‘very significant’ risks...(bqa), university of bahrain, bahrain teachers’ college, bah-rain...

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6 WORLD SPORTS Mohammed stars in Najma victory Sharp-shooting guard buries 11 three-pointers in 41-point effort to lead team against Ettihad in Zain basketball league | P12 THURSDAY JANUARY, 2021 210 FILS ISSUE NO. 8710 Frozen towers and palaces stun visitors at Harbin ice festival 7 WHATSAPP 3844 4692 TWITTER @newsofbahrain MAIL [email protected] WEBSITE newsofbahrain.com FACEBOOK /nobmedia LINKEDIN newsofbahrain INSTAGRAM /newsofbahrain 210 fils (includes VAT) ACTIVE CASES DEATHS DISCHARGED 2,500 353 91,431 BAHRAIN KIMSHEALTH Hospital opens in Umm Al Hassam 5 BUSINESS Drew Barrymore was stood up by a man she met on a dating app 10 CELEBS City Centre Bahrain Tel: +973 17556002 www.homesrusgroup.com AS GIFT VOUCHER ON A SPEND OF BHD 10 AND ABOVE 50 % GET BACK ON EVERYTHING NOW ONLY IN CITY CENTRE BAHRAIN HM King receives HRH Crown Prince and Prime Minister TDT | Manama H is Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa yesterday received His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, who briefed HM the King on the 41st Gulf Cooperation Council ( GCC) Summit held in Al Ula, Saudi Arabia. HM the King praised the great efforts exerted by the Custodi- an of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and HRH Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud to boost joint Gulf action and strengthen cooperation among the GCC countries. HM the King also praised the outstanding preparation and organisation of the GCC Summit. HM King Hamad lauded the summit’s important resolu- tions and recommendations and stressed the significance of protecting the rights of citizens. The summit’s resolutions will contribute to developing and consolidating the progress of the GCC towards stronger co- operation, cohesion and com- plementarity between its states and peoples, HM the King said. HM the King HRH Crown Prince and Prime Minister ‘Very significant’ risks Britain, France and Germany ‘deeply concerned’ over Iran’s move to enrich uranium European powers urge Tehran to reverse nuclear program London G ermany, France and Brit- ain yesterday said they were “deeply concerned” about Iran’s move to step up its uranium enrichment, warning of “very significant” risks. Tehran on Tuesday said it was now refining uranium to 20% purity, the biggest break yet from its commitments under the 2015 nuclear deal struck with world powers. “This action, which has no credible civil justification and carries very significant prolif- eration-related risks, is in clear violation of Iran’s commitments under the pact,” the European trio said in a statement. “It also risks compromising the important opportunity for a return to diplomacy with the incoming US Administration.” “We strongly urge Iran to stop enriching uranium to up to 20% without delay,” they added. Iran’s increased uranium en- richment has triggered interna- tional concern because it is seen as a significant step towards the 90% level required for a nuclear weapon. The landmark 2015 deal agreed between Iran and the US, China, Russia, Britain, France and Germany has been fraying since President Donald Trump withdrew from it in 2018 and reimposed harsh sanctions. The Iranian government has signaled a readiness to engage with US President-elect Joe Bid- en, who has expressed willing- ness to return to diplomacy with Tehran and who takes office on Jan. 20. The agreement’s main aim was to extend the time Iran would need to produce enough fissile material for a nuclear bomb, if it chose to, to at least a year from roughly two to three months. European diplomats have said Iran’s repeated breaches have already reduced the “breakout time” to well below a year. The three European signato- ries to the deal, known as E3, cautioned in their statement that Tehran’s latest move “risks compromising the important opportunity for a return to di- plomacy with the incoming US administration.” “It’s their tactical objective to pressure the Biden administra- tion, but at one point if you fill the boat up too much it sinks,” said one European diplomat, adding that for now the three powers would wait for the new US administration to assess the situation. “If we threw the accord out of the window then it would be even harder to put back together again.” In this 2019 file photo, technicians work at the Arak heavy water reactor’s secondary circuit in Iran This action, which has no credible civil justification and carries very significant proliferation- related risks, is in clear violation of Iran’s commitments under the pact. It also risks compromising the important opportunity for a return to diplomacy with the incoming US Administration EUROPEAN TRIO’S STATEMENT HM King hailed by National Guard Commander TDT | Manama H is Majesty King Ham- ad bin Isa Al Khalifa received a cable of con- gratulations from National Guard Commander General Shaikh Mohammed bin Isa Al Khalifa marking the 24th anniversary of the National Guard. Gen. Shaikh Mohammed extended, on behalf of all the National Guard affili- ates, heartfelt congratula- tions to HM the King on the occasion. He stressed the ongoing development of the Nation- al Guard thanks to the royal support, asserting its sacred national role. Individuals vaccinated Last update - 9:00 pm 6 January 2021

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  • 6WORLDS P O R T S

    Mohammed stars in Najma victorySharp-shooting guard buries 11 three-pointers in 41-point effort to lead team against Ettihad in Zain basketball league | P12

    THURSDAYJANUARY, 2021

    210 FILS ISSUE NO. 8710

    Frozen towers and palaces stun visitors at Harbin ice festival7WHATSAPP3844 4692

    TWITTER@newsofbahrain

    [email protected]

    WEBSITEnewsofbahrain.com

    FACEBOOK/nobmedia

    LINKEDINnewsofbahrain

    INSTAGRAM/newsofbahrain

    210 fils (includes VAT)

    ACTIVE CASES

    DEATHS

    DISCHARGED

    2,500

    353

    91,431

    BAHRAIN

    KIMSHEALTH Hospital opens in Umm Al Hassam5BUSINESSDrew Barrymore was stood up by a man she met on a dating app 10 CELEBS

    City Centre Bahrain Tel: +973 17556002

    www.homesrusgroup.com AS GIFT VOUCHER ON A SPEND OF BHD 10 AND ABOVE

    50%GET BACKON EVERYTHINGNOW ONLY IN

    CITYCENTREBAHRAIN

    HM King receives HRH Crown Prince and Prime MinisterTDT | Manama

    His Majesty King Hamad binIsa Al Khalifa yesterday received His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, who briefed HM the King on the 41st Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Summit held in Al Ula, Saudi Arabia.

    HM the King praised the great efforts exerted by the Custodi-an of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and HRH Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud to boost joint Gulf action and strengthen cooperation among

    the GCC countries. HM the King also praised the outstanding preparation and organisation of the GCC Summit.

    HM King Hamad lauded the summit’s important resolu-tions and recommendations and stressed the significance of

    protecting the rights of citizens.The summit’s resolutions will

    contribute to developing and consolidating the progress of the GCC towards stronger co-operation, cohesion and com-plementarity between its states and peoples, HM the King said.

    HM the King HRH Crown Prince and Prime Minister

    ‘Very significant’ risksBritain, France and Germany ‘deeply concerned’ over Iran’s move to enrich uranium

    • European powersurge Tehran to reverse nuclear program

    London

    Germany, France and Brit-ain yesterday said they were “deeply concerned” about Iran’s move to step up its uranium enrichment, warning of “very significant” risks.

    Tehran on Tuesday said it was now refining uranium to 20% purity, the biggest break yet from its commitments under the 2015 nuclear deal struck with world powers.

    “This action, which has no credible civil justification and carries very significant prolif-eration-related risks, is in clear violation of Iran’s commitments under the pact,” the European trio said in a statement.

    “It also risks compromising the important opportunity for a return to diplomacy with the incoming US Administration.”

    “We strongly urge Iran to stop enriching uranium to up to 20% without delay,” they added.

    Iran’s increased uranium en-richment has triggered interna-tional concern because it is seen as a significant step towards the

    90% level required for a nuclear weapon.

    The landmark 2015 deal agreed between Iran and the US, China, Russia, Britain, France and Germany has been fraying since President Donald Trump withdrew from it in 2018 and reimposed harsh sanctions.

    The Iranian government has signaled a readiness to engage

    with US President-elect Joe Bid-en, who has expressed willing-ness to return to diplomacy with Tehran and who takes office on Jan. 20.

    The agreement’s main aim was to extend the time Iran would need to produce enough fissile material for a nuclear bomb, if it chose to, to at least a year from roughly two to three months.

    European diplomats have said Iran’s repeated breaches have already reduced the “breakout time” to well below a year.

    The three European signato-ries to the deal, known as E3, cautioned in their statement that Tehran’s latest move “risks compromising the important opportunity for a return to di-plomacy with the incoming US

    administration.”“It’s their tactical objective to

    pressure the Biden administra-tion, but at one point if you fill the boat up too much it sinks,” said one European diplomat, adding that for now the three powers would wait for the new US administration to assess the situation.

    “If we threw the accord out of the window then it would be even harder to put back together again.”

    In this 2019 file photo, technicians work at the Arak heavy water reactor’s secondary circuit in Iran

    This action, which has no credible

    civil justification and carries

    very significant proliferation-

    related risks, is in clear violation of

    Iran’s commitments under the pact.

    It also risks compromising the important

    opportunity for a return to diplomacy

    with the incoming US Administration

    EUROPEAN TRIO’S STATEMENT

    HM King hailed by National Guard CommanderTDT | Manama

    His Majesty King Ham-ad bin Isa Al Khalifa received a cable of con-gratulations from National Guard Commander General Shaikh Mohammed bin Isa Al Khalifa marking the 24th anniversary of the National Guard.

    Gen. Shaikh Mohammed extended, on behalf of all the National Guard affili-ates, heartfelt congratula-tions to HM the King on the occasion.

    He stressed the ongoing development of the Nation-al Guard thanks to the royal support, asserting its sacred national role.

    Individuals vaccinated

    Last update - 9:00 pm6 January 2021

  • Education and training sector successes laudedDeputy Prime Minister chairs council meeting; 2020 annual report reviewed and approved

    • It highlights the achievements, information and statistics related to the education and training projects

    TDT | Manama

    The education and train-ing sector’s numerous achievements and latest developments are highlighted in the 2020 annual report pre-sented to Deputy Prime Minis-ter HH Shaikh Mohammed bin Mubarak Al Khalifa.

    Also as the president of the Supreme Council for the Devel-opment of Education and Train-ing, HH Shaikh Mohammed bin Mubarak yesterday chaired the Council’s 40th meeting.

    The meeting reviewed the re-port, prepared by the Council’s team who worked in coopera-tion with government entities, including the Ministry of Ed-ucation, Labour and Social De-velopment Ministry, Education and Training Quality Authority (BQA), University of Bahrain, Bahrain Teachers’ College, Bah-rain Polytechnic and Bahrain Training Institute.

    It highlights the achieve-ments, information and statis-

    tics related to the education and training projects, in addition to the main challenges.

    It also include the overhaul of the education and training sys-tem through the restructuring of the Ministry of Education and the post secondary education stage, in accordance with the government’s priorities.

    The report lauds the educa-tion and training sector’s ability to continue despite the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, in addition to the remarkable progress made by the Educa-tion Ministry in the 2019 Trends

    in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) exams.

    The Council approved the re-port, and extended thanks and appreciation to all those who contributed to preparing it.

    The Council was then briefed by the Ministry of Education about the latest developments of its organisational structure following the issuance of a Royal Decree in this regard, and the beginning of its implementa-tion process, in addition to the initiatives related to the unified framework of government pro-

    grammes of priority for 2019-2020.

    The panel was also informed about the taskforce’s comple-tion of the schools institutions’ infrastructure plan, and the criteria of the numerical and literacy skills initiative, under the supervision of the Steering Committee of the institutional structure development project. The two initiatives will be re-ferred to the Government Ex-ecutive Committee.

    The panel also discussed the Bahrain Teachers College (BTC)’s expansion plan aimed at increasing the number of Bahraini graduate teachers to achieve maximum rates of Bah-rainisation in educational posts.

    It also reviewed BTC’s exec-utive plan to achieve its goals for the next 10 years, including the ability to meet 80% of the Education Ministry’s needs of the teaching staff.

    The report, prepared by BTC’s Board of Directors, will be re-ferred to the Government Ex-ecutive Committee.

    The Supreme Council for the Development of Education and Training also approved BQA’s plan to focus on schools whose performance needs more devel-opment.

    The Council also approved the results of the National Qual-ifications Framework’s accred-itation of eight national qualifi-cations and the re-verification of two others.

    HH Shaikh Mohammed bin Mubarak expressed sincere thanks and appreciation to the members for their achieve-ments, stressing the govern-ment’s unwavering keenness to support educational projects, and the Ministry of Education.

    02THURSDAY, JANUARY 7, 2021

    The annual report includes the achieve-ments, information

    and statistics related to the education and training projects, in addition to the main

    challenges.

    The Bahrain Teachers College’s executive plan

    to achieve its goals for the next 10 years

    included the ability to meet 80% of the Edu-

    cation Ministry’s needs of the teaching staff.

    KNOW WHAT

    Deputy Prime Minister is briefed on the annual report

    80%

    Bahrain-US security cooperation discussed

    • Three partnership agreements signed

    TDT | Manama

    Interior Minister General Shaikh Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa received yesterday acting US Secretary of Home-land Security Chad Wolf and his accompanying delegation in the presence of Public Se-curity Chief, Interior Ministry Undersecretary for Nation-ality, Passport and Residence Affairs, Bahrain Ambassador to the US, Customs Chief and Head of the National Centre for Cyber Security.

    The Interior Minister laud-ed strategic relations and partnership between Bahrain and the US, stressing common keenness on further develop-ing them for the best interest of the two friendly countries.

    The meeting cast light on fields of joint cooperation and security coordination regard-ing fighting cybercrimes and booting procedures related to protecting the vital infra-structure between the Nation-al Centre for Cyber Security in the Kingdom and the Cy-bersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) of the US Department of Homeland

    Security. Both sides also dis-cussed issues of common con-cern.

    General Shaikh Rashid and Secretary Wolf signed three memoranda of joint coopera-tion concerning the security of borders and commodities, fighting terrorism and organ-ised cross-border crimes, and Global Entry, the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) programme.

    The programme aims to sup-port trade and enhance the security of passengers. It will provide Bahraini nationals with the rapid travel service to the US.

    The three security partner-ships, launched by both coun-tries, will expand the scope of information, share and build capabilities and exchange ex-periences and best practices, as they aim to ensure max-imum security and stability for both countries in the face of terrorism, extremism and cross-border crimes.

    The Bahraini Ministry of Interior and the US Depart-ment of Homeland Security expressed their aspiration to implement the three security cooperation agreements, and to emphasise the long-stand-ing partnership between the two countries in the field of security.

    Interior Minister with Secretary Wolf

    SEA head enhances India relations

    • Partnership discussed on renewable energy and energy efficiency

    TDT | Manama

    Sustainable Energy Authority (SEA) president Dr Abdul Hussain bin Ali Mirza received the newly-appointed Indian Ambassador to Bahrain Piyush Srivastava.

    Dr Mirza praised the histor-ical relations between the two

    countries, which have always been reflected by cooperation and trade and economic inte-gration in various fields, espe-cially in the fields of renewable energy and energy efficiency.

    He briefed Ambassador Srivastava on the national plans for renewable energy and en-ergy efficiency and the most prominent existing and future projects in both fields.

    He also highlighted the ini-tiatives and steps taken by the Kingdom to overcome the chal-lenges of limited space for solar energy projects.

    The meeting discussed the

    role of Bahrain in the Interna-tional Solar Alliance as a part-ner in the alliance, and what this partnership could bring in terms of investments and pos-sibilities for the exchange of experiences between the two friendly countries and all mem-ber states of the organisation.

    The Ambassador expressed his aspiration to work with SEA to enhance cooperation be-tween the two parties, and to achieve more in the fields of renewable energy through the partnership of the Bahrain in the International Solar Energy Alliance.

    Dr Mirza receives Ambassador Srivastava

    BDF Commander-in-Chief Field Marshal Shaikh Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Khalifa received Commander of the Royal Tanks Major-General Rashid bin Abdullah Al-Nuaimi, on the 50th Anniversary of the Royal Tanks. The commander-in-chief praised the great achievements made by the Royal Tanks affiliates in carrying out their duties to protect the homeland, preserve its gains and safeguard its security and the citizens’ safety. Shaikh Khalifa bin Ahmed hailed their support for the march HM King, the Supreme Commander, wishing all the BDF men success.

    BDF Commander-in-Chiefreceives Commander of Royal Tanks

    Pravasi Bharatiya Divas Conference on Youth tomorrowTDT | Manama

    The PBD (Pravasi Bharati-ya Divas) Conference on Youth will be held remotely tomorrow at 8:30am (Bahrain Time).

    All members of the Indian community are invited to take part in the online event by watching live at: https://you-tube.com/channel/UC-wttYG-dvP8Roy8mh8VbzKw. They can also follow live on Face-book (@meaindia).

    Shri Sanjay Bhattacharyya, Secretary (OIA & CPV), Min-istry of External Affairs, will deliver the welcome remarks.

    Those who will address the participants include Shri Kiren Rijiju, Minister of State (In-dependent Charge) for Youth Affairs and Sports; Priyanca Radhakrishnan, Minister for Community and Voluntary Sector as Special Guest; and Shri V. Muraleedharan, Minis-ter of State for External Affairs.

    The closing remarks will be delivered by Usha Sharma, Secretary

  • Housing Ministry distributes apartment units in Salman Town

    • Project is in line with order of HRH the Crown Prince and Prime Minister to distribute 5,000 housing units

    TDT | Manama

    Housing Ministry Assistant Undersecretary for Poli-cies and Housing Services Dr Khalid Al Haidan announced the distribution of apartments project in Salman Town to the

    beneficiaries. This came in implementa-

    tion of an order by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, to distribute 5,000 housing units.

    Dr Al Haidan confirmed that the Salman Town apart-ments project is one of the main projects of the ministry following the royal order of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa to build 40,000 housing units.

    He added that the buildings of this project are unique for their coastal location, as well

    as their interior design, which is part of the modern designs of the fifth generation of residen-tial buildings that the ministry is implementing in new hous-ing cities and housing complex projects in the Kingdom’s gov-ernorates.

    The assistant undersecretary emphasised that the step of dis-tributing the certificates of en-titlement represents new acqui-sition. This meets the requests of ownership apartments for a large number of citizens, in-dicating that this project will reduce the number of applica-tions on the waiting list.

    03THURSDAY, JANUARY 7, 2021

    Construction progress on timeTransportation Minister briefed on second phase of work at airport’s new Passenger Terminal

    • Four times larger than the existing facility and equipped with the latest technologies

    • It will increase the airport’s capacity to 14 million passengers per year

    TDT | Manama

    Transportation and Tele-communications Minis-ter and Bahrain Airport Company (BAC) Chairman Ka-mal bin Ahmed Mohamed paid an inspection visit to Bahrain In-ternational Airport to follow up on the progress of construction at the new Passenger Terminal.

    The second phase, which is proceeding on schedule, is tak-ing place in the eastern part of the airport. The site has been cordoned off to maintain the highest levels of safety and se-curity.

    The Minister, BAC officials

    and representatives of the pro-ject’s main contractor, Arabtec TAV, were briefed on the latest developments, including dem-olition works and the removal of all internal equipment and

    installations, floors, ceilings, non-bearing partition walls, me-chanical and electrical systems, and air conditioning systems.

    The Minister emphasised the importance of maintaining the

    current pace of work, complet-ing the second phase on time, and ensuring that the construc-tion does not affect airport op-erations.

    He reiterated that 2021 will be a major turning point for the airport, praising the ongoing efforts of Team Bahrain, which started work on this important national development project four years ago.

    He noted that the $1.1 billion Airport Modernisation Pro-gramme (AMP) is the largest in-vestment in Bahrain’s aviation sector for more than 20 years and will usher in a new era for air transport in the Kingdom.

    In addition to the new Pas-senger Terminal and related projects such as the Central Utilities Complex, Multi-storey Cark Park, Staff Parking Area, Super Gate and Fire Station, the AMP includes several infrastruc-ture development projects that will contribute to the realisation

    of Bahrain’s Economic Vision 2030, laying the foundation for a more sustainable and diversified economy.

    The transference of opera-tions to the new terminal will signal a major shift in the King-dom’s aviation sector. This will be complemented with Fuel Farm Complex operations, in-cluding three aviation fuel tanks.

    The coming months will also see the inauguration of the new private aviation terminal, which will cater to businessmen and private aircraft owners.

    The private aviation termi-nal will be a major contributor to trade and will support the growth of the tourism and travel sector for decades to come.

    Four times larger than the existing facility, the new Pas-senger Terminal is equipped with the latest technologies and supported by high quality infra-structure.

    It will increase the airport’s capacity to 14 million passen-gers per year, delivering a com-fortable and hassle-free airport experience.

    Transportation Minister during his visit

    KNOW WHAT

    The second phase, which is proceeding

    on schedule, is taking place in the eastern part of the

    airport. The site has been cordoned off to maintain the highest levels of safety and

    security.

    Seven defendants, two restaurants receive hefty fines for disregarding COVID safety rulesTDT | Manama

    The court fined seven defendants and two restaurants BD1,000 to BD2,000 for disregarding precautionary measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19), the Chief Prosecutor of minis-tries and public institutions said.

    The Public Health Direc-torate reported yesterday that two restaurants did not follow the preventative measures to prevent the spread of the virus, includ-ing leaving a distance be-tween tables, not surpassing 50% of the table’s capacity and wearing face masks. The two restaurants were shut down and legal proce-dures are being taken.

    The Public Prosecution launched an investigation immediately after receiving a notification and ordered the defendants be referred to the specialised crimi-nal court which issued its afore-mentioned verdict.

    Three Asians held for stealing BD2,300 worth of gold in JuffairTDT | Manama

    The Criminal Investi-gation Police arrested three Asians, aged 34 to 45 years, for stealing gold jew-ellery worth approximately BD2,300 in an apartment in Juffair.

    The Director General of the General Department of Criminal Investigation dis-closed that one of the sus-pects broke into the build-ing while his two compan-ions helped him carry out the crime.

    As soon as the police re-ceived a report of the inci-dent, they began the inves-tigation that led to the iden-tification and arrest of the suspects. The stolen items were seized from them.

    All necessary legal meas-ures have been taken in preparation for referring the case to the Public Pros-ecution.

    Muharraq centre working hours extendedTDT | Manama

    The Forensic Infor-mation Directorate announced yesterday the extension of the working hours at its service office at the Muharraq Security Complex from Sunday, Jan-uary 10.

    The working hours will be from 9am to 5:30pm dur-ing the working days. Before visiting the centre, appli-cants should book appoint-ments through the Skiplino app.

    Demolition works in progress

    Citizens receiving their certificates of entitlement

    Request made for BD1.3m government procurementTDT | Manama

    Strategic projects and pro-curement requests by gov-ernment entities valued at approximately BD1.3 million were discussed at the 40th In-formation and Communica-tion Technology Governance Committee (ICTGC) meeting, which was held online, under the chairman of Information and e-Government Authority (iGA) Chief Executive, Mo-hammed Ali Al Qaed.

    Al Qaed expressed his as-pirations for the new year to carry with it more achieve-ments that benefit the country and the citizens, wishing the committee further successes.

    The committee agreed on choosing Dr Zakaria Ahmed Al Khaja, Deputy Chief Exec-utive, iGA, as Deputy Chairper-son of the committee.

    It reviewed procurement re-quests, including an initiative to modernise the television archives at the Ministry of In-formation Affairs and upgrade its media archiving system through modern management and classification technolo-gies.

    Artificial Intelligence will

    be used to improve search, retrieval, and backup copying of media material in line with International Telecommuni-cations Union (ITU) stand-ards.

    The meeting also discussed the Births and Deaths certifi-cate archival system at the iGA, which will call for replacing paper archives with a cate-gorised archiving system that enables easy and quick search. The project will enhance the quality of services offered to the public, including retrieval of Births and Deaths certifi-cates.

    The committee reviewed the latest version of the govern-ment’s website development standards, which will include the latest best practices in line with United Nations (UN) eGovernment Survey require-ments, in addition to an updat-ing of the Web Content Acces-sibility Guidelines (WCAG) to be in line with the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).

    The meeting covered a num-ber of decisions taken during previous meetings, and a sum-mary of the projects reviewed by the iGA’s Information Tech-nology Project Review Team.

  • 04THURSDAY, JANUARY 7, 2021

    Benchmark for excellence in healthcare and educationKing Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Medical City Hospital to receive patients early next year

    • Construction works to be completed at the end of this year

    TDT | Manama

    The construction work at the Arab Gulf Universi-ty’s King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Medical City Hospi-tal has gone a long way and it is expected to be completed at the end of this year.

    It will be ready to be opera-tional and receive patients early next year.

    The project aims to become a benchmark for excellence in healthcare and education in the Gulf region.

    Dr Khaled Tabbara, who is in charge of supervising the progress of the project, assured that the construction work of the university hospital is pro-ceeding according to schedule despite the pandemic.

    Last month, two batches of academic staff from the Col-lege of Medicine and Medical Sciences and the College of Graduate Studies visited the site located in the Southern Governorate.

    Dr Tabbara briefed them on the progress of construction works being carried out accord-ing to their specified dates.

    He expressed his deep thanks

    and appreciation to the Custo-dian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud for his directives to contin-ue to support the project.

    He also thanked His Majesty the King Hamad bin Isa Al Khal-ifa, who directed the provision of a land grant for the project on an area of one million square metres.

    But while the pandemic has affected the progress of the pro-ject, the university is working with its contractors to develop alternative plans to complete the project on time.

    The project cut advanced stages that represent more than 40% of the completion period. It includes preparations for the

    next phase such as offering ten-ders for the provision of medical devices and furniture.

    The construction work are being implemented in four phases.

    The first phase includes the implementation of electricity, water and sewage networks, and fire-fighting, irrigation and rainwater drainage net-works, that is in addition to the construction of internal roads and installation of street lighting.

    The second phase will be the construction of a main power plant to supply the city with electricity, while the third and fourth phases will include the construction of a sewage plant and the development of the roads networks surrounding and leading to the city.

    It was a grant from the late King Abdullah bin Abdu-laziz Al Saud, who instructed to construct the SR1 billion worth medical city in Bahrain as a gift from the people of Saudi Arabia to the people of Bahrain.

    It will be a multiple phased, mixed use development, com-prising an Academic Medical Centre, an innovative teaching hospital built in two phases, a state-of-the-art Medical Uni-versity Campus with Research and Conference Facilities, on-site accommodation for both staff and students, and other communal facilities to create a self-sustained campus.

    The design concept was to create a supportive environ-ment for healing and learning.

    Phase 1, the Academic Med-ical Centre, will offer 269 in-patient beds, 12 birthing rooms and 11 operating theatres as well as high-quality diagnostic and treatment services in four primary specialties; medicine, surgery, women’s and children’s healthcare.

    The completion of the devel-opment will see the capacity of the hospital increased to over 500 beds, with an academic school, a research facility, medi-cal hotel, rehabilitation hospital and on-site accommodation for students and staff.

    Works at the site in progress

    The project was a grant from the late King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, who instructed to construct the SR1 billion King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz

    Medical City in Bahrain as a gift from the people of Saudi Arabia to the peo-

    ple of Bahrain.

    KNOW WHAT

    Developing skills in accounting and finance

    • The University of Applied Sciences’ undergraduate programme is in line with global standards

    TDT | Manama

    The College of Administra-tive Sciences at the Uni-versity of Applied Sciences is offering distinguished edu-cational programmes for stu-dents at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels in line with the needs of the local and foreign market.

    The Dean of the College, Dr Ramzi Al Nakhili, said that they tirelessly pursues new scientif-ic infrastructure according to the highest standards of edu-cation and accreditation.

    He pointed out that the Bachelor of Finance and Ac-counting programme being offered by the university in the English language provides knowledge and understand-ing of specialised theories and modern essential concepts in accounting and finance.

    It aims to qualify students scientifically and practically and provide them with high professional skills to help them enter and compete in the la-

    bour market, as well as pass exams for professional cer-tificates.

    Dr Al Nakhili explained that the bachelor’s programme in Finance and Accounting focus-es on developing the students’ analytical skills and enabling them to think in an in-depth and comprehensive way that helps them provide creative solutions to complex issues in the work environment.

    It also helps the, develop the students’ capabilities in em-ploying technology by using applications and software to collect and analyse data, which supports planning and deci-sion-making processes at all administrative levels in the digital business environment.

    The college’s achievements since its inception have at-tested to its accreditation by the Association of Certified Public Accountants (ACCA) for the Bachelor of Science pro-gramme.

    Finance and accounting, where the graduate obtains an exemption from some ex-amination papers from the certificate component, which includes 14 scientific subjects, and the certificate provided by the association is one of the highest international profes-sional certificates in the field of accounting.

    The University of Applied Sciences

    UoB offers ‘quality’ post-graduate programmes• Experts reviewed the latest developments and research trends in artificial intelligence

    TDT | Manama

    The annual graduate studies forum recently organised by the College of Engineering at the University of Bahrain has strengthened its conviction about the high quality of its pro-grammes.

    The virtual forum introduced four post-graduate programmes that the college developed and introduced during the academ-ic year 2020-2021, namely the Master in Communication and Network Engineering, Master in Architecture, Master in Renew-able Energy Engineering, and Master in Artificial Intelligence Systems.

    At the event, experts reviewed the latest developments and re-search trends in the fields of artificial intelligence, renewable energy engineering, and com-munication systems.

    The Dean of the College of Engineering at the University

    of Bahrain, Dr Fuad Muham-mad Al Ansari, said: “One of the most important fruits of the forum, which lasted for nearly five hours, was the agreement on further research cooperation in the scientific fields discussed with the participating experts and their universities.”

    He pointed out the impor-tance of the dimension related to opening new channels for scientific research through documenting the network of research relations, which paves the way for holding specialised

    courses in modern fields, such as artificial intelligence, net-works, among others.

    During the forum, Profes-sor of Communication Systems at Alexandria University, Dr Mustafa Youssef, talked about the master’s programme in communications and network engineering that the college proposed and reviewed a re-search paper on how to benefit from recent studies related to it.

    University of Jordan Prof Dr Ghaith Abanda reviewed the

    most important components and advantages of the Master of Artificial Intelligence Systems offered by the Faculty of Engi-neering, indicating its impor-tance to the requirements of the contemporary labour market.

    Dr Abanda conducted an academic paper in the field of artificial intelligence, in which he referred to the link with the outputs related to the master’s programme in artificial intel-ligence systems offered by the College of Engineering at the University of Bahrain.

    Participants at the virtual forum

    “One of the most important fruits of

    the forum as the agreement on further research cooperation in the scientific fields

    discussed with the participating experts

    and their universities.” – Dr Fuad Muhammad Al Ansari, Dean of the College of Engineering

    at the University of Bahrain

    Electricity Minister and EWA CEO praise Fikra’s visionTDT | Manama

    Electricity and Water Affairs Minister Wael bin Nasser Al Mubarak, and Electricity and Water Au-thority (EWA) CEO Shaikh Nawaf bin Ibrahim Al Khal-ifa, praised the Government Innovation Competition (Fikra), which reflects the ambitious vision of His Roy-al Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister.

    The Minister received Ali Al Jowder, Head of In-formation, and Eng Hassan Jaafar Abdullah, the partic-ipants in Fikra, noting that EWA is proud of their ideas in the competition.

    Minister Al Mubarak stressed that the inclusion of modern and innovative initiatives in future gov-ernment plans and projects will contribute effectively to raising the efficiency of the government work system.

    Call to set up committeesTDT | Manama

    A scientific study at a fo-rum recently organised by the University of Bahrain called for the establishment of specialised legal commit-tees to look into small issues related to administrative contracts that have become impossible to implement for small and medium-sized companies, given the eco-nomic repercussions im-posed by the pandemic.

    The University of Bahrain recently organised the In-ternational Forum “Legal, Objective and Procedural Dimensions of the Corona-virus (COVID-19) Pandemic,” with the participation of le-gal experts and academics.

    The study, which was reviewed by a professor of law at the Police College at Saad Al Abdullah Academy for Security Sciences in the State of Kuwait, Dr Majed Melfi Al Daihani, warned that small enterprises will not be able to bear the eco-nomic repercussions or even the burdens of litiga-tion.

  • 54.45Brent crude rose 85

    cents, or 1.6 per cent, to $54.45 a barrel at 1050

    GMT

    05THURSDAY, JANUARY 7, 2021

    Investcorp’s Impero buys educational software solution provider Netop

    • Impero is Investcorp portfolio company

    • It’s a leading provider of online student safety and classroom and network management software

    TDT | Manama

    Investcorp, a leading global provider and manager of al-ternative investment products, yesterday announced acquiring Netop, an international soft-ware solutions provider to the education sector and corpo-rates.

    The acquisition through In-vestcorp’s portfolio company, Impero, a leading provider of online student safety and classroom and network man-agement software, was from Consolidated Holdings A/S.

    The transaction, expected to close within the next four weeks, is subject to customary closing conditions. Terms are not disclosed.

    The acquisition, Investcorp said, will significantly increase Impero’s scale and presence in the United States, and has the potential to increase Impero’s

    total and recurring revenue base.

    “The deal further expands Impero’s addressable market while diversifying its customer base and providing an entry into the corporate sector, pri-marily in financial services and retail.”

    Upon completing the trans-action, Impero would be better positioned to serve custom-ers in both the education and corporate end markets with a broader suite of offerings and would have the potential to both accelerate its product roadmap and realize substantial revenue synergies by incorpo-rating Netop’s complementa-ry technology into its existing portfolio.

    Gilbert Kamieniecky, Man-

    aging Director and Head of Investcorp’s Private Equi-ty Technology business said: “Impero and Netop are highly complementary businesses and we are excited by the compel-ling growth and value-creation potential of the transaction and the strong progress that Impero is continuing to deliver on its strategy.”

    Ali AlRahma, Private Equity Product Specialist at Investcorp said: “Impero’s acquisition of Netop comes at a time when both students and profession-als around the world need the technology solutions provided by these two organizations. We believe that this acquisition will further advance Impero’s abil-ity to serve both education and corporate clients.”

    Gilbert KamienieckyAli AlRahma

    KIMSHEALTH Hospital opens in Umm Al Hassam • The new hospital is located in the residential area of Umm Al Hassam

    TDT | Manama

    Bahrain’s leading health-c a r e p r o v i d e r, K I M -S H E A LT H , h a s s o f t -launched its latest medical fa-cility – KIMSHEALTH Hospital in Umm Al Hassam.

    With this launch, KIM-SHEALTH said it became the largest provider in the country’s private healthcare space with two hospitals and four medical centres.

    The new hospital is located in the residential area of Umm Al Hassam and 400 meters away from the existing KIMSHEALTH Medical Center, on the old Asian School premises.

    KIMSHEALTH is designed to provide – inpatient and outpa-tient services, operating rooms, maternity, pharmacy, labora-

    tory, radiology and emergency services.

    Some of the specialities are General Practice, Internal Med-icine, Obstetrics & Gynecology, Pediatrics, Orthopedics, ENT,

    Ophthalmology, Urology, Der-matology & Cosmetology, Cardi-ology, Dentistry, Physiotherapy and more.

    In addition to the new doc-tors and additional specialities

    planned for the hospital, the ser-vices of existing doctors from KIMSHEALTH Medical Center will be available at the hospital. “This will ensure continuity of care for existing patients, espe-

    cially those who need to undergo surgeries or require inpatient care.”

    Speaking on the launch, Dr M. I. Sahadulla, Group Chair-man & Managing Director at KIMSHEALTH reiterated KIM-SHEALTH’s new Mission - to pro-vide, high-quality, cost-effective care with courtesy, compassion and competence.

    “Over the years, KIMSHEALTH has earned an exemplary repu-tation for its quality of service, care and affordability. The new KIMSHEALTH Hospital will pro-vide communities and existing patients of KIMSHEALTH Med-ical Center seamless access to all of our new services,” added Dr Sahadulla.

    Explaining the importance of the Indo-Bahraini partnership, Ahmed Jawahery, Chairman – KIMSHEALTH Medical Center and President – Royal Bahrain Hospital, said: “KIMSHEALTH Hospital aims to cater to the af-fordable segment of the society and will offer a wide number of services. Also, KIMSHEALTH is

    an example of perfect Indo-Bah-raini partnership that has grown beyond Bahrain, serving the other GCC countries, namely – Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE.”

    “KIMSHEALTH’s objective is to offer a wide variety of ser-vices covering the entire spec-trum of healthcare delivery to the patient. Thus, KIMSHEALTH will be providing primary, in-patient, rehabilitation and post-discharge care at home,” said Dr Sheriff M. Sahadulla, Group Chief Executive Officer at KIMSHEALTH.

    Jacob Thomas, Executive Di-rector – Operations & Projects (GCC) at KIMSHEALTH said: “KIMSHEALTH has been serving Bahrainis and expatriates in the Kingdom since 2004.”

    “This is our fifth facility af-ter – Royal Bahrain Hospital, KIMSHEALTH Medical Center’s in Umm Al Hassam, Muharraq and Askar. We are also looking forward to the launch of new RBH Medical Center in Saar/Janabiyah.”

    KIMSHEALTH Hospital

    2020 marks Alba’s highest production record with more than 1.548 m MT TDT | Manama

    Aluminium Bahrain (Alba) - the world’s largest alumin-ium smelter ex-China - closes 2020 by beating its Production Target of 1,540,000 metric tonnes per annum (mtpa) to top a breakthrough record of 1,548,500 metric tonnes.

    The new feat is also the high-est-ever achieved in 50-years of commercial operations, up by 13 per cent Year-over-Year versus 1,365,005 mtpa in 2019.

    Commenting, Alba’s Chief Executive Officer Ali Al Baqali said: “2020 was a year like no other with world-shifting chal-lenges. But for Alba and despite all odds, we have raised the bar

    and finished 2020 strong by achieving the highest-ever re-cord in our operational perfor-mance.”

    He added: “This achievement was possible, thanks to our ded-icated workforce, employees and contractors’ employees who rose to such challenges

    while remaining committed to our motto of ‘Safety First, Safety Always’.”

    The celebratory ceremony, held adhering to social distanc-ing norms, was attended by the Executive Management team, and employees from across the plant.

    Group photo for the celebratory ceremony

    Oil extends gains after Saudi output cutReuters | London

    Oil prices extended gains yesterday, rising to their highest since late February, af-ter Saudi Arabia announced a big voluntary production cut, and as an industry report showed US inventories fell last week.

    Brent crude rose 85 cents, or 1.6 per cent, to $54.45 a barrel at 1050 GMT, its highest level since Feb. 26, 2020, after jump-ing about 5pc on Tuesday.

    US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures were up 52 cents, or 1pc, to $50.45 a barrel, also their highest since Feb. 26. The

    contract on Tuesday closed up 4.6pc.

    Saudi Arabia, the world’s big-gest oil exporter, on Tuesday announced it would make ad-ditional, voluntary oil output cuts of 1 million barrels per day

    (bpd) in February and March, after a meeting of OPEC+, which groups Organisation of the Pe-troleum Exporting Countries producers and others, including Russia.

    OPEC+ agreed most produc-ers would hold output steady in February and March while allowing Russia and Kazakh-stan to raise output by a mod-est 75,000 bpd in February and a further 75,000 bpd in March. US crude oil invento-ries fell by 1.7 million barrels in the week to Jan. 1 to 491.3 mil-lion barrels, data from industry group the American Petroleum Institute showed.

    The Bahrain Petroleum Company BSC (Closed) hereby invites tender for the following:

    KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN

    PROVISION OF MAINTENANCE SERVICES SUPPORT FOR VARIOUS AGILENT ANALYZERS

    22975 500/- 15.750 16-Feb-2021

    The above public tenders are issued through Bapco’s EAM (Oracle) system. Bapco invites interested Vendors with proven experience in providing the above services to participate in the above tenders. Registered suppliers with Bapco’s EAM system can log in with their username and password and purchase the tender. Tender documents can be downloaded after paying the tender fee. Unregistered suppliers can register by visiting the following website: https://www.bapco.net/doing-business-with-us.html#prequalificationsUnder prequalification, please select new supplier registration and complete the steps. For further clarification you may contact Bapco Procurement Department at the Refinery on Telephone 1775 5845, 1775 7054, 775 2995 or 17755684Submission of the Tender is online through EAM system, but the Initial Bond is to be submitted in original. Initial Bond shall be payable by a Certified Cheque, Cash, Manager cheque, letter of guarantee or insurance policy. The Initial bond shall remain valid throughout the tender period specified in the relevant tender documents (6 months from the date of submission). Initial Bond can be submitted at old BBK Building (Procurement Department – Tendering Unit) located outside the refinery, near North Gate between 9:00 am and 11:00 am on Sundays and Tuesdays only. This tender is subject to the provisions of Legislative Decree No.36 of 2002 with respect to Regulating Government Tenders & Purchases and the Legislative Decree No.37 of 2002 with respect to the Tender Law’s implementing regulations.The following conditions shall be complied with: 1. Enclose a copy of the Commercial Registration Certificate valid for the current year,

    and be in conformity with the subject tender. 2. Enclose a copy of Certificate of Compliance with the Employment Percentage for

    Bahraini Manpower issued by the Ministry of Labour. 3. Submit quotations on Tender Submission Form. 4. Ensure to stamp with the official seal on all the original documents and copies

    thereof, which form part of the offer. 5. Award of Purchase Agreement to a Contractor who is not on Bapco’s Approved List

    of Contractors will be subject to successful pre-qualification.• This announcement is to be read as part of the Tender Documents.

  • WHOEVER IS HAPPY WILL MAKE OTHERS HAPPY TOOANNE FRANK

    QUOTE OF THE DAY

    THURSDAY, JANUARY 7, 2021

    1714 1941 1953 1954TODAY IN

    HISTORYTypewriter patented by Englishman Henry Mill (built years later)

    Chinese Kuomintang forces under orders from Chiang Kai-shek open fire on the surrounded Communist New Fourth Army at Maolin, An-

    hui Province, killing or capturing 7,000 troops

    US President Harry Truman announces American development of the hydrogen bomb

    Georgetown-IBM experiment, 1st public demonstration of a machine translation system, is held at IBM’s

    head office in New York

    TOP

    4TWEETS

    04

    03

    01

    Because in America, everyone’s voice matters. And that’s still the truth, no matter what some folks want you to believe.

    @MichelleObama

    One gift Trump could give the country and the world is to not start a war with Iran in his fi-nal 15 days in office. It’s hard to tell whether his administration is mak-ing intentional moves or simply displaying in-competence. Either way, they are playing a dan-gerous game.

    @HillaryClinton

    Georgia — If you elect @ReverendWar-nock and @Ossoff , we can break the gridlock that has gripped Washington. We’ll be able to make the progress we need to make on jobs, health care, justice, and more.

    @JoeBiden

    The States want to redo their votes. They found out they v o t e d o n a F R AU D . Legislatures never ap-proved. Let them do it. BE STRONG!

    @realDonaldTrump

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

    editorial stances)

    02

    86,989,000

    1,879,176

    61,687,932

    Deaths

    Recovered:

    New cases

    New deaths +167,672

    +3,967

    Country Total cases

    new cases

    Total deaths

    New Deaths

    Total recovered

    Active cases

    Egypt 144,583 7,918 115,414 21,251

    Saudi Arabia

    363,377 +118 6,272 +7 354,899 2,206

    UAE 216,699 685 193,321 22,693

    Kuwait 152,438 +411 938 148,015 3,485

    Oman 129,888 +114 1,504 +2 122,456 5,928

    Qatar 145,061 +209 245 142,182 2,634

    Middle East

    Country Total cases Total deaths

    1 USA 21,588,382 365,740

    2 India 10,377,329 150,179

    3 Brazil 7,812,007 197,777

    4 Russia 3,308,601 59,951

    5 UK 2,774,479 76,305

    6 France 2,680,239 66,282

    7 Turkey 2,270,101 21,879

    8 Italy 2,181,619 76,329

    9 Spain 1,982,544 51,430

    10 Germany 1,818,705 37,351

    11 Colombia 1,702,966 44,426

    12 Argentina 1,662,730 43,785

    13 Mexico 1,466,490 128,822

    14 Poland 1,344,763 30,055

    G l o b a l t a l l y

    C O V I D - 1 : 9 C o u n t r i e s w o r s t a f f e c t e d

    Figures as of closing

    News in brief u Russia has inoculated one million people against COVID-19 with its Sputnik V vaccine, according to a statement on the Sputnik V Twitter account yesterday. Russia, which has the world’s fourth highest number of COVID-19 cases, started large-scale vaccinations last month. No new adverse reactions have been reported, RIA news agency quoted Alexander Gintsburg, director of the Gamaleya Institute which developed the vaccine, as saying.

    u Britain is to name former Goldman Sachs banker Richard Sharp as the next chairman of the BBC as the broadcaster faces questions about its future funding and purpose as viewers turn to new competitors, Sky News reported yesterday. Sharp has recently been acting as an adviser to finance minister

    Rishi Sunak, Sky said. He will succeed David Clementi, a former deputy governor of the Bank of England, who is stepping down next

    month after four years. The chairman, who is officially appointed by the queen on the recommendation of the government, is responsible for upholding and protecting the independence of the BBC, which is funded by a licence fee paid by every TV-watching household.

    u The office of the US Director of National Intelligence on Tuesday said Russia was “likely” behind a string of hacks identified last month that gained access to several federal agencies. The office, along with the FBI, the National Security Agency, and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency inside the Department of Homeland Security, in a joint statement, said the hackers’ goal appeared to be collecting intelligence, rather than any destructive acts. They said they had so far identified “fewer than 10” agencies that were hacked.

    u A fire at a Spanish care home killed an 89-year-old woman and injured 18 people, emergency services said yesterday. The blaze began on the third floor at the Domusvi-Adorea home in Seville in southern Spain just before midnight on Tuesday, firefighters said.

    u North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his five-year economic plan had failed to meet its goals “on almost every sector”

    as he kicked off a congress of the ruling Workers’ Party, state media KCNA reported yesterday. The rare political gathering, which Kim last hosted in 2016, has drawn international attention as he is expected to unveil a new five-year economic plan and address inter-Korean ties and foreign policy.

    Britain to name former Goldman banker Sharp as BBC chairman

    Russia likely behind hacking of government agencies

    Spanish care home fire kills 89-year-old woman, injures 18

    Kim tells party congress economic plan failed

    ‘tremendously’

    Russia inoculates 1 million people against

    COVID-19

    Democrats in full control Wins one seat in Georgia, surges ahed in another

    • Republicans loose state they controlled for decades

    • Black voters turned out in numbers unprecedented for a run-off vote

    • Trump’s supporters plan to rally in the streets of Washington

    Reuters | Altanta

    Democrats won one US Sen-ate race in Georgia and surged ahead in anoth-er yesterday, moving closer to a stunning sweep that would g i v e t h e m control of Congress a n d

    t h e power to ad-v a n c e

    President-elect Joe Biden’s pol-icy goals.

    Raphael Warnock, a Bap-tist preacher from the historic church of Martin Luther King Jr., beat Republican incumbent Kelly Loeffler to become the first Black senator in the history of the deep South state.

    Jon Ossoff, a documenta-ry filmmaker who at 33 would become the Senate’s youngest member, held a narrow lead over

    incumbent David Perdue in the

    other race, with a fi-nal out-come not

    e x p e c t -ed unt i l later on Wednes-d a y a t the ear-liest.

    T h e r e s u l t s w e r e a

    repudiation of Donald Trump in a state his Republicans have controlled for decades.

    The outgoing president cam-paigned for both Republicans, while at the same time levelling false accusations that his own loss in the November presidential election was tainted by fraud, and attacking Republican officials in the state. Some Republicans said that discouraged his supporters from voting.

    With 98 per cent of votes in and counting mostly stopped for the night, Warnock was ahead of Loeffler by 1.2 percentage points, roughly 54,000 votes, ac-cording to Edison Research. O s s o f f l e d P e r -due by more t h a n 16,000 votes, o r 0.4 percentage points, j u s t shy of the state’s 0 . 5 percent thresh-old to avoid a recount.

    W i n -ning both

    contests would give Democrats control of the Senate, creating a 50-50 split and giving Vice Pres-ident-elect Kamala Harris the tie-breaking vote once she and Biden take office on Jan. 20. The party already has a narrow ma-jority in the US House of Repre-sentatives.

    If Republicans hold the second seat, they would effectively wield veto power over Biden’s political and judicial appointees as well as many of his legislative initiatives in areas such as economic relief from the coronavirus pandemic, climate change, healthcare and criminal justice.

    The campaign’s final days were overshadowed by Trump’s attacks o n h i s ow n election defeat in the state, in-cluding a recording of a phone call in which he

    hectored Republican Georgia of-ficials to “find” enough votes to make him the winner.

    On Trump’s shoulders

    Gabriel Sterling, a Republican and a top election official in the

    state, told CNN that if Demo-crats won, the losses would “fall

    squarely on the shoulders of President Trump and his actions

    since Nov. 3.”

    The election also signalled a shift in the politics

    of Georgia and the wider deep South. Black v o t e r s , t h e most reliable Democratic supporters

    in the region, turned out

    i n

    numbers unprecedented for a run-off vote.

    In a video message, Warnock, whose Ebenezer Baptist Church is legendary in Georgia because of its role in the civil rights move-ment under King, recalled his humble upbringing as one of 12 children of a woman who worked in cotton fields.

    “Because this is America, the 8 2 - y e a r - o l d hands that used to pick some-body else’s cot-ton went to the p o l l s a n d

    picked her youngest son to be a United States senator,” he said.

    During the campaign, Republi-cans had painted Ossoff and War-nock as radicals who would pur-sue a hard-left agenda. But that message failed to resonate with many white suburbanites who have increasingly abandoned the Republican party under Trump.

    Trump’s flailing efforts to over-turn his own defeat move to Con-gress later on Wednesday, when Vice President Mike Pence is due to preside over the counting of electoral votes to certify Biden’s victory.

    Trump has called on Pence to throw out the results in states he narrowly lost, although Pence has no authority to do so. Some Republican lawmakers have said they will try to reject some state tallies, a move that stands no chance of success but which could force debate and drag out the certification process.

    Trump’s supporters plan to ral-ly in the streets of Washington, with the city bracing for poten-tial violence. Police banned the leader of a far-right group from the city and made several arrests as protests ramped up on Tues-day. Trump is due to address the crowd at 11 a.m. (1600 GMT)

    Both Republican senators, following the lead of Trump who has never conceded his own loss, predicted they would ultimately win and insisted they would fight on: “We have a path to victory and we’re staying

    on it,” Loeffler told supporters in

    Atlanta.

    A Fulton County election worker puts absentee ballots in a scanner as election observers look on, at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, Georgia

    Students gets COVID test kits by vending machineReuters | San Diego

    The University of Califor-nia’s San Diego campus has launched the winter academ-ic term with a unique twist to its coronavirus safety regimen: newly installed vending ma-chines stocked with do-it-your-self COVID-19 tests for students.

    The 11 dispensers at UC San Diego since Jan. 2 - with nine more to be added over the next week or two - are the first of their kind to be introduced on a college or university campus in the United States, according to school officials.

    Adapted from conventional vending machines, the systems

    aim to make it easier and less costly to regularly screen the

    school’s student body.All 10,000 students living on

    campus, accounting for about a quarter of the school’s total enrollment, are required to be tested at least once a week, up from once every two weeks last quarter, university officials said.

    The test kits are free and can be obtained from the machines with the swipe of a university ID card. Students then swab their own nostrils and deposit the sample for collection and anal-ysis by one of two on-campus laboratories.

    Results are usually returned within 12 to 24 hours, UC San Diego Chancellor Pradeep Kh-osla said Tuesday as he showed off one of the machines at an

    indoor campus food court.

    AFP News

    Giant snow mazes, illuminated frozen towers and crystal pal-aces etched from vast blocks of ice greeted visitors to China’s annual ice festival in Harbin.

    The frozen dreamscapes have drawn millions of visitors over the years to the wintery northeastern city, which opened the festival on Tuesday despite small Covid-19 out-breaks across China.

    Preparations for the annual win-ter celebration begin weeks in ad-vance, with workers mining millions of cubic feet of ice from the surface of the Songhua river over long, gru-elling shifts.

    Walls of ice carved into the shape of a giant flower were lit up on Tues-day night as the festival opened.

    The 2022 Beijing Winter Games

    have inspired a push across China to promote winter sports and tourism, with the number of Chinese snow resorts increasing nearly fourfold in the past decade.

    China has largely brought coro-navirus infections under control domestically, with entertain-ment and cultural venues reopening and life largely returning to normal in re-cent months.

    But small o u t -

    breaks in multiple cities have prompted authorities to step up testing and travel restrictions.

    Visitors to this year’s festival are required to show a “health code” on a contact-tracing app and have their temperatures measured before

    entering venues.

    Frozen towers and palaces stun visitors at Harbin ice festivalUS hits Iran with fresh sanctions

    Reuters | Washington

    The United States on Tuesday blacklisted a Chinese company that makes elements for steel production, 12 Iranian steel and metals makers and three foreign-based sales agents of an Iranian metals and mining holding compa-ny, seeking to deprive Iran of revenues as US President Donald Trump’s term winds down.

    The US Treasury Depart-ment, in a statement, named the China-based company as Kaifeng Pingmei New Carbon Materials Technol-ogy Co Ltd. (KFCC), saying it specialized in the manu-facture of carbon materials and provided thousands of metric tonnes of materials to Iranian steel companies between December 2019 and June 2020.

    Among the 12 Iranian companies blacklisted are the Pasargad Steel Complex and the Gilan Steel Com-plex Co, both of which were designated under Execu-tive Order 13871 for oper-ating in the Iranian steel sector.

    The others are: Iran-based Middle East Mines and Mineral Industries Development Holding Co (MIDHCO), Khazar Steel Co, Vian Steel Complex, South Rouhina Steel Complex, Yazd Industrial Construc-tional Steel Rolling Mill, West Alborz Steel Complex, Esfarayen Industrial Com-plex, Bonab Steel Industry Complex, Sirjan Iranian Steel and Zarand Iranian Steel Co.

    Courtesy of USA today

    China notifies Mekong River neighbours it is holding back waters

    Reuters | Bangkok

    China has notified down-stream neighbours it is holding back the Mekong River flow at a hydropow-er dam on the waterway’s upper reaches for 20 days, as part of a new data-shar-ing pact, the Mekong Riv-er Commission (MRC) and Thailand said yesterday.

    The statements came a day after a new U.S.-backed monitoring system said China had failed to notify downstream countries of water restrictions that start-ed on Dec. 31.

    China agreed last October to share water data with the MRC, an advisory body to Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam that had long sought the information for planning.

    More than 60 million peo-ple in those countries de-pend on the river for fishing and farming.

    Thailand’s National Wa-ter Command Center said China had on Tuesday notified Thailand that its Jinghong Dam will from Jan. 5 to 24 reduce the water discharge rate from 1,904 cubic metres per sec-ond to 1,000 cubic metres per second, which amounts to a decrease of about 47pc.

    That was for “mainte-nance of transmission lines” in its electricity grid, it said. The MRC said it received notification the same day, though it first detected wa-ter levels dropping on Dec. 31. The level would likely drop by about 1.2 metres and river navigation and fishing could be affected, it said.

    Dog walks towards a fisherman in a boat on the Mekong River in Nakhon Phanom

    Democratic US Senate candidate Raphael Warnock

    Biden

    Trump

  • WHOEVER IS HAPPY WILL MAKE OTHERS HAPPY TOOANNE FRANK

    QUOTE OF THE DAY

    THURSDAY, JANUARY 7, 2021

    1714 1941 1953 1954TODAY IN

    HISTORYTypewriter patented by Englishman Henry Mill (built years later)

    Chinese Kuomintang forces under orders from Chiang Kai-shek open fire on the surrounded Communist New Fourth Army at Maolin, An-

    hui Province, killing or capturing 7,000 troops

    US President Harry Truman announces American development of the hydrogen bomb

    Georgetown-IBM experiment, 1st public demonstration of a machine translation system, is held at IBM’s

    head office in New York

    TOP

    4TWEETS

    04

    03

    01

    Because in America, everyone’s voice matters. And that’s still the truth, no matter what some folks want you to believe.

    @MichelleObama

    One gift Trump could give the country and the world is to not start a war with Iran in his fi-nal 15 days in office. It’s hard to tell whether his administration is mak-ing intentional moves or simply displaying in-competence. Either way, they are playing a dan-gerous game.

    @HillaryClinton

    Georgia — If you elect @ReverendWar-nock and @Ossoff , we can break the gridlock that has gripped Washington. We’ll be able to make the progress we need to make on jobs, health care, justice, and more.

    @JoeBiden

    The States want to redo their votes. They found out they v o t e d o n a F R AU D . Legislatures never ap-proved. Let them do it. BE STRONG!

    @realDonaldTrump

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

    editorial stances)

    02

    86,989,000

    1,879,176

    61,687,932

    Deaths

    Recovered:

    New cases

    New deaths +167,672

    +3,967

    Country Total cases

    new cases

    Total deaths

    New Deaths

    Total recovered

    Active cases

    Egypt 144,583 7,918 115,414 21,251

    Saudi Arabia

    363,377 +118 6,272 +7 354,899 2,206

    UAE 216,699 685 193,321 22,693

    Kuwait 152,438 +411 938 148,015 3,485

    Oman 129,888 +114 1,504 +2 122,456 5,928

    Qatar 145,061 +209 245 142,182 2,634

    Middle East

    Country Total cases Total deaths

    1 USA 21,588,382 365,740

    2 India 10,377,329 150,179

    3 Brazil 7,812,007 197,777

    4 Russia 3,308,601 59,951

    5 UK 2,774,479 76,305

    6 France 2,680,239 66,282

    7 Turkey 2,270,101 21,879

    8 Italy 2,181,619 76,329

    9 Spain 1,982,544 51,430

    10 Germany 1,818,705 37,351

    11 Colombia 1,702,966 44,426

    12 Argentina 1,662,730 43,785

    13 Mexico 1,466,490 128,822

    14 Poland 1,344,763 30,055

    G l o b a l t a l l y

    C O V I D - 1 : 9 C o u n t r i e s w o r s t a f f e c t e d

    Figures as of closing

    News in brief u Russia has inoculated one million people against COVID-19 with its Sputnik V vaccine, according to a statement on the Sputnik V Twitter account yesterday. Russia, which has the world’s fourth highest number of COVID-19 cases, started large-scale vaccinations last month. No new adverse reactions have been reported, RIA news agency quoted Alexander Gintsburg, director of the Gamaleya Institute which developed the vaccine, as saying.

    u Britain is to name former Goldman Sachs banker Richard Sharp as the next chairman of the BBC as the broadcaster faces questions about its future funding and purpose as viewers turn to new competitors, Sky News reported yesterday. Sharp has recently been acting as an adviser to finance minister

    Rishi Sunak, Sky said. He will succeed David Clementi, a former deputy governor of the Bank of England, who is stepping down next

    month after four years. The chairman, who is officially appointed by the queen on the recommendation of the government, is responsible for upholding and protecting the independence of the BBC, which is funded by a licence fee paid by every TV-watching household.

    u The office of the US Director of National Intelligence on Tuesday said Russia was “likely” behind a string of hacks identified last month that gained access to several federal agencies. The office, along with the FBI, the National Security Agency, and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency inside the Department of Homeland Security, in a joint statement, said the hackers’ goal appeared to be collecting intelligence, rather than any destructive acts. They said they had so far identified “fewer than 10” agencies that were hacked.

    u A fire at a Spanish care home killed an 89-year-old woman and injured 18 people, emergency services said yesterday. The blaze began on the third floor at the Domusvi-Adorea home in Seville in southern Spain just before midnight on Tuesday, firefighters said.

    u North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his five-year economic plan had failed to meet its goals “on almost every sector”

    as he kicked off a congress of the ruling Workers’ Party, state media KCNA reported yesterday. The rare political gathering, which Kim last hosted in 2016, has drawn international attention as he is expected to unveil a new five-year economic plan and address inter-Korean ties and foreign policy.

    Britain to name former Goldman banker Sharp as BBC chairman

    Russia likely behind hacking of government agencies

    Spanish care home fire kills 89-year-old woman, injures 18

    Kim tells party congress economic plan failed

    ‘tremendously’

    Russia inoculates 1 million people against

    COVID-19

    Democrats in full control Wins one seat in Georgia, surges ahed in another

    • Republicans loose state they controlled for decades

    • Black voters turned out in numbers unprecedented for a run-off vote

    • Trump’s supporters plan to rally in the streets of Washington

    Reuters | Altanta

    Democrats won one US Sen-ate race in Georgia and surged ahead in anoth-er yesterday, moving closer to a stunning sweep that would g i v e t h e m control of Congress a n d

    t h e power to ad-v a n c e

    President-elect Joe Biden’s pol-icy goals.

    Raphael Warnock, a Bap-tist preacher from the historic church of Martin Luther King Jr., beat Republican incumbent Kelly Loeffler to become the first Black senator in the history of the deep South state.

    Jon Ossoff, a documenta-ry filmmaker who at 33 would become the Senate’s youngest member, held a narrow lead over

    incumbent David Perdue in the

    other race, with a fi-nal out-come not

    e x p e c t -ed unt i l later on Wednes-d a y a t the ear-liest.

    T h e r e s u l t s w e r e a

    repudiation of Donald Trump in a state his Republicans have controlled for decades.

    The outgoing president cam-paigned for both Republicans, while at the same time levelling false accusations that his own loss in the November presidential election was tainted by fraud, and attacking Republican officials in the state. Some Republicans said that discouraged his supporters from voting.

    With 98 per cent of votes in and counting mostly stopped for the night, Warnock was ahead of Loeffler by 1.2 percentage points, roughly 54,000 votes, ac-cording to Edison Research. O s s o f f l e d P e r -due by more t h a n 16,000 votes, o r 0.4 percentage points, j u s t shy of the state’s 0 . 5 percent thresh-old to avoid a recount.

    W i n -ning both

    contests would give Democrats control of the Senate, creating a 50-50 split and giving Vice Pres-ident-elect Kamala Harris the tie-breaking vote once she and Biden take office on Jan. 20. The party already has a narrow ma-jority in the US House of Repre-sentatives.

    If Republicans hold the second seat, they would effectively wield veto power over Biden’s political and judicial appointees as well as many of his legislative initiatives in areas such as economic relief from the coronavirus pandemic, climate change, healthcare and criminal justice.

    The campaign’s final days were overshadowed by Trump’s attacks o n h i s ow n election defeat in the state, in-cluding a recording of a phone call in which he

    hectored Republican Georgia of-ficials to “find” enough votes to make him the winner.

    On Trump’s shoulders

    Gabriel Sterling, a Republican and a top election official in the

    state, told CNN that if Demo-crats won, the losses would “fall

    squarely on the shoulders of President Trump and his actions

    since Nov. 3.”

    The election also signalled a shift in the politics

    of Georgia and the wider deep South. Black v o t e r s , t h e most reliable Democratic supporters

    in the region, turned out

    i n

    numbers unprecedented for a run-off vote.

    In a video message, Warnock, whose Ebenezer Baptist Church is legendary in Georgia because of its role in the civil rights move-ment under King, recalled his humble upbringing as one of 12 children of a woman who worked in cotton fields.

    “Because this is America, the 8 2 - y e a r - o l d hands that used to pick some-body else’s cot-ton went to the p o l l s a n d

    picked her youngest son to be a United States senator,” he said.

    During the campaign, Republi-cans had painted Ossoff and War-nock as radicals who would pur-sue a hard-left agenda. But that message failed to resonate with many white suburbanites who have increasingly abandoned the Republican party under Trump.

    Trump’s flailing efforts to over-turn his own defeat move to Con-gress later on Wednesday, when Vice President Mike Pence is due to preside over the counting of electoral votes to certify Biden’s victory.

    Trump has called on Pence to throw out the results in states he narrowly lost, although Pence has no authority to do so. Some Republican lawmakers have said they will try to reject some state tallies, a move that stands no chance of success but which could force debate and drag out the certification process.

    Trump’s supporters plan to ral-ly in the streets of Washington, with the city bracing for poten-tial violence. Police banned the leader of a far-right group from the city and made several arrests as protests ramped up on Tues-day. Trump is due to address the crowd at 11 a.m. (1600 GMT)

    Both Republican senators, following the lead of Trump who has never conceded his own loss, predicted they would ultimately win and insisted they would fight on: “We have a path to victory and we’re staying

    on it,” Loeffler told supporters in

    Atlanta.

    A Fulton County election worker puts absentee ballots in a scanner as election observers look on, at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, Georgia

    Students gets COVID test kits by vending machineReuters | San Diego

    The University of Califor-nia’s San Diego campus has launched the winter academ-ic term with a unique twist to its coronavirus safety regimen: newly installed vending ma-chines stocked with do-it-your-self COVID-19 tests for students.

    The 11 dispensers at UC San Diego since Jan. 2 - with nine more to be added over the next week or two - are the first of their kind to be introduced on a college or university campus in the United States, according to school officials.

    Adapted from conventional vending machines, the systems

    aim to make it easier and less costly to regularly screen the

    school’s student body.All 10,000 students living on

    campus, accounting for about a quarter of the school’s total enrollment, are required to be tested at least once a week, up from once every two weeks last quarter, university officials said.

    The test kits are free and can be obtained from the machines with the swipe of a university ID card. Students then swab their own nostrils and deposit the sample for collection and anal-ysis by one of two on-campus laboratories.

    Results are usually returned within 12 to 24 hours, UC San Diego Chancellor Pradeep Kh-osla said Tuesday as he showed off one of the machines at an

    indoor campus food court.

    AFP News

    Giant snow mazes, illuminated frozen towers and crystal pal-aces etched from vast blocks of ice greeted visitors to China’s annual ice festival in Harbin.

    The frozen dreamscapes have drawn millions of visitors over the years to the wintery northeastern city, which opened the festival on Tuesday despite small Covid-19 out-breaks across China.

    Preparations for the annual win-ter celebration begin weeks in ad-vance, with workers mining millions of cubic feet of ice from the surface of the Songhua river over long, gru-elling shifts.

    Walls of ice carved into the shape of a giant flower were lit up on Tues-day night as the festival opened.

    The 2022 Beijing Winter Games

    have inspired a push across China to promote winter sports and tourism, with the number of Chinese snow resorts increasing nearly fourfold in the past decade.

    China has largely brought coro-navirus infections under control domestically, with entertain-ment and cultural venues reopening and life largely returning to normal in re-cent months.

    But small o u t -

    breaks in multiple cities have prompted authorities to step up testing and travel restrictions.

    Visitors to this year’s festival are required to show a “health code” on a contact-tracing app and have their temperatures measured before

    entering venues.

    Frozen towers and palaces stun visitors at Harbin ice festivalUS hits Iran with fresh sanctions

    Reuters | Washington

    The United States on Tuesday blacklisted a Chinese company that makes elements for steel production, 12 Iranian steel and metals makers and three foreign-based sales agents of an Iranian metals and mining holding compa-ny, seeking to deprive Iran of revenues as US President Donald Trump’s term winds down.

    The US Treasury Depart-ment, in a statement, named the China-based company as Kaifeng Pingmei New Carbon Materials Technol-ogy Co Ltd. (KFCC), saying it specialized in the manu-facture of carbon materials and provided thousands of metric tonnes of materials to Iranian steel companies between December 2019 and June 2020.

    Among the 12 Iranian companies blacklisted are the Pasargad Steel Complex and the Gilan Steel Com-plex Co, both of which were designated under Execu-tive Order 13871 for oper-ating in the Iranian steel sector.

    The others are: Iran-based Middle East Mines and Mineral Industries Development Holding Co (MIDHCO), Khazar Steel Co, Vian Steel Complex, South Rouhina Steel Complex, Yazd Industrial Construc-tional Steel Rolling Mill, West Alborz Steel Complex, Esfarayen Industrial Com-plex, Bonab Steel Industry Complex, Sirjan Iranian Steel and Zarand Iranian Steel Co.

    Courtesy of USA today

    China notifies Mekong River neighbours it is holding back waters

    Reuters | Bangkok

    China has notified down-stream neighbours it is holding back the Mekong River flow at a hydropow-er dam on the waterway’s upper reaches for 20 days, as part of a new data-shar-ing pact, the Mekong Riv-er Commission (MRC) and Thailand said yesterday.

    The statements came a day after a new U.S.-backed monitoring system said China had failed to notify downstream countries of water restrictions that start-ed on Dec. 31.

    China agreed last October to share water data with the MRC, an advisory body to Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam that had long sought the information for planning.

    More than 60 million peo-ple in those countries de-pend on the river for fishing and farming.

    Thailand’s National Wa-ter Command Center said China had on Tuesday notified Thailand that its Jinghong Dam will from Jan. 5 to 24 reduce the water discharge rate from 1,904 cubic metres per sec-ond to 1,000 cubic metres per second, which amounts to a decrease of about 47pc.

    That was for “mainte-nance of transmission lines” in its electricity grid, it said. The MRC said it received notification the same day, though it first detected wa-ter levels dropping on Dec. 31. The level would likely drop by about 1.2 metres and river navigation and fishing could be affected, it said.

    Dog walks towards a fisherman in a boat on the Mekong River in Nakhon Phanom

    Democratic US Senate candidate Raphael Warnock

    Biden

    Trump

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