Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed to be new UAE president: Report
- Sheikh Mohamed was elected by the Federal Supreme Council, WAM news agency said, after years of calling the shots from behind the scenes while his half-brother Sheikh Khalifa was sidelined by poor health.
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The UAE's long-time de facto ruler Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan was elected as president on Saturday, official media said, a day after the death of former leader Sheikh Khalifa.
Sheikh Mohamed was elected by the Federal Supreme Council, WAM news agency said, after years of calling the shots from behind the scenes while his half-brother Sheikh Khalifa was sidelined by poor health.
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Biden, Yoon signal expanded military drills due to North Korea 'threat'
US President Joe Biden and South Korea's new President Yoon Suk-yeol signalled Saturday an expanded military presence in response to the "threat" from North Korea, while also offering to help the isolated regime face a Covid-19 outbreak. Biden and Yoon also extended an offer of help to Pyongyang, which has recently announced it is in the midst of a Covid-19 outbreak, a rare admission of internal troubles.
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Russia intensifies push for Donbas, halts gas to Finland
Russia intensified an offensive in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine on Saturday and stopped providing gas to Finland, escalating Moscow's dispute with the West over energy payments. After ending weeks of resistance by the last Ukrainian fighters in the strategic southeastern city of Mariupol, Russia is waging what appears to be a major offensive in Luhansk, one of two provinces in Donbas.
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New York judge approves congressional map, throwing Democrats into disarray
A New York judge approved a new congressional map that pits two veteran Democratic incumbents against one another and boosts Republican odds of capturing more seats in November's midterm elections, further endangering Democrats' fragile US House majority. Republicans need to flip only five seats in November to win a majority in the House, which would enable them to block much of President Joe Biden's agenda.
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Qatar FM says Iran's leadership open for a compromise on nuclear file: Report
Qatar's foreign minister said on Saturday in remarks cited by al Jazeera TV that the Iranian leadership expressed readiness for a compromise regarding "the Iranian nuclear file", referring to talks over reviving a nuclear deal between Iran and world powers. But Iran's Foreign Ministry said remarks by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei were mistranslated by error or by design for propaganda purposes, the semi-official news agency Tasnim reported.
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Ukrainian negotiator rules out ceasefire or concessions to Russia
Ukraine on Saturday ruled out agreeing to a ceasefire with Russia and said Kyiv would not accept any deal with Moscow that involved ceding territory. Acknowledging that Kyiv's stance on the war was becoming more uncompromising, presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said making concessions would backfire on Ukraine because Russia would hit back harder after any break in fighting. Both sides say peace talks have stagnated. A ceasefire would play into the Kremlin's hands, Podolyak said.