DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Death toll in US strikes on pro-Iran targets in Syria rises to 19 -war monitor
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIRUT, March 25 (Reuters) - The death toll in U.S. air strikes on pro-Iran installations in eastern Syria has risen to 19 fighters, a Syrian war monitor said on Saturday, in one of the deadliest exchanges between the U.S. and Iran-aligned forces in years. The U.S. carried out strikes in eastern Syria in response to a drone attack on Thursday that left one American contractor dead, and another one wounded along with five U.S. troops. The war monitor said air raids killed three Syrian troops, 11 Syrian fighters in pro-government militias and five non-Syrian fighters who were aligned with the government. Another U.S. service member was wounded, according to officials, and local sources said suspected U.S. rocket fire hit more locations in eastern Syria. Tehran's growing entrenchment in Syria has drawn regular Israeli air strikes but American aerial raids are more rare.

☆ Pro-Iranian forces in Syria warn they can respond to further U.S. strikes
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BEIRUT, March 24 (Reuters) - Pro-Iranian forces in Syria said in an online statement late Friday that they have a "long arm" to respond to further U.S. strikes on their positions, after tit-for-tat strikes in Syria over the last 24 hours. The statement, signed by the Iranian Advisory Committee in Syria, said U.S. strikes had left several fighters dead and wounded, without specifying their nationality. "We have the capability to respond if our centers and forces in Syria are targeted," the statement said. Reporting by Maya Gebeily; Editing by Leslie AdlerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Alzheimer’s first signs may appear in your eyes, study finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Sandee Lamotte | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Getty ImagesResearch has been exploring how the eye may help in diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease before symptoms begin. “Alzheimer’s disease begins in the brain decades before the first symptoms of memory loss,” said Dr. Richard Isaacson, an Alzheimer’s preventive neurologist who is also at the Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases. Researchers then compared samples from donors with normal cognitive function to those with mild cognitive impairment and those with later-stage Alzheimer’s disease. The study, published in February in the journal Acta Neuropathologica, found significant increases in beta-amyloid, a key marker of Alzheimer’s disease, in people with both Alzheimer’s and early cognitive decline. Tissue atrophy and inflammation in cells in the far periphery of the retina were most predictive of cognitive status, the study found.

Summary Saudi Arabia, Syria cut ties more than a decade agoAgreement on reopening embassies follows Saudi-Iran dealBEIRUT/RIYADH, March 23 (Reuters) - Syria and Saudi Arabia have agreed to reopen their embassies after cutting diplomatic ties more than a decade ago, three sources with knowledge of the matter said, a step that would mark a leap forward in Damascus's return to the Arab fold. Contacts between Riyadh and Damascus had gathered momentum following a landmark agreement to re-establish ties between Saudi Arabia and Iran, a key ally of President Bashar al-Assad, a regional source aligned with Damascus said. The decision was the result of talks in Saudi Arabia with a senior Syrian intelligence official, according to one of the regional sources and a diplomat in the Gulf. The United States and several of its regional allies, including Sunni-led Saudi Arabia and Qatar, had backed some of the Syrian rebels. But Saudi Arabia has been moving far more cautiously.

☆ IMF: Lebanon in 'very dangerous situation' with reforms stalled
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BEIRUT, March 23 (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund warned on Thursday that Lebanon was in a very dangerous situation a year after it committed to reforms it has failed to implement, and the IMF urged the government to halt borrowing from the central bank. "One would have expected more in terms of implementation and approval of legislation" related to reforms, he said, noting "very slow" progress. "Lebanon is in a very dangerous situation," he added, in unusually frank remarks. Still, Rigo said that the IMF would "never walk away" from helping a member country and there was no deadline for Lebanon to implement the reforms. Rigo said that Lebanon should move towards a market-determined exchange rate, rather than maintaining multiple rates including the central bank's Sayrafa exchange rate, which is not set by market forces.

☆ Lebanese security forces fire tear gas at crowds protesting pound devaluation
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Mohamed AzakirBEIRUT, March 22 (Reuters) - Lebanese security forces on Wednesday fired tear gas at hundreds of protesters, mostly retired members of the security forces, who had gathered near government buildings in Beirut in anger at deteriorating economic conditions. Crowds gathered in the streets of downtown Beirut between parliament and the government serail, carrying Lebanon's tricolour or flags bearing the logos of security forces. They were outraged at the deteriorating value of state pensions paid in the local currency. One soldier was seen treating a young boy who was affected by the tear gas. "He's suffering just like me," he told Reuters, clutching two of the tear gas canisters fired just moments earlier.

JANDARIS, Syria, March 22 (Reuters) - Hussein Mankawi has little hope he will ever rebuild his home and food distribution businesses in the north-west Syrian city of Jandaris after they were reduced to rubble by last month's deadly earthquake, wiping out his life's work. There is nothing but tents," he said, standing by the mangled ruins of his home in the rebel-held region. The Feb. 6 earthquakes were the worst modern-day natural disasters to strike Syria and Turkey, killing more than 56,000 people across the two countries. The U.N. says more than 100,000 people have been displaced in the region since the first quake struck on Feb. 6. "We were looking for a better life," he said as he waited to be let through the border with his family.

☆ Lebanon to sell unlimited US dollars to prop up collapsing pound
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIRUT, March 21 (Reuters) - Lebanon's central bank will begin selling unlimited amounts of U.S. dollars in a bid to halt the spiralling devaluation of the Lebanese pound, Governor Riad Salameh said on Tuesday. Salameh set a new rate for Sayrafa, the central bank's exchange platform, at 90,000 Lebanese pounds per dollar on Tuesday. The pound has lost more than 98% of its value since the economy began unravelling in 2019. Tuesday's move came with the approval of the caretaker premier and caretaker finance minister and aimed to "limit the devaluation of the Lebanese pound in the parallel market," Salameh said. The pound began rising in value on the parallel market immediately after the decision was announced.

☆ As John Fetterman heals, his Senate staff soldiers on with the help of veteran lawmakers and crisis bonding: 'We all have each other's back'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Warren Rojas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Sen. John Fetterman has been hospitalized for clinical depression since February 15. Casey is coordinating with Fetterman staff on constituent services issues and legislative priorities, according to recent reports, but doesn't call Fetterman directly so as not to disturb his ongoing recovery. Some of the others working hard to meet that internal standard include legislative assistant Madeleine Marr, a former aide to Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire. Conservative commentator Stephen L. Miller has been more blunt, accusing Fetterman's staff of unduly wielding power in his absence. "John Fetterman's chief of staff is not an elected senator," Miller wrote in an op-ed run by the Delaware Valley Journal.

If you look, it's in Lebanese pounds, so is this the price? To solve the exchange rate confusion, the government needs to implement one unified rate. Shop owner Mahmoud Chaar told Reuters the exchange rate was changing so fast that his business was losing money overnight. Like many business owners, Chaar has to pay in U.S. dollars to import goods but sells in Lebanese pounds. "Basically, we lost in the exchange rate difference what we had made in profit," Chaar told Reuters.

☆ Inside a women-only poker night at the New York Stock Exchange: 'If it's worth betting, it's worth raising'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Hayley Cuccinello | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

BNY Mellon threw a women-only poker night at the NYSE to celebrate International Women's Day. Hours after the markets had closed, I was at the New York Stock Exchange learning how to play poker. This women-only poker night was thrown by Bank of New York Mellon on March 9, the day after International Women's Day. "Aggression is actually a winning strategy," said AJ Rudolph, the director of education and technology at Power Poker, as she walked us through the basics of poker. The Poker Power chips featured Frida Kahlo, Malala Yousafzai, Maya Angelou, and Rosie the Riveter.

Overall, the budget would increase federal spending in the twelve months starting in October to $6.8 trillion from the $6.2 trillion expected to be spent in the current fiscal year. Biden's budget proposal faces stiff opposition from Republican lawmakers emboldened by winning control of the House of Representatives in November's midterm elections. Biden, asked for areas of possible compromise with Republicans, told reporters at the White House: "We'll see what their budget is." Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget advocacy group, said the budget did not go nearly far enough to rein in dangerous debt levels. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a non-partisan Washington think tank, said Biden deserved credit for for putting forward $3 trillion in deficit reduction.

☆ Britain's early retired resist calls to work, despite higher living costs
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( David Milliken | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

The exodus of older workers has no equivalent in other advanced economies. "The best part of 90% of people who say they are early retired ... say that they will probably or definitely never work again." Based on data from before the pandemic, Britain's Resolution Foundation found the richest fifth of 50-59 year olds were 10 times likelier to retire early than the bottom fifth. Other companies say they value older workers for their experience. "Older workers are the ones that have got the skills - we don't find young people with the skills that we need.

☆ Lebanon banks 'have no liquidity,' says banking association's secretary general
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BEIRUT, March 8 (Reuters) - Lebanon's commercial banks do not have enough liquidity to pay back depositors, the secretary general of the country's banking association said on Wednesday in a letter that laid out the banks' positions. The letter was signed by the Association of the Banks of Lebanon (ABL)'s Fadi Khalaf and served as the introduction to the ABL's monthly report. The letter said commercial banks had approximately $86.6 billion deposited at Lebanon's Central Bank as of mid-February, and a net negative position with correspondent banks of $204 million as of Jan. 31, 2023. "These numbers show without a doubt that the banks have no liquidity," Khalaf wrote. Reporting by Maya Gebeily Editing by Peter GraffOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Syria says Israeli strike puts Aleppo airport out of service
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BEIRUT, March 7 (Reuters) - An Israeli air strike knocked Aleppo airport out of service on Tuesday and forced the Syrian authorities to reroute flights carrying aid for those affected by last month's earthquake, Syrian state media reported. The attack caused "material damage" to the airport, SANA cited the source as saying, without mentioning any casualties. Foreign donors including the United Arab Emirates, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Algeria have flown aid into Aleppo airport since the Feb. 6 earthquake, Syrian state media has reported. The attack overnight was Israel's third air strike in Syria this year, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. In January, the Syrian army said an Israeli missile attack briefly put Damascus airport out of service.

☆ Two people died of cholera in northwest Syria post-quake -civil defence
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] A view shows damaged buildings in the aftermath of an earthquake, in rebel-held town of Harem, Syria February 13, 2023. The opposition-run civil defence, known as the White Helmets, said that the total number of cholera deaths recorded in the northwest since the outbreak began last year had risen to 22, with another 568 non-fatal cases reported. "The destruction of infrastructure, water and sewage lines after the earthquake increases the possibility of an outbreak of the disease," the White Helmets said in a tweet. First linked in September 2022 to contaminated water near the Euphrates river, the outbreak spread across various areas of control in the nation fractured by more than a decade of war. Reporting by Maya Gebeily and Suleiman Al-Khalidi; Editing by Alex Richardson and Toby ChopraOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Frederick, the President of Howard University, at a press conference February 29, 2016, in the university's Founder's Library. Frederick is the 17th president of Howard University, one of 107 historically Black colleges and universities in the U.S., serving some 11,000 students across its undergraduate, graduate, and professional student programs. Frederick is the distinguished Charles R. Drew Professor of Surgery at the Howard University College of Medicine. He is also a practicing cancer surgeon at Howard University Hospital, where he continues to see patients and perform surgeries. CNBC: The Department of Defense recently announced its selection of Howard University as the 15th university, and first HBCU, to lead a University Affiliated Research Center.

The Marcy Lab School in Brooklyn, New York, however, has created an alternative path — a one-year program to help students get lucrative tech jobs that typically go to college graduates with a four-year degree. Partnering with the business communityThe Marcy Lab School co-founders Reuben Ogbanna and Bhattacharjee-Marcantonio share ideas at the whiteboard. Tara McCurrie, CNBCThe co-founders worked with the local community to design a program to prepare students for upwardly mobile careers. "We think The Marcy Lab School can scale to thousands of students here in New York City, and potentially have impacts across the country," said Ogbonna. Overcoming degree requirementsDevonte Duncan was part of the orginal class of nine students at the Marcy Lab School in Brooklyn, New York.

Summary Egyptian FM says 'goal of visit primarily humanitarian'And to 'pass on our solidarity' from people of EgyptArab League suspended Syria in 2011DAMASCUS, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Egypt's foreign minister met Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Monday in the first visits to Syria and Turkey by a top Egyptian diplomat in a decade. "The goal of the visit is primarily humanitarian, and to pass on our solidarity – from the leadership, the government and the people of Egypt to the people of Syria," Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry told reporters in Damascus. "When the foreign minister of Egypt comes to Damascus, he comes to his home, his people, and his country," Mekdad said. Shoukry also visited Turkey, pointing to another shift in Egypt's foreign ties. "Foreign minister offers condolences for the victims of earthquake, affirms solidarity of Egyptian leadership, government and people with Turkey, and asserting continuity of aid for supporting Turkey and its brotherly people," Ahmed Abu Zeid, spokesperson for Egypt's Foreign Ministry, said.

☆ Egypt's foreign minister to visit Syria, Turkey on Monday
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Feb 26 (Reuters) - Egypt's Sameh Shoukry will travel to Damascus on Monday in the first visit by an Egyptian foreign minister since Syria's conflict erupted in 2011, according to a statement by the Egyptian foreign ministry. Shoukry will visit Turkey and Syria - both hit hard by a deadly earthquake on Feb. 6 - to "convey a message of solidarity from Egypt with the two countries" according to the foreign ministry statement. Turkey's foreign ministry confirmed the visit, saying Shoukry will hold talks with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu and visit the southern province of Adana and the port of Mersin, where an Egyptian aid ship is set to arrive. Egypt's President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi spoke with Assad by phone for the first time on Feb. 7 and on Sunday, a delegation of top parliamentarians from around the region - including Egypt's parliament speaker - met Assad in Damascus. Relations began thawing in 2021, part of a push by Turkey to ease tensions with several regional powers.

☆ Syria's Assad meets senior Arab lawmakers in Damascus
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] Syrian parliament members and Parliamentary Speaker Hammouda Sabbagh meet with a delegation from the Arab Inter-Parliamentary Union in Damascus, Syria February 26, 2023. They met with Syrian parliamentarians and with Assad, according to Syrian state news agency SANA. The Arab League suspended Syria's membership in 2011 and many Arab countries pulled their envoys out of Damascus. Assad then traveled to Oman on Feb. 20 - the first time he left Syria since the quake. Assad's 2022 visit to the UAE was his first trip to an Arab state since the 2011 outbreak of war.

☆ Meet 3 couples who bought luxury RVs after selling their homes to gain freedom
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-26 | by ( Jyoti Mann | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

They sold their home in 2018 and have been living in a Newmar Ventana luxury RV since then. The Roberts sometimes stay at luxury RV resorts that have amenities like a swimming pool, golf course and outdoor areas to relax. Joel and Deb BrettingenJoel and Deb Brettingen, from Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, have been living in a luxury RV full-time for nine months after selling their home of 20 years. Joe and Sharon CarmichaelJoe and Sharon Carmichael in front of their RV with their granddaughter who comes to visit. Joe and Sharon CarmichaelJoe and Sharon Carmichael hit the road in their new motorhome after selling their house in 2015.

The senior source familiar with Syrian government thinking said that the UAE role in persuading Assad should not be underestimated. A Syrian source close to the Gulf said the UAE had used its "soft power" on Assad and a Turkish official also said the UAE had played a part in persuading him. Moscow has tussled with Western states repeatedly at the Security Council over cross-border aid into Syria, arguing it violates Syria's sovereignty. Other Arab states, including U.S. allies, have also moved to normalise ties with Assad. The UAE official said there was an "urgent need to strengthen the Arab role in Syria".

The charges come in the waning months of Salameh's latest term as governor, a position he has held for three decades and for which he was often celebrated - until 2019, when Lebanon's economy began to unravel. In comments to Reuters on Thursday, Salameh said the charges were "not an indictment" and pledged to abide by the judicial procedures. The governor has dismissed accusations of illicit enrichment as part of an effort to scapegoat him for Lebanon's financial collapse. TWO INTERPRETATIONSSalameh was charged last year over illicit enrichment in a case related to the purchase and rental of Paris apartments, including some to Lebanon's central bank. Oueidat referred the case - which included Salameh and a number of unidentified associates - to a Beirut prosecutor to file charges including illicit enrichment, embezzlement, money laundering and tax evasion.

☆ Shamima Begum, British-born woman who joined IS, loses appeal over citizenship removal
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Sam Tobin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The British government took away Shamima Begum's citizenship on national security grounds in 2019, shortly after she was found in a detention camp in Syria. Begum would have to take the case directly to the Court of Appeal in London if she wishes to challenge Wednesday's decision, according to legislation which covers the tribunal. Begum, who is currently being held in the al-Roj detention camp in north-eastern Syria, argued that the Home Office failed to investigate whether she was a "child victim of trafficking". Judge Robert Jay found there was a "credible suspicion" that Begum was trafficked to Syria for the purposes of "sexual exploitation". But the judge ruled that a finding that Begum may have been trafficked was not enough for her appeal to succeed.

Search resuls for: "MAYA"

25 mentions found