Lebanon cannot become another Gaza : UN Secretary-General to UNSC

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres affirmed that Lebanon cannot afford to become another Gaza, noting that the international organization supports intensive international efforts to achieve a temporary ceasefire, which would allow the delivery of humanitarian aid and pave the way for the resumption of a more lasting peace.'Despite the dangerous conditions, our peacekeepers remain in position,' Guterres said during the emergency UN Security Council (UNSC) session to discuss developments in Lebanon.'I implore the Council to work in lock-step to help put out this fire,' he said, calling on all parties to avoid a full-scale war.'To all sides, let us say in one clear voice: Stop the killing and destruction. Tone down the rhetoric and threats. Step back from the brink. An all-out war must be avoided at all costs. It would surely be an all-out catastrophe,' Guterres said.'Many lives have been lost. All this must stop,' he added.For his part, Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf said the aggression that Lebanon is being subjected to represents an integral 'part and parcel of the policy of escalation' that the Israeli settlement occupation has made a preferred approach and a deliberate strategy on more than one front and more than one destination in the Middle East.He added that the Israeli occupation is no longer satisfied with the genocidal war it is committing against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, but is igniting one crisis after another and is seeking, day after day, to extend its criminality and impose its tyranny on all neighboring countries, affirming that the time has come for the UNSC to realize that the issue of security and stability in the Middle East cannot remain hostage to the delusions of the Israeli occupation.

source https://www.gulf-times.com/article/691388/international/lebanon-cannot-become-another-gaza-un-secretary-general-to-unsc

Next-Gen Wearables and Tablets unveiled at HUAWEI Innovative product launch event in Barcelona

On September 19, at the HUAWEI Innovative Product Launch event in Barcelona, Spain, Huawei introduced a range of highly anticipated products, highlighting its 'Fashion Forward' approach to wearables. The new lineup of wearables includes the HUAWEI WATCH GT 5 Series, HUAWEI WATCH D2, and the HUAWEI WATCH Ultimate Green. Additionally, Huawei unveiled the HUAWEI MatePad Pro 12.2-inch and HUAWEI MatePad 12 X—brand new tablets offering advanced technologies for enhanced productivity and seamless connectivity. To provide a worry-free experience, Huawei is offering the HUAWEI Care+ Service, which can be purchased alongside the new devices.Alex Huang, Chief Marketing Officer of Huawei Consumer BG, emphasised the brand's global impact and commitment to innovation. “We aim to bring innovative products that offer consumers a unique blend of fashion and creativity,” said Alex. “By inspiring our users, Huawei strives to create a more connected and heartwarming world where technology enhances daily living and brings people closer together.”The HUAWEI WATCH GT 5 Series elevates smartwatch fashion with sharp, geometric designs and premium materials. Boasting IP69K certification for water and corrosion resistance, the series is built for durability. It’s available in two editions—HUAWEI WATCH GT 5 Pro and HUAWEI WATCH GT 5—with three sizes and 12 colourways. The 46mm version features an iconic octagonal dial, a 1.43-inch AMOLED display, and durable materials like sapphire glass and titanium. The sleeker 42mm version offers a nano-ceramic build with gold accents and a 1.32-inch AMOLED screen. The HUAWEI WATCH GT 5 Series offers the sleek 41mm and a larger 46mm options. Unlike the Pros, these are constructed with durable stainless steel.The HUAWEI WATCH GT 5 Series introduces a major leap in health and fitness tracking with the debut of the HUAWEI TruSense System. It now leads the industry in tracking vital signs such as heart rate, blood oxygen levels, and respiratory rate. The new Emotional Wellbeing Assistant allows the watch to infer the user’s emotional state. The battery life remains impressive, boasting up to 14 days on the 46mm model and 7 days on the 41mm version. The watch is compatible with Android and iOS smartphones.HUAWEI WATCH GT 5 Series will be available in Qatar on September 26thwith pre-orders starting on September 19th price from 999 QAR from Huawei Experience Store as well as certified retailers.HUAWEI WATCH D2The HUAWEI WATCH D2 is the successor to the HUAWEI WATCH D, which brought blood pressure monitoring to the wrist. The new watch introduces Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitoring (ABPM), offering 24-hour blood pressure tracking throughout a full sleep-wake cycle. For individuals with hypertension, the watch helps identify their blood pressure circadian rhythms and detect abnormal nighttime blood pressure decline rates. For those without hypertension, the watch can help assess their risk.Additionally, the HUAWEI WATCH D2 offers comprehensive health monitoring capabilities, including heart rate, blood pressure, blood oxygen, stress, skin temperature, ECG, vascular elasticity, pulse wave arrhythmia, and sleep apnea detection. With a single tap, users can measure nine body indicators and generate a Health Glance report to identify potential health risks. In terms of design, the HUAWEI WATCH D2 features a glossy mirror bezel and a rotating crown that exudes a premium feel.HUAWEI WATCH D2 will be available in Qatar in November 2024HUAWEI WATCH Ultimate Green EditionHUAWEI WATCH Ultimate introduces the new Advanced Golf Course Features and the enhanced Expedition Mode, along with a new green edition. The new green edition brings an exclusive dual-colour nano-tech ceramic bezel, crafted through a highly complex manufacturing process. As Huawei's ultimate luxury smartwatch, the HUAWEI WATCH Ultimate boasts a Zirconium-based liquid metal body and a high-strength sapphire glass cover, ensuring maximum durability and wear resistance. Additionally, it offers a 100-meter diving mode with audio functions.HUAWEI WATCH Ultimate will be available in QATAR in November 2024.HUAWEI MatePad Pro 12.2The new HUAWEI MatePad Pro 12.2” features an innovative Tandem OLED PaperMatte screen capable of reaching an astounding 2000 nits of brightness. It delivers stunning HDR visuals, ensuring lifelike colours even in bright sunlight. This display incorporates cutting-edge anti-sparkle and nanoscale anti-glare etching technologies, alongside magnetron nano optical layers to reduce light interference and glare offering a paper-like viewing. The all-new HUAWEI Glide Keyboard offers integrated stylus storage and charging, with a magnetic hinge for easy mode switching. Built with anti-stain materials, it resists coffee spills, oil, and lipstick smudges.The GoPaint app on the new tablet introduces Splatter and Fluid brushes, delivering pro-level tools for digital painting. The MatePad Pro 12.2” comes in a stunning Golden Silk rear cover that redefines artistry in gadget design.HUAWEI MatePad Pro 12.2” will be available in QATAR on October 24th with pre-orders starting on October 17th from Huawei Experience Store .HUAWEI MatePad 12 XThe HUAWEI MatePad 12 X is an elegant-looking tablet Available in three beautiful pastel colours—Greenery, Sakura Pink, and White. They all have a unique metallic white lustre, adding a refined aesthetic touch. Designed for young professionals, its 12-inch PaperMatte Display simulates the texture of paper using nano-level etching making it the most suitable screen for paperless creation. Paired with the HUAWEI M-Pencil, it delivers a writing experience that feels natural, improving precision by 47% compared with traditional tablets. The HUAWEI MatePad 12 X also comes with Huawei Notes, a professional note-taking app designed by Huawei for seamless, paperless creation, making it the perfect tool for creativity and productivity.HUAWEI MatePad Pro 12.2” will be available in QATAR on October 24th with pre-orders starting on October 17th from Huawei Experience Store .

source https://www.gulf-times.com/article/691331/international/next-gen-wearables-and-tablets-unveiled-at-huawei-innovative-product-launch-event-in-barcelona

Iran shows greater willingness to re-engage on nuclear file : IAEA

Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi said on Tuesday he had sensed a greater willingness by Iranian officials to engage with the agency in a more meaningful way after talks held on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.In a statement following talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, Grossi said 'What I see is an expressed willingness to re-engage with us in a more meaningful fashion.'Grossi said that he wanted to make real progress in restoring proper technical discussions with Iran quickly and was aiming to travel to Tehran in October to meet with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.'Of course now we have to give content and substance to this because we are not starting from zero. We have had relatively protracted process without replies to some of the questions we have,' he said.Several long-standing issues have soured relations between Iran and the IAEA , including Tehran's barring of IAEA's uranium-enrichment experts on the inspection team.Addressing the General Debate at the UN General Assembly's 79th session, the Iranian President recalled the 2015 nuclear deal, saying that Iran, under the Joint Comprehensive Programme of Action (JCPOA), had agreed to the highest level of nuclear oversight in return for the recognition of its rights and the lifting of sanctions. He stressed that these sanctions targeted innocent people and weakened the Iranian economy.'We have the opportunity to transcend limitations and enter a new era, commencing with the acknowledgment of Iran's security concerns and cooperation on mutual challenges,' he added.

source https://www.gulf-times.com/article/691328/international/iran-shows-greater-willingness-to-re-engage-on-nuclear-file-iaea

Iraqi Prime Minister calls for ending aggression on Gaza and Lebanon during meeting with US Secretary of State

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani met today US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in New York.In a statement, the media office of the Iraqi Prime Minister said that the meeting focused on bilateral relations and enhancing cooperation in various fields. They also discussed the latest regional developments, particularly the recent escalation in Lebanon.The statement added that Al-Sudani emphasized the need for concerted efforts to stop the ongoing war and aggression in Gaza and Lebanon, warning that the conflict could escalate and widen further, threatening regional and international security.He called on the United Nations to fulfill its responsibilities regarding the crimes being committed against civilians in Gaza and Lebanon, especially women and children.The discussion also covered areas of bilateral cooperation in the energy sector, as well as the ongoing dialogue to end the mission of the international coalition in Iraq, transitioning to bilateral cooperation in various sectors with coalition member states.

source https://www.gulf-times.com/article/691244/international/iraqi-prime-minister-calls-for-ending-aggression-on-gaza-and-lebanon-during-meeting-with-us-secretary-of-state

New Marxist president vows to ‘rewrite Sri Lankan history’

Sri Lanka’s Marxist president-elect yesterday invited his compatriots to help him “rewrite” history in the cash-strapped island nation after winning a vote coloured by discontent over an unprecedented financial crisis.Anura Kumara Dissanayaka, the 55-year-old leader of the People’s Liberation Front, was declared the winner of the weekend’s poll with nearly 1.3mn more votes than his nearest rival.The once-fringe leader, whose party won less than four percent of the vote in parliamentary elections four years ago, saw a surge of support as the economic meltdown forced widespread hardships upon Sri Lankans.“The dream we have nurtured for centuries is finally coming true,” he said in a statement shortly after the announcement.“This victory belongs to all of us,” he added. “Millions of eyes filled with hope and expectation push us forward, and together, we stand ready to rewrite Sri Lankan history.”Outgoing President Ranil Wickremesinghe – who took office at the peak of the 2022 economic collapse and imposed tough austerity policies per the terms of an IMF bailout – was a distant third in the contest with 17% of the vote.“History will judge my efforts, but I can confidently say that I did my best to stabilise the country during one of its darkest periods,” he said in a statement.He congratulated Dissanayaka on the win and said he was “confident” the politician would “steer Sri Lanka on a path of continued growth and stability.”Dissanayaka will be sworn in today morning at the colonial-era President Secretariat in Colombo, election commission officials said.Economic issues dominated the eight-week campaign, with widespread public anger over the belt-tightening measures imposed by Wickremesinghe since the peak of the island nation’s bruising financial crisis.Dissanayaka would “not tear up” the IMF deal but would seek to modify it, a party politburo member said.

source https://www.gulf-times.com/article/691143/international/new-marxist-president-vows-to-rewrite-sri-lankan-history

Macron appoints new govt in shift to the right

French President Emmanuel Macron has named a new government led by Prime Minister Michel Barnier, marked by a shift to the right 11 weeks after an inconclusive parliamentary election.The first major task for Barnier, appointed just over two weeks ago, will be to submit a 2025 budget plan addressing France’s financial situation, which the prime minister this week called “very serious”.Conservative Barnier is best-known internationally for leading the European Union’s Brexit negotiations with the UK.More recently, he has had the difficult job of submitting a cabinet for Macron’s approval that has the best chance of surviving a no-confidence motion in parliament.Opposition politicians from the left have already announced that they will challenge his government with a confidence motion.In the July election, a left-wing bloc called the New Popular Front (NFP) won the most parliamentary seats of any political bloc, but not enough to get an overall majority.Macron argued that the left would be unable to muster enough support to form a government that would not immediately be brought down in parliament.He turned instead to Barnier to lead a government drawing mostly on parliamentary support from Macron’s allies, from the conservative Republicans (LR) and the centrists groups, while counting on a neutral stance from the far-right.Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally (RN) had given tacit support to Barnier’s premiership, but reserved the right to back out at any point if its concerns over immigration, security and other issues were not met.Among the new faces in key cabinet posts are Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, a centrist, and conservative Bruno Retailleau at the interior ministry, whose portfolio covers immigration.Antoine Armand, who is 33 and a graduate of France’s top administration school, will serve as finance minister and Jean-Noel Barrot will become foreign minister in a government composed largely of centrist and conservative parties, Alexis Kohler said from the Elysee Palace late yesterday.Sebastien Lecornu will stay on as defence minister, he added.There are questions over how stable the new government will prove to be, and whether it will manage to push reform measures through parliament, analysts say, with the adoption of the 2025 budget its first, difficult challenge.The job of submitting a budget plan to parliament next month falls to Armand, the new finance minister.He has previously served as head of parliament’s economic affairs commission.“The centrist government is de facto a minority administration,” Eurointelligence analysts said in a note.Its ministers “will not only have to agree amongst each other but also will need votes from opposition parties for its bills to pass in the assembly. This means offering even more concessions and manoeuvring”.“I’m angry to see a government that looks set to recycle all the election losers,” Mathilde Panot, who leads the hard-left LFI group of lawmakers, told TF1 television.Even before the announcement, thousands of people with left-leaning sympathies took to the streets in Paris and the southern port city of Marseille yesterday to protest.They were object to a cabinet they say does not reflect the outcome of the parliamentary election.

source https://www.gulf-times.com/article/691096/international/macron-appoints-new-govt-in-shift-to-the-right

Manipur on high alert over alleged influx of 900 militants

India’s northeastern state of Manipur has been placed on high alert after intelligence reports of a potential influx of 900 suspected Kuki militants from Myanmar, a senior security official said yesterday.An organisation that represents the Kuki community, however, denied the security official’s allegations and called for his resignation.Kuldiep Singh, Manipur’s security adviser, told reporters the information regarding the militants had been shared with various intelligence agencies.Since May 2023, Manipur has been embroiled in violence between the majority Meitei and minority Kuki communities, driven by disputes over economic benefits and quotas.“The border police have been alerted, and combing operations are underway,” he said, adding that hill districts, home to Kuki tribes, were put under heightened vigilance.Denying there had been an influx of Kuki militants from Myanmar, the Kuki Students’ Organisation (KSO), the main body representing the community in the state, accused the security adviser of spreading false information about the community while failing to ensure their safety.“We no longer feel secure under his leadership...we would like to call for his resignation,” a KSO statement said.The Kuki people, residing in southern Manipur, share ethnic ties with the Chin tribe in Myanmar. The latest intelligence follows reports of attacks involving explosives delivered by drones that officials allege were carried out by Kuki militants. Kuki representatives have denied the attacks were carried out by people in their community.In response to the attacks, Meitei protesters have held large gatherings in Imphal, demanding action against Kuki militants.Despite efforts to quell the unrest, sporadic clashes persist, with the latest violence resulting in 11 deaths earlier this month. Since May of last year, the conflict has resulted in at least 237 deaths and displaced over 60,000 people in Manipur, which is home to 3.2mn people.The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has repeatedly attributed the violence to an influx of refugees following Myanmar’s 2021 military coup.Last year, the government revoked a long-standing policy permitting visa-free movement along the 1,650km porous border, and announced plans to construct a border fence at a projected cost of 310bn rupees ($3.71bn).These measures have drawn criticism from Kuki groups due to their ties across the border.Manipur remains divided into two ethnic enclaves — a Meitei-controlled valley and Kuki-dominated hills — separated by a no-man’s land monitored by federal paramilitary forces.

source https://www.gulf-times.com/article/691093/international/manipur-on-high-alert-over-alleged-influx-of-900-militants

Polls close in first Sri Lanka vote since economic collapse

Cash-strapped Sri Lanka voted for its next president yesterday in an effective referendum on an unpopular International Monetary Fund austerity plan enacted after the island nation’s unprecedented financial crisis.Turnout was at nearly 70% an hour before polling stations closed at 4pm, an election commission official said, citing provisional figures. The record for voter turnout in a Sri Lankan presidential election was set in 2019 with 83.72%. President Ranil Wickremesinghe is fighting an uphill battle for a fresh mandate to continue belt-tightening measures that stabilised the economy and ended months of food, fuel and medicine shortages.His two years in office restored calm to the streets after civil unrest spurred by the downturn in 2022 saw thousands storm the compound of his predecessor, who promptly fled the country. “I’ve taken this country out of bankruptcy,” Wickremesinghe, 75, said after casting his ballot.“I will now deliver Sri Lanka a developed economy, developed social system and developed political system.”But Wickremesinghe’s tax hikes and other measures, imposed under the terms of a $2.9bn IMF bailout, have left millions struggling to make ends meet. “The country has been through a lot,” lawyer and musician Soundarie David Rodrigo told AFP after casting her vote in Colombo. “So I just don’t want to see another upheaval coming soon.”Wickremesinghe is tipped to lose to one of two formidable challengers. One is Anura Kumara Dissanayaka, the leader of a once-marginal Marxist party tarnished by its violent past.The party led two failed uprisings in the 1970s and 1980s that left more than 80,000 people dead, and it won less than 4% of the vote in the previous parliamentary elections. But Sri Lanka’s crisis has proven an opportunity for the 55-year-old Dissanayaka, who has seen a surge of support based on his pledge to change the island’s “corrupt” political culture.He said at a polling station he was confident of securing the top job. “After the victory there should be no clashes, no violence,” he said. “Our country needs a new political culture.” Fellow opposition leader Sajith Premadasa, 57, the son of a former president assassinated in 1993 during the country’s decades-long civil war, is also expected to make a strong showing. Premadasa has vowed to fight endemic corruption, and both he and Dissanayaka have pledged to renegotiate the terms of the IMF rescue package.Political analyst Kusal Perera told AFP it was difficult to predict a winner from the three-way race – the first in the island’s history. “What is clear is that no candidate will surpass the 50% mark” needed to win outright, he said. Officials would then carry out a count of second- and third-preference votes to determine the winner.More than 17mn people were eligible to vote in the election, with more than 63,000 police deployed to guard polling booths and counting centres in schools and temples. The government also banned the sale of liquor over the weekend and said no victory rallies or celebrations would be permitted until a week after the results were announced.“This election would go down in the history of the country as the most peaceful,” election commission chair RMAL Ratnayake told reporters in Colombo. Counting began yesterday evening and a result is expected on today, but an official outcome could be delayed if the contest is close. Schools were closed on Friday to be converted into polling stations, which were staffed by more than 200,000 public servants deployed to conduct the vote.Economic issues dominated the eight-week campaign, with public anger widespread over the hardships endured since the peak of the crisis two years ago.Official data showed that Sri Lanka’s poverty rate doubled to 25% between 2021 and 2022, adding more than 2.5mn people to those already living on less than $3.65 a day. Experts warn that Sri Lanka’s economy is still vulnerable, with payments on the island’s $46bn foreign debt yet to resume since a 2022 government default.The IMF said reforms enacted by Wickremesinghe’s government were beginning to pay off, with growth slowly returning.“A lot of progress has been made,” the IMF’s Julie Kozack told reporters in Washington last week. “But the country is not out of the woods yet.”Voter Rodrigo agreed. “We have a lot of challenges ahead so good luck to whoever comes,” she told AFP.

source https://www.gulf-times.com/article/691079/international/polls-close-in-first-sri-lanka-vote-since-economic-collapse

First early votes are cast in knife-edge US presidential election

The first early voters cast their ballots on Friday for November’s knife-edge US presidential election, as Democratic candidate Kamala Harris headed for a campaign event focused on the hot-button issue of abortion.Three US states – Virginia, Minnesota and South Dakota – were starting early voting, a practice that Republican nominee Donald Trump has previously cast doubt on when falsely claiming he won the 2020 election.Dozens of people waited at an early voting polling station in the centre of Arlington, Virginia, just outside the capital Washington, AFP journalists saw.A number had “Harris-Walz” shirts, while there were also some “Trump-Vance” signs in front of the building.“I’m excited,” said Michelle Kilkenny, 55, adding that voting early, “especially on day one, helps the campaign and raises the enthusiasm level”.Most US states permit in-person voting or mail-in voting to allow people to deal with scheduling conflicts or an inability to cast their ballots on election day itself on November 5.Former president Trump has frequently lashed out against anything except on-the-day voting, repeatedly blaming mail-in ballots for his 2020 defeat by Joe Biden – while also sometimes calling early voting into question, despite efforts by his campaign to promote it.Trump, 78, faces criminal charges for allegedly trying to overturn the 2020 result, after which his supporters assaulted the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.Every vote will count in a desperately close 2024 White House race, whose result Trump has once again refused to say he will accept.Harris has erased Trump’s lead since sensationally replacing President Biden as Democratic candidate in July, but remains neck-and-neck with the Republican.The vice-president was travelling to Atlanta in Georgia – one of the seven swing states expected to decide the election – to talk on the crucial issue of reproductive rights.Harris has heavily focused on the subject, believing Trump to be vulnerable due to his frequent boasting that his Supreme Court picks paved the way for the 2022 overturning of the national right to abortion.At least 20 states including Georgia have since brought in full or partial abortion bans as a result.Her campaign said she would “speak about the dangerous consequences of Trump abortion bans”.She would also focus on the deaths of two women in Georgia from delayed medical care caused by its restrictive measures, which were reported by ProPublica.With the end of his term approaching in January, Biden meanwhile continued his long goodbye.The 81-year-old president was hosting a meeting at the White House to “direct his cabinet to sprint to the finish”, an official said.He will later start greeting the leaders of Australia, India and Japan – the so-called Quad – at his home in Wilmington, Delaware in a farewell to the alliance he has promoted as a counterweight to China.

source https://www.gulf-times.com/article/691050/international/first-early-votes-are-cast-in-knife-edge-us-presidential-election

Flood-hit central Europe to get billions in EU aid

The European Union will make billions of euros available to help central Europe recover from severe floods, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Thursday, as she pledged support for regions that have been devastated by the deluge.The worst floods to hit central Europe in at least two decades have caused widespread damage from Romania to Poland, killing at least 24 people, destroying bridges, submerging cars and leaving towns caked in mud and debris.“It was for me on the one hand heartbreaking to see the destruction and the devastation through the floods,” she told reporters. “But I must also say it was on the other hand heartwarming to see the enormous solidarity between the people in your countries.”The flooding was caused by torrential rain that began last week and lasted for several days, causing rivers to burst their banks in several parts of the region.“I am here to reassure you that Europe stands by your side,” she told a news conference in the Polish city of Wroclaw, standing alongside leaders of the affected countries. “This is a moment of need, of... natural disaster and we have all to stand together to overcome the challenge.”Von der Leyen said that €10bn ($11.16bn) would be made available from EU cohesion funds and that some of the conditions usually attached to such funds, such as co-financing by member states, would be lifted to make the response quicker.Cohesion funds usually require co-financing from the member states but in this case von der Leyen said it would be “100% European money, no co-financing”.“These are extraordinary times and extraordinary times need extraordinary measures,” she said.She also said that money from the EU’s Solidarity Fund, which supports member states hit by natural disasters, would be used to rebuild infrastructure.Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk told private broadcaster Polsat News that Poland could get €5bn.“What we need now is to quickly build, repair infrastructure, it will cost huge amounts of money, it would be tough to handle it from national budgets,” said Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala, adding he was grateful for von der Leyen’s concrete proposals for help.Czech Finance Minister Zbynek Stanjura said earlier that the government would provide 30bn crowns ($1.3bn), about 0.38% of GDP, in a 2024 budget amendment and earmark 10bn crowns more in the 2025 budget to help with flood damage.Czech Interior Minister Vit Rakusan said most power supply should be reconnected by today.The country is holding regional elections this weekend and authorities said a satellite connection had been set up in places where mobile signal is lacking, to allow the vote to go ahead.Meanwhile, flood defences in Poland’s third-largest city, Wroclaw, looked to have held firm on Thursday.The flood wave that has inundated the Polish-Czech border region since the weekend reached Wroclaw overnight, but there were no signs of serious damage.“The urban system withstood and absorbed the main wave of the floods that have been hitting Lower Silesia and neighbouring regions for a week,” local authorities said in a statement on Facebook.However, authorities warned that larger than usual levels of water would keep flowing through the city in the coming days.Agnieszka Popow-Wozniak, 44, an employee at an infertility clinic who had cycled through the city, told Reuters the situation seemed to be better than expected, adding: “There is no flooding in the city centre at the moment.”The army said 16,000 soldiers were helping out in the region, alongside police and thousands of volunteers.Prime Minister Tusk said officers from Poland’s Internal Security Agency (ABW) had arrested a person who had dressed up in a soldier’s uniform and falsely told members of the public that flood defences were going to be blown up.Poland has warned citizens to be alert for disinformation about the floods.In Hungary, towns were dealing with the rising Danube River, and Prime Minister Viktor Orban said the water level in Budapest was expected to peak this afternoon or evening, but that it would be lower than record levels seen in 2013.

source https://www.gulf-times.com/article/690992/international/flood-hit-central-europe-to-get-billions-in-eu-aid

Polls show Harris and Trump tied nationally

Vice-President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump remain deadlocked less than seven weeks before the November 5 US presidential election, according to new polls released yesterday that also show a tight race in the key state of Pennsylvania.While the surveys found likely and registered voters gave higher marks to Democrat Harris in last week’s debate with her Republican opponent, they showed the race – particularly in the battleground state – remains close, in line with other polling.In the national poll, Harris and Trump were tied at 47% among the 2,437 likely voters polled September 11-16, according to a survey by the New York Times, the Philadelphia Inquirer and Siena College.The margin of error was plus or minus three percentage points.In Pennsylvania, one of seven critical battleground states, Harris maintained her 4-point advantage, leading 50% to 46% with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.8 percentage points, according to the Times poll.Separate findings by the Washington Post also found a tight race between the candidates in the state, which is among those along with Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, and Wisconsin that are seen as likely to determine November’s outcome.Among 1,003 Pennsylvania likely and registered voters surveyed September 12-16, 48% said they would vote for Harris while 47% said they would cast their ballot for Trump – a 1-point difference that falls within the poll’s margin of error of plus or minus 3.6 percentage points.The majority of those polled told the Post that they were “extremely motivated” to vote and that protecting American democracy was “extremely important”.However, voters were split on which candidate would best protect the nation’s freedoms, with 48% choosing Harris and 45% choosing Trump.The issue looms large as Harris, a former prosecutor and state attorney-general, seeks to maintain Democrats’ hold on the White House after Biden dropped his re-election bid in July.Trump, who faces four criminal cases, has continued to falsely claim his 2020 election defeat by Biden was due to fraud.Trump has denied any wrongdoing.The Times/Inquirer/Siena poll also found US democracy was a major issue for voters along with the economy, abortion and immigration, with preferences for either candidate largely unchanged.Reuters/Ipsos polling last week showed Harris with a 5-percentage point lead among registered voters, leading Trump 47% to 42%.

source https://www.gulf-times.com/article/690993/international/polls-show-harris-and-trump-tied-nationally