Author: Gulf News Week
ReutersMatteo Messina Denaro was arrested after decades on the run in 2023, and later died in jailYou may find some of the details of Messina Denaro’s crimes disturbingAnti-mafia investigators in Italy have seized cash, companies and other assets worth more than €200m (£175m) in an operation they say targeted the network of notorious late Sicilian mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro.The funds, described as “huge amounts of capital” by the financial police in Palermo, are said to be proceeds from over four decades of drugs trafficking linked to the presumed former head of the Cosa Nostra group.Announcing their results in Sicily…
ReutersUS President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he was “not satisfied” yet with the terms of a deal being negotiated with Iran.A ceasefire “hanging by a thread”. A diplomatic process “making progress”. A president “not satisfied”. And explosions echoing around the Gulf.What to make of the current, confusing state of relations between the US and Iran – are we close to peace or sliding back to war?This week has certainly tested the ceasefire, which came into effect on 8 April and has now lasted considerably longer than the active phase of fighting which preceded it.Iran responded to the latest US…
ValveValve has announced a price increase of more than 40% – or nearly £200 – for its two Steam Deck models, citing “rising memory and storage costs”.The 512GB tier of its OLED handheld gaming PC – the newer model with an upgraded display – will now cost $789 (£649, €779), an increase of 43% or £170. The larger 1TB model will cost $949 (£779, €919), an increase of 46% or £210.In a blog post, the gaming giant said the Steam Deck itself had not changed, and the price changes reflected “the current state of component costs and other global logistical…
BBCBeirut had until now been spared the intermittent attacks which have occurred despite a ceasefireIsrael has hit the Lebanese capital, Beirut, for only the second time since the start of a ceasefire last month.The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the attack at about 14:00 (11:00 GMT) was carried out in a “targeted manner”, but gave no details. Israeli media cited unnamed sources as saying the target of the strike had been the head of an Iranian militia.Israel had spared Beirut at the request of US President Donald Trump and the attack came after waves of Israeli strikes aimed at Hezbollah…
Williams in discussions about potential return at Queen’sSerena Williams is in discussions about a potential return to competitive tennis at Queen’s Club next month.15 mins agoTennis
Massive demand for the silicon components used in AI data centres — especially memory chips, which are in short supply — has sent revenues soaring for firms that design, produce and assemble themRunaway profits and sky-high valuations for microchip companies have fuelled worker demands over pay packages in South Korea, raising the question: who profits from the artificial intelligence boom?In the United States, some employees with stock options have made it rich and retired early, while in Asia chip engineers are now using their “immense” leverage over companies to get their way, analysts say.After memory chip giant Samsung Electronics reached…
Getty ImagesThe attack took place at Winterthur train station, northwest of Zurich.A man has been arrested after three people were injured in a stabbing attack at a train station in Switzerland, police said. They said the three victims – Swiss nationals aged 28, 43 and 52 – were hospitalised after the attack at Winterthur train station. The suspect, a 31-year-old Swiss man, used a bladed weapon and that the motive was under investigation, police added.An eyewitness working in an office building nearby told a local newspaper he heard a man yell “Allahu Akbar” – meaning “God is greatest” in Arabic…
Adam Gray / ReutersE Jean Carroll pictured outside the Court of Appeals in New York in 2024The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has opened a criminal investigation into writer E Jean Carroll, who accused President Donald Trump of sexual assault, CBS News, the BBC’s US partner, has reported.The investigation is looking into whether Carroll committed perjury in connection with civil cases she brought against Trump, the news outlet quotes sources as saying.Carroll, a former magazine columnist, accused Trump of sexual assault and defamation, and successfully sued him in two cases. Both judgements were upheld on appeal, but Trump has since…
Six were killed in Remal on Eid night. Minutes later, the stalls reopened.This is my third consecutive Eid al-Adha spent displaced, far from my home in Jabalia, in an area that has been designated a “red zone” under Israeli control.During the war, livestock farms – of cattle, sheep, and goats – were largely destroyed. Only a very small number of sheep survived. Because of the Israeli blockade, the entry of livestock into the Gaza Strip has been prohibited since October 2023. As a result, prices have increased roughly tenfold, with a single sheep now reaching approximately $6,000. This sharp rise…
Getty ImagesAn independent body which hears disputes from social media users in the EU says Meta virtually never replies when it raises cases of people who say they have been wrongly banned from their accounts.Appeals Centre Europe looked at 4,600 cases of Facebook, Instagram and Threads users who said they had been wrongly banned, but Meta provided evidence in fewer than 100 of these cases.Last year, the BBC was contacted by hundreds of Facebook and Instagram users in countries around the world, including the UK, who claimed they had been wrongly banned and had no way of getting their accounts…