The Peninsula Latest News

Beirut: Former Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab filed a suit against the Lebanese state on Wednesday over his prosecution by Beirut blast investigator judge Tarek Bitar, one day before a scheduled interrogation by the judge, local media reported.

Doha: Prime Minister and Minister of Interior HE Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz Al-Thani met on Wednesday morning with Federal Minister for European and International Affairs of the Republic of Austria HE Dr Michael Linhart, and the accompanying delegation, on the occasion of their visit to the country.

Apple Inc said on Wednesday that 175 of its suppliers have now committed to use clean energy for the work they do for the iPhone maker, helping to bring more than 9 gigawatts of clean energy onto power grids.

Seoul: A South Korean pet cooking studio owner has started a baking class through which fans of Netflix's "Squid Game" TV show can share the Halloween fun with their dogs by making them cookies.

BUDAPEST: Hungary reported a jump in daily COVID-19 cases to 3,125 on Wednesday, its highest daily tally since April, the government said, urging people to take up vaccines that are widely available nationwide.

The publisher of Harry Potter books has been printing titles much earlier than usual this year to sidestep supply snags ahead of what it expects will be a "booming" Christmas.

STOCKHOLM: Sweden will start offering COVID-19 booster shots to health care workers and people aged 65 or older and plans to gradually extend the third jabs to all eligible groups over time, the government said on Wednesday.

Doha: Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) today reported 103 new cases of coronavirus (Covid-19) and 78 people recovered from the virus in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of people recovered in Qatar to 237,166.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak said the U.K. is on course to post the fastest growth rate since 1973 this year as he started delivering a budget he said will help the nation bounce back from the pandemic.

WASHINGTON: Merck & Co has signed a licensing agreement with the United Nations-backed Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) that will allow more companies to manufacture generic versions of its experimental oral antiviral COVID-19 treatment, the U.S. drugmaker and the organization announced on Wednesday.

Doha: The Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs has announced that the Istisqa (rain-seeking) prayer will be offered on Thursday October 28, 2021 at 5:54am local time at a number of mosques in the country. The Ministry has prepared around 90 mosques for the prayer. HH the Amir will perform the Istisqa prayer with crowds of worshipers at Al-Wajba prayer ground.

Riyadh: The State of Qatar participated in the fifth edition of the Future Investment Initiative (FII) Forum on Tuesday in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, under the title ‘Invest in Humanity’. The forum will continue until October 28.

Doha: The Amir HH Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani met Wednesday morning at the Amiri Diwan office with Speaker of the Kuwaiti National Assembly HE Marzouq bin Ali Al Ghanim and his accompanying delegation on the occasion of their visit to the country.

MANILA: The Philippines will receive 300,000 courses of Merck & Co's COVID-19 antiviral drug next month, licensed importers and distributors said on Wednesday, as Asian nations race to get early access to the experimental pill amid large demand.

Doha: Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani and Foreign Minister of Austria HE Michael Linhart held a press conference in Doha this morning.

BEIJING: China has reported nearly 250 locally transmitted cases of COVID-19 since the start of the current outbreak 10 days ago, with many infections in remote towns along porous international borders in the country's northwest.

Doha: Aamal Company (Aamal), one of the Gulf region’s leading diversified companies, yesterday reported a net profit of QR210.9m during the first nine months of the year (9M 2021), an increase of 132.7 percent compared to QR90.6m during the same period last year. Reported earnings per share also rose by 120 percent or QR0.018 to QR0.033 from QR0.015.

Doha: To mark World Cerebral Palsy Day, the Pediatrics Rehabilitation Department at Hamad Medical Corporation’s (HMC) Qatar Rehabilitation Institute (QRI) organized a series of awareness events for schools in Qatar. 

Doha: Executive Director of Doha International Family Institute (DIFI), Dr. Sharifa Al Emadi, has said that the speech of Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani at Shura Council has elucidated the importance of the family’s role in development plans. 

Ambassador of the State of Kuwait to Qatar H E Hafiz Mohammed Al Ajmi has praised the speech delivered by Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani yesterday during the opening of the first ordinary session of the first legislative term corresponding to the Shura Council’s 50th annual session, in which he addressed many internal and external issues.

Doha Film Institute (DFI) is set to hold the weeklong ninth Ajyal Film Festival from November 7 to 13, officials announced yesterday. 

Minister of State for Foreign Affairs H E Sultan bin Saad Al Muraikhi met yesterday with Ambassador of the Kingdom of Belgium to the State of Qatar H E William Asselborn. During the meeting, bilateral cooperation relations were reviewed. 

Doha: Newly-crowned Amir Cup champions Al Sadd yesterday rallied from a goal down to beat Umm Salal 3-1 and stay on top of the QNB Stars League (QSL). 

LOS ANGELES - Movie studio Warner Bros said on Tuesday it will release a second "Dune" movie in October 2023.

Emma Raducanu said people will have to be patient as the 18-year-old looks to establish herself on the WTA Tour after her fairytale U.S. Open triumph last month.

Doha: Marathi Toastmasters Club recently celebrated its first anniversary, which was attended by Toastmaster International President Margaret Page.

Arsenal and Chelsea moved into the League Cup quarter-finals with victories over fellow Premier League sides Leeds United and Southampton on Wednesday, while third-tier Sunderland also progressed.

NEW DELHI: India's health minister said on Tuesday that a government panel of experts was looking into a Delta coronavirus subvariant, AY.4.2, that has been detected in the United Kingdom. The U.K. Health Security Agency said last week that it was investigating AY.4.2 as it was possibly more transmissible than Delta, though there was no evidence that it caused more severe disease or rendered vaccines ineffective. 

WASHINGTON - An executive at social media app TikTok, owned by Beijing-based ByteDance, denied during a U.S. congressional hearing on Tuesday that it has given information to the Chinese government and said that it has taken steps to safeguard U.S. data.

Doha - The Amir HH Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani called for performing the Istisqa prayer on Thursday morning, 22 Rabi al-Awwal 1443 AH corresponding to 28 October 2021, in all parts of the country, praying to Allah the Almighty for rainfall.

SHARJAH - Pakistan underlined their credentials as early Twenty20 World Cup favourites when they held their nerve to beat New Zealand by five wickets in Sharjah on Tuesday and secure a second straight victory in the tournament.

Doha - Speaker of the National Assembly of the State of Kuwait HE Marzouq bin Ali Al Ghanim arrived in Doha Tuesday on an official visit to the country.

KYIV - Ukraine's health minister urged more people to get their COVID-19 shots as coronavirus deaths hit a daily record of 734 on Tuesday, with hospitalisations up more than a fifth on the previous week.

Geneva - Director-General of the United Nations Office in Geneva HE Tatiana Valovaya met with Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations Office and other international organizations HE Ali Khalfan Al Mansouri.

MADRID - Spain will give a booster injection of coronavirus vaccines manufactured by Pfizer or Moderna to people who received Johnson&Johnson's single-shot vaccine, the Health Ministry said on Tuesday.

An expert panel on Tuesday will vote on whether to recommend the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorize the Pfizer Inc and BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5 to 11.

BRUSSELS  - With coronavirus infections and hospitalizations shooting upward, the Belgian government on Tuesday reimposed some pandemic restrictions that it only relaxed a few weeks ago and expanded a nationwide use of the COVID-19 pass.

LONDON - Britain's Queen Elizabeth will not attend the COP26 summit in Glasgow next week after she was advised to rest, Buckingham Palace said on Tuesday.

LONDON: Music superstar Adele said on Tuesday she will play two concerts at London's Hyde Park next summer, her first in five years, an announcement British media said caused her website to crash as fans rushed to register for a ticket pre-sale.

Doha: The ninth edition of Ajyal Film Festival, presented by the Doha Film Institute (DFI), will deliver a weeklong calendar of film screenings and community-oriented events under the theme ‘Press Play!’ to celebrate the return to in-person events in the spirit of togetherness and the resilience of the nation in addressing the pandemic. 

Doha: The Shura Council held its first ordinary session of the first legislative term on Tuesday, Shura Council's 50th annual session, headed by HE Abdul Rahman Yousuf Abdul Rahman Al Khulaifi.

TOKYO: A Japanese startup backed by soccer player Keisuke Honda hopes to persuade wealthy consumers to swap their supercar for a 77.7 million yen ($680,000) hoverbike which went on sale on Tuesday.

Doha: FIFA has delivered the first in a series of pitch-side emergency courses and assessments for medical personnel at the upcoming FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, to implement a standardised and choreographed approach between stakeholders at the tournament and all future FIFA events.

Hot-shooting Luke Kennard scored 23 points off the bench to help the Los Angeles Clippers roll to an easy 116-86 victory over the visiting Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night. Kennard made 8 of 10 field-goal attempts, including 6 of 7 from 3-point range, as Los Angeles notched its first win of the season in its third contest. Reggie Jackson scored 18 points and Paul George contributed 16 points and a career-best eight steals for the Clippers. Terance Mann added 13 points, and Ivica Zubac had 10 points and eight rebounds as Los Angeles defeated the Trail Blazers for the seventh consecutive time. CJ McCollum scored 20 points for Portland, which committed 30 turnovers while losing for the second time in three games under new coach Chauncey Billups. Anfernee Simons tallied 12 points off the bench and Damian Lillard had just 12 on 4-of-15 shooting while missing all eight of his 3-point attempts. Lillard is averaging just 17 points through three games after scoring at a 28.8 clip last season while earning second-team All-NBA honors. He is shooting just 36 percent from the field and is a woeful 2-of-24 (8.3 percent) from 3-point range. Los Angeles led by as many as 35 points and shot 47.3 percent from the field, including 14 of 43 from 3-point range. The Clippers racked up 21 steals. Nassir Little added 10 points for the Trail Blazers, who made just 38.1 percent of their shots and were 8 of 37 from behind the arc. Los Angeles ended the first quarter with a 14-2 run to open up a 31-17 lead. The Clippers pushed the lead to 16 in the opening minute of the second quarter and held a 56-42 lead at the break. Kennard was 6 of 7 from the field, including 4 of 5 from 3-point range, while scoring 17 points in the half. Los Angeles rattled off 12 straight during the third quarter to push the lead above 30 as Justise Winslow's basket made it 83-52 with 2:45 left in the period. The Clippers held a 91-61 lead entering the final stanza and stretched the lead to 100-65 on Mann's 3-pointer with 8:50 remaining. --Field Level Media

BioNTech SE said it plans to start construction on its first start-to-finish vaccine plant in Africa in the middle of next year, aiming to build a manufacturing network that would eventually supply hundreds of millions of doses to the continent.

Doha: Siraj Energy (a JV between QatarEnergy (51%) and QEWC (49%)) signed two memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with Qatar Foundation and WOQOD related to cooperation in photovoltaic (PV) energy and systems applications.

BERLIN: Switzerland said on Tuesday it was recommending COVID-19 booster shots for people over 65 but not for the general population.

LONDON: Britain's Queen Elizabeth carried out her first official engagement on Tuesday since spending a night in hospital and being ordered to rest by her doctors.

Doha: Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) today reported 102 new cases of coronavirus (Covid-19) and 93 people recovered from the virus in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of people recovered in Qatar to 237,088.

SEOUL: An imitation of a giant doll featuring in South Korean survival drama 'Squid Game' was launched this week at a Seoul park, giving fans and curious onlookers a chance to experience a bit of what it feels like being on Netflix’s mega hit show.