Source: Reuters
Security & Justice
Southern Lebanon Endures Massive Damage: 40,000 Homes Leveled Across 37 Towns
Israeli forces have systematically destroyed entire neighborhoods in southern Lebanon, leveling more than 37 towns and wiping out over 40,000 residential units, according to Lebanon's National News Agency.
Tuesday, November 5, 2024
Gaps in Coastal Radar Enabled Israeli Raid in Batroun, Army Commander Says
Lebanon’s army chief, General Joseph Aoun, detailed to Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati how Israeli forces likely exploited gaps in the country's coastal radar system during the recent raid carried out in Batroun. The briefing comes as Lebanese officials seek answers on how Israel’s elite Shayetet 13 unit carried out the landing undetected.
Monday, November 4, 2024
Opinion
The Emptying of Baalbek Is a Moment to Take Stock
“Large numbers of people continue to flee their homes every day, as Israel’s military operations in Lebanon have been going on unabated.” These disturbing words could be from almost any news report about Israel’s invasion of its northern neighbour over the past month. However, they can be found in a report by the Norwegian Refugee Council’s Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre issued on July 27, 2006.
Saturday, November 2, 2024
A Future Without Hezbollah
At the end of September, when Israel’s campaign to destroy Hezbollah was reaching its height, I met one of the group’s supporters in a seaside café in western Beirut. He was a middle-aged man with a thin white beard and the spent look of someone who had not slept for days. He was an academic of sorts, not a fighter, but his ties to Hezbollah were deep and long-standing.
Thursday, October 31, 2024
Sports
Tottenham Forward Son Heung-min Crowned Asia’s International Player of the Year
Tottenham forward Son Heung-min was crowned as Asia’s International Player of the Year for the fourth time by the Asian Football Confederation at its annual awards ceremony Tuesday.
Wednesday, October 30, 2024
Real Madrid Launch Investigation into Racist Insults After El Clasico Defeat
Real Madrid has launched an investigation into racist insults directed at players during Saturday’s 4-0 home loss to Barcelona in LaLiga, it said on Sunday.
Monday, October 28, 2024
Thursday 4 April 2024 11:48:57
Gold Prices Rebound to 'Record High' After Fed Comments, US Data in Focus
Gold prices rallied to a record high on Thursday as Federal Reserve officials reiterated expectations of interest rate cuts in 2024, even if their timing was unclear, while traders await key US jobs data.
Spot gold was steady at $2,299.28 per ounce, as of 0343 GMT, and hit a record high of $2,304.09 earlier in the session. Bullion has hit record highs in each session since last week's Thursday.
US gold futures gained 0.2 percent to $2,318.70.
"What is driving the gold price is currencies globally depreciating against the US dollar for a whole range of reasons ... people acquiring gold as basically a protection against local currency depreciation," Michael Langford, chief investment officer at Scorpion Minerals, said.
Federal Reserve officials including US central bank chief Jerome Powell on Wednesday continued focusing on the need for more debate and data before interest rates are cut, a move financial markets expect to occur in June.
US services industry growth slowed further in March, which bodes well for the inflation outlook. The US jobs report for March is due to be released on Friday, with new inflation data coming next week.
"If non-farm payrolls meet expectations or is worse than expectations in terms of the job market being weaker, then this would be positive for the potential for an interest rate cut which would then be positive for gold," Langford added.
Lower interest rates reduce the opportunity cost of holding bullion.
Elsewhere, spot silver fell 0.5 percent to $27.08 per ounce, platinum edged down 0.1 percent to $935.39 and palladium was up 0.4 percent at $1.017.83.
