manny Pacquiao is not going down without a fight.

The 40-year-old Filipino legend wrote another improb-able chapter in his glittering career on Saturday, with an age-defying split decision vic-tory over the hitherto unbeat-en Keith Thurman.

Pacquiao, a full decade older than the 30-year-old

Thurman, rolled back the years with a vintage perfor-mance that had a sold out crowd at the MGM Grand Gar-den Arena roaring in delight.

It was the Filipino’s 62nd win of a 71-fight career that has spanned 24 years. Veterans at ringside described the perfor-mance as Pacquiao’s best since his dazzling win over Antonio Margarito in 2010. Thurman wasted no time after the fight in requesting a rematch.

While fans would happily line up for a sequel to what is

a strong candidate for the fight of the year, Pacquiao’s camp were more circumspect.

Pacquiao, by recapturing a slice of the welterweight divi-sion in such dazzling style, has thrust himself back into rel-evance with the $20mn win.

Even more lucrative pay-days are his for the asking if he chooses to pursue them.

A unification fight with Er-rol Spence Jr, the International Boxing Federation’s welter-weight champion, would sell it-self. The question of a rematch

of his 2015 “Fight of the Centu-ry” against Floyd Mayweather also continues to linger.

Mayweather, who was at ringside to watch Pacquiao’s masterclass, remains firmly re-tired, and has not fought since his cross-combat spectacle with mixed martial arts star Conor McGregor nearly two years ago.

Pacquiao, whose departure from Las Vegas for the Philip-pines was delayed until 6pm (0100 GMT) on Sunday as a precaution, suggested he will not fight again this year.

Long-time trainer Freddie Roach, meanwhile, told AFP that Pacquiao’s camp would take their time before choos-ing their next opponent.

“Someone just asked me ‘What’s next?’,” Roach said. “Well, you know what? We don’t need to think about what’s next for a while.

Reflecting on Pacqui-ao’s astounding energy lev-els, Roach said, “I think he showed that there’s plenty of boxing left in him, even if he is in his 40s.”

Filipino legend Pacquiao mulls his future after title stunner

Filipino boxer Manny Pacquiao celebrates with family members after defeating American Keith Thurman in their WBA super world welter-weight title fight in Las Vegas on Saturday. (AFP)

AFPGWANGJU (SOUTH KOREA)

BRITAIN’S Adam Peaty com-pleted a world treble in the men’s 100 metres breaststroke on Monday, while American Caeleb Dressel continued to feed his obsession for gold by romp-ing to the 50m butterfly title.

Peaty completed what was deemed a formality after smashing his own breaststroke world record at the weekend in Gwangju, South Korea, clock-ing 57.14 seconds to win gold – although his forlorn expres-sion on seeing his time told its own story.

“A little bit disappointed, but that will fuel me for next year,” said the Briton, who set a new world mark of 56.88 at the weekend, becoming the first swimmer to break 57 seconds.

“I know how bad I want to go near 56, even faster.”

The 24-year-old puffed out his cheeks and shook his head despite becoming the first male swimmer to cap-ture three 100m breaststroke world titles.

Unbeaten in five years over the distance in major compe-titions, Peaty turned inside world record pace but ran out of steam. Behind him, fellow Briton James Wilby took silver in 58.46 and China’s Yan Zibei bronze in 58.63.

“At the Olympics next year I’ve got to be more patient instead of going crazy in the semi-finals,” said Peaty.

“I need to hold back the guns and let go in the final.”

Dressel, one of the few swimmers with more body ink than Peaty, swept to seven gold medals at the 2017 world championships in Budapest – 10 years after American great Michael Phelps became the first to do it.

The 22-year-old blazed to the 50m butterfly crown in a championship record of 22.35 seconds with Russian Oleg Ko-stin second (22.70) and Brazil’s Nicholas Santos third (22.79).

It gave him a second gold medal of the week after lead-ing off the American 4x100m freestyle victory on day one.

‘Weird day’“It was kind of a weird day –

I woke up with a heart rate of 150,” said Dressel, who could potentially top his haul from 2017 this week.

“I went for a walk, read a book, watched videos of cars. But I’m in a better place than two years ago. If I try to be fast then I’m no good, so it’s better just to shut everything off and let instinct take over.”

Elsewhere, Canadian teen Margaret MacNeil stunned Sweden’s Sarah Sjostrom in the women’s 100m butterfly.

Sjostrom was looking to become the first female swim-mer to win five gold medals in a single individual event, and the Olympic champion turned first – and five hundredths in-

side her own world record.But MacNeil came roaring

back over the last 25m to claim her first world title, touching in 55.83 with Sjostrom second in 56.22 and Australia’s Emma McKeon third.

“I didn’t expect that,” said the 19-year-old MacNeil.

“I’ve looked up to Sarah forever so it means the world.”

Hungary’s “iron lady” Katinka Hosszu sped to her fourth world title in the wom-en’s 200m individual medley, her time of 2:07.53 more than a second faster the silver med-allist Ye Shiwen of China.

“I just heard it hadn’t been before,” said Hosszu. “That’s really cool, kind of special.”

Adam Peaty of Great Britain on his way winning in the men’s 100m breaststroke final at the Gwangju 2019 FINA World Championships, in South Korea, on Monday. (EPA-EFE)

Tattoo twins romp to world swim goldPeaty, Dressel make big splash at Gwangju

GWANGJU: Swedish swimmer Sarah Sjostrom led a moving tribute to Rikako Ikee at the world championships on Monday, calling the Japanese star a “real fighter” in the face of her leukaemia diagnosis. Sjostrom stood alongside Margaret MacNeil and Emma McKeon on the medal podi-um with a message of support for the Japanese swim queen, a major rival of all three, scrawled on their palms. “Never give up, Rikako Ikee,” read the tribute, alongside two love hearts, as the three 100m butterfly medallists held their hands out to the camera. “I hope really that she (Ikee) will battle this cancer. She is a real fighter

and the real winner,” said Sjostrom. The 25-year-old Swede had been looking to become the first female swimmer to win five gold medals in a single individual event but was forced to settle for silver after a stun-ning race by MacNeil. But Ikee’s illness puts her disappointment into perspective, she said. “What is swimming compared to what she is go-ing through? I told myself that before my race: it doesn’t matter where I come because her battle is 50 times more than anyone else in this final,” she added. “I really hope she will recover and come back and do what she loves. She loved swimming so much and I really think she will come back and fight this cancer.” (AFP)

‘Never give up’: Swimmers send moving message to Japan’s Ikee

Showing support

TUESDAY, JULY 23, 2019

Nam Tae-hee makes a return, looks forward to season with Al Sadd PAGE 14

Alaphilippe says Tour yellow

jersey ‘hanging by a thread’ PAGE 14

AL RAYYAN STADIUM WORK PROGRESSING RAPIDLY

The Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy tweeted pictures of the upcoming stadium for FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 in Al Rayyan, the work on which is progressing rapidly. The stadium will also be the new home of Al Rayyan Sports Club.

Caeleb Dressel of the US after winning the men’s 50m butterfly final at the 18th FINA World Swimming Championships in Gwangju, South Korea, on Monday. (REUTERS)

Yacoub 4th in 200m freestyle heats

Qatari swimmer Yacoub al Khulaifi finished a creditable fourth in the men’s 200m freestyle heats at the 18th FINA World Championships 2019 in Gwangju, South Korea, on Monday. The 17-year-old Yacoub clocked 1:56.57secs. He will now compete in the men’s 100m butterfly event on Friday.

Meanwhile, on Wednesday, Qatar’s Firas Saidi will take part in the men’s 100m freestyle before entering the pool for the 50m freestyle on Friday.

Qatar’s woman swimmer Nada Arakji, who competed at the 2012 Olympics, will be in action in the 50m freestyle on Saturday.

Qatari swimmers will also be participating in the first three rounds of the 2019 World Championships with Abdulaziz al Obaidli and Fires al Saidi taking part in the first round in Tokyo, Japan (August 2 to 4); Omar Ashraf and Karim Salamah in the second round in Jinan, China, (August 8 to 10); and Yaqoub al Khulaifi and Yousuf al Khulaifi in the third round to be held in Singapore from August 15 to 17. (QNA)

A file photo of Japan’s swimming star Rikako Ikee.

rn,d

Sports14 Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Al Sadd draw against Palamos in Xavi’s first matchTRIBUNE NEWS NETWORK

DOHA

XAVI Hernandez took charge of his first game as Al Sadd coach as the Wolves fought back to secure a 1-1 draw against Spanish side Palamos CF in their pre-season friendly match in Gi-rona.

The Spanish club took the lead in the 75th minute. However, new signing Nam Tae-Hee equalised for the Wolves in the 85th minute after a pass from midfielder Salem al Hajri.

Al Sadd started the match by including Saad al Dosari

as goalkeeper, Khaled Bader, Wong Yong, Tarek Salman, Yasser Abubakar in defense, Gabi, Ahmad Badr Sayyar, Abdul Aziz al Ansari in the middle, Hashim Ali, Akram Afif and Hamza Sanhaji in the attack.

In the second half, Al Sadd made several changes by giving a run to Meshaal Barshm, Baha al Leithi, Hussein Behzad, Abdul Ka-rim Hassan, Hamed Ismail, Salem al Hajri, Ali Asad and Hassan al Haydos.

Al Sadd dominated most of the first half and played a balanced game after the break.

Al Sadd players celebrate after scoring against Palamos CF during thier friendly match in Spain on Sunday.

AFPNÎMES, FRANCE

TOUR de France leader Ju-lian Alaphilippe admitted on Monday his yellow jersey was “hanging by a thread” as the toughest, oldest race in the world heads into its final week.

The 27-year-old Deceun-inck-Quick Step rider, looking to become the first Frenchman to win the Tour since Bernard Hinault in 1985, told reporters on Monday’s rest day that “the toughest is yet to come”.

Alaphilippe has worn the famed yellow jersey for 11 days and will start Tuesday’s stage 16 with a 1min 35sec lead over second placed Ge-raint Thomas, the defending champion wearing the colours of Team Ineos.

“One minute thirty ahead, that is a lot and very little at the same time,” said Alaphilippe who is not a front line climber.

“One weakness on a moun-tain over 15, 20 kilometres and it is all over.”

Alaphilippe surprised most people by coming out of the Pyrenees on Sunday with his yellow jersey intact albeit with a slightly reduced lead.

After two relatively flat transition days, however, the race moves back into the mountains on Thursday with three stages in the Alps, each

with a summit finish over 2,000 metres.

They culminate in Satur-day’s penultimate stage at Val Thorens which has a total as-cent of 4,450 metres.

“The climb up Val Thorens will be terrible right up to the summit,” said Alaphilippe.

“When I look at the profile

of these stages in the Alps, I tell myself that my jersey is hang-ing by a thread.”

Alaphilippe was at pains to play down his chances of hold-ing on to the yellow jersey until Sunday when the race ends on the Champs Elysees in Paris.

“We don’t have the team to win the Tour,” he said.

“We knew well that in com-ing here with three leaders (sprinter Elia Viviani, climber Enric Mas and Alaphilippe), we couldn’t have five riders around each one.”

Team owner Patrick Lefe-vere also poured cold water on suggestions that Alaphilippe might yet prevail.

“To take the ultimate victo-ry, we need climbers and today that is something we are lack-ing so we mustn’t dream about it,” he said.

Alaphilippe’s concern about the final week is in con-trast to the positive vibes com-ing out of Team Ineos.

“If (Alaphilippe) pulls it off he’s on another level to everyone,” said Ineos boss Dave Brailsford.

“If he was to win this race he’ll be one of the greatest rid-ers of all time.”

But the former boss of British Olympic cycling in-sisted he remained confi-dent his Ineos charges would emerge from high-altitude in the Alps with the most glitter-ing prize in cycling.

“There are four races that go over the magical 2000m mark and that’s where the real difference will be made,” he said.

“It’s going to go down to the wire. But I believe our consistency will pay off.”

France’s Julian Alaphilippe wearing the overall leader’s yellow jersey, makes a last effort for the finish line of Stage 15 of the 106th edition of the Tour de France on Sunday. (AFP)

The 27-year-old is looking to become the first Frenchman to win the Tour since Bernard Hinault in 1985

Alaphilippe says Tour yellow jersey ‘hanging by a thread’

Nam makes return, looks forward to new season after injury nightmare


RETURNING from a long injury can be a long and tedious road for a football player especially one who is a ball domi-nant midfileder. South Korean midfielder Nam Tae-hee suffered such during an international friendly while play-ing for his national team in November last year.

The 28-year-old having won five QNB Star League and was part of the dominant Al Duhail treble-winning team of the 2017/18 season moved to league rivals Al Sadd on a three-year deal, while still injured in February.

Speaking to Al Sadd website http://al-saddclub.com on his expectations for the season, the former Qatar League Player of the Year said the team’s goal is to keep fighting for championships.

“We have one goal; winning championships and we will fight for that. I am in good shape after the injury and I will be better before the season starts,” Nam said.

“I spent seven months in rehab after the injury and now I have joined a good team, I need more time to get used to the team, but everything is going well and I will be ready.

“I hope to show the best level with the team when I have the opportunity to participate.”

The South Korean added that he is looking forward to representing Al Sadd.

“It is a great honour for me to join Al Sadd Club and I am

happy with this move.“We have a good team of players who can win

the AFC Champions League, an excellent team and a great management. It will be a long season, but we have a goal and we will fight to win all the tourna-ments,” he said.

Nam scored the equalising goal for The Wolves in their pre-season game against Spanish side Palamos and hailed Xavi’s influ-

ence on the team. “Working with

Xavi is good. He teaches us a lot of things. As I said before, I’m happy to join this group. The play-ers are good with me, they welcomed me and I could easily fit in with them. The

camp is more than wonder-ful and excellent.

“I am very happy to join Al Sadd and I thank the fans for their support. We will work hard together to achieve positive results and win all ti-tles and you will see this clear-ly on the pitch,” he said.

Nam Tae-Hee

FIFA’s African football takeover plan set for court challenge

REUTERSCAPE TOWN

FIFA’S plan to take over the running of African football is set to face a possible road-block with an executive com-mittee member of the Con-federation of African Football (CAF) saying he will chal-lenge the decision in court.

Hasan Bility, who is from Liberia and a CAF executive committee member for last two years, said he will ask the Swiss-based Court of Arbitra-tion for Sport to declare inva-lid the agreement by which FIFA secretary general Fatma Samoura will be sent on a se-condment to overhaul the Af-rican governing body.

Bility said he also wants to ask the court to compel CAF to start a forensic audit of its finances, which he said the executive committee had previously agreed to but CAF president Ahmad Ahmad then stalled.

CAF is in crisis follow-ing corruption allegations against Ahmad which he has denied.

Ahmad was reported in March to FIFA’s ethics com-mittee for alleged corruption and harassment by CAF gen-eral secretary Amr Fahmy. Fahmy was then fired.

He was detained in June by French police in Paris where he was questioned over a sportswear deal between CAF and a French company in which the African body is said to have paid exorbitant

prices for equipment it could have got much cheaper di-rectly from the manufactur-ers.

In a statement released to the media on Monday, former Liberian Football Association president Bility said Ahmad must resign and the proposed FIFA takeover be cancelled.

“In an attempt to sal-vage CAF from imminent implosion and irreversible reputational damage, FIFA proposed a poorly concep-tualised and worse executed agreement,” Bility said.

“Logically, and in a sane world, the acquiescence by

the CAF leadership that they have been unable to manage their own affairs ought to have been followed by quick resignation of its top leaders.

“It is clear to me and many others that the agreement as currently structured has the sole purpose of shielding and cleansing CAF President Ahmad from the crimes he has committed - financial im-propriety, sexual harassment and nepotism.”

FIFA has confirmed there is an ethics investigation into Ahmad, although he was yet to be sanctioned.

Ahmad has not responded

to Reuters’ requests for com-ment on the specific allega-tions against him.

Bility also claimed FIFA President Gianni Infantino has seized on the opportunity to get rid of his secretary gen-eral.

“Infantino has thus seized this opportunity to offer Fat-ma a ‘golden parachute’ into a confederation job to pave the way for her eventual replace-ment at the helm of FIFA,” he said.

FIFA on Monday told Re-uters it had no further com-ment to add to last week’s re-lease of an 11-point road map to help African football.

Infantino claimed last week that the unprecedented move to step in and admin-ister African football would “significantly improve” the sport in the continent.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino speaks with CAF President Ahmad Ahmad (right) ahead of the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations final in Cairo, recently. (AFP)

Tokyo 2020 adds robots to Olympic roster

AFPTOKYO

A roster of Olympic robots that will do everything from wel-coming visitors to transport-ing javelins has been unveiled as Tokyo works to showcase Japanese technology at next year’s Summer Games.

Japan hopes the 2020 Olympics will be a chance to put its tech sector back on the map after years in which the coun-try’s reputation as an industry leader has flagged.

Undoubtedly the most ap-pealing are the toddler-sized versions of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic mas-cots, the futuristic Miraitowa and Someity.

Blue- or pink-checked, with huge eyes and pointy ears, the mascot robots have multiple joints and arms which can be remotely controlled.

And while the pint-sized pair can’t move or talk, a cam-era inside their heads helps them interact with spectators and athletes, said Tomohisa Moiradaira, an official respon-sible for Tokyo 2020 robot de-velopment at Toyota.

“Thanks to the camera, the robots can recognise people’s expressions and respond back,” he told reporters.

FIFA bans former Botswana official in match-fixing

REUTERSZURICH

WORLD soccer body FIFA has handed a life ban to former Botswana Football Associa-tion general secretary Mooketsi Kgotlele for accepting bribes in relation to the manipulation of international matches.

FIFA said in a statement on Monday that the adjudica-tory chamber of the Independ-ent Ethics Committee had also fined the former official 50,000 Swiss francs.

“The formal ethics proceed-ings against Mr Kgotlele... stem from an extensive investigation into various attempts to manip-

ulate international matches for betting purposes by Mr Wilson Raj Perumal, a known match-fixer,” said FIFA The proceed-ings were initiated in Septem-ber 2018, the statement added.

The ban on Kgotlele cov-ers all football-related activities (administrative, sports or any other) at national and interna-tional level and came into force on Monday. The long-running investigation into convicted Singapore-based match fixer Perumal’s activities has already produced life bans for players and former officials.

Togolese Football Associa-tion official Kokou Hougnimon Fagla, who was also a referee,

was banned from soccer-related activities last March for accept-ing bribes to manipulate an in-ternational friendly. Seven cur-rent and former players were banned for life in April.

FIFA named them at the time as Karlon Murray and Keyeno Thomas from Trinidad, Ibrahim Kargbo (Sierra Leone), Hellings Mwakasungula (Ma-lawi), Seidath Tchomogo (Be-nin), Leonel Duarte (Cuba) and Mohammad Salim Israfeel Ko-histani (Afghanistan).

Kenyan player George Ow-ino Audi was given a 10-year ban and Zimbabwean players’ agent Kudzanai Shaba was banned for life.

CAF dilemmaHasan Bility, who is from Liberia and a CAF executive committee member for last two years, said he will ask the Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport to declare invalid the agreement by which FIFA secretary general Fatma Samoura will be sent on a secondment to overhaul the African governing body.

SEVILLA’S Joris Gnagnon has apologised for his “heinous” tackle on Liverpool youngster Yasser Larouci which led to the Sevilla defender being sent off during a pre-season friendly in Boston. Gnagnon launched a wild challenge on the 18-year-old Larouchi, which launched him into the air and led him to being carried off on a stretch-er during Liverpool’s 2-1 defeat at Fenway Park on Sunday. “I would like to publicly apologise towards Liverpool, the family of the player and its supporters,” Gnagnon posted on Twitter. “It was a heinous act on my part. Whatever the reason, it’s not what should be seen on a football pitch. All my prayers are with the player and his fam-ily.” Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp was watching his words in post-match interviews, but confirmed Larouci was “lucky” to have avoided a serious injury. “It is much too early in the season to create headlines by saying the things I think about the situation,” the German manager told reporters. (REUTERS)

Sevilla’s Gnagnon apologises after ‘heinous’ tackle on Liverpool youngster

Quick read

QWSC, QIHF participate in IIHF development camp in FinlandTRIBUNE NEWS NETWORK

DOHA

THE Qatar Winter Sports Committee and the Qatar Ice Hockey Federation (QIHF) participated in an Interna-tional Ice Hockey Federation camp to develop the sport, which was held in Vierumaki, Finland from July 6 to 13.

The QIHF sent one junior male player and one manage-ment member to represent Qa-tar at this international event - Thawab Mohammed al Subaey and Thamer Abdulla al Mohan-nadi.

The camp was used as a platform to launch the IIHF’s development and education programmes, specifically aimed

at assisting each national asso-ciation to achieve their objec-tives, leading to global growth

and development of the game.The QIHF was delighted at

getting an opportunity to take

part in the important world-level activity, which marked the presence of many countries.

DPALONDON

AS he walked on to the 18th green at Royal Portrush on Sunday with the Open Cham-pionship in the bag, Shane Lowry could not keep the smile from his face.

In the first Open to be held in Northern Ireland since 1951, it was fitting that it should be an Irishman who lifted the Claret Jug.

Lowry’s six-shot victory was reward for a unique talent playing the golf of his life.

For most of the week, it seemed as if he was riding a wave, as relaxed as if he was simply playing a few rounds with his friends, not immersed in the cauldron of an Open Championship.

It looked easy, but as he let the enormity of his achieve-ment sink in on Sunday even-ing, he admitted it had taken a lot of work The 32-year-old said a change in philosophy had been the key to his success.

“Golf is a weird sport and you never know what’s around the corner,” Lowry told re-porters at Royal Portrush, the course which enjoy almost as big a success as the perfor-mance of Lowry himself.

“I sat in the car park in Car-noustie (at last year’s Open), almost a year ago right to this week, and I cried.

“Golf wasn’t my friend at the time. It was something that become very stressful and it was weighing on me and I

just didn’t like doing it.What a difference a year

makes.” Carnoustie was the fourth straight Open in which Lowry had missed the cut.

Always tipped for the top, in 2016, he let slip a four-shot lead going into the final round of the US Open to miss out on a first major.

A realisation that his fam-ily – his wife, Wendy, and

young daughter, Iris, were more important than golf al-lowed him to play freely..

Lowry is the latest in a line of Irishman to win ma-jors, from Padraig Harrington, with three majors in 2007 and 2008, to Graeme McDowell in 2010, Darren Clarke in 2011 and Rory McIlroy with four between 2011 and 2014.

It is a stunning achieve-

ment for the island of Ireland and Lowry admitted that, ini-tially, following in their foot-steps had not been easy.

“I used to curse them an awful lot in the past because that’s all anybody wanted to know about in Ireland because they were winning so many majors,” he said.

“When are you going to win one? Winning regular

events wasn’t good enough for anyone.” “I watched Paddy win his two Opens. I didn’t even know him back then.

I’m obviously very good friends with him.

“To have him there on the 18th ... you go into Paddy’s house and the Claret Jug is sit-ting on the kitchen table, and I’m going to have one on my kitchen table, as well. I said that to him, as well, that’s go-ing to be quite nice.” Once the celebrations are over, which might be a while yet, Lowry will be expected to kick on from here, with a place in next year’s Ryder Cup surely a cer-tainty if he plays half as well over the next 12 months as he did this past week.

“Whistling Straits (the venue for next year’s event) is going to be a windy golf course, and a pressure situ-ation,” Harrington, now Eu-rope’s Ryder Cup captain, told BBC radio.

“It’s hard to see him not being in the team at this moment in time.” Lowry, though, wants to relish his Open triumph.

“Geez, let me enjoy this one,” he said.

With the PGA Champion-ship moved to earlier in the year from its traditional Au-gust slot, the Open concluded the majors for the year.

And as such Lowry will be able to relish his status as top dog for some time yet, even as the relentless schedule of the regular tours start again.

Ireland’s Shane Lowry poses with his family and the Claret Jug, the trophy for the Champion golfer of the year after winning the British Open at the Royal Portrush golf club in Northern Ireland Sunday. (AFP)

From depths of despair to Open glory, Lowry earns major status

REUTERSMELBOURNE

SIXTEEN months after leav-ing Test cricket in disgrace over the ball-tampering furo-re, Steve Smith’s preparations for the Ashes have gone up to a manic level as the former skip-per looks to return to red ball cricket in top form.

Australia captain Tim Paine said former skipper Smith had given batting coach Graeme Hick long and taxing work-outs in the nets as he looks to hone his formidable game ahead of the Ashes open-er in Edgbaston on August 1.

Renowned for his obsessive approach to training, Smith is back in the Test squad along with David Warner and Cam-eron Bancroft, the other two players hit with long bans for their involvement in the Cape Town scandal in March, 2018.

“You don’t become one of the best players in the world and average 60 in Test cricket if you don’t have some sort of a mission,” Paine told reporters of Smith at the team’s training base in Southampton.

“The boys have been having a bit of a laugh the last couple of days because nothing’s changed – he’s hit a million balls and our

coach’s arm is falling off already on day two of the trip.

“It’s great to see that him, and David (Warner) and Cameron Bancroft have come back in and fitted perfectly in our group. They are guys who have always trained at excep-tionally high standards and set the standard for others.

“The three of them have been outstanding since they’ve been back and involved.”

Australia are bidding to re-tain the urn and erase the dis-appointment of their one-day World Cup campaign, which ended in the semi-finals at the hands of hosts and eventual champions England.

Top order batsman Usman Khawaja, who suffered a ham-string strain during the World Cup semi-final, is being rested for the unofficial match but Paine said he was expected to be fully fit and available for se-lection for Edgbaston.

“I don’t think he’s in seri-ous doubt (for the test),” Paine said. “He’s in a rehab stage so the decision has been made that he won’t play at this stage.

“There is a possibility, maybe, if something were to happen to someone else he might be right for the back end of the (practice) game.”

Smith keen to be back to his best for Ashes openerKhawaja expected to be fit for Aussies

Qatari chess players excel at Arab championship


THE Qatari team sparkled in the second round of the Arab Chess Championship in Am-man, Jordan.

Qatar’s Saleh al Hur de-feated Jordan’s Mohammed Saleh to move to the 10th place in the overall standings. In the girl’s event, Lian Qasabi edged past Iraq’s Retaj Saad Hassan, while her sister Rawda defeated Iraq’s Nor al Zahra Abdulamir.

The championship has at-tracted 276 players from 16 teams, including Qatar, Alge-ria, Morocco, Lebanon, Iraq, Tunisia, Libya, Syria, Pales-tine, Yemen, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman and hosts Jordan.

15Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Qatar flounder on unfriendly track


IN their opening ICC T20 World Cup Asia Region final match on a poor and deterio-rating pitch, Qatar were unfor-tunate as they first lost the toss and then suffered a painful 33-run defeat at the hands of hosts Singapore on Monday.

Chasing a stiff 187-run target, Qatar lost opener In-am-Ul-Haq (11 off nine balls) at 13 and they could not re-cover well. The moment Qa-tar steadied their ship, they got a couple of quick blows to undo their recovery pro-

cess on the pitch that had chipped off badly nearing the

popping crease. As a result, Qatar could

manage only 153 for nine de-spite their best stand of 44

runs, shared by skipper Ta-moor Sajjad (34 in 29 balls with two sixes and two fours) and Muhammad Tanveer (26 in 14 balls with three sixes). Both were in good nick as Tanveer smashed three sixes and a four in his knock and Sajjad cracked two sixes and as many boundaries.

Earlier, Singapore ben-efited from the fresh strip and first three useful partnerships, running up a challenging 186 for seven. They first got 44 runs in 6.2 overs through openers Rohan Rangarajan and Surendran Chandramo-han. The latter then took the score to 105 in 12.2 overs in the company of Tim David.

The third-wicket part-nership, between David and Manpreet Singh, brought up 150 on the board, setting up a good launch pad for the finish. Iqbal Chaudhry bowled well to grab four for 33, while Noman Sarwar picked two for 38.

This was the poor state of the wicket when Qatar came on to bat against Singapore during the ICC T20 WC Asia Regional Final match in Singapore on Monday. Qatar lost their opening match by 33 runs.

Al Annabi lose ICC T20 WC Asia Regional final opener to Singapore

Singapore won by 33 runs

Singapore: 186 for seven (Rohan Rangarajan 32 in 20b, Surendran Chandramohan 47 in 39b, Tim David 38 in 29b, Manpreet Singh 34 in 18b, Noman Sarwar 2/38, Iqbal Chaudhry 4/33)

Qatar: 153 for nine (Faisal Javed 29 in 14b, Muhammad Tanveer 26 in 14b, Tamoor Sajjad 34 in 29b, Mohammed Rizlan 33 in 33b, Janak Prakash 3/15, Amjad Mahboob 3/38)

Man of the match: Janak Prakash (Singapore)

SCORES

Lasith Malinga: Available just for one ODI against Bangladesh.

Malinga to quit ODIs after first Bangla game

AFPCOLOMBO

VETERAN Sri Lankan pace bowler Lasith Malinga will re-tire from One-Day Internation-al cricket after the first match of a three-match series against Bangladesh, skipper Dimuth Karunaratne said on Monday.

Malinga was named to the 22-man Sri Lanka squad for the series with matches sched-uled for July 26, 28 and 31 at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.

But speaking at the team’s press conference in the Sri Lankan capital, Karunaratne confirmed the 36-year old fast bowler and former cap-tain would only appear in the first game.

“He is going to play the

first match. After that he is retiring. That’s what he said to me. I don’t know what he said to the selectors but for me he said he is playing only one match,” said Karunaratne.

Malinga, 35, will leave as Sri Lanka’s third highest wicket-taker in ODI cricket with 335 wickets in 219 in-nings so far.

Only Muttiah Murali-tharan (523) and Chaminda Vaas (399) have taken more wickets than Malinga in ODIs for Sri Lanka.

He was Sri Lanka’s highest wicket-taker at the World Cup, claiming 13 scalps in seven matches.

Malinga retired from Test cricket in 2011 but continued to remain available in other formats since then.

Sports


TODAY, innovation is growing at an unprecedented rate, and this is especially true for the tech industry. Whether it’s an online shopping portal or taxi services on your smartphone, imagina-tive people are making ‘conveni-ence’ their business – by creating products or services that cater to people’s day-to-day needs.

Among them are the teams behind Suncart, Ogro and Mikit-sune – three of the rising start-ups housed at Qatar Science and Technology Park (QSTP), part of Qatar Foundation Research, Development, and Innovation – who share their entrepreneurial experiences and the benefits of being incubated at Qatar Foun-dation’s hub of tech innovation and entrepreneurship.

“When I came to Qatar as a bachelor, I realised I had to take care of everything, including grocery shopping,” says Khawa-ja Jaffer, founder of Suncart – a delivery platform where users can order groceries for doorstep delivery. “My office was in West Bay and I had to walk to the mall to buy only 4-5 grocery items, every other day.”

This ritual of walking to a mall after work every day to buy just a few things seemed tedi-ous. When Khawaja spoke to his colleagues and young fami-lies about the same, they agreed too. For Khawaja, this was a sign that something had to be done.

“I invested my own money, raised some funds from angel investors and started Suncart at the end of 2017,” he says. And now Suncart is increasingly cap-turing shoppers’ attention.

Like Khawaja, Dana Irshaid, co-founder of Ogro, also wanted to find a convenient solution to the basic, but critical aspect of home-making: grocery shop-ping. “When I got married, I found it challenging in trying to balance my erratic working hours with managing every-thing at home,” she says, ex-plaining that she struggled with various delivery service options that were available at the time. “There would always be one or two things missing, which meant I had to visit the supermarket.”

While grocery shopping is a key element in managing a home, another aspect is to man-age those living in the home, es-pecially children and their time.

“My idea started three years ago when I was look-ing online for a site, forum, or page that could give me infor-mation about all children’s ac-tivities taking place throughout Qatar,” says Dayana Abboud, founder of Mikitsune, adding, “I noticed that something like this didn’t exist.”

Dayana saw this as an op-portunity to create Mikitsune,

an app for parents that acts as a single source of information specifically designed to cater to children across a wide age range – from newborn to 14 years.

“We started in 2017, and ever since, we have been creat-ing content to inform parents in Qatar about activities for chil-dren,” says Dayana. Mikitsune is a fully self-funded project and will eventually seek to expand to the point where parents can book classes and venues on the app, which will allow for rev-enue generation.

Meanwhile, online grocery

shopping is now being consid-ered as the new frontier in glob-al e-commerce. IGD, a research and training charity focusing on the food and grocery indus-try, predicts that global online grocery markets will create a $227 billion growth opportu-nity by 2023.

“We set up Ogro in Febru-ary, 2019, and the app is yet to go live, but my vision is to completely eliminate the need for someone to go to a grocery store,” says Dana, explaining that the delivery method at Ogro will be on-demand, reducing delivery times. Ogro will have temperature-controlled smart-lockers in office and residential buildings where groceries will be delivered.

Suncart will look to deliver in returnable insulated bags that protect perishable goods; and get involved in mitigating food wastage. “Hypermarkets may have items that are close to ex-piry, so we will develop options for distributing these items to avenues such as restaurants and canteens where large meals are cooked, so that there is quick

consumption before the items expire. We can support big hy-permarkets in this logistical pro-cess,” says Khawaja.

“In my mind, there’s this abstract thing that instead of fill-ing a bag with fruits and vegeta-bles, we’re filling time and giving people three hours of their lives back,” says Khawaja, adding, “Getting into e-commerce, and in groceries, is exciting for me. I think historically, this is the most difficult vertical in e-com-merce and what motivates me even more is that we are trying to build a company with a Silicon Valley mindset from day one.”

Hoping to expand into the MENA region as well, Khawaja appreciates the collaborative en-vironment at QSTP that allows him to bounce ideas off fellow incubatees. “On a weekly basis, we get advice on technology, on how to make connections to ac-quire investors and how to build a company,” he says.

Dana agrees. “Being in QSTP gives us access to some of the brightest minds in the coun-try – students studying at Edu-cation City,” she explains.

The Last Word16 Tuesday, July 23, 2019

HAMMADI RECEIVES CREDENTIALS OF NEW AMBASSADORS

Secretary-General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs HE Dr Ahmed bin Hassan al Hammadi received on Monday copies of the credentials of Ambassador of Australia to Qatar HE Jonathan James Coulter Muir, Ambassador of Afghanistan HE Abdul Hakim Dalili and Ambassador of China HE Zhou Jian. Hammadi wished the new ambassadors success in their duties, assuring them of all support to take the relations between Qatar and their countries to closer cooperation in various fields. (QNA)

NMoQ workshops tofocus on traditional Qatari craftsmanship

THE National Museum of Qa-tar (NMoQ) has launched a series of workshops and dem-onstrations to celebrate the im-portant role of traditional crafts in Qatar.

Taking inspiration from the objects on display in the museum galleries, the work-shops focus on design and decorative patterns that are typical of local craftsmanship and integral to Qatari identity.

Running until August 8, the NMoQ Summer Program encourages residents and visi-tors to discover Qatar’s his-tory through its traditions and the crafts that Qatari people used to make during the sum-mer months while living by the coast.

Jewellery making, Al Khous (palm weaving), gypsum carv-ing, net and rope making are some of the crafts that attend-ees will have the opportunity to learn during the workshops.

The series of workshops was developed by NMoQ as part of its wide variety of ex-citing and engaging learning activities available to the pub-lic throughout the year. The museum hosts quarterly public events to ensure a dynamic and ever-changing cultural offering to multiple audiences.

Talks and discussions for

adults and students, practi-cal art and design workshops, family weekend drop-in activi-ties, along with special evening performances and courses, are just some of the upcoming ini-tiatives for 2019.

More information on NMoQ education programme is available at: http://nmoq.org.qa

The NMoQ Summer Pro-gram has been developed by the Learning Department at the National Museum of Qatar.

The programme is part of Summer in Qatar, developed by Qatar National Tourism Coun-cil (QNTC) in partnership with Qatar Museums and many oth-er established entities in Qatar. Members of Qatar Museums’ Culture Pass Plus and Culture Pass Family will get closer to Summer in Qatar enjoy ben-efits such as exclusive discounts on tourism products, outdoor, mall and retail activities, family entertainment. (TNN)

Campaign to remove abandoned cars kicks off in Al Shahaniya municipality

A joint campaign to remove abandoned cars in Al Shahaniya Municipality kicked off on Monday. The drive is being carried out by various departments of the Ministry of Municipality and Environment (MME), in coordination with the municipality and security authorities. The MME has removed about 4,800 abandoned cars from different parts of the country this year. (QNA)

Embracing technology for ‘business’ of convenience

Dana Irshaid, co-founder of Ogro.

Khawaja Jaffer, founder of Suncart.Dayana Abboud, founder of Mikitsune.

New-gen entrepreneurs reap success by creating products and services that cater to people’s day-to-day needs

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