• Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte in quotes

    Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is known for saying things that many would consider unsayable. But his outspoken style and crime-fighting record have made him popular with many Filipinos. Here are some of his most contentious statements: Praising Hitler For most political leaders, praising Adolf Hitler would be inconceivable. But not for Mr Duterte, who has compared his brutal campaign against drug dealers and users to the Holocaust, saying he will kill as many addicts as Hitler did Jews. In comments that sparked global outrage, he told reporters he had been "portrayed to be some cousin of Hitler" by his critics. "Hitler massacred three million Jews. Now, there is three million drug addicts.

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  • Kingdom executes $300bn worth of projects defying regional recession

    RIYADH: Defying the global and regional trends of recession, Saudi Arabia is currently executing projects worth $300 billion, said Fahad Mohammed Al-Hammady, chairman of the National Committee for Contractors at the Council of Saudi Chambers (CSC). The Saudi government is also supporting several projects, while it is reviewing a large number of projects also. “Whatever the case may be, a better future for construction section is anticipated,” said Al-Hammady, while speaking at a presentation organized by the German-Saudi Arabian Liaison Office for Economic Affairs (GESALO) in Riyadh. The event was organized in cooperation with the CSC and the Germany’s Messe Munchen to introduce the world’s leading trade fair for architecture, materials and systems called ‘BAU Trade Fair’.

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  • Blake Lively doesn't want you praising her post-baby body

    Blake Lively says new mums shouldn't feel pressure to lose weight straight after having a baby. She's been on Australian breakfast show Sunrise, where she was complimented on how great she looked in a bikini in her new film The Shallows. The presenter commented on how the film was shot just months after Blake had her first baby. But the 28-year-old called it unfair that slimming down after birth is "so celebrated". "It's like, this is what someone looks like after having a baby," she said. "I think a woman's body after having a baby is pretty amazing. You gave birth to a human being. I would really like to see that celebrated." The ex-Gossip Girl star's now expecting her second child with husband

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  • Swimming feat by Saudi woman to highlight plight of Syrian orphans

    Saudi Gazette report Jeddah — Mariam Saleh Binladin has become the first person from Saudi Arabia to make a solo assisted crossing of the English Channel, the world’s most celebrated open water swim. Mariam took on the Channel swim as part of a series of ultimate endurance challenges to raise awareness about the plight of orphan children from Syria. The story of Mariam’s epic swimming feats will be told in a film documentary ‘I am Mariam Binladin’ to be premiered in December this year. Mariam’s Channel swim was ratified by the Channel Crossing Association (CCA) which permits swimmers to wear wetsuits and receive assistance to ensure a safe crossing. Mariam completed the swim in 11 hours and 41

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  • Myriam in a soup over Saudi flag photo

    BEIRUT: Lebanese diva Myriam Fares has ruffled some feathers in Saudi Arabia for sticking her face on the Saudi national flag on Facebook.The 33-year-old singer was merely congratulating them on the 86th anniversary of Saudi Arabia’s National Day, reported Al-Bawaba. However, many Saudis weren’t too keen on seeing Myriam’s fully made-up face on their flag, which has the words “There is no God but Allah, Muhammad is His Prophet (peace be upon him)” written on it. In the comments section, hundreds of angry Muslims condemned Myriam for posting the photo, which many deemed as insulting to Islam. Many bashed Myriam for placing God’s virtuous words on her “cheap face.” Meanwhile, others barraged the

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  • Video: Cut's 100 Years of Egyptian Beauty Breaks the Internet!

    The latest video of Cut's 100 Years of Beauty series, which has already covered the evolution of beauty in countries such as India, Russia, and Korea, just managed to fit 100 years of Egyptian beauty in less than two minutes of footage. Featured looks are a documentation of Egypt’s political shifts and their effects on Egyptian society and, by extension, Egyptian women’s sense of style.    “The look chosen for the 1910s represented the urban look that women would wear to step outside the home,” researcher Jacinthe Assaad says in a video detailing the research behind each look. According to Assaad, the 20s look is inspired by Egyptian feminist Huda Shaarawi who took off the veil in resistance.

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  • Govt slashes pay for ministers, public sector perks

    RIYADH: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman has ordered a 20 percent reduction in the salaries and benefits of senior government officials as part of austerity measure amid lower oil prices.A royal decree carried by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) and broadcast on Ekhbariya TV said the salary curb also affects Cabinet ministers, including Crown Prince Mohammed bin Naif, deputy prime minister and minister of interior, and Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is also defense minister. The decree includes a 15 percent reduction in car and housing benefits for members of the country’s highest consultative body, the Shoura Council. The changes are to start with the Islamic new year,

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  • Unpaid Pakistani workers to fly home

    RIYADH: Hundreds of Pakistani construction workers are to fly home from Saudi Arabia this week but without the salaries they have waited months to receive, embassy officials told AFP.A total of 405 Pakistanis owed wages by once-mighty Saudi Oger will fly home from Wednesday courtesy of the Saudi government, said Abdul Shakoor Shaikh, the Pakistani Embassy’s community welfare attache. They are among more than 6,500 Pakistanis who, he said, have not been paid by the construction giant for that past eight or nine months. Large contingents of Filipinos and Indians have also gone months without pay from Saudi Oger, which is led by Lebanon’s billionaire former premier Saad Hariri. In all, more than

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  • Love Island will return for a third series

    Good news for fans of Love Island - ITV has announced it will be back next year. Bosses have ordered a third season of one of the summer's most talked about shows. Its second run is thought to have doubled last year's viewing figures, with an average of 1.3 million people watching each episode. "We can't wait to do it all again next year," said ITV Studios creative director Richard Cowles. Although the series officially finished last night with Nathan Massey and Cara De La Hoyde crowned champions, it will return for a special episode on Sunday 17 July. Love Island: Heading Home will follow the islanders as they're reunited at the wrap party. Which will no doubt mean clashes as exes come face-to-face

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  • Kashmir territories profile

    The Himalayan region of Kashmir has been a flashpoint between India and Pakistan for over six decades. Since India's partition and the creation of Pakistan in 1947, the nuclear-armed neighbours have fought three wars over the Muslim-majority territory, which both claim in full but control in part. Today it remains one of the most militarised zones in the world. China administers parts of the territory. MEDIA Reporting on Kashmir from both India and Pakistan mainstream media is deeply politicized and reflects the tension between the two countries. Media in Indian-administered Kashmir are generally split between pro- and anti-secessionist. Local journalists work under strict curfews and also face

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  • Concerted effort to combat Iran lies urged

    ABHA: A recent US study said Iran annually spends nearly $950 million to improve its image and distort the image of the GCC countries in the US media. Meanwhile, a study recently published by Ali Al-Qarni, titled “The image of Saudi Arabia in the world: A survey study on samples of academics and media professionals in the Kingdom,” said the image of Islam has been negatively affected as a result of Western campaigns, notably Zionist campaigns in the US, which were never addressed except by the Saudi diplomatic institutions. Commenting on this, the head of the College of Information and Communications of Post-Graduate Studies and Scientific Research at Imam Mohammed Islamic University, Mohammed Al-Subaihi, said: “We cannot deny that the Iranian media is organizing media campaigns whose expenses are fully paid in an exaggerated manner.

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  • Bloomberg names Saudi prince in influential list

    Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdul-Aziz has been ranked 42nd on the list of Bloomberg’s 50 Most Influential People in the world of finance. Bloomberg said that the 31-year old prince has drawn up a plan to transform the world’s biggest crude exporter into a diversified economy fit for the next era, almost eight decades after oil was discovered in Saudi Arabia.

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  • US weighs tougher response to Russia over Syria crisis

    Obama administration officials have begun considering tougher responses to the Russian-backed Syrian government assault on Aleppo, including military options, as rising tensions with Moscow diminish hopes for diplomatic solutions from the Middle East to Ukraine and cyberspace, US officials said on Wednesday. The new discussions were being held at “staff level,” and have yet to produce any recommendations to President Barack Obama, who has resisted ordering military action against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the country’s multisided civil war.

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  • Saudi Arabia vs Dubai: The 2020 Race For The World’s Tallest Tower

    It seems like Dubai is bored of smashing Guinness World Records, as flagship developer Emaar Properties announces plans to construct the world’s tallest tower, surpassing the Burj Khalifa that currently holds the current world record, but will Saudi Arabia steal the title? The race is on as property developer Emaar has announced plans to build a new tower, with an estimated cost of $1 billion, that will stand a ‘notch’ taller than 830-metre Burj Khalifa. The proposed project expects completion by 2020, which coincidentally will be the same year that Dubai will host the World Expo Trading Fair. The announcement explained that Spanish-Swiss architect Santiago Calatrava Valls is expected to devote

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  • Meet the world's richest young billionaires as Hugh Grosvenor inherits £9bn

    He had three daughters but only one son, 25-year-old Hugh Grosvenor, who is heir to the dukedom. Hugh has now inherited "half of London" after his father's estate covers most of Belgravia and Mayfair - the most expensive area on the Monopoly board. He hasn't had to work for his father's money. But he does have a job as an account manager for Bio-bean - a green technology company. According to the 2016 Forbes Rich List there are nine other under-30s worth more than $1bn - so we thought we'd find out who some of them are. At 20 and 21, Alexandra and Katharina Andresen are the youngest Johan, a Norwegian industrialist and investor, transferred his fortune to his two daughters in 2007. Norway is

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  • Viewpoint: How India's response to Pakistan weakens Sharif

    As Delhi explores its options to respond to the attack in Uri, which killed 19 soldiers in one of the worst terror attacks in Kashmir in recent years, the Modi government seems to be making a strong case for strategic restraint. Amidst growing demands, especially from his ruling BJP party's rank-and-file, for strong action against Pakistan - who India blames for the attack - the Indian prime minister managed to turn attention from incessant warmongering towards long-term challenges facing the region. Pakistan has strongly denied involvement in the Uri attack. In his speech to his party cadres, Mr Modi challenged ordinary Pakistani's to a race on development as opposed to one on military engagement.

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  • Dubai airport grounds flights due to 'drone activity'

    Dubai International Airport was forced to ground flights for half an hour due to a drone flying in the area, the airport says. It said airspace around the airport closed just after 0800 local time (0400 GMT) on Wednesday because of "unauthorised drone activity". Arrivals resumed at 0835, with full operations restarting by 0907. It is not the first time drones have delayed flights at the airport, one of the world's busiest. "We remind all [drone] operators that activities are not permitted within 5km (3.11 miles) of any airport or landing area,'' Dubai Airports said on Twitter. On June 12 a similar incident saw Dubai International Airport close for 69 minutes. In the wake of the incident, authorities

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  • 23 Absurdly Fab Photos from Karim El Chiaty & Victoria's Secret Model Ana Beatriz Barros' Wedding

    You might have noticed people making the move to Sahel, Gouna, and other such dreamy beachy lands during the Eid weekend, but what about the mysterious case of Mykonos? Why were our social media feeds suddenly flooded with images of the Greek tropical island? A coincidence? We think not. Everyone in the country (or world) has been buzzing – about what can only be described as the biggest, most glam wedding of the year where Brazilian Victoria’s Secret supermodel Ana Beatriz Barros tied the knot with Egyptian-Greek billionaire Karim El Chiati. You could say a few celebrities made an appearance. Nothing special. A slew of luxurious villas held over 400 guests who flew from all over the world for

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  • Hijabi Fashion and the “Enslavement of Women”

    Last week, the social media sphere was set ablaze as French Families Minister Laurence Rossignol criticised fashion labels who produce Islamic collections, accusing them of promoting the shutting away of women’s bodies and comparing veiled women with “negroes who supported slavery.” Her comment followed Yves Saint Laurent Co-Founder Pierre Berge’s harsh criticism of the fashion chains who follow the lead of Italian designers Dolce & Gabbana, who released their hijab and abaya collection last January. "Designers are there to make women more beautiful, to give them their freedom, not to collaborate with this dictatorship which imposes this abominable thing by which we hide women and make them live

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  • How has India changed a year after Dadri beef lynching?

    It has been a year since a Muslim man in northern India was lynched over rumours that his family had slaughtered a cow and eaten beef. Hindus consider cows to be sacred, and for many, eating beef is taboo. The slaughter of cows is also banned in many Indian states. But Mohammad Akhlaq's death sparked widespread outrage and contributed to changing the social and political discourse of the country. The BBC's Ayeshea Perera looks at some of the most significant things that happened in India following his death. The 'intolerance' furore Perhaps the largest fallout of Mohammad Akhlaq's death in Uttar Pradesh state was the accusation of "intolerance" that began to haunt Prime Minister Narendra Modi's

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