Day: March 17, 2024

Beirut Airport – Miss Lebanon, Yasmina Zaytoun, who recently won the title of Miss Asia and first runner-up for Miss World, returned to Beirut this afternoon where she was welcomed at Rafic Hariri International Airport by Caretaker Tourism Minister Walid Nassar, Chairman of the Board of Directors of LBC, Pierre al-Daher, and a large crowd of media professionals, family and friends.

In his welcoming word, Nassar said: ‘In the name of the Lebanese, in the name of all our Arab brothers, and in the name of the world, we welcome Yasmina Zaytoun, Miss Asia and Oceania, and first runner-up for Miss World.’

Addressing Zaytoun, he said: ‘You have brought joy back to the Lebanese with your steadfastness and belief in what you are doing, and you have set new standards in this global competition that women are not limited to their external beauty.’

Nassar considered that with her commendable performance, Zaytoun managed to prove to the judges, organizers and public opinion the strong dedication, intelligence and educa
tion of a woman who has faith in what she is doing. ‘Although this road was difficult and long, but with your strong will, you were able to reach,’ he added, congratulating Zaytoun and hoping to be able to celebrate in her hometown of Kfarshouba in the beloved Lebanese south.

For her part, Zaytoun thanked everyone who shared her joy and said: ‘I tried with all my might to convey our voice as Lebanese, because Lebanon deserves everything that is beautiful.’

She continued: “Through you, I say that this is the Lebanon whose image we want to show to the world, the Lebanon that does not surrender, the strong and beautiful Lebanon despite everything that we have been endured.”

She added: ‘As a Lebanese woman, I tried to convey our voice and to show people what Lebanese and Arab women mean…Arab women are not solely limited to appearance and women are not only about external beauty.’

Zaytoun referred to the content and message that she carries as a Lebanese lady, saying, ‘I have never been afraid to convey our
message as Lebanese and Arabs and everything we are going through in Lebanon, from the south to the north. This is Lebanon, which deserves all the devotion, and Lebanon deserves not only first runner-up title, but that of the entire world.’

Finally, Zaytoun thanked the Minister of Tourism and LBC for their support and her family who believed in her from the very beginning.

Source: National News Agency – Lebanon

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said today that he spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the necessity of providing comprehensive humanitarian aid to the residents of the Gaza Strip.

He added in a joint press conference with Netanyahu in occupied Jerusalem: ‘We cannot stand idly by and watch the Palestinians face the risk of starvation. This is not us. This is not what we stand for.’

Source: National News Agency – Lebanon

Gaza: n the early hours of Sunday, several Palestinians, most of them children and women, were killed after Israeli occupation aircraft bombed a house in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.

Medical sources reported that at least 11 Palestinians, mostly children and women, were killed, while several others sustained injuries in the airstrike that struck the Thabet family’s residence in the Bishara neighborhood.

The Gaza Strip witnessed seven massacres perpetrated by the occupation forces against families over the past 24 hours. These brutal acts resulted in the death of 63 Palestinians and injuries to 112 others.

Many victims remain trapped under rubble and on roadsides, with ambulance and civil defense teams struggling to reach them.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health, although providing a non-final count, has documented a rising death toll in the Gaza Strip. Since the beginning of the Israeli occupation aggression on October 7th last year, the number of deaths has reached 31,553, with a significant
majority comprising children and women.

The overall injuries since the start of the aggression have now reached 73,546, while numerous individuals remain buried beneath the rubble, awaiting rescue and assistance.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Gaza: n the early hours of Sunday, several Palestinians, most of them children and women, were killed after Israeli occupation aircraft bombed a house in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.

Medical sources reported that at least 11 Palestinians, mostly children and women, were killed, while several others sustained injuries in the airstrike that struck the Thabet family’s residence in the Bishara neighborhood.

The Gaza Strip witnessed seven massacres perpetrated by the occupation forces against families over the past 24 hours. These brutal acts resulted in the death of 63 Palestinians and injuries to 112 others.

Many victims remain trapped under rubble and on roadsides, with ambulance and civil defense teams struggling to reach them.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health, although providing a non-final count, has documented a rising death toll in the Gaza Strip. Since the beginning of the Israeli occupation aggression on October 7th last year, the number of deaths has reached 31,553, with a significant
majority comprising children and women.

The overall injuries since the start of the aggression have now reached 73,546, while numerous individuals remain buried beneath the rubble, awaiting rescue and assistance.

Source: Jordan News Agency

The Islamic Resistance issued a communique this evening, indicating that in support of the steadfast Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip, the Resistance fighters targeted at 6:30 pm today a gathering of Zionist enemy soldiers in the vicinity of the Hanita site with missile weapons.

Source: National News Agency – Lebanon

Reykjavík: Iceland’s world-famous Blue Lagoon and the nearby town of Grindavik were evacuated following a volcanic eruption in the country’s Reykjanes Peninsula, Iceland’s public broadcaster (RÚV ) reported.

Lava appeared to be flowing rapidly towards north of the town Grindavík, just as it did during the eruption on 8 February, according to the Icelandic Met Office .

The lava was also flowing toward the Grindavíkurvegur road, the main road leading to Grindavik.

Iceland is one of the most active volcanic areas on the planet.

Source: Oman News Agency

Amman: Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Major General Yousef Huneiti and Singapore’s Senior Minister of State for Defence Affairs, Zaqy bin Mohamad Sunday discussed in Amman ties and regional and international developments.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Amman: Israeli military aircraft conducted airstrikes on the southern region of Syria on Sunday.

According to the Syrian News Agency, citing a military source, the Israeli army launched an aerial assault towards the occupied Syrian Golan Heights, targeting multiple locations in the southern area.

The source further disclosed that Syrian air defense systems successfully intercepted and downed several missiles, resulting in injuries to one soldier and material damages inflicted by the Israeli aerial aggression.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Muscat: The value of real estate transactions in the Sultanate of Oman fell by 20.2% to RO 207.8 million by the end of January 2024, compared to RO 260.5 million during the same period in 2023, according to the latest data released by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI).

The data indicate that the fees collected for all legal actions amounted to RO 6.6 million by the end of January 2024, comprising an increase of 13.4% compared to the corresponding period of 2023.

Traded value of sale contracts decreased by 14.7% to RO 101 million at the end of January 2024, while the number of sale contracts rose by 6.6% to 6,124.

Traded value of mortgage contracts decreased by 25.4% to RO 105.4 million compared to RO 141.3 million during the same period of 2023.

The number of mortgage contracts also fell by 10.4% to 1,522 contracts.

The number of ownership deeds issued by the end of January 2024 fell by 4.7% to 20,612, and the number of ownership deeds issued to citizens of GCC countries also fell
by 9.9% to 100.

Source: Oman News Agency

Singapore: Researchers at the National University of Singapore (NUS) have pioneered a groundbreaking method for crafting carbon-based quantum materials atom by atom, leveraging scanning probe microscopy and advanced deep neural networks.

This innovative approach showcases the prowess of artificial intelligence (AI) in manipulating materials at the sub-angstrom scale, offering immense potential for scientific exploration and future applications.

The team, led by Associate Professors Lu Jiong and Zhang Chun, devised the chemist-intuited atomic robotic probe (CARP) concept, integrating probe chemistry expertise with AI to fabricate and characterize open-shell magnetic nanographenes at the single-molecule level.

This enables precise engineering of their electronic and spin configurations in an automated manner, akin to human chemists.

The framework efficiently translates expert knowledge into machine-executable tasks, offering insights crucial for understanding intricate reaction mechanisms.

The team envisio
ns expanding CARP’s capabilities to encompass diverse on-surface probe chemistry reactions with scalability and efficiency, potentially revolutionizing conventional synthesis processes for practical applications.

This paradigm shift could accelerate fundamental research on quantum materials, paving the way for intelligent atomic fabrication and ushering in a new era of materials science.

Source: Oman News Agency

Muscat: His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik, the Supreme Commander, today conferred medals of Excellent Service and Royal Commendation on a number of officers and non-commissioned officers of the Sultan’s Special Force (SSF) on the occasion of the SSF Day, which falls on 15 March every year.

On this occasion, a ceremony was held at Assumood Garrison during which Maj. Gen Musallam Mohammed Ja’aboub, SSF Commander, pinned the medals of Excellent Service and Royal Commendation on the SSF officers honoured in appreciation for their dedication and sincerity in serving their country and performing their sacred national duty.

Maj. Gen Ja’aboub also pinned the “Special Service Medal” and the “Medal of Long Service and Good Conduct” on other personnel of the Sultan’s Special Force in recognition of their dedication and sincerity in serving their country and performing their sacred national duty.

Maj. Gen. Ja’aboub felicitated the honoured personnel and urged them to maintain their high performance under the leader
ship of His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik, the Supreme Commander.

The ceremony was attended by senior officers, officers and personnel of the SSF

Source: Oman News Agency