Author: arabcolumnist.com
HANOI: Vietnam recorded its strongest ever month for inbound tourism in January 2026, welcoming nearly 2.5 million foreign visitors, according to official statistics. The total was the highest monthly figure on record and marked a sharp rise from the end of 2025, underscoring the pace of recovery in Vietnam tourism and international travel demand. Authorities reported the January performance as a key early-year milestone after Vietnam posted another strong year for foreign arrivals in 2025. Official data put January’s international arrivals at 2,453,724, up 21.4% from December 2025 and up 18.5% from January 2025. Air travel remained the dominant entry route, with…
ABU DHABI, Feb. 9, 2026: UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan received Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on Monday upon his arrival in Abu Dhabi, marking the start of a fraternal visit between the two countries, according to official information released in the UAE capital. President El-Sisi arrived at the Presidential Flight terminal in Abu Dhabi, where Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed welcomed him in line with state protocol for visiting heads of state. The reception formed part of the official arrangements accompanying the visit and reflected the regularity of high-level exchanges between the leaderships of the United Arab Emirates and Egypt. Also present to…
XI’AN: Chinese researchers have detailed a compact pulsed-power device designed to drive high-power microwave systems, describing a unit that can generate extremely high peak power while remaining small enough for transport. The work was published in the peer reviewed journal High Power Laser and Particle Beams and is attributed to researchers affiliated with the Key Laboratory on Science and Technology on High Power Microwave at the Northwest Institute of Nuclear Technology in Xi’an. The paper describes the system as a “compact lightweight Tesla-transformer pulsed power driver” built to produce short, intense bursts of electrical power for high-power microwave generation. Pulsed-power drivers are a core component…
SEOUL: Samsung Electronics said it is on track to begin delivering its next-generation HBM4 high-bandwidth memory products in the first quarter of 2026. The company said the HBM4 lineup will include products with 11.7 gigabits-per-second performance, as it expands sales of memory used in artificial intelligence servers and accelerators. Samsung did not name customers for the initial HBM4 deliveries, and it did not disclose shipment volumes in its earnings materials. In its fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 results, Samsung said its memory business posted record highs in quarterly revenue and operating profit, supported by higher sales of high-value products including HBM, server DDR5 and enterprise…
MANILA: At least 12 people have died and 36 others were injured in the Philippines in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Basyang, as emergency officials continued to validate casualty reports and assess damage from flooding and landslides that hit parts of Mindanao and the central Philippines. The storm, known internationally as Penha, has weakened and dissipated, but local authorities said the impacts lingered across multiple regions where residents were displaced and transport and livelihood activities were disrupted. Government disaster officials said fatalities were concentrated in Northern Mindanao and the Caraga region. In Cagayan de Oro City, four people were killed when a landslide struck…
NEW DELHI: India’s updated baggage framework took effect on February 2, 2026, changing how returning travelers can bring personal goods into the country and revising long-standing limits on jewellery carried in baggage. Under the Baggage Rules, 2026, eligible passengers may bring gold, silver and other precious metal jewellery under a special duty-free allowance that is set by weight, without a rupee value ceiling that existed under the previous rules. The rules define “jewellery” as ornaments made of gold, silver, platinum or other precious metals, whether studded or not. The special allowance applies to a resident or a tourist of Indian origin who has been…
BEIJING: China’s rapid shift to electric vehicles is reshaping the world’s largest auto market and dulling growth in the transport fuel demand that once underpinned its appetite for imported crude, including heavy oil from Venezuela. The International Energy Agency said China sold over 11 million electric cars in 2024, with electric models accounting for almost half of all car sales, a scale that has few parallels in other major economies. Electric car sales in China rose sharply in 2024, expanding China’s share of global electric car sales to nearly two thirds, the IEA said. On a monthly basis, electric car sales in China overtook…
LYON: Nearly four in 10 cancer cases worldwide could be prevented by reducing exposure to known, modifiable risk factors, according to a new analysis from the World Health Organization and its cancer research agency released for World Cancer Day. The assessment estimated that 37% of new cancer diagnoses in 2022, about 7.1 million of 18.7 million cases, were linked to risks that can be reduced through public health measures and individual prevention. The study, led by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, analyzed 185 countries and looked across 36 cancer types. Researchers assessed 30 preventable causes spanning behavioral risks, infections, environmental exposures and occupational…
MENA Newswire, WASHINGTON: U.S. regulators have classified a recall affecting more than 80,000 single serve coffee pods made for Keurig brewers after a labeling error raised concerns for consumers who avoid caffeine. The action covers McCafé Premium Roast Decaf Coffee K-Cup pods distributed by Keurig Dr Pepper, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s recall listing. The FDA categorized the action as a Class II recall on Jan. 23, 2026. A Class II classification is used when use of or exposure to a product may cause temporary or medically reversible adverse health consequences, or when the likelihood of serious adverse health consequences is remote.…
Zayed Prize Green AI guide debuted at DICEGAI 2026, offering institutions a practical framework for deploying AI toward real environmental outcomes.