Surging economy - KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN...2019/08/01 · shal Shaikh Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Khalifa,...

Wild cat captured TDT | Manama

The large wild cat, which was wandering around in Hidd after escaping

its owner, has been found.

The cat, huge in size, had caused a panic in the neighbour-hood, after many thought it was a cheetah. The wild cat, known as lynx, have a short tail, charac-teristic tufts of black hair on the tips of their ears, large, padded paws for walking on snow and long whiskers on the face.

Under their neck, they have a ruff which has black bars re-sembling a bow tie although this is often not visible.

02 National Guard role stressed

03 Realty boom continues

04Bahraini woman killed in Saudi traffic accident

8

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I N N E T A G A I NDON’T MISS IT

His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, yesterday at the Sakhir Palace, in the presence of BDF Commander-in-chief Field Marshal Shaikh Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, received US Ambassador to Bahrain, Justin Hicks Siberell, accompanied by Vice Admiral Jim Malloy, the new head of US Naval Forces Central Command and US Fifth Fleet. HM the King welcomed Vice Admiral Malloy and wished him success in his new post. HM the King highlighted the depth of the longstanding bilateral relations and partnerships based on respect and joint coordination. His Majesty noted the constantly progressing cooperation in military and defence fields in the interest of mutual goals and aspirations. Vice Admiral Malloy expressed appreciation of HM the King’s effort to promote the friendship relations and defence and military cooperation between the two countries, hailing Bahrain’s key contribution to establish peace and stability at the global level.

US ties lauded

Surging economy The Kingdom’s trade numbers grew by 20pc in 2018, according to a report reviewed by Cabinet

Manama

The Cabinet yesterday chaired by His Royal High-ness Prince Salman bin

Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minis-ter, reviewed Bahrain’s key Q3 2018 economic indicators, which revealed a 1.6 per cent increase in GDP.

The report also recorded a 20pc annual increase in trade, which reached BD 2.2bn, and an 8.8pc decrease in trade deficit com-pared with Q2 2017.

Industrial investments reached BD 21.5 million in Q3 2018 with 12 commercial licences issued during the same period.

The Cabinet extended best wishes to His Royal Highness the Prime Minister, Prince Khalifa

bin Salman Al Khalifa, following his successful health checks.

It highlighted the Prime Minis-ter’s significant role in advancing Bahrain’s development, in line with His Majesty the King’s aspi-rations to provide opportunities for citizens.

Marking the 22nd anniversary of the Kingdom’s National Guard, the Cabinet highlighted the key role the National Guard, Bahrain Defence Force and Ministry of Interior play in safeguarding Bah-

rain’s security, a key component of ongoing sustainable development efforts.

The Cabinet also recognised the National Guard’s continued ad-vancement under the leadership of His Highness General Shaikh Mohammed bin Isa Al Khalifa.

During the meeting, His Roy-al Highness the Crown Prince stressed the importance of strengthening collaboration with the Council of Representatives in order to meet key goals within the 2019 – 2022 Government Ac-tion Plan, including the continual improvement of citizens’ living

standards.In this regard, the Cabinet

highlighted that the 2019 – 2022 Government Action Plan en-compasses key goals intended to strengthen the Kingdom’s fis-cal sustainability and sustainable economic development.

The Government Action Plan is the government of Bahrain’s comprehensive development framework that aims to build upon the principles of the Bahrain Economic Vision 2030, namely sustainability, competitiveness and fairness.

The Cabinet approved an MoU between the National Oil & Gas Authority and the Italian com-pany ENI. The MoU sets out the framework for collaboration on offshore oil and gas exploration along the North Coast of the Kingdom.

HRH the Crown Prince chairs the Cabinet.

8.8per cent is the

decrease in trade deficit last year when

compared to 2017.

The cast and crew of Bohemian Rhapsody, which won the best drama at the 76th annual Golden Globes yesterday. The movie showcases the life of pop star Freddie Mercury. Centre, Rami Malek, who won raves for his full-throated portrayal of the late Mercury, won best actor in a drama and thanked Mercury onstage “for giving me the thrill of a lifetime”. See page 13

Golden Globes stars

HRH Premier discharged from hospital

Manama

His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince

Khalifa bin Salman Al Khal-ifa has been discharged from the hospital after un-dergoing treatment.

HRH the Prime Minister stressed thanks for HM King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa’s follow-up to his health con-dition.

He also extended thanks to HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Dep-uty Prime Minister, for his noble feelings and getting reassured about his health.

HRH the Prime Minis-ter said he has been over-whelmed by the Bahraini people’s love and keenness to ask about his health, which would never be for-gotten, extending apprecia-tion to the generous people and their noble stances.

He prayed to Almighty God to bless Bahrain with durable love and unity.

HRH the Prime Minister

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National Guard role stressed BDF Commander-in-Chief patronises National Guard’s anniversary celebrations

Manama

Commander-in-Chief of the Bahrain Defence Force (BDF), Field Mar-

shal Shaikh Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, yesterday patronised the celebrations of the National Guard’s 22nd Anniversary, held at Al Sakhir Camp.

National Guard Commander, General Shaikh Mohammed bin Isa Al Khalifa, National Guard Staff Director, Major-General Shaikh Abdulaziz bin Saud Al Khalifa, Pakistani General Of-ficer Commanding Special Ser-vices Group (SSG), Major-Gen-eral Tahir Masood Bhutta, and a number of senior National Guard officers were present.

Upon arrival, the BDF Com-mander-in-Chief was welcomed by the National Guard Com-mander and Staff Director.

Field Marshal Shaikh Khalifa bin Ahmed attended part of the joint drill, “Badr 3”, carried out by the National Guard and the

Pakistani Army between Decem-ber 23 and January 7.

He said that the next peri-od requires continuous plan-

ning and training to face the world-destabilising phenome-

non of terrorism, hence the need to step up efforts to eradicate it and safeguard the citizens’ secu-rity and the nation’s capabilities.

He pointed out that “Badr 3” is part of the National Guard’s strategy, 2020, and aims to strengthen relations between the two friendly countries, not-ing that the drill has proved the competence of the participants from both sides.

Then, Pakistan Army’s SSG Commander, Lieutenant-Colo-nel Muhammad Umair Khan Bangash, made a statement in which he asserted that “Badr 3” is a milestone in the National Guard’s record, expressing the Pakistani Army’s pride in taking part in the joint drill which, he said, contributes to enhancing the professionalism of the two sides in carrying out ant-terror operations.

He added that the drill adds a new chapter to the history of military cooperation between the two friendly countries and

further strengthens relations be-tween Bahrain’s National Guard and the Pakistani Army.

After that, the commander of the task force of the joint drill, “Badr 3” presented a briefing about the exercise, and request-ed the celebration’s patron to start the military parade.

The parade reflected the par-ticipants’ harmony and readi-ness to achieve the highest levels of readiness and competence in countering terrorism and erad-icating it.

Commenting on the event, Na-tional Guard Commander, Gen-eral Shaikh Mohammed bin Isa Al Khalifa, said that the National has been strengthened thanks to the forward-looking vision of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, the Supreme Com-mander.

He expressed thanks and ap-preciation to the BDF Command-er-in-Chief for patronising the National Guard’s celebrations of its 22nd anniversary.

Field Marshal Shaikh Khalifa at the anniversary celebrations.

Event celebrates glory of Urdu, Hindi poetry

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TDT | Manama

Hindi poetry stood tall highlighting all its glory as Sir Syed

Education and Cultural So-ciety, Bahrain, organised an international Mushaira and Kavi Samelan at the Cultural Hall.

Legendary poets including Dr Rahat Indori, Dr Kumar Vishwas, Dr Asim Wasti, Iqbal Ashhar, Saba Balrampuri, Dr Nadeem Shaad, Syed Sarosh Aasif, Faizi Azmi and Kapil Batra took part in the event. LuLu Hypermarket Regional Director and Board Member Juzer Rupawala was guest of honour.

After lighting the Shama (traditional lamp), Mushaira Convenor Nadeem Ahmed introduced the participating poets to the audience.

Rahat Indori kept the audi-ence in awe and excitement as they marvelled at the insight and literary dexterity of the legendary poet.

The packed Cultural Hall auditorium reverberated with thunderous applause and traditional wah wahs (expressions of approval and encouragement) for the poets’ presentations on stage.

Star of the evening, famous poet of Hindi language, Ku-mar Vishwas was able to touch the emotional chord of the audience through his verses on social life and issues of the expatriate community.

He emphasised through his poetry one liners that such events go a long way in unit-ing cultures.

Many residents of Bahrain were enthralled after attend-ing the event.

Mr Vishwas enthrals the audience with his verses.

Mr Rupawala, second from left, was the guest of honour at the event.

Legendary poet Indori kept the audience in awe and excitement.


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Realty boom continues Around 10,000 new building permits issued in the past year

• Procuring new building permits in the Kingdom has now become easier than ever, thanks to the newly developed online portal ‘Benayat’.

• According to the authorities, demand for building permits continued the momentum from previous years, reflecting the economic stability in the country.

TDT | ManamaMohammed Zafran

The real estate sector in Bahrain continue to boom as around 10,000

building permits were issued in Bahrain in the past year.

New buildings continue to come up in Bahrain as the real estate sector booms well, ac-cording to sources.

The Northern Governorate and the Capital Governorate is-sued the most number of build-ing permits, it is learnt.

According to official statis-

tics, over 2,100 building permits were issued in Capital Governo-rate between the period of Jan-uary and November 2018 while 3,305 permits were issued in the Northern Governorate in 2018.

Sources said 1,912 were issued in Muharraq and 1,650 in South-ern Governorate last year.

According to the authorities, demand for building permits continued the momentum from previous years, reflecting the economic stability in the coun-try.

Procuring new building per-mits in the Kingdom has now become easier than ever, thanks to the newly developed online

portal ‘Benayat’. The portal, according to Mo-

hamed Ali AlQaed, Chief Exec-utive of Information and eGov-ernment Authority, ensures the “period of issuing a building permit is reduced to no more than five days in comparison to several months in the past”.

“This was made possible by linking the system to the nation-al geographic database (BSDI) which enables investors and engineering offices to instantly identify the requirements of

their lands and in return help them in preparing the neces-sary drawings and documents,” AlQaed said.

The system, also the first government portal launched through the Cloud Computing System, is part of the bundle of initiatives launched recently by HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Min-ister.

Launched during the third

Government Forum 2018 in October, the system enables significant transformation in the way building permits are issued allowing a faster, more convenient experience and con-tinuity of operations with no interruptions.

The first phase of Benayat – that has been launched - in-volves the issuance of new building permits for all types of real-estate projects which exceed an area of 50 square meters.

The upcoming phases shall include all other types of build-ing related permits such as ad-ditions to existing buildings and demolishing.

The system will also include the remaining processes in the building cycle such as the start of construction and service con-nectivity.

The realty sector is expected to perform well in the coming days.

The portal ensures the period of issuing a building permit is

reduced to no more than five days.

MR ALQAED

2,100building permits

were issued in Capital Governorate between the

period of January and November 2018.


A lineage of love and beautyTDT | Manama

Swayta Sha is a true embodi-ment of the woman of today - bold, beautiful and ambi-

tious. With a fire that was kindled in her from the very start, she has powered through life armed with diamonds and gold.

Coming from a business fam-ily of jewellers to the Nizams of Hyderabad, Swayta grew up surrounded by the love for the art of jewellery making. The royal rulers owned the largest priceless jewellery collection in India and fostered the lineage of jewellers.

Her father has been in the business for almost 90 years; his works have been showcased and sold internationally – especially in the United States. And it was her father who inspired and im-bibed in her the culture of jew-ellery in line with her ancestry.

But Swayta wasn’t quick to call herself a professional jewellery maker; In fact her first job title was that of professional banker. Looking at her now, you would hardly identify those traits for Swaytas passion for beauty and creativity truly reflects in her aura.

It was while working as a bank-er she found a husband in her boss and soon they were married. Fifteen years ago, right after their marriage they relocated to Bah-rain and a whole new road began paving itself for Swayta.

It was here in Bahrain, an ar-

tistic call awakened her and from that very day Swayta magnified her strengths and conviction towards what is called today the Swayta Sha brand. Today the brand is set to hit Saks Fifth Avenue, the American chain of luxury department stores that is spread out all across the globe.

Her pieces have always been designed for the woman of today. “The jewellery you wear plays a huge role in reflecting your per-sonality; it is a part of your defi-

nition of yourself.” She believes that every woman should be able to look at herself in the mirror and be appreciative of what she sees and who she has become. When Swayta designs her piec-es, she sees a woman who has transparency of thought, clarity and structure and the aesthetics of her pieces depict strength of character and womanhood.

Starting her own brand with this ideal in mind has been an ex-hilarating experience for Swayta.

There were numerous challenges she had to face, there are some she still faces but she chooses not to fixate on these difficulties.

To Swayta, all challenges begin within oneself and how one per-ceives their brand but she derives her strength to overcome these challenges from her elaborate support system and focuses on the positive reception she has received from Bahrain – she expresses her sense of elation whenever a customer compli-

ments on the quality of her piec-es, it is something she doesn’t compromise on and it’s always on the top of her priorities. If Swayta could describe her brand in three words it would be a com-bination of innovation, creativity and high-quality.

To ensure her pieces had the quality her family had always persevered for in their pieces, Swayta took up Diamond grad-ing studies in the Gem Institute of America in New York for two years.”Diamonds in the natural form are rough but filled with potential; it is with human effort and creativity that you obtain something as beautiful as the di-amonds you see in stores”. All her pieces feature diamonds of the highest Cut, Colour, Clarity and Carat grade.

If you were to ask Swayta to pick only two metals or stones to work with her entire life she would choose diamonds and gold but to Swayta that answer is a difficult one. “It’s like asking a chef to pick two of his favourite ingredients – every ingredient holds a special place in the heart and every ingredient serves a dif-ferent yet equally beautiful pur-pose” If Swayta could have her way she would work with every stone she gets her hands on.

This question also led to the discussion of gemstones and their perceived mysticism – To Swayta the previous answer applies here as well, while she acknowledges

the astrological beliefs that sur-round precious and semi-pre-cious stones, to her each stone is beautiful and powerful in its own right and it only amplifies the energy one exudes rather than alter or influence it. Growing up, jewellery and gemstones were always part of her daily affairs, it was only rational to see these items as Mother Nature’s grand gifts than otherworldly posses-sions.

Apart from her talents and skills, Swayta prides herself in having an amazing support system that has always been encouraging from the very start. Her family has always been her number one supporters. Both her parents and her doting husband have always pushed her to continue her family heritage and it’s not just her family that backs her up but also her friends who believe in her innovative cre-ative direction.

To young entrepreneurs out there, she has nothing but words of encouragement. She wants them to know that if you keep believing and taking baby steps towards that dream, everyday, nothing will stop you from achieving your goals. The recipe to success is a mixture of belief, conviction and strength and even when you falter, you need to re-mind yourself of why you started and what accomplishing your goal means to you and your sup-port system. Follow her journey on @swayta_sha.

Swayta

Bahraini woman killed in Saudi traffic accident

Accidents have claimed lives of four Bahrainis in the past few weeks TDT |ManamaMohammed Zafran

A Bahraini woman report-edly died in a traffic ac-cident which occurred

in Saudi Arabia. According to sources, the

woman, Zainab Hussain, was travelling to the United Arab Emirates when the accident happened.

Zainab’s father was with her at the time of accident, sources added. He is said to have sus-tained serious injuries.

The funeral will be held in the Kingdom, sources said.

Two weeks ago, two Bahrai-nis died after suffering serious injuries in a traffic accident in Saudi Arabia.

Among other accident cases in the past few weeks, a 58-year-old Bahraini was killed in Mina Salman. He was reportedly rid-ing a bicycle when the accident happened.

“A bicycle rider died in a traf-

fic accident on Shaikh Jaber Al Sabah Street towards Manama in Mina Salman Area, the con-cerned authorities on the scene,” the Interior Ministry had stated.

The Ministry last Tuesday had confirmed that a traffic accident on Al Fateh Highway near Ma-rina beach led to the death of a 22-year-old man, reportedly an

Arab national. This follows another major

accident reported last week where a biker died after he was run over by a minibus on Shaikh

Isa Bin Salman Highway. The Bahraini in his thirties

crashed into parked car and was run over by a minibus, according to sources.

A picture purportedly showing the victim being carried on a stretcher after the accident, went viral on social media networks yesterday.

Zainab’s father was with her at the

time of accident. He is said to have sustained serious

injuries.SOURCES

Terror cell members sentenced

• The first accused confessed to committing the crime, while the second and third accused pleaded not guilty in the court, according to sources.

TDT | Manama Ali Tarif

The Fourth High Crimi-nal Court has sentenced

three members of a terror cell convicted of possess-ing weapons and planning attacks against the nation.

While the first accused has been jailed for five years, the second and third were handed down ten year sentences.

According to Public Prose-cution, the convicts received training in Iran to carry out attacks in the Kingdom.

“They were also trained on using explosives and weap-ons to carry out crimes.”

It is alleged that the con-victs were planning to recruit more members into the ter-ror team.

The first accused confessed to committing the crime, while the second and third accused pleaded not guilty in the court, according to sources.

The convicts received training in Iran to

carry out attacks in the Kingdom.

PROSECUTORS


Maid acquitted in theft case TDT | Manama Ali Tarif

The Third Lower Crim-inal Court has acquitted

an Asian housemaid of steal-

ing money from her sponsor’s home.

The sponsor had filed the case against the woman, ac-cusing her of stealing money.

The Public Prosecution

charged the accused with steal-ing the money as well as over-staying in the Kingdom illegally,

However, the court was not satisfied with the evidences presented before it.

His Majesty honoured with prestigious scientific medal

Russian Academy hails HM King Hamad’s keenness to develop various fields of science and technology

• HM the King expressed appreciation of the Academy’s decoration, commending the prestigious Academy that adopts scientific researches of creative thinkers to contribute to the advancement of the Russian technology and support the youth’s initiatives.

Manama

His Majesty King Ham-ad bin Isa Al Khalifa yesterday, at the Sakhir

Palace, received President of the Russian Academy of Natu-ral Sciences, Oleg Leonidovich Kuznetsov, accompanied with

the Academy’s Professor Elena Nikeva and Doma member also Chairman of Russian-Arab Par-liamentary Friendship Commit-tee, Rasul Botashev.

HM the King was honoured by the Russian Academy of Natu-ral Sciences’ President with the Academy’s Grand Star Medal of

first class, which is one of the most prestigious scientific dec-orations, in recognition of HM the King’s keenness to devel-op various fields of science and technology and his key role in boosting the bilateral relations between the two countries.

HM the King expressed ap-

preciation of the Academy’s decoration, commending the prestigious Academy that adopts scientific researches of creative thinkers to contribute to the ad-vancement of the Russian tech-nology and support the youth’s initiatives.

HM the King praised the depth

of bilateral relations and solid friendship ties between the two countries under joint keenness to constantly promote coopera-tion in various fields, chiefly in scientific and academic sectors, for their significance in initia-tives of human development and comprehensive development.

HM the King attached impor-tance to President Vladimir Pu-tin’s role in strengthening the longstanding bilateral relations based on mutual respect and coordination, wishing Russia and its people more progress and prosperity.

The President of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences expressed gratitude to HM the King for the warm reception, lauding HM the King’s encour-agement to enhance coordina-tion and cooperation with Rus-sia in scientific and research fields.

His Majesty receives president and members of Russian Academy of Natural Sciences.

MoE opens regn for first graders Manama

Education Minister Dr Majid Al Nuaimi has an-

nounced the opening of reg-istration for first graders (i.e. first primary schoolchildren) for academic year 2019-2020 according to Education Law 27/2005 provisions.

The law stipulated the com-pulsoriness of joining school for six year olds who have at-tained school age at the start of each and every school year.

The ministry has opened the door for registration of children born in December 2012 and also children born between January 2013 and August 2013.

The ministry is committed to provision of free basic and secondary educational servic-es in governmental schools in compliance with the Consti-tution and the Law, it said

The ministry’s Hall in Isa Town is assigned as the place for registration starting from Sunday, January 27 until Wednesday, February 6 be-tween 8 am and 1 pm, it added.

Plan to revamp natural springsManama

Southern Governor Shaikh Khalifa bin Ali bin Khali-

fa Al Khalifa discussed with Works, Municipalities Af-fairs and Urban Planning Ministry Undersecretary Dr Nabeel Abulfateh the development of natural wa-ter springs, including Ain Hunainya and Ain Ghuweifa in Riffa.

The governor stressed the historic significance of nat-ural springs since the era of fathers and forefathers. He underlined coordination and follow-up with compe-tent authorities to revamp these sites and meet citi-zens’ needs.

NBT call centre responds to over 1,000 VAT queries

Manama

The Call Centre has suc-cessfully responded to over 1,000 VAT relat-

ed queries per day through its hotline (8008001) and by email ([email protected]) since the in-duction of the VAT on January 1, 2019.

The National Bureau for Taxa-tion (NBT) noted that the sudden influx of queries reflects con-sumers and investors’ eagerness to expand their VAT procedural and legal framework knowledge.

As a result, the NBT will in-crease the total number of peo-ple employed in the Call Centre to advance its customer service standards and to equip the center with the resources it needs to manage sudden influxes.

The NBT reiterated that all its communication channels are open to further queries related to the VAT procedural or legal framework. Citizens can contact the Call Centre on 80008001 or [email protected] in addition to taking advantage of the informa-tion available on NBT’s website (www.nbt.gov.bh), Instagram and Twitter (@NetworkNBT).

Meanwhile, Consumers in the Kingdom have been urged to en-sure that they don’t overpay for goods and services to businesses who may take advantage of the current confusion in the market and charge extra bucks for goods and services.

Taking advantage of the ex-isting confusion in the market, certain businesses may swindle

the customers by charging extra and many customers are worried over being cheated in the name of VAT.

The National Bureau of Tax-ation (NBT) has warned busi-nesses against overcharging VAT and consumers to ensure they don’t pay in excess of 5 per cent for VAT.

“To ensure a smooth imple-mentation of VAT, make sure that VAT rate does not exceed 5pc on items subjected to VAT,” the Na-tional Bureau of Taxation stated.

It also urged customers to be vigilant. “Make sure VAT is not applied on items not subjected to the tax. To find the list of items not subjected to VAT, please visit our website www.nbt.gov.bh,” it highlighted.

RUW opens second semester admissions TDT | Manama

The Royal University for Women (RUW) has an-nounced the opening of

admission for High School grad-uates for the second semester of academic year 2018/2019 through filling the application on the uni-versity website.

The Registrar at the Royal Uni-versity for Women, Sami Moham-med, said: “We are providing a

quick and easy applying method for admission to the university by filling the online application form.

“This comes as part of the Uni-

versity’s continuous efforts to de-velop electronic services in which it allows international students to easily apply for the universi-

ty since RUW is the first private university that is accredited by Higher Education Council (HEC) and being accredited and recom-mended university in the King-dom of Saudi Arabia, the State of Kuwait and Sultanate of Oman.”

Mr Sami explained that the ad-missions feature safes time and effort for students who are ap-plying for university, by filling personal data and arranging their interests for academic programs

offered through the university website (http://www.ruw.edu.bh/apply_now)

Mr Sami said that applicants must attach copies of the admis-sion requirements to be sent and reviewed by the Admissions and Registration Department and verify that the application has met the admission requirements according to the admission reg-ulations approved by the Royal University for Women.

Dr David Stewart, Acting President Mr Sami

06

world

TUESDAY, JANUARY 8, 2019

KNOW WHAT

Japan billionaire says ‘free cash’ tweet most shared

Tokyo, Japan

Billionaire Japanese tycoon and future space tourist

Yusaku Maezawa said Mon-day his tweet promising a cash giveaway of nearly $10,000 was the most retweeted ever.

The 43-year-old Maezawa posted a tweet on Saturday promising one million yen ($9,250) in cash each to 100 randomly selected followers who had retweeted it by Mon-day.

The tweet -- now retweet-ed more than 4.3 million times -- is the most shared in history, according to the entrepreneur.

“Hit the new world record. Surpassed Twitter’s world record number of retweets (it was 3.55 million RTs be-fore) and more people are still retweeting,” wrote the high-profile Maezawa.

The previous record-holder was an American teenager in 2017 trying to win a year’s sup-ply of chicken nuggets from fast food chain Wendy’s, ac-cording to media.

In October, Maezawa said he paid an undisclosed sum for a ticket on fellow tycoon Elon Musk’s SpaceX rocket around the moon as early as 2023.

Maezawa will hitch a ride aboard Musk’s Big Falcon Rocket, which SpaceX has ac-knowledged may not be ready for human flight for at least five years.

Known as a passionate art collector, he also plans to take around half a dozen artists with him on the trip.

Maezawa is chief executive of Japan’s largest online fash-ion store and is the 18th richest person in Japan, with an es-timated fortune of $2 billion, according to business maga-zine Forbes.

Yusaka Maezawa (Courtesy of Dawn)

China executes knife attackerBeijing, China

China has executed a farmer who attacked several chil-

dren with a knife at a kinder-garten in a southern Chinese city two years ago, state media reported Monday.

Yan Pengan was executed last Friday for slashing young children at the school in the Guangxi Zhuang region, the

official Xinhua news agency reported.

Yan went to the kindergar-ten with a kitchen knife in January 2017 and attacked 12 children, seriously injuring four of them.

A teacher fended off the attack and called for help as Yan fled the scene. He later surrendered himself to local authorities.

Taliban kill at least 10 Afghan forces in 24 hoursHerat, Afghanistan

Taliban fighters attacked two checkpoints in west-

ern Afghanistan, killing at least 10 members of the security forces and pro-government militia, officials said yesterday, in a bloody 24 hours in the war-torn country.

At least 15 militants were killed in the fighting in Qa-dis and Ab Kamari districts of Badghis province that began late Sunday, provincial gover-nor spokesman Jamshid Sha-habi said.

Provincial council chief Abdul Aziz Bek gave a higher death toll of 21 -- 14 police and seven militia members -- but that figure could not be imme-diately confirmed by AFP.

“The Taliban captured both checkpoints and took all the

military equipment and am-munition with them,” Bek said.

The Taliban, who have been slaughtering Afghan securi-ty forces in record numbers, claimed responsibility for both attacks. On the other side of the country in the southeast-ern province of Paktika, eight civilians were killed and 12 wounded on Monday when a roadside bomb exploded near a market in Janikhail district.

Among the dead were two brothers aged 10 and 12, pro-vincial police spokesman Shah Mohammad Aryan said.

A group of children had been trying to remove the explosive device from the ground when it exploded, Aryan said.

It was not clear if the bomb had been deliberately planted or was left over from decades of conflict.

New Malaysian king to be picked this month• The king stepped aside Sunday following intense speculation about his future

AFP | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

A new Malaysian king will be elected and sworn in this month, royal offi-

cials said yesterday, after Sul-tan Muhammad V abdicated in a historic first following his reported marriage to a Russian former beauty queen.

The king stepped aside Sun-day following intense specula-tion about his future after re-ports surfaced in recent weeks that he had taken medical leave, and then wed the former Miss Moscow.

As the country reacted with shock to the news, Malaysia’s Islamic royal families met at the national palace to push ahead with the task of picking a king to take over from Muhammad V, 49, who gave up the throne after just two years.

Keeper of the Ruler’s Seal, Syed Danial Syed Ahmad, said after the meeting that a new king and his deputy would be elected on January 24 and in-stalled on January 31.

Swearing in ceremonies for Malaysian kings are lavish af-fairs, marked by honour guards and Islamic prayers and attend-ed by hundreds of guests in tra-ditional finery.

Muslim-majority Malaysia is a constitutional monarchy, with a unique arrangement where the throne changes hands every five years between rulers of the country’s nine states.

The royal households take it in turn to provide the country’s king, and it is usually known before the formal election who will become the monarch.

While their role is ceremoni-al, Malaysia’s royalty command

great respect, especially from Muslim Malays, and criticising them is strictly forbidden.

Game of thrones

After him, the next in line un-der the rotation system is the sultan of southern Johor state.

Sultan Nazrin Shah of north-ern Perak state is the acting king, as he is the current deputy and performed Muhammad V’s duties after he went on medical leave at the start of November.

Despite mounting speculation in recent days the king might give up the throne, there was still palpable shock across the country at the first abdication of a king since the end of British rule in 1957.

“I am naturally stunned. The (king) is a man of the peo-ple,” Siti Nur Fahimah Razali, a 25-year-old trader from the king’s home state of Kelantan, told the New Straits Times newspaper.

The relatively youthful Mu-hammad V was known for his relaxed persona and love of off-road driving and other extreme sports.

But there had been growing unease at his reign after reports emerged in foreign media in late November -- several weeks after the king went on leave -- that he had married the Russian, Oksana Voevodina, in a lavish ceremony in Moscow.

Royal officials in Malaysia have not so far commented on the reported wedding, or said what condition prompted him to take medical leave.

But such a marriage is unlike-ly to sit well with the country’s conservative royal households.

Prime Minister Mahathir Mo-hamad, who had a tense rela-tionship with the royals during his first stint as premier from 1981 to 2003 as he sought to curb their powers, said the govern-ment accepted Muhammad V’s abdication, official news agency Bernama reported.

The leader said he hoped that a new king would be elected soon while insisting the gov-ernment would not “interfere in this matter”, it said.

The 15th king of Malaysia, Sultan Muhammad V (R), preparing to deliver his address during the opening ceremony of the parliament in Kuala Lumpur as Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad (L) looks on.

The succession may not be as straight-forward this time as the next in line

to the throne, Sultan Ahmad Shah

of Pahang state, is elderly and re-

ported to be ailing. Royal officials said he did not attend Monday’s meeting due to ill health.

‘Buddha boy’ in dock over disappearancesKathmandu, Nepal

A Nepali spiritual leader be-lieved by his followers to

be a reincarnation of Buddha is under investigation over the disappearance of several devo-tees, police in Kathmandu said Monday.

R a m B a h a d u r B o m j a n , dubbed “Buddha Boy”, became famous in 2005 after followers said he could meditate motion-less for months without water, food or sleep in Nepal’s jungles.

The 28-year-old guru has a devout following but has been accused of physically and sexu-ally assaulting some of his flock.

Special police investigators have begun inquiries after the families of four of Bomjan’s dev-

otees allegedly vanished from his ashrams.

“The police have started in-vestigating these complaints against Bomjan,” Uma Prasad Chaturbedi, a spokesman for Nepal’s Central Investigation Bureau, told AFP.

“The investigation is in pre-liminary stage and we cannot share many details.”

Bomjan has long been dogged by accusations of abuse in deep-ly spiritual Nepal, even as thou-sands of worshippers queued for days to witness his so-called miracles of meditation deep in the jungle.

In September last year, an 18-year-old nun accused the guru of raping her at one of his ashrams. Nepali spiritual leader Ram Bahadur Bomjan, dubbed “Buddha Boy”

US pullout from Syria to be done in ‘prudent’ way: TrumpWashington, United States

President Donald Trump yesterday sought to end fears of an abrupt

US pullout from Syria, saying the fight against the Islam-ic State group was not over and that withdrawal would be done in a “prudent ” manner.

“We will be leaving at a proper pace while at the same time continuing to fight ISIS and doing all else that is pru-dent and necessary!” Trump tweeted.

The president has come un-der withering pressure both at home and in allied capitals after previous statements in-dicating that he considered the IS group vanquished and that he wanted US troops out of Syria imminently.

Trump’s new statement fol-lows a trip by his national se-curity adviser John Bolton to Israel in which he told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday that withdrawal would not happen before “ISIS is defeated and not able to re-vive itself.”

The reassurances followed a diplomatic storm caused by Trump’s surprise announce-ment in December that ap-peared to signal a rapid with-drawal from Syria, where US special forces play an impor-tant role in supporting local forces fighting IS.

“We’ve won against ISIS,” he said at the time. “We’ve beaten them and we’ve beaten them badly. We’ve taken back the land. And now it’s time for our troops to come back home.”

Allies like Britain and France warned that IS was not defeat-

ed. Questions were also raised over the fate of Kurdish groups that have done much of the fighting alongside the United States in Syria, but now fear attacks from Turkey.

The initial pullout promise also sparked outspoken oppo-sition from within Trump’s Re-publican party and the resig-nation of respected defense secretary James Mattis.

In yesterday’s statement, Trump complained that me-dia coverage had skewed his original words, saying that his latest position on Syria was “no different from my original statements.”

Currently, about 2,000 US forces are in the Syria, which is in the grips of a complex civil war. Most of the US soldiers are there to train local forces fight-ing the hardcore-Islamist IS.


We will be leaving at a proper pace

while at the same time continuing to fight ISIS and

doing all else that is prudent and

necessary!

TRUMP

Six dead after ship sinks off Turkey’s coast: state mediaAnkara, Turkey

Six crew members were killed after a Pana-

ma-flagged cargo ship sank off Turkey’s Black Sea coast yesterday, state news agen-cy Anadolu reported.

Osman Kaymak, gover-nor of the northern Turkish province of Samsun, told Anadolu that seven others were rescued after the Vol-go Balt 214 vessel encoun-tered trouble 80 nautical miles from Samsun and had sent a distress call at 8.10am (0510 GMT).

The crew members found alive were taken to hospital.

The cause of the incident was not given by Turkish authorities but Sybiha said on Twitter that the ship “sank off the coast of Sam-sun due to weather condi-tions”.

US President Donald Trump speaks as he departs the White House in Washington, DC

Denmark plans man-made islands to draw businessCopenhagen, Denmark

Denmark plans to build nine artificial islands in

southern Copenhagen in a bid to attract businesses, the gov-ernment announced yesterday, amid a housing and office space shortage.

“We’re targetting high-tech companies but there’s always a need for the production of products we use in our dai-ly lives too,” Industry and Business Minister Rasmus

Jarlov told Danish news agen-cy Ritzau. Construction on the nine islands is scheduled to be-gin in 2022, covering an area of three million square metres (32.3 million square feet).

The first plots of land will be sold in 2028 and the project, the financial details of which have

not been disclosed, should be completed by 2040.

The aim is to attract some 380 companies to the area, located near Copenhagen airport.

“I think this could become a sort of European Silicon Valley,” the head of the Danish Cham-ber of Commerce, Brian Mik-

kelsen, told TV2 television.The mammoth project fol-

lows another major infrastruc-ture initiative announced last autumn, whereby 20,000 new homes will be built on a pol-der -- low-lying land reclaimed from the sea -- north of the capital.

Representative picture

Greek anarchists arrested for US embassy paint attackAthens, Greece

Two G re e k a n a rc h i s t s were arrested yester-

day after hurling red paint at the US embassy in Athens, police said.

A further eight members of the Rubicon Anarchist Collec-tive were also detained but lat-er released over the incident, which caused minor material damage but no injuries, police added.

The Greek foreign ministry condemned an action it said undermined “longstanding friendly relations between the two peoples and the strategic relationship between Greece and the United States (which is) crucial for our country and the region.”

The Rubicon group, which regards Washington’s inter-ventions in numerous regions including the nearby Balkans as “imperialism”, arrived outside the embassy in the early hours

and sprayed the entrance be-fore police intervened.

Another gripe is the planned US withdrawal of troops from Syria, which the group said would “abandon the Kurds into Syria’s hands”.

Rubicon has carried out a number of similar acts on em-bassies, banks and public build-ings in recent years, causing some material damage but no injury.

Last October, the group daubed paint over the facade of the Canadian embassy to pro-test the presence of a Canadian gold mining firm in northern Greece.

A month earlier, Rubicon tar-geted the Iranian embassy in “solidarity” with Iranian Kurds. Media reports say it plans to join a January 17 meeting of other anarchist organisations in Rome.

Athens shows stains of red paint on the US embassy building.

US conducts latest South China Sea sail-by amid trade talksWashington, United States

A US Navy guided-missile destroyer on Monday

sailed near disputed is-lands in the South China Sea where Beijing has built military installations, spark-ing anger in China as trade talks between the two coun-tries kicked off.

The US and its allies pe-riodically send planes and warships through the area, which is claimed by Chi-na, to signal to Beijing their right under international law to pass through the wa-ters.

The USS McCampbell sailed within 12 nautical miles (22 kilometres) of the Paracel Islands “to chal-lenge excessive maritime claims,” US Pacific Fleet spokeswoman Rachel Mc-Marr told AFP.

She added that so-called “freedom of navigation” operations are “not about any one country, nor are they about making political statements.”

Beijing confirmed the sail-by, calling it a viola-tion of China’s sovereignty which has damaged “peace, safety and order” in the South China Sea.

North Korea’s Kim to visit China for fourth summit: newspaperReuters | Seoul

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is on his way to

China for his fourth summit with China’s Xi Jinping, South Korean media said yesterday.

South Korea’s Hankyoreh newspaper, citing an uniden-tified source with close knowl-edge of North Korea-China affairs, reported that Kim was travelling to Beijing late on Monday to meet with Xi.

South Korea’s Yonhap news agency, citing an unspecified source familiar with North Korea issues, said a North Ko-rean train possibly carrying a “high-level” official had crossed the border into China.

The source told Yonhap it had not been confirmed whether a senior official was on board, but that dozens of security vehicles and officials had blocked the roads around a station in the Chinese border city of Dandong as the train passed.

Last year Kim travelled to China three times to meet with Xi, before and after Kim held other summits with U.S. Presi-dent Donald Trump and South Korean President Moon Jae-in.

Kim is expected to meet again with both the US and South Korean presidents in the near future, and another visit to Chi-na has been seen as a possible

move before those summits.Earlier on Monday the South

Korean newspaper Munhwa Ilbo reported that U.S. State De-partment officials recently met multiple times with North Ko-rean counterparts in Hanoi and discussed planning a second summit between Trump and Kim, fuelling speculation that Vietnam could host the event.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un waving during a photo session with participants of the 4th National Meeting of Activists in the Agricultural Field,

Gabon thwarts military coup Reuters | Libreville

Gabon foiled an attempt-ed military coup on

Monday, killing two sus-pected plotters and captur-ing seven others just hours after they took over state radio in a bid to end 50 years of rule by President Ali Bon-go’s family. Government spokesman Guy-Bertrand Mapangou announced the deaths and arrests after soldiers briefly seized the radio station and broadcast a message saying Bongo was no longer fit for office after suffering a stroke in Saudi Arabia in October.


Hon. Chairman Najeb Yacob Alhamer | Editor-in-Chief Mahmood AI Mahmood | Deputy Editor-in-Chief Ahdeya Ahmed | Chairman & Managing Editor P Unnikrishnan | Advertisement: Update Media W.L.L | Tel: 38444692, Email: [email protected] | Newsroom: Tel: 38444680, Email: [email protected] & circulation: Tel: 38444698/17579877 | Email:[email protected] | Website: www.newsofbahrain.com | Printed and published by Al Ayam Publishing

KARA SWISHER

If anything, MedMen, on Santa Monica Boulevard in West Hollywood, Calif.,

looks just like an Apple Store. It’s decked out with blond wood tables on which a range of prod-ucts are artfully displayed — the Puffco Peak portable vaporizer, an electronic Dosist vape pen, the latest issue of Ember mag-azine and, of course, so much weed delivered in an astonish-ing variety of ways, from tinc-tures to gummy bears to cook-ies to just plain joints. A crowd of customers is attended to by cheerful staff members decked out in jaunty red hoodies and carrying iPads. “Let’s be buds” urges a sign on one table.

It certainly looks like it’s go-ing great at this chain of weed dispensaries. But — like a lot of businesses around the newly commercialised marijuana in-dustry in California — MedMen is struggling.

The latest quarter of this pub-licly traded company showed a net loss of $66 million on reve-

nues of $21.5 million. It had lost $79 million the previous quarter.

Not enough weed supply and too much expansion are among the reasons given for MedMen’s problems, but the disconnect between the company’s promise and reality made me think hard about some other terrible news this week: Apple’s announce-ment that it was going to miss its projected revenue by billions of dollars this quarter.

Apple has hung the moon for investors for so long now that the idea of the company struggling sent the entire global stock market into a paroxysm of fear and plunging indexes. It is, to use an old California trope, going to be a real bummer for Silicon Valley.

Now stick with me here, be-cause what’s happening across what are considered fast-for-ward industries like cannabis and tech is worrisome. Where is the next great boom of in-novation going to come from, when even the strongest brands and products might not be sure things anymore?

Apple is not only a bellwether company in tech but also the most expertly managed one un-der Tim Cook. He, of course, was preceded as chief executive by Steve Jobs, who had brought the

company back from the brink of bankruptcy in 1997. Since then,

it has been all uphill, to the point this summer when Apple

THE TRUTH IS YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN TOMORROW. LIFE IS A CRAZY RIDE, AND NOTHING IS GUARANTEED. EMINEM

QUOTE OF THE DAY

DAVID ROBERTS

A few weeks ago, after a marathon closing dash of 77.5 miles during 32 sleep-

less hours, the American Colin O’Brady stormed to the finish line at the foot of the Leverett Glacier to claim the first solo, unsupported traverse of Antarc-tica — a challenge O’Brady had called The Impossible First. Two days later, culminating a rivalry that commentators likened to the race between Robert Falcon Scott and Roald Amundsen to reach the South Pole in 1911-12, Louis Rudd of Britain finished the same arduous journey of more than 920 miles across the frozen con-tinent, surviving brutal winds, whiteouts, crevasse scares and temperatures below minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit.

Rudd’s expedition was con-ceived in part as a tribute to his friend and mentor, Henry Wors-ley, who died of peritonitis after sledding more than 800 miles attempting the same feat three years earlier.

All but lost in the celebration of O’Brady’s and Rudd’s splen-did achievements was the deed of another polar explorer, the Norwegian Borge Ousland, com-pleted more than two decades before. Or, if Ousland’s own trav-erse was glancingly and anon-ymously invoked, it was tagged with an asterisk, as this year’s trekkers were hailed for attempt-ing the crossing without the aid of dogs or sails.

It’s not surprising that in 2018,

the effort to claim the purported first solo, unsupported traverse of Antarctica became an all-out race between two contenders. For sponsored professional ad-venturers who feel the need to connect in real time to a social media audience, true explora-tion becomes secondary to the need to set “records,” to claim “firsts,” no matter how arbitrar-ily defined.

Between November 1996 and January 1997, Ousland man-hauled a sled initially laden with 412 pounds of food and gear for 64 days across Antarctica from the ocean edge of the Ronne Ice Shelf to McMurdo Sound on the seacoast below the Ross Ice Shelf — the same base from which Scott set off for the pole in 1911.

Along the way, he received no help or supplies from others, not even a cup of coffee at the well-appointed Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station. On the “downhill” leg from the pole to the coast, Ousland occasionally unfurled a “ski sail” of his own devising: in his words, “a sim-ple piece of square fabric” that would catch the wind and help propel him as he skied across the snow. That minimal aid, in the view of more recent travers-ers such as O’Brady, Rudd and Worsley, disqualified Ousland’s epic solo jaunt from the laurel of an “unsupported” journey.

Following last week’s outpour-ing of congratulations to the American and the Briton, some veteran observers of the Ant-arctic scene wondered whether their feats should be starred with asterisks of their own. Most sig-nificantly, this year’s traversers began and ended their treks not at the seacoast but at the heads of the two great ice shelves. The

distance they traveled — 925 miles — was only half the 1,864 miles that Ousland covered in 1996-97. In the tweet announcing his finish, O’Brady claimed, “As I pulled my sled over this invisible line, I accomplished my goal: to become the first person in history to traverse the continent of Antarctica coast to coast solo, unsupported and unaided.”

The heads of the Ross and

Ronne Shelves, he insisted, were “where Antarctica’s land mass ends and the sea ice be-gins.” As the Antarctic historian and mountaineer Damien Gildea argued in a post to the website ExplorersWeb: “The ice shelves are land ice and therefore part of the continent. This was accepted by all the earliest polar travellers who did, or attempted, cross-ings.” Scott and Amundsen, of

course, had no choice but to start their expeditions from the true coast, and on their return from the pole, Scott and his four com-panions died on the Ross Shelf, unable to haul their sledges one step farther.

ExplorersWeb also pointed out that from the South Pole to the “finish line” at the bottom of the Leverett Glacier, both O’Brady and Rudd skied along the South

Is this the end of

the age of Apple?

We need the next wave of innovation, and we need it now

The first solo Antarctic traverse

In last week’s celebration of two solo

treks across Antarctica, the pioneer

whose unsupported

crossing 22 years ago set the standard

has been unfairly

diminished



KARA SWISHER

If anything, MedMen, on Santa Monica Boulevard in West Hollywood, Calif.,

looks just like an Apple Store. It’s decked out with blond wood tables on which a range of prod-ucts are artfully displayed — the Puffco Peak portable vaporizer, an electronic Dosist vape pen, the latest issue of Ember mag-azine and, of course, so much weed delivered in an astonish-ing variety of ways, from tinc-tures to gummy bears to cook-ies to just plain joints. A crowd of customers is attended to by cheerful staff members decked out in jaunty red hoodies and carrying iPads. “Let’s be buds” urges a sign on one table.

It certainly looks like it’s go-ing great at this chain of weed dispensaries. But — like a lot of businesses around the newly commercialised marijuana in-dustry in California — MedMen is struggling.

The latest quarter of this pub-licly traded company showed a net loss of $66 million on reve-

nues of $21.5 million. It had lost $79 million the previous quarter.

Not enough weed supply and too much expansion are among the reasons given for MedMen’s problems, but the disconnect between the company’s promise and reality made me think hard about some other terrible news this week: Apple’s announce-ment that it was going to miss its projected revenue by billions of dollars this quarter.

Apple has hung the moon for investors for so long now that the idea of the company struggling sent the entire global stock market into a paroxysm of fear and plunging indexes. It is, to use an old California trope, going to be a real bummer for Silicon Valley.

Now stick with me here, be-cause what’s happening across what are considered fast-for-ward industries like cannabis and tech is worrisome. Where is the next great boom of in-novation going to come from, when even the strongest brands and products might not be sure things anymore?

Apple is not only a bellwether company in tech but also the most expertly managed one un-der Tim Cook. He, of course, was preceded as chief executive by Steve Jobs, who had brought the

company back from the brink of bankruptcy in 1997. Since then,

it has been all uphill, to the point this summer when Apple

THE TRUTH IS YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN TOMORROW. LIFE IS A CRAZY RIDE, AND NOTHING IS GUARANTEED. EMINEM

QUOTE OF THE DAY

DAVID ROBERTS

A few weeks ago, after a marathon closing dash of 77.5 miles during 32 sleep-

less hours, the American Colin O’Brady stormed to the finish line at the foot of the Leverett Glacier to claim the first solo, unsupported traverse of Antarc-tica — a challenge O’Brady had called The Impossible First. Two days later, culminating a rivalry that commentators likened to the race between Robert Falcon Scott and Roald Amundsen to reach the South Pole in 1911-12, Louis Rudd of Britain finished the same arduous journey of more than 920 miles across the frozen con-tinent, surviving brutal winds, whiteouts, crevasse scares and temperatures below minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit.

Rudd’s expedition was con-ceived in part as a tribute to his friend and mentor, Henry Wors-ley, who died of peritonitis after sledding more than 800 miles attempting the same feat three years earlier.

All but lost in the celebration of O’Brady’s and Rudd’s splen-did achievements was the deed of another polar explorer, the Norwegian Borge Ousland, com-pleted more than two decades before. Or, if Ousland’s own trav-erse was glancingly and anon-ymously invoked, it was tagged with an asterisk, as this year’s trekkers were hailed for attempt-ing the crossing without the aid of dogs or sails.

It’s not surprising that in 2018,

the effort to claim the purported first solo, unsupported traverse of Antarctica became an all-out race between two contenders. For sponsored professional ad-venturers who feel the need to connect in real time to a social media audience, true explora-tion becomes secondary to the need to set “records,” to claim “firsts,” no matter how arbitrar-ily defined.

Between November 1996 and January 1997, Ousland man-hauled a sled initially laden with 412 pounds of food and gear for 64 days across Antarctica from the ocean edge of the Ronne Ice Shelf to McMurdo Sound on the seacoast below the Ross Ice Shelf — the same base from which Scott set off for the pole in 1911.

Along the way, he received no help or supplies from others, not even a cup of coffee at the well-appointed Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station. On the “downhill” leg from the pole to the coast, Ousland occasionally unfurled a “ski sail” of his own devising: in his words, “a sim-ple piece of square fabric” that would catch the wind and help propel him as he skied across the snow. That minimal aid, in the view of more recent travers-ers such as O’Brady, Rudd and Worsley, disqualified Ousland’s epic solo jaunt from the laurel of an “unsupported” journey.

Following last week’s outpour-ing of congratulations to the American and the Briton, some veteran observers of the Ant-arctic scene wondered whether their feats should be starred with asterisks of their own. Most sig-nificantly, this year’s traversers began and ended their treks not at the seacoast but at the heads of the two great ice shelves. The

distance they traveled — 925 miles — was only half the 1,864 miles that Ousland covered in 1996-97. In the tweet announcing his finish, O’Brady claimed, “As I pulled my sled over this invisible line, I accomplished my goal: to become the first person in history to traverse the continent of Antarctica coast to coast solo, unsupported and unaided.”

The heads of the Ross and

Ronne Shelves, he insisted, were “where Antarctica’s land mass ends and the sea ice be-gins.” As the Antarctic historian and mountaineer Damien Gildea argued in a post to the website ExplorersWeb: “The ice shelves are land ice and therefore part of the continent. This was accepted by all the earliest polar travellers who did, or attempted, cross-ings.” Scott and Amundsen, of

course, had no choice but to start their expeditions from the true coast, and on their return from the pole, Scott and his four com-panions died on the Ross Shelf, unable to haul their sledges one step farther.

ExplorersWeb also pointed out that from the South Pole to the “finish line” at the bottom of the Leverett Glacier, both O’Brady and Rudd skied along the South

Is this the end of

the age of Apple?

We need the next wave of innovation, and we need it now

The first solo Antarctic traverse

In last week’s celebration of two solo

treks across Antarctica, the pioneer

whose unsupported

crossing 22 years ago set the standard

has been unfairly

diminished

C I V I L I A N ’ S T R I B U N E


TOP

4TWEETS

04

02

03

01

The need of the hour is to abolish all kinds

of reservations and quota system based on caste, religion & gender - for building a secular & peaceful India, for fast-er economic progress & poverty alleviation.

@porinju

The most depress-ing thing about the

widespread belief that Facebook and Instagram spy on users with their mic for advertising is that no-one I know who believes it has actually responded by deleting those apps from their phones

@alexhern

A historic cricketing a c c o m p l i s h m e n t

in Australia! Congrat-ulations to the Indian Cricket Team for the hard-fought and richly deserved series victory. The series witnessed some memorable perfor-mances and solid team-work. wishes for the var-ious games ahead.

@narendramodi

With all of the success that our Country

is having, including the just released jobs num-bers which are off the charts, the Fake News & totally dishonest Media concerning me and my presidency has never been worse. Many have become crazed lunatics who have given up on the TRUTH!...

@realDonaldTrump

Disclaimer: (Views expressed by columnists are personal and need not necessarily reflect our

editorial stances)

reached a $1 trillion valuation — the first publicly traded Amer-

ican company to reach that high — with a price of $207.39 a share.

Today it’s trading at $142.64, and analysts are predicting it will settle around $135. Yipes. Part of the problem is the melt-down of the economy in China, where Apple products are pop-ular, and the Trump administra-tion’s trade war.

But as Ina Fried of Axios not-ed: “The problems Apple saw in China go far beyond just Apple. But Apple’s iPhone problems extend far beyond China, too.”

Indeed. The last big innova-tion explosion — the prolifer-ation of the smartphone — is clearly ending. There is no ques-tion that Apple was the center of that, with its app-centric, pho-to-forward and feature-laden phone that gave everyone the first platform for what was to create so many products and so much wealth. It was the debut of the iPhone in 2007 that spurred what some in tech call a “Cam-brian explosion,” a reference to the era when the first complex animals appeared. There would be no Uber and Lyft without the iPhone (and later the Android version), no Tinder, no Spotify.

Now all of tech is seeking the next major platform and area of growth. Will it be virtual and augmented reality, or perhaps self-driving cars? Artificial in-telligence, robotics, cryptocur-

rency or digital health? We are stumbling in the dark.

Apple has dabbled in a lot of these areas, but it still makes its money by selling mobile phones and the accessories around them. And while I love my Air-Pods and lose them weekly, my forking over $159 to Apple for my sloppiness is not going to help compared with buying a cool new phone.

That business has surely lev-elled off, as no one upgrades quite as quickly as they did be-fore, because of everything from the price tag and being worried about a recession to the simple fact that the new phones don’t offer that much more than the

old ones. There is no question that Cook and his team have done a tremendous job taking advantage and managing this last cycle of innovation, but it’s apparent that it’s now winding down.

This is a big issue not only for Apple but also for all of tech. There is not a major trend that you can grab onto right now that will carry everyone forward. The last cool set of companies — Uber, Airbnb, Pinterest and, yes, Tinder — were created many years ago, and I cannot think of another group that is even close to as promising.

Well, rental scooters. OK, they’re cool, but they are a de-rivative of the car rental busi-ness and are not going to make the big jumps in innovation that need to occur now.

How innovation happens is a much more delicate thing than people imagine, a dance involv-ing money, opportunity, timing, execution and, most important, one great idea behind it all.

Where is that next spark that will light us all up?

(Kara Swisher, editor at large for the technology news website Recode

and producer of the Recode Decode podcast and Code Conference, is a

contributing opinion writer.)

1499Louis XII of France marries Anne of Brittany in accordance with a law set by his predecessor, Charles VIII.

1547The first Lithuanian-language book, Simple Words of Catechism, is published in Königsberg.

1735Premiere performance of George Frideric Handel’s Ariodante at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.

1746Second Jacobite rising: Bonnie Prince Charlie occupies Stirling.

TODAY DAY IN

HISTORY

Pole Overland Traverse track, “a flattened trail groomed by trac-tors towing heavy sledges” to resupply the polar station. “Flags every 100 meters or so make nav-igation easy during whiteouts.” What’s more, the tractors scrape away the hard ridges of sastrugi — the wavelike ridges of hard snow — that are a sledder’s night-mare, and the track is routed to avoid crevasses. It’s unclear what condition the trail was in when he skied along it. But in his own photo from Day 50 (Dec. 22), only four days short of the finish line, tractor marks are clearly visible, and no hint of sastrugi ridges can be seen.

In 2018, polar trekkers could count on the incalculable sup-port of GPS, satellite phones and rescue crews equipped with planes and helicopters capable of landing within hours of an emergency call. O’Brady sent outtweets and Instagram photos detailing his daily progress and spoke to his wife in Oregon reg-ularly by satellite phone. When an ailing Worsley called for help in January 2016, an airplane whisked him to Chile. He died

not on the ice but in a hospital in Punta Arenas.

In 1996, Ousland navigated by compass and the sun, in an age before reliable GPS devic-es, tracing his route on sketchy 1:250,000 maps. Satellite phones had yet to be made portable. The silence and solitude posed psy-chological challenges of their own. As he later wrote, “It gener-ally takes 10 to 14 days to find the inner harmony needed to survive in such an unforgiving world. But when it all comes together, being so totally alone is also a good experience.”

Early on, he fell through a snow bridge into a hidden crevasse and was saved only by strong titani-um bars linking him to his sled, which served as a dead-weight anchor. If he needed rescue, he could have activated an Argos beacon that sent a mere dot of his location to a colleague in Nor-way. The only hope of evacuation was a Twin Otter airplane sta-tioned at the Patriot Hills base camp in Antarctica more than a thousand miles away by the end of his trip.

As the news of O’Brady ’s “first” spread across the media, Ousland wrote magnanimously on his Facebook page, “We con-gratulate Colin O’Bradly [sic] with his achievements in Ant-arctica.” But he added that he “was the first person to ski alone across Antarctica.” As he told me in an email: “It should not be necessary for me to have to stand up and fight for my ‘honour.’ I believe that I should be credited as the first to have crossed Ant-arctica solo and unsupported from coast to coast. Period.”

(David Roberts is the author, most recently, of “Limits of the Known”.)

How innovation happens is a much more delicate

thing than people imagine, a dance involving money,

opportunity, timing, execution and, most

important, one great idea behind it all.

The first solo Antarctic traverseAlong the way, he received

no help or supplies from others, not even a cup of coffee at the well-

appointed Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station.

China-US space race?

China has become the third country to land a probe on the Moon on Jan 2. But, more importantly, it became the first to do so on

the far side of the moon, often called the dark side.The ability to land on the far side of the moon

is a technical achievement in its own right, one that neither Russia nor the United States has pursued.

The probe, Chang’e 4, is symbolic of the growth of the Chinese space programme and the capabilities it has amassed, significant for China and for relations among the great power

across the world.The consequences extend to the United States

as the Trump administration considers global competition in space as well as the future of space exploration.

One of the major drivers of US space policy historically has been competition with Russia particularly in the context of the Cold War.

If China’s successes continue to accumulate, could the United States find itself engaged in a new space race?

Rajeesh Pacheni

10

business


Gulf Air to reinforce customer experience with boutique modelThe airline reveals business plans for 2019, assesses its 5-year strategy and continues forward with its strategic growth

TDT |Manama

Gulf Air has announced adopting a new ‘boutique’

business model which according to the airline “is different and unique in the way it operates comparing to the bigger airlines that are more volume driven.”

The move, Gulf Air’s Chair-man of Board of Directors Zayed R. Alzayani said, will reinforce its focus on product and cus-tomer experience and allow to “shine amongst the competitors in our own unique way”.

“This is an even more exciting year for Gulf Air as we continue our efforts and plans to portray the airline as a solid national asset that serves the Kingdom of Bahrain and yet caters to an international audience,” added Alzayani.

The new model in line with

the airline’s 5-year strategy to become a customer airline of choice designed to gives it a competitive advantage that will translate in new fleet, new Falcon Gold class offering, new exclusive products, new des-

tinations for 2019 and pres-ence in the new terminal at Bahrain International Airport due to open towards the end of the year.

Gulf Air said it aims to “grow strategically in size and expand

to more boutique destinations in 2019 and continue fleet modernization programme by receiving additional 2 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner’s and 5 Airbus A320neos this year”.

The business plans for 2019

was revealed to internal and ex-ternal stakeholders during its commercial conference held in Manama, Bahrain.

The conference was held in the Wyndham Grand Hotel in Bahrain Bay and was attended

by the airline’s Chairman, Ex-ecutive Management, station managers from the airline’s network, Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority (BTEA), Bahrain Airport Company and Gulf Air Group.

Gulf Air officials during a group photo opportunity

Aluminium Bahrain (Alba) Executive Management team and Managers during Alba’s first leadership-focussed workshop of 2019 - ‘Building Leaders’ Attention to Details’ on 03 January 2019 at Alba Club. Sam Vincent, a renowned NBA player who played alongside star players such as Magic Johnson, Larry Bird and Michael Jordan, presented the workshop.

BCCI, German biz delegation meeting TDT | Manama

The Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Indus-

try (BCCI) is holding a meet-ing with German business delegation on Thursday at 10 am in Awal Hall-The Gulf Hotel.

Representatives of Legal services, finance, tourism, IT Services, tax and busi-ness consulting, industrial landscaping and gardening services, energy, civil engi-neering, media and printing, health management, archi-tecture, and real estate will be present.

“We encourage our mem-bers to attend the event and meet the German delegation in a bid to mull business and partnership opportunities,” said BCCI’s Chief Executive Officer Shaker Al Shater.

The visit is organised in cooperation with the Ri-yadh based German-Saudi Arabian Liaison Office for Economic Affairs (GESALO).

Modi plans jobs quota for India’s ‘upper caste poor’New Delhi, India

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government an-

nounced plans yesterday to set aside a quota of government jobs for poorer members of In-dia’s upper caste.

India already “reserves” jobs for impoverished and disad-vantaged lower castes for civil service jobs and college places.

Modi’s plans would help households with an annual income of less than $11,000, the Press Trust of India news agency reported. The change would require a change to the constitution, which caps the number of reserved jobs and college places at 50 per cent.

The plans were approved by the cabinet yesterday. They re-quire approval from both hous-es of parliament.

Caste-based quotas are meant to provide equal opportunities for India’s poorest and most marginalised groups.

Narendra Modi, Prime Minister

Trucks test no-deal Brexit• 89 trucks were taking part in Monday’s exercise at a cost of $700/610 euros per driver

Manston, United Kingdom

Dozens of trucks descend-ed on an abandoned air-field in southeast Eng-

land yesterday in an exercise for easing congestion in Channel crossings in case of a no-deal Brexit.

The trucks, many of them belonging to the Eddie Stobart haulage company, assembled on the Manston airstrip, which could be turned into a parking area under government plans.

The trucks then drove in a convoy to the port of Dover -- a 20-mile (32-kilometre) journey -- along a route that is far less used by lorries than the main

highway from London.The trucks drove around the

port of Dover and returned to Manston for a second exercise.

Letters to hauliers from the transport ministry said the test was aimed at ensuring “there is an effective plan in place should there be any disruption once the UK has left the EU”.

The use of the airfield as a holding facility “is one of the traffic management measures” in draft plans to “alleviate con-gestion” in the event of any dis-ruption on the border, according to the ministry’s letters.

They also stated that officials would be using the exercise to “establish the safest optimum release rate of HGVs (Heavy Goods Vehicles) from the air-field to Dover”.

A transport ministry spokes-woman said 89 trucks were tak-ing part in Monday’s exercise at a cost of 550 pounds ($700/610 euros) per driver or £48,950 for

the whole fleet.“We do not want or expect a

no-deal scenario and continue to work hard to deliver a deal with the EU.

“However, it is the duty of a responsible government to con-tinue to prepare for all eventual-ities and contingencies, includ-ing a possible no deal,” she said.

But Charlie Elphicke, the local MP for Dover, criticised the transport plan saying that it was “too complex” and likely to cause “enormous confusion” for lorry drivers.

Dover handles some 10,000 heavy goods vehicles every day and there are concerns that in-creased checks on the border will create congestion on roads in the county of Kent.

A mere two-minute addition would cause traffic jams of more than 17 miles (27 kilometres) in Dover and similar chaos in Calais and Dunkirk, the Port of Dover warned on its website.

A mural by British artist Banksy, depicting a workman chipping away at one of the stars on a European Union (EU) themed flag, is pictured in Dover, south east England


Key figures around 1640 GMTLondon - FTSE 100: 0.4pc at 6,810.88 points (close)

Frankfurt - DAX 30: 0.2pc at 10,747.81 (close)

Paris - CAC 40: 0.4pc at 4,719.17 (close)

EURO STOXX 50: 0.3pc at 3,033.64

New York - Dow: 0.3pc at 23,505.24

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: 2.4pc at 20,038.97 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng: 0.8pc at 25,835.70 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: 0.7pc at 2,533.09 (close)

Dollar/yen: at 108.47 yen from 108.44 at Friday

Euro/dollar: at $1.1487 from $1.1398

Pound/dollar: at $1.2761 from $1.2730

Oil - Brent Crude: $1.60 at $58.66 per barrel

Markets retrench after rebound• Asian bourses rode high on Friday’s Wall Street bounce

• Fed boss Jerome Powell said the bank had no “pre-set” plan for raising borrowing costs

AFP | London, United Kingdom

World stocks went on the defensive yester-day, with profit-tak-

ing eroding European gains and Wall Street managing small gains after a spectacular rebound in the previous trading session.

There was some lingering op-timism thanks to strong US jobs data and signs of slowing rate rises by the Federal Reserve, but investors viewed US-China trade talks with a dose of scepticism.

Earlier, Asian bourses rode high on Friday’s Wall Street bounce but investors in Europe felt it was time to cash in on the rebound as their US counterparts seemed to have little firepower left.

“Stocks are still not out of the

woods”, said Fawad Razaqzqda, a market analyst at Forex.com.

If the forthcoming fourth quarter earnings season in the US produces “more misses than beats then the selling pressure could resume again”, he said.

Chinese and US officials on Monday kicked off talks to find a solution to the trade war that has seen the two sides impose tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars worth of goods.

But traders said there were no

guarantees of progress.

Breakthrough ‘unlikely’ “Realistically we are unlike-

ly to see any form of tangible breakthrough in the immediate future, with issues such as the

protection of intellectual prop-erty rights providing a major stumbling block that needs to be overcome,” said Joshua Mahony, senior market analyst at IG.

Friday’s surge on Wall Street came after figures showed more than 300,000 US jobs were cre-ated in December, tempering recent concerns about growth.

Also Friday, Fed boss Jerome Powell said the bank had no “pre-set” plan for raising bor-rowing costs and was keeping a close watch on financial devel-

opments.The news was music to the

ears of traders, who have been fretting that the Fed would press on with its rate hike cycle, mak-ing it more expensive to borrow for investment.

China’s move to make it easier for banks to lend also provid-ed support to equities, traders said.

But investors continue to wor-ry about a budget gridlock on Capitol Hill that has shut down the US government.

South Korea’s Financial Services Commission chairman Choi Jong-ku (3rd R) holds onto a bull during a ceremony celebrating the South Korea stock market’s first trading session of the year at the Korea Exchange in Seoul (file)

Privacy becomes a selling point at tech showLas Vegas, United States

Apple is not among the exhib-itors at the 2019 Consumer

Electronics Show, but that didn’t prevent the iPhone maker from sending a message to attendees on a large billboard.

“What happens on your iP-hone stays on your iPhone,” Apple says in the message to be seen by tens of thousands at-tending the Las Vegas tech show.

The message comes as gadget makers are concerned about data protection scandals and in many cases looking to make their own point about respect for privacy.

Some companies are offering better ways of protecting inter-net routers or services without a need for an internet connection -- reducing the potential for data leaks and breaches.

Dutch startup Scalys is show-ing its Trustbox, a router that aims to protect the user’s con-nection as well as devices using it.

Another router from Chica-go-based Winston stops tracking

and surveillance and can also block ads and geolocation.

The data scandals “are like Christmas presents for us,” by prompting more consum-ers to look for better security, said Winston founder Richard Stokes.

“As we see more things be-ing connected I think that you’ll definitely hear people talk about security more and really look-ing at how would you secure the data,” said analyst Carolina Milanesi of Creative Strategies.

“More companies are going to take kind of a cue from the marketing that Apple has been doing.”

Extra layers of protectionAn estimated 74 million Amer-

icans have smart speakers, ac-cording to the research firm eMarketer, with Amazon and Google controlling the lion’s share of the market.

One of the fears of customers is that these devices are always listening, potentially putting pri-vacy at risk.

One device being launched at

CES is called Mute from a startup called Smarte, creating a layer of protection to stop the devices from picking up conversations not intended for queries.

French startup Snips is of-fering its own digital assistant which can be installed on a de-vice without an internet con-nection.

“Customers are turning to us because they don’t want to de-pend on Big Tech,” said Snips founder Rand Hindi.

Hindi said the argument from tech firms that they need user data to make things work is false.

“The only reason they need your data is to target you (with ads) to the maximum,” he said.

Analyst Bob O’Donnell of Technalysis Researchers said more companies are starting to wake up to issues surrounding privacy and data protection in light of the revelations on Face-book and others over the past year.

“We’ve all started to become painfully aware of how big (and far-reaching) the problem of data privacy is,” O’Donnell said.

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 20-Series GPUs is among the CES 2019 Innovation awards winners displayed during the CES Unveiled Las Vegas event in advance of the 2019 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Nevada

The BeeLife CoCoon smart beehive is among the CES 2019 Innovation awards winners displayed during the CES Unveiled Las Vegas event in advance of the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Nevada

Mookkie, a smart pet feeder which recognizes individual animals, is displayed during a press event for CES 2019 at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center. Through a wide-angle camera that deploys logic similar to the “face-unlock” feature of modern smartphones, Mookkie records images of the animal for which food is intended, then deploys the trillion operations per second necessary for visual recognition, allowing the product to visually identify the presence of the pet and activate a door opening to allow access to food.

The Bread Bot -- a fully automated bread-making machine that mixes, kneads, proofs, bakes and sells bread like a vending machine is displayed at CES Unveiled, the preview event for CES 2019 consumer electronics show


Closing BellSAUDI 1.5pt » 8,048 pts

DUBAI 0.1pt » 2,535 pts

QATAR 1.4pt » 10,494 pts

ABU DHABI 0.6pt » 4,934 pts

KUWAIT 0.5pt » 5,403 pts

OMAN 0.2pt » 4,312 pts

BAHRAIN at 1,331 pts

Oil rise lifts Gulf markets• Saudi trades at multi-month closing high

• Eleven of 12 Saudi banks gain

• Al Rajhi reaches near 11-year high

• Six of seven banks rise in Qatar

Reuters

All major Gulf markets rose for a third straight session yesterday, boost-

ed by financial stocks amid ris-ing oil prices, while Saudi Ara-bia and Qatar gained sharply as most of their banks increased.

Oil prices rose by 2 per cent on Monday, extending a rally from December’s 18-month lows with support from OPEC produc-tion cuts and steadying share markets.

Saudi Arabia’s index rose 1.5pc to close at its highest since Aug. 12, 2018, with 11 of its 12 banks gaining. Saudi Arabia is due to join the emerging market in-dexes of MSCI and FTSE Russell this year, which is expected to attract $15 billion of passive, index-linked funds and billions more in active funds.

As a result, Saudi Arabia was the favourite market of fund managers polled by Reuters late last month, with 54pc expecting to raise their Saudi equity alloca-tions and none to reduce them in the next three months.

Saudi exchange data released late on Sunday showed that for-

eigners were net buyers of 134.3 million riyals ($35.80 million) of stocks last week.

Al Rajhi Bank, the kingdom’s second-largest lender by assets, rose 2.2pc to trade at nearly 11-year high; the stock had gained over 5pc in the last session on plans to increase its capital to 25 billion riyals from 16.25 billion riyals.

Bank Aljazira added 2.7pc af-ter proposing a dividend of 0.5 riyal per share for year 2018, up

from 0.3 riyal per share a year earlier.

The petrochemical sector was mixed, however, with Saudi’s largest petrochemical maker gaining 1pc. But Saudi Arabian Fertilizers dropped 2pc; ear-lier this week, it announced a planned shutdown of its plant for 117 days which, the firm said, will cost an estimated 121 mil-lion riyals.

Qatar’s index gained 1.4pc with six of its 7 banks increasing.

Qatar Commercial Bank jumped 4.1pc while market heavyweight Industries Qatar added 2.9pc.

In Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates’ largest lender First Abu Dhabi Bank climbed 1pc, which helped the index rise 0.6pc.

The Dubai index edged up 0.1pc with the emirate’s largest lender, Emirates NBD, gaining 2.1pc. Egypt market was closed on Monday for a public holiday.

An investor watching stocks movements on the index of Saudi Stock market (Courtesy of arabian Business)

American negotiators in Beijing for talks

Beijing, China

US and Chinese nego-tiators yesterday held

their first face-to-face talks since the world’s two larg-est economies agreed to a truce aimed at resolving their trade dispute.

The visiting delegation, led by Deputy US Trade Representative Jeffrey Ger-rish, left its hotel in Beijing Monday morning without speaking to reporters for a first day of talks.

The two sides plan to continue discussions on Tuesday.

President Donald Trump raised hopes last week that an agreement could be found to end the months-long dispute, during which the world’s top two econo-mies have imposed import duties on more than $300 billion of each other’s goods.

“I think we will make a deal with China,” Trump said on Friday.

China’s President Xi Jinping (L) and US President Donald Trump attend a welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

Renault alliance ‘not in danger’: Nissan CEOAFP | Tokyo, Japan

Ni s s a n ’s a l l i a n c e w i t h France’s Renault is not in

danger “at all”, the Japanese au-tomaker’s CEO said yesterday, despite tensions exposed by the arrest of the partnership’s chief Carlos Ghosn.

In an interview, Hiroto Saika-wa brushed aside suggestions that the alliance, which also in-cludes Mitsubishi Motors, had been damaged by the aftermath of Ghosn’s arrest for alleged fi-nancial misconduct.

“I don’t think it’s in danger at all,” he said.

He declined to comment di-rectly on the case against Ghosn, who will appear in court Tues-day to hear an explanation of his ongoing detention.

“This is a process of the Jap-anese system, so I have nothing to say,” Saikawa said.

“I just want to focus on stabi-lising the company.”

Ghosn’s arrest rocked the auto industry and exposed rifts in the three-firm alliance that he forged, particularly between Nissan and Renault.

Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors swiftly removed Ghosn from his leadership positions after his arrest, with Saikawa even referring to the “dark side” of his former mentor’s tenure.

But Renault has kept Ghosn on as CEO, and the French firm has repeatedly urged Nissan to call a shareholder meeting, re-portedly seeking to bolster its

representation on the company’s board. Officials at both compa-nies have also complained about a breakdown in communication in the wake of the arrest.

But despite the apparent ten-sions, Saikawa said he was com-municating with Renault on a “day-to-day” basis and “alliance work is going well”.

“The core, the value, of the alliance itself is coming from the day-to-day work,” he added.

“This work, this energy, this direction of activities are not at all affected.”

‘Ready to accept fundamental change’

But in an indication of one of the issues underlying the tensions, Saikawa suggested that the current distribution of shares in the partnership could be up for renegotiation.

Renault is currently the dom-inant partner in the alliance, holding 43 percent of Nissan’s shares, while the Japanese firm holds only a 15 percent stake in Renault and has no voting rights.

While the alliance as a whole is the world’s top-selling car company, Nissan outsells its French counterpart.

There have been rumours that before his arrest, Ghosn was moving towards consolidating the alliance, despite growing resentment in Nissan about the partnership’s existing frame-work.

“Currently, we don’t have to change anything, but maybe in

the future,” he said.“Can we say this current cre-

do is stable or sustainable? We may have to review it. This is the kind of homework for (the) current generation’s leaders, be-fore handing over to next gener-ations. We need to work on it.”

Ghosn faces allegations in-cluding under-reporting his compensation, attempting to shift investment losses onto Nis-san’s books, and using company funds to repay a friend who put up collateral for him.

He denies the allegations, and is expected to make his first public statement since his ar-rest when he appears in a Tokyo court on Tuesday.

Nissan says the alleged finan-cial misconduct came to light through a company whistle-blower, which then prompted a full-blown investigation.

In the wake of the case, and Ghosn’s removal as chair-man, Nissan has launched a wide-ranging review of its gov-ernance.

The firm itself faces charges for submitting falsified docu-ments in one of the cases involv-ing the alleged under-reporting of Ghosn’s salary.

Saikawa said he expected the review to produce “deep and wide recommendations”.

“I am ready to accept fun-damental change,” he added, speaking on the sidelines of the New Year’s gathering organised by Japan’s Keidanren business lobby.

Nissan CEO Hiroto Saikawa speak prior to attending the Keidanren (Japan Business Federation) New Year party in Tokyo

World Bank President Jim Yong Kim announces resignation

Washington, United States

World Bank Presi-dent Jim Yong Kim

announced yesterday he would step down next month, more than three years before his current term was due to expire.

The decision ends Kim’s six-year tenure and may give US President Donald Trump decisive influence over the future leadership of the global development lender.

“It has been a great honor to serve as president of this remarkable institution, full of passionate individuals dedicated to the mission of ending extreme poverty in our lifetime,” Kim said in a statement.

Kim, who became presi-dent in 2012, is to join an as-yet unnamed firm focusing on investments in develop-ing countries, the bank said in a statement.

Jim Yong Kim

13 TUESDAY, JANUARY 8, 2019

BACKTRACE (PG-15) (CRIME/ACTION/THRILLER) NEW *- SYLVESTER STALLONE, RYAN GUZMAN,

OASIS JUFFAIR DAILY AT: 11.30 AM + 1.30 + 3.30 + 5.30 + 7.30 + 9.30 + 11.30 PM CITYCENTRE DAILY AT: 10.30 AM + 12.45 + 3.00 + 5.15 + 7.30 + 9.45 PM + 12.00 MN + (1.00 AM THURS/FRI)SEEF (II) DAILY AT: (1.00 AM THURS/FRI) SEEF (I) DAILY AT: 12.30 + 2.45 + 5.00 + 7.15 + 9.30 + 11.45 PM SAAR DAILY AT: 12.15 + 2.30 + 4.45 + 7.00 + 9.15 + (11.30 PM THURS/FRI)WADI AL SAIL DAILY AT: 12.00 + 2.15 + 4.30 + 6.45 + 9.00 + 11.15 PM

THE SISTERS BROTHER (15+) (CRIME/DRAMA/THRILLER) NEW *- JOHN C. REILLY, JOAQUIN PHOENIX, JAKE

OASIS JUFFAIR DAILY AT: 10.30 AM + 3.30 + 8.30 PMCITYCENTRE DAILY AT: 11.30 AM + 2.00 + 4.30 + 7.00 + 9.30 PM + 12.00 MNSEEF (II) DAILY AT: 2.30 + 7.00 + 11.30 PMSAAR DAILY AT: 10.45 AM + 1.15 + 3.45 + 6.15 + 8.45 + (11.15 PM THURS/FRI)WADI AL SAIL DAILY AT: 12.45 + 6.15 + 11.45 PM

KGF (PG-15) (HINDI/ACTION/CRIME/DRAMA) NEW*- YASH, SRINIDHI SHETTY, RAMACHANDRA

OASIS JUFFAIR DAILY AT: 11.30 AM + 2.30 + 5.30 + 8.30 + 11.30 PMSEEF (I) DAILY AT: 11.30 AM + 2.30 + 5.30 + 8.30 + 11.30 PM

THATTUM PURATH ACHUTHAN (PG-13) (MALAYALAM) NEW*- KUNCHACKO BOBAN, NEDUMUDI VENU

OASIS JUFFAIR DAILY AT: 12.15 + 3.00 + 5.45 + 8.30 + 11.15 PMSEEF (I) DAILY AT: 12.30 + 3.15 + 6.00 + 8.45 + 11.30 PM

5-AQUAMAN (PG-15) (ACTION/ADVENTURE) *- JASON MOMOA, AMBER HEARD, NICOLE KIDMAN

OASIS JUFFAIR DAILY AT: 11.00 AM + 2.00 + 5.00 + 8.00 + 11.00 PM OASIS JUFFAIR DAILY AT (VIP): 10.30 AM + 1.30 + 4.30 + 7.30 + 10.30 PMCITYCENTRE DAILY AT (ATMOS): 12.00 + 3.00 + 6.00 + 9.00 PM + 12.00 MNCITYCENTRE DAILY AT (VIP I): 11.15 AM + 2.15 + 5.15 + 8.15 + 11.15 PMCITYCENTRE DAILY AT (VIP II): 11.45 AM + 2.45 + 5.45 + 8.45 + 11.45 PMCITYCENTRE DAILY AT (IMAX 3D): 11.30 AM + 2.30 + 5.30 + 8.30 + 11.30 PMCITYCENTRE DAILY AT: (12.30 MN THURS/FRI)SEEF (II) DAILY AT: 11.45 AM + 2.45 + 5.45 + 8.45 + 11.45 PM + (12.45 MN THURS/FRI)SAAR DAILY AT: 11.30 AM + 5.30 + (11.30 PM THURS/FRI)WADI AL SAIL DAILY AT: 12.00 + 3.00 + 6.00 + 9.00 PM + 12.00 MN

SIMMBA (PG-15) (HINDI/ACTION/COMEDY/DRAMA)*- RANVEER SINGH, AJAY DEVGN, SARA ALI

OASIS JUFFAIR DAILY AT: 11.15 AM + 2.15 + 5.15 + 8.15 + 11.15 PM CITYCENTRE DAILY AT: 11.45 AM + 2.45 + 5.45 + 8.45 + 11.45 PMSEEF (II) DAILY AT: 12.00+ 3.00 + 6.00 + 9.00 PM + 12.00 MNSAAR DAILY AT: 2.30 + 8.30 PMWADI AL SAIL DAILY AT: 11.45 AM + 2.45 + 5.45 + 8.45 + 11.45 PM

MARY POPPINS RETURNS (G) (ADVENTURE/MUSICAL/FAMILY)

EMILY BLUNT, LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA,

OASIS JUFFAIR DAILY AT: 11.30 AM + 2.15 + 5.00 + 7.45 + 10.30 PMDAILY AT (KIDS CINEMA): 12.30 NOONCITYCENTRE DAILY AT: 10.30 AM + 1.00 + 3.45 + 6.30 + 9.15 PM + 12.00 MNSEEF (II) DAILY AT: 12.45 + 3.30 + 6.15 + 9.00+ 11.45 PMSAAR DAILY AT: 12.00 + 2.45 + 5.30 + 8.15 + (11.00 PM THURS/FRI)WADI AL SAIL DAILY AT: 12.15 + 3.00 + 5.45 + 8.30 + 11.15 PM

RALPH BREAKS THE INTERNET (PG) (ANIMATION/ADVENTURE/COMEDY)

JOHN C. REILLY, SARAH SILVARMAN, GAL GADOTOASIS JUFFAIR DAILY AT (KIDS CINEMA): 3.00 + 7.45 PMCITYCENTRE DAILAY AT: 11.00 AM + 1.15 + 3.30 + 5.45 + 8.00 + 10.15 PMSEEF (II) DAILY AT: 11.15 AM + 1.30 + 3.45 + 6.00 + 8.15 + 10.30 PM

ZERO (PG-15) (HINDI/DRAMA/ROMANTIC)

SHAH RUKH KHAN, ANUSHKA SHARMA,

OASIS JUFFAIR DAILY AT: 11.15 AM + 5.00 + 10.45 PMCITYCENTRE DAILY AT: 11.15 AM + 2.15 + 5.15 + 8.15 + 11.15 PMSEEF (II) DAILY AT: 3.00 + 8.30 PMWADI AL SAIL DAILY AT: 3.15 + 8.45 PM

BUMBLEBEE (PG-13) (ACTION /ADVENTURE/SCI-FICTION)*- HAILEE STEINFELD, JOHN CENA, JORGE

OASIS JUFFAIR DAILY AT: 1.00 + 6.00 + 11.00 PMCITYCENTRE DAILY AT: 11.00 AM + 1.30 + 4.00 + 6.30 + 9.00 + 11.30 PMSEEF (II) DAILY AT: 11.15 AM + 1.45 + 4.15 + 6.45 + 9.15 + 11.45 PM

SPIDER MAN INTO THE SPIDER VERSE (PG) (ANIMATION/ACTION/ADVENTURE) *- HAILEE STEINFELD, NICOLAS CAGE,

OASIS JUFFAIR DAILY AT (KIDS CINEMA): 5.15 + 10.00 PM SEEF (II) DAILY AT: 12.30 + 3.00 + 5.30 + 8.00 + 10.30 PM

THOMAS & FRIENDS: BIG WORLD! BIG ADVENTURES! THE MOVIE (G) (ANIMATION/ADVENTURE) NEW*-DONA ADWERA, PETER ANDRE

OASIS JUFFAIR DAILY AT (KIDS CINEMA): 10.45 AM CITYCENTRE DAILY AT: 10.30 AM + 1.00 + 3.30 + 6.00 + 8.30 + 11.00 PM

JOSEPH (PG-15) (MALAYALAM) *- JOJU GEORGE, MALAVIKA MENON

OASIS JUFFAIR DAILY AT: 2.15 + 8.00 PM

3-THE CLEANING LADY (18+) (THRILLER/HORROR) NEW *- ALEXIS KENDRA, STELIO SAVANTE,

CITYCENTRE DAILY AT: 1.30 + 5.30 + 9.30 PMSEEF (I) DAILY AT: 12.00 + 2.00 + 4.00 + 6.00 + 8.00 + 10.00 PM + 12.00 MNWADI AL SAIL DAILY AT: 11.30 AM + 3.30 + 7.30 + 11.30 PM

4-PROSPECT (15+) (THRILLER/SCI-FICTION) NEW *- SOPHIE THATCHER, PEDRO PASCAL

CITYCENTRE DAILAY AT: 11.45 AM + 3.45 + 7.45 + 11.45 PM

SEEF (II) DAILAY AT: 10.30 AM + 12.30 + 5.00 + 9.30 PM WADI AL SAIL DAILY AT: 1.30 + 5.30 + 9.30 PM

DEAD IN A WEEK: OR YOUR MONEY BACK (15+) (COMEDY/CRIME) NEW *- TOM WILKINSON, ANEURIN BARNARD,

CITYCENTRE DAILY AT: 11.30 AM + 3.30 + 7.30 + 11.30 PMSEEF (II) DAILY AT: 10.30 AM + 2.45 + 7.00 + 11.15 PM

MIA AND THE WHITE LION (PG-13) (ADVENTURE/DRAMA/FAMILY) NEW *- DANIAH DE VILLIERS, MELANIE LAURENT,

CITYCENTRE DAILY AT: 11.30 AM + 3.30 + 7.30 + 11.30 PMSEEF (I) DAILY AT: 1.00 + 5.15 + 9.30 PMAL HAMRA DAILY AT: 12.00 + 3.00 + 6.00 + 9.00 PM + (12.00 MN THURS/FRI)

JOHNNY ENGLISH STRIKES AGAIN (PG) (COMEDY/ACTION/ADVENTURE) *- ROWAN ATKINSON, OLGA KURYLENKO,

CITYCENTRE DAILY AT: 12.00 + 2.00 + 4.00 + 6.00 + 8.00 + 10.00 + 12.00 MNSEEF (II) DAILY AT: 10.30 AM + 12.30 + 2.30 + 4.30 + 6.30 + 8.30 + 10.30 PM + (12.30 MN THURS/FRI)

HUNTER KILLER (PG-15) (ACTION/THRILLER) *- GERARD BUTLER, GARY OLDMAN,

CITYCENTRE DAILY AT: 11.15 AM + 1.45 + 4.15 + 6.45 + 9.15 + 11.45 PM SEEF (II) DAILY AT: 12.30 + 6.00 + 11.30 PM

EL BADLAH (PG-13) (ARABIC/COMEDY)

*- TAMER HOSNY, AKRAM HOSNI, MAJED EL MASRY, AMINA KHALILCITYCENTRE DAILY AT: 11.00 AM + 1.00 + 3.00 + 5.00 + 7.00 + 9.00 + 11.00 PMSEEF (I) DAILY AT: 10.45 AM + 12.45 + 2.45 + 4.45 + 6.45 + 8.45 + 10.45 PM + (12.45 MN THURS/FRI)

CREED II (PG-13) (DRAMA/ACTION/SPORT) *- TESSA THOMPSON, MICHAEL B. JORDAN,

CITYCENTRE DAILY AT: 12.45 + 3.30 + 6.15 + 9.00 + 11.45 PM

ROBIN HOOD (PG-15) (ACTION/ADVENTURE)

*- TARON EGERTON, EVE HEWSON, JAMIE FOXXCITYCENTRE DAILY AT: 12.15 + 2.30 + 4.45 + 7.00 + 9.15 + 11.30 PM

THE POSSESSION OF HANNAH GRACE (18+) (THRILLER/HORROR) *- SHAY MITCHELL, STANA KATIC, LOUIS HERTHUM

CITYCENTRE DAILY AT: 1.45 + 5.45 + 9.45 PM

SECOND ACT (PG-15) (COMEDY) *- JENNIFER LOPEZ, VANESSA HUDGENS, MILO VENTIMIGLIA

CITYCENTRE DAILY AT: 1.30 + 5.30 + 9.30 PM

GIRLS OF THE SUN (18+) (KURDISH/FRENCH/WAR) NEW*- GOLSHIFTEH FARAHANI, EMMANUELLE

SEEF (II) DAILY AT: 12.30 + 4.45 + 9.00 PM

AURORA (15+) (FILIPINO/HORROR/DRAMA) NEW *- ANNE CURTIS, MERCEDES CABRAL,

SEEF (I) DAILY AT: 10.45 AM + 3.00 + 7.15 + 11.30 PM

‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ rocks Golden Globes AFP | Los Angeles

“Bohemian Rhapso-dy” pulled a major upset at the close of

the Golden Globes on Sunday, taking home the final two top prizes to put itself into the Os-cars conversation along with “Green Book” and “Roma.”

On a night of wins for movies representing minorities, two awards favorites about white people -- Dick Cheney biopic “Vice” and musical romance “A Star is Born” -- all but struck out, with each picking up just one trophy in the run-up to the all-important Oscars on Feb-ruary 24.

“Bohemian Rhapsody” -- which charts the rise of Brit-ish rock group Queen -- picked up best actor for Rami Malek, who plays legendary frontman Freddie Mercury. It also bagged the biggest movie award of the night -- best drama.

“I am beyond moved. My heart is pounding out of my chest right now,” said Malek, whose list of people to thank included the Queen singer, who died in 1991.

“Thank you to Freddie Mer-cury for giving me the joy of a lifetime. I love you, you beauti-ful man. This is for and because of you, gorgeous.”

The two trophies were the final prizes in a ceremony that had been expected to be a con-secration for “A Star is Born” -- starring Lady Gaga and Brad-ley Cooper in the age-old Hol-lywood fable of an ailing per-former and his muse -- which went into the night with five nods.

“Star” had to content itself with a statuette for best song, which went to Gaga and writing partner Mark Ronson, while Christian Bale -- who plays Cheney -- picked up the solo gong for “Vice.”

Civil rights dramedy “Green Book” was the numerical win-ner -- if not the prestige player -- picking up awards for best comedy movie, best supporting actor Mahershala Ali and best screenplay.

The gala at the Beverly Hilton

also recognized Alfonso Cua-ron’s “Roma,” a cinematic ode to his childhood in 1970s Mex-ico City, with best director and foreign film honors, while sev-en movies bagged one statuette each.

“Cinema at its best builds bridges to other cultures,” Cua-ron told the audience. “We need to understand how much we have in common.”

Less edgy Under an azure southern Cal-ifornia sky, Tinseltown’s A-lis-ters worked the red carpet with last year’s gender politics still very much in mind.

Many wore “Time’s Up” bracelets in a nod to the move-ment for sexual equality in the workplace that grabbed the headlines 12 months ago as the industry faced a reckoning about rampant harassment and abuse.

Hosting the Globes were comedian Andy Samberg and actress Sandra Oh, who made history as the first Asian wom-an to have presented a major

awards show while also tak-ing home her second Globe for “Killing Eve.”

As the only awards show where alcohol is served, the evening is usually more colorful than showbiz’s other big nights.

But the presenters set the tone for a less edgy affair than in previous years with a rela-tively tame opening that gave more time to complimenting the nominees than assailing them with “roast”-style jokes.

Samberg paid tribute to the diversity among the slate of films up for awards, singling out “If Beale Street Could Talk,” whose star Regina King took home best supporting actress honors, as well as “Black Pan-ther” and “Crazy Rich Asians,” which went home empty-hand-ed.

“And they are not just here tonight because they resonat-ed with audiences Hollywood often ignores,” he said.

“They are here because they told stories that resonated with everyone. And that is truly a beautiful thing.”

King vowed that, for the next two years, she would only pro-duce projects that employ 50 percent women, exclaiming: “Time’s Up times two!”

“And I just challenge anyone out there -- anyone out there who is in a position of power, not just in our industry, in all industries -- I challenge you to challenge yourselves and stand with us in solidarity and do the same,” she said.

Queen guitarist Brian May (L), actor Rami Malek (C) and producer Graham King (R) celebrate a big Golden Globes night for “Bohemian Rhapsody”

Following is a list of Golden Globe winners in key categories:

BEST DRAMA - “Bohemian Rhapsody”BEST COMEDY OR MUSICAL - “Green Book”BEST ACTOR, DRAMA - Rami Malek - “Bohemian Rhapsody”BEST ACTRESS, DRAMA - Glenn Close - “The Wife”BEST ACTOR, COMEDY OR MUSICAL - Christian Bale - “Vice”BEST ACTRESS, COMEDY OR MUSICAL - Olivia Colman - “The Favourite”BEST DIRECTOR - Alfonso Cuaron - “Roma”BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR - Mahershala Ali - “Green Book”BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS - Regina King - “If Beale Street Could Talk”BEST ANIMATED FILM - “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”BEST FOREIGN FILM - “Roma” - MexicoBEST ORIGINAL SONG - Shallow - “A Star is Born”BEST TV DRAMA SERIES - “The Americans” - FXBEST TV COMEDY/MUSICAL SERIES - “The Kominsky Method” - NetflixBEST ACTOR, TV DRAMA - Richard Madden - “Bodyguard”BEST ACTRESS, TV DRAMA - Sandra Oh - “Killing Eve”BEST ACTOR, TV COMEDY/MUSICAL - Michael Douglas - “The Kominsky Method”BEST ACTRESS, TV COMEDY/MUSICAL - Rachel Brosnahan - “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”BEST TV MOVIE OR LIMITED SERIES - “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story” - FX

Cinema at its best builds bridges to

other cultures. We need to understand how much we have

in commonALFONSO CUARON

Jeff Bridges with his award

Jeff ‘The Dude’ Bridges gets Golden Globe lifetime awardReuters | Los Angeles

Jeff Bridges, the rascally dude of cult classic “The Big Lebowski”

and star of “Crazy Heart,” was awarded the annual Golden Globe for lifetime achievement on Sunday after a 60-year career on film and television.

Bridges, 69, got his start as a child star appearing alongside his parents Lloyd and Dorothy Bridges, and his older brother Beau in the 1950s be-fore carving his own path in mostly offbeat roles.

While accepting his award, Bridg-

es thanked his siblings and parents, noting that he was wearing his late father’s cufflinks.

Never typecast, Bridges has played a bank robber, a struggling writer, a blank-faced alien, a U.S. president and a video game pro-grammer in both independent and blockbuster movies.

But it is his 1988 role as a man mistaken for a millionaire in “The Big Lebowski” that has proved most memorable, earning Bridges the enduring nickname “The Dude” after his laid-back stoner character in the crime caper.

Sydney to host finals of new ATP World Team CupAFP | Sydney

Sydney will host the finals of the new innovative ATP

World Team Cup, organisers announced yesterday, while Brisbane and one other city will feature round-robin games in a revamp of the season-opening tennis calendar.

The Association of Tennis Professionals, which runs the

men’s game, voted in London earlier this year to award the tournament to Australia.

It will be played from January 3 over 10 days in lead-up to Aus-tralian Open, first Grand Slam of the year, starting in 2020.

Sydney will host the final of the 24-team event at the Ken Rosewall Arena, which will get a new roof, along with some round-robin matches.

There will be group action in Brisbane along with another city, reportedly Adelaide. The existing Brisbane International will continue as women-only event.

Perth was widely seen to be in running, but ongoing success of mixed-teams Hopman Cup, spearheaded this year by Roger Federer and Serena Williams, has thrown that into doubt.

Barca stretch La Liga leadGoals from Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez help the Catalans to overcome Getafe

• Barcelona are now five points clear at the top of the Liga table

Reuters | Madrid

Lionel Messi scored for the seventh time in four La Liga games as champions

Barcelona scrapped their way to a hard-fought 2-1 win at Getafe on Sunday that propelled them five points clear at the top of the table.

Messi, La Liga’s top scorer this season, opened his account for 2019 with his 16th goal, giving Barca a 20th minute lead as he tucked the ball into the net from a tight angle after his initial shot was saved by the legs of Getafe keeper David Soria.

It took the Argentine’s career tally to a staggering 399 goals in La Liga before Uruguay strik-er Luis Suarez doubled Barca’s advantage in the 39th with a spectacular volley from outside the area.

Yet Getafe hit back two min-utes before the interval with a close-range finish from strik-er Jaime Mata after a splendid team move and continued to push hard after the break.

Barca, who have won seven out of the last 10 La Liga titles, now lead the standings on 40

points after 18 games, stretching the gap to five points over their nearest pursuers Atletico Ma-drid, who drew 1-1 with third-placed Sevilla.

The Catalans are 10 points ahead of European champions Real Madrid, whose struggles continued with a 2-0 home de-feat by Real Sociedad.

“We were aware of those re-sults before going out on the pitch and were under pressure to make the most of the oppor-tunity, and we went out to do that at a very difficult ground,” Barca coach Ernesto Valverde told reporters.

“We expected it was going to be a tough game and it was.

They got right back into the game with their goal but we are very happy. We’ve increased the gap with our rivals, but there’s still a long way to go.”

Getafe’s Mata, who had an earlier first-half strike ruled out at 0-0 for an apparent foul by team mate Angel Rodriguez, missed a big chance in the sec-

ond half, ballooning the ball over the bar with Barca’s goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen strand-ed.

Ter Stegen then made a fly-ing save to keep out a powerful Leandro Cabrera header, while Soria also did well to prevent both Messi, hunting that land-mark 400th goal, and French defender Clement Lenglet from stretching Barca’s lead.

“These are the types of games that win you half the title, es-pecially considering the other results before we played,” said goalscorer Suarez.

“The other team plays as well, and Getafe are very strong at home so it was very difficult. There were a lot of battles out there but it all stays on the pitch. We’re feeling very positive, the title is in our own hands.”

14

sports


$15m is the prize money for the ATP World Team

Cup

I am coming with a private team to

have fun. I also told myself that we don’t often have the opportunity to race

in places like thisSEBASTIEN LOEB

at Seef District too

Um al Hassan +973 17728699 Seef District +973 17364999

Barcelona’s Argentinian forward Lionel Messi (L) vies with Getafe’s Togolese defender Djene Dakonam

KNOW

BETTER

Luis Suarez (centre), with 12 goals, and Lionel Messi,

with 16, have together scored more La Liga goals this season than 16 teams

in the competition

Supreme Council for Youth and Sports assistant secretary general and Bahrain Olympic Committee (BOC) secretary general Abdulrahman Askar during a meeting with President of the Bahrain Fencing Federation Shaikh Ibrahim bin Salman Al Khalifa and Secretary General of the Federation Saleh Faraj. Askar asserted the committee’s support to the Bahrain Fencing Federation in hosting the Asian and World Fencing Championship in the second half of January 2019

Dune raider Loeb eyes Dakar titleAFP | Lima, Peru

Sebastien Loeb may never get a better opportunity to win

the Dakar Rally but the French driver admits the sand dunes of Peru will present a very differ-ent challenge to the mud, snow and asphalt on which he swept to nine world rally titles.

Loeb went into yesterday’s opening stage of the world’s most famous endurance race as one of the favourites follow-ing the decision of 2016, 2017 and 2018 winners Peugeot to pull their factory team from the race.

However, Loeb remains cau-tious as he heads into his fourth Dakar which this year is con-tained within the borders of Peru and at 5,000km is almost half the distance of last year’s event.

“On paper, this does not look like a good Dakar for me,” said Loeb of the prospect of racing over sand.

“But I will drive the way I know how. It will be compli-cated for us because of the sand dunes -- they are not my strong point.”

Loeb, 44, drove for the Peuge-

ot factory team in the last three Dakar races with a best finish of second spot in 2017.

The French manufacturer may now have called time on their desert raid involvement but Loeb will still enjoy a fa-miliar feel behind the wheel in Peru as he pilots a private Peugeot entry instead.

He will be attempting to be-come the first privateer to win the Dakar since Jean-Louis Schlesser back in 2000.

“I am coming with a private team to have fun. I also told my-self that we don’t often have the opportunity to race in places like this,” he said.

“Doing it as a private entry means a different approach, it’s cooler and more relaxed and I am happy to share the expe-rience with Daniel Elena (his long-time co-driver).”

Proposal for sports villages presented

TDT | Manama

A proposal to build a sports village in each

of Bahrain’s four governo-rates was presented in the build up to the 2019 Bah-rain Sports Day, scheduled to take place on February 13.

Supreme Council for Youth and Sports assistant secretary general and Bah-rain Olympic Committee (BOC) secretary general Ab-dulrahman Askar chaired the first preparatory meet-ing for the third edition of the Bahrain Sports Day at the Regency Hotel in Ma-nama.

Askar, who is also chair-man of the organizing com-mittee, made a presenta-tion to representatives of national sports federations as well as from different ministries and the private sector, in which he gave de-tailed background on the previous two editions of the event.

A short film on the 2018 edition of the event was also played during the meeting, while the pros and cons of the previous Bahrain Sports Day were discussed in an attempt to make next year’s gathering a special occa-sion.

The parties also present-ed an idea to make a dedi-cated sports village for each of the four governorates to promote sports prior to the main event.


China saved by goalie howler • South Korea overcome battling Philippines to get Asian Cup challenge off to a winning start

• Yu Dabao the hero as China fightback to beat Kyrgyzstan at Asian Cup

AFP | Al-Ain

Favourites South Korea scraped past the Philip-pines and China needed

a spectacular goalkeeping gaffe to spark their comeback against lowly Kyrgyzstan as lesser teams continued to trouble bigger sides at the Asian Cup yesterday.

A day after defending champi-ons Australia were rocked 1-0 by Jordan, South Korea, still await-ing the arrival of star forward Son Heung-min, left it late be-fore beating the Philippines by the same scoreline.

Fellow debutants Kyrgyzstan led China 1-0 at half-time but they were left to rue a costly error by goalkeeper Pavel Ma-tiash, whose embarrassing own goal put the Chinese on course for a 2-1 win.

After hosts UAE were held by Bahrain, and Syria were kept to a goalless draw by Palestine, it provided more evidence that the gap has narrowed between Asian teams.

Separately, Thailand’s Serbi-an coach Milovan Rajevac paid the price for yet another shock result when he was given his

marching orders following Sun-day’s 4-1 defeat to India.

“Like all Thai football fans across the country, I am also disappointed with the result,” Thailand’s FA president Somyot Poompanmoung said, explain-ing the rapid dismissal.

“But as president of the foot-ball association, I cannot stand still with this problem.”

Kyrgyzstan looked capable of pulling off an almighty upset against China when Akhlidin Is-railov smashed home the open-ing goal just before half-time in Al Ain.

But China profited from the howler of the tournament so far when Matiash, attempting to claw a defensive header over the bar, batted it over the line instead.

A Chinese winner looked in-evitable and it was Yu who com-pleted the turnaround, rounding Matiash and scoring from a tight angle 12 minutes from time.

Piece of magic Lippi, who is expected to leave his post at the end of the Asian Cup, said he was “enormously unhappy” at China’s first half performance, but proud of their revival.

“During the first half we wer-en’t playing well, and I thought if we keep playing like that we’re

going to lose the match,” said the 2006 World Cup-winning coach.

“After the reaction from my players in the second half, I’m happy that we won the three points.”

Later in Dubai, prolific goal poacher Hwang Ui-jo snatched a second-half winner as South Ko-rea beat Sven-Goran Eriksson’s Philippines, who impressed on their tournament debut.

The Koreans, looking to end 59 years of hurt after fail-ing to win the title since 1960,

soaked up considerable pressure in their opening Group C fixture before Hwang broke the dead-lock after 67 minutes.

The Japan-based striker swiv-elled and smashed home from close range to settle his side’s nerves after Newcastle mid-fielder Ki Sung-yueng limped off with a suspected hamstring injury.

South Korea, who will be boosted by the arrival of Totten-ham star Son after their first two games, joined China on three points at the top of the group.

The Koreans, runners-up to hosts Australia four years ago, were indebted to goalkeeper Kim Seung-Gyu, who plunged to his right to deny Javier Patino in the 54th minute.

But Hwang, whose tourna-ment-high nine goals helped South Korea win last year’s Asian Games title, came to the rescue with a piece of magic in the box and was unlucky not to add further goals as the favour-ites finished strongly.

Kyrgyzstan’s goalkeeper Pavel Matiash punches a cross onto his own crossbar, with the ball rebounding off him, to give China their equaliser

Asian CupChina 2 1 Kyrgyzstan

South Korea 1 0 Philippines

Iran 4 0 Yemen

KNOW

BETTER

South Korea will be boosted by the arrival

of Tottenham star Son Heung-min after their first two games

Coach tells India to stay grounded after Thai highReuters | Al Ain

India made a storming start to their Asian Cup campaign

with a 4-1 thumping of Thai-land in Abu Dhabi on Sunday, but coach Stephen Constan-tine has urged him team to temper celebrations and focus on qualifying for the knockout stages.

Constantine’s men marked their return to the continental showpiece event after an eight-year hiatus with a brilliant sec-ond half display to secure a surprise triumph against the more-fancied War Elephants to move top of Group A.

“We try to win every match that we play in,” the English coach told reporters after In-dia, who were fortunate to go into the break locked at 1-1, registered a first victory at the tournament in 55 years.

“We don’t go into a match expecting to win 4-1 or 5-1. However, we are not trying to get carried away with the emotion.

“We still have two games left and we still need another two points to qualify from the group stages. After we have qualified, we can get a little bit excited, but our primary job is still to qualify out of the group stages.”

Constantine attributed his team’s slow start to “nervous-ness” and took heart from their second half display when they scored three times without reply to add to a contentious first-half penalty.

“It was important to not con-

cede a goal in those minutes and that is what we did,” the 56-year-old, currently in his second stint with India, added.

“The main thing was to make the most of our chances and that we did. I am happy that we are converting from the chances that we are mak-ing.”

Talismanic striker Sunil Chhetri, who scored twice, was already looking ahead to Thursday’s match against hosts United Arab Emirates.

“I can think about my goals some 10 years later,” said the lone surviving member of the 2011 team who lost all three group games in Qatar.

“At the moment, we need to focus. The goals need to come and it just doesn’t matter who scores.”

India’s forward Sunil Chhetri, left, and India’s midfielder Anirudh Thaparight, celebrate their side’s third goal

ISB Mega Fair Football Champions Cup kicks off

TDT | Manama

ISB Mega Fair Football Cham-pions Cup held in connection

with the Indian School Mega Fair 2018 got underway at the Etihad Football Ground in Adhari on Friday.

The tournament was officially inaugurated by ISB Mega Fair General Convener S Inayadul-

lah. Mega Fair Patron Mohamed

Hussain Malim performed the ceremonial first kick at the Champions Cup.

Six matches were complet-ed out of 18 league matches, in the league round of the 7A side tournament in which 12 teams are participating.

Yuva Kerala FC drew 1-1 with

Marina FC in a thrilling inau-gural match on the first day. In the second match, FC Kerala celebrated their 2-0 win against Showstoppers FC.

Al Kerlawi FC defeated Mat-tool FC 1-0 in the third match. In the fourth match Midland FC scored 2-0 win against Sagar ISF FC.

In another match KH Unit-

ed FC won against KMCC FC 3-1. In the sixth match Zal-laq FC defeated Super Heroes FC 3-2.

Next league matches of the Champions Cup will be held on January 10 and 11. Quar-ter finals will take place on 17 and the semi-finals and final will be held on January 18.

Teams pose for a group photo during the event

FA to probe Tottenham Ladies player’s ‘monkey noise’ claimsAFP | London,

England’s governing Football Association is

to investigate allegations of “monkey noises” made to-wards Tottenham Hotspur Ladies defender Renee Hec-tor by an unnamed Sheffield United player.

Hector said the incident took place during Spurs’ 2-1 win away to the Blades on Sunday in the FA Women’s Championship, the division below the elite Women’s Su-per League.

“Such a shame that racism seems to be rising up again in football -- I received some monkey noises today from an opposition play-er,” the 23-year-old Hector tweeted after the match.

Title-chasing Rangers sign Defoe on loanAFP | Glasgow, UK

Ra n g e r s l o o k e d t o strengthen their bid to

win the Scottish Premier-ship title by announcing Sunday they had signed ex-England striker Jermain Defoe in a loan move.

The 36-year-old Defoe, who has scored 162 goals in England’s top flight, has joined Rangers from Pre-mier League club Bourne-mouth in an 18-month deal.

Thailand axe coach Rajevac after Asian Cup horror showAFP | Abu Dhabi

Thailand have fired coach Milovan Rajevac following

a humiliating 4-1 thrashing by India in their opening Asian Cup game at the weekend.

The 65-year-old Serb, who took charge of Thailand in 2017, paid the price after the War Elephants conceded three second-half goals to slump to a shock defeat in Abu Dhabi on Sunday.

Thai football chiefs took a dim view of their Group A flop and acted swiftly to remove Rajevac

the morning after.“The result is not what is

expected of the Thai national team and that our supporters deserve,” Thailand’s FA presi-dent Somyot Poompanmoung said.

“Like all Thai football fans across the country, I am also disappointed with the result. But as president of the football association, I cannot stand still with this problem.”

Former assistant coach Sirisak Yodyardthai will assume control of the team when they face Bahrain on Thursday, Thai

officials added.Rajevac, who has had spells

in charge of Algeria and Qa-tar, famously steered Ghana

to the quarter-finals of the 2010 World Cup where they were beaten on penalties by Uruguay.

Thailand’s coach Milovan Rajevac (R) looks on


India script historic win India won first-ever Test series in Australia with victories in the first Test in Adelaide

and in the third Test in Melbourne

• Dominant India end 71-year drought after soggy Sydney draw

• Australia had won the second Test in Perth by 146 runs

• No play was possible on Day five in Sydney due to rain

AFP | Sydney

Virat Kohli’s dominant India reinforced their status as the world’s

number one team by winning a historic first-ever series in Aus-tralia yesterday in an achieve-ment the skipper called the big-gest of his storied career.

Australia were still 316 in ar-rears in Sydney when the match was called off due to rain on day five, leaving India with a 2-1 triumph after wins in Adelaide and Melbourne. Australia won in Perth.

It is the first time they have managed the feat since they be-gan touring Australia in 1947-48.

“I want to say I’ve never been more proud of being part of a team, than this one right here,” said an overjoyed Kohli, widely considered perhaps the greatest player of his generation.

“The boys make the captain look good. By far, this is my big-gest achievement. It’s at the top of the pile. The series win will give us a different identity.”

India had ripped through the Australian tail in Sydney on a shortened day four, when bad light and rain allowed only around 100 minutes of play, bowling the hosts out for 300 in reply to their own ominous 622 for seven declared.

Australia then suffered the indignity of being forced to

follow on at home for the first time in 30 years as Kohli twisted the knife.

Only four overs of their sec-ond innings were possible, with Marcus Harris not out two and Usman Khawaja unbeaten on four before the match was called off.

“Have to tip our hat to India, we know how tough it is to win in Australia so congrats to Virat and (coach) Ravi (Shastri) be-cause it’s a huge achievement,” said Australian skipper Tim Paine.

“Disappointed, definitely over the last two Tests. We had our chances in Adelaide, in Perth I thought we played some good cricket, but in Melbourne and Sydney, we’ve been outplayed.”

He added that there were “no illusions” about his team’s short-

comings, particularly their batting.

“We need to keep working hard. But cricket’s a funny game and it can turn very quickly.”

‘Focus the attack’ India got the series off to the best possible start by winning the tight opening Test in Ade-laide by 31 runs on the fifth day -- their first Test win in Australia for a decade.

The victory was built on Chet-eshwar Pujara’s first innings 123 and his second innings 71, while wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant took a world record-equalling 11 catches.

Australia bounced back in Perth to level the series, winning by 146 runs.

It was a huge relief for the home side, having not won a Test since the ball-tampering “sand-papergate” scandal that rocked international cricket last March.

But another Pujara century in

Melbourne set the visitors up for a big first innings total and when Australia capitulated in reply to 151 all out, the scene was set for India to take a stranglehold on the series coming into Sydney.

Aside from man-of-the-series Pujara, a big part of their their success in Australia has been executing their bowling plans to deprive the Australian batsmen of playing their shots.

India’s bowling coach Bharat Arun said the successful strategy stemmed from mistakes made last year in Tests against South Africa and England.

“I thought those two tours were a great experience for us and that has helped us immense-ly to come and do well in Aus-tralia,” he said.

“We said that to be successful in Australia, we need to make sure that we need to take the cut and the pull out of the Austral-ian batsmen and then focus the attack on our strengths, so that’s exactly what we did.”

While virtually all of Austral-ia’s leading batsmen got starts, none converted them into a big innings, underscoring how much they miss the banned Ste-ve Smith and David Warner, who are free to return in late March.

Harris’ 79 in Sydney was the highest any of their batsmen managed the entire series, mak-ing it the hosts’ first four-Test home series without scoring a century in their history.

India’s team celebrate their series win on the fifth day of the fourth and final cricket Test against Australia

KNOW WHAT

India played their maiden Test series against Australia in

1947 and were hand-ed a 4-0 drubbing

India series win 12 months in making, says ‘very proud’ KohliAFP | Sydney

Superstar captain Virat Kohli yesterday called winning a

series in Australia his proud-est ever moment, capping a 12-month journey for his India team of hard graft, fixing mis-takes and comradeship.

Their 2-1 triumph achieved what no other Indian side has managed since they started touring to Australia in 1947-48, with the foundations for success laid not in the first Test at Adelaide, but on their tour of South Africa last year.

It was there, and the sub-sequent tour of England, that

he and coach Ravi Shastri identified the attacking brand of cricket that they wanted to play, all in preparation for Australia.

“We wanted to experiment with combinations and find out what suits the team best and take it forward from there,” said coach Ravi Shastri.

“So we learned a heck of a lot in South Africa, we learned a lot in England. We made mis-takes, which we didn’t make in this series. We learned from those mistakes.

India lost 2-1 in Tests to South Africa in January last year, and were then outplayed in England 4-1.

Man Utd defender Jones expects tough Spurs testAFP | London

Manchester United de-fender Phil Jones says

Sunday’s clash with Tottenham will test the strength of the team’s recent revival under caretaker manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

United have won all five matches since Solskjaer took the helm at Old Trafford following the sacking of Jose Mourinho last month.

Spurs, who are third in the Pre-mier League, are likely to provide the toughest challenge so far at Wembley on Sunday.

“Spurs is a good test,” said Jones. “We are in good form and have some momentum going. We have steadied the ship a bit.

“We have not done anything yet, we have not achieved anything, but we need to keep it going. Possibly Spurs will be an indicator for us and how far we can go but it is a game we need to win.

“They are in good form and doing well and we need to have a good

week, train well and prepare for a tough game. Hopefully the mo-mentum can carry us on to win that match.”

United, who will spend the week preparing at a warm-weather train-ing camp in Dubai, are six points behind fourth-placed Chelsea after successive Premier League wins over Cardiff, Huddersfield, Bourne-mouth and Newcastle.

Reaching the Champions League places is a clear target but Jones does not want to look too far ahead.

The 26-year-old, who helped United see off Reading in the FA Cup third round on Saturday, said: “Of course we should be in the Champions League next season and that is the aim but we have done nothing yet. I know it is a cliche but it has to be game by game.

“I don’t really want to think about the top four, or the Champions League or the FA Cup. It has to be game by game. Tottenham is tough and we aim to see where we are after that.”

Monfils pulls out, Shapovalov beaten in Auckland

AFP | Wellington, New Zealand

Gael Monfils became the third big name to pull out of the ATP Auckland

Classic yesterday sidelined by injury while seventh seed Denis Shapovalov was bundled out in three sets.

Monfils, the eighth seed, said he was hampered by a niggling pain in the leg.

His withdrawal followed the absence of top seeds Tomas Berdych and Rob-erto Bautista-Agut, who both pulled out after contesting the Qatar Open final on Saturday which Bautista Agut won 6-4, 3-6, 6-3.

The flamboyant Monfils said his injury flared Saturday and had not responded to treatment.

“I have had a pain for two days with my quadriceps and unfortunately I am not able to play the tournament,” he said.

“So I’m disappointed about the situa-tion I’ve put myself and the tournament through, because obviously this year is tough because they’ve had a couple of retirements.”

Shapovalov, the 19-year-old Canadi-an and only seed in action on day one,

romped through the first set against Por-tugal’s Joao Sousa, but went off the boil for most of the second set.

The third set went with serve until 3-3 when Sousa made the vital break and then held on to win the error-filled match.

In the reshuffled draw, John Isner takes over as top seed and goes straight through to the second round to play fel-low American Taylor Fritz.

Fritz, who opened with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over Romanian Marius Copil 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, has lost his two previous matches against Isner.

Joao Sousa of Portugal plays a shot against Denis Shapolvalov of Canada

Phil Jones

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