Portugal is setting up a technology free-zone that would support innovations such as blockchain, Artificial Intelligence (AI), big data, and 5G internet. The council of ministers of Portugal announced it was working on a plan to build an innovation hub that would harness emerging technologies in a plan dubbed "Digital Transitional Action Plan.” The “technological free zones,” or zonas livres tecnológicas (ZLTs) in Portuguese would drive the country to facilitate the country’s sustainable development efforts. Lisbon’s approach, according to the...

AP Photo/John Rooney World War II in Europe ended 75 years ago this week, when Nazi commanders signed an unconditional surrender. The news was celebrated around the world — here are some accounts of the events recorded by the Associated Press. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories . REIMS, France (AP) — Nazi commanders signed their surrender to Allied forces in a French schoolhouse 75 years ago this week, ending World War II in Europe and the Holocaust. Unlike the mass street celebrations that greeted this momentous news in 1945, surviving...

Stars and Stripes is making stories on the coronavirus pandemic available free of charge. See other free reports here. Sign up for our daily coronavirus newsletter here. Please support our journalism with a subscription. After two months of ambulance sirens, mourning and isolation, this is the damage report from Italy: The novel coronavirus death toll has surpassed 30,000. The country is hurtling into its steepest recession in modern times. Tourism has gone bust. Many restaurants and shops lack the cash to ever reopen. The government's brittle finances are becoming ever more stretched. All the while, many Italians feel embittered and alienated. They are disappointed in the continent's early...

Turkey is open to sincere and meaningful cooperation with the EU for a common future, Turkey's foreign minister said on May 9 to commemorate Europe Day.

The president of Turkey on May 9 marked the annual Europe Day, saying the EU would come out of its current pandemic-induced crisis stronger with the right and timely steps.

The market for wearable tech is huge and growing, driven by new wellness applications and improved connectivity. Add to that the increasing number of new IoT devices and applications in the home, workplace and industry, and the opportunities both fo...

One of the major challenges posed by the rapid growth in the use of AI is whether or not existing IP systems are adequate to deal with the ownership and exploitation of AI-assisted and AI-generated products, processes, works and designs, which is so...

There has been a growing global trend in recent years to strengthen foreign investment control mechanisms, most notably led by CFIUS in the US, and AWV in Germany. In our latest articles, we address the new developments in Germany and France, set to...

  On 15 March 2020 the European Commission published Regulation 2020/402 (“Regulation”), which prohibits unlicensed export from the EU of certain personal and protective equipment. This measure is aimed at securing domestic supply o...

Introduction Given the evolving picture on COVID-19 and its impact on the UK economy there are a number of points which property fund managers should be considering in light of the FCA’s recent statements specifically on the virus and their p...

The European Securities and Markets Authority (“ESMA”) has issued a public statement, “Actions to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on the EU financial markets” urging national competent authorities not to prioritise supervisor...

Monetary easing measures adopted by the Bank of Japan lack boldness.

Rokuro Inui uses familiar elements of Japanese culture and history to build the world of his 2019 novel “Automatic Eve” (originally published in Japanese in ...

The country's top two leagues could resume play later this month after Chancellor Angela Merkel approved their inclusion in the loosening of lockdown measures.

[Observer] President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has cautioned the general public to always wear masks whenever they are out of their homes. The president said wearing mask will help combat the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) and its infection to other people.

[WHO] The WHO country office and the Delegation of the European Union (EU) to Somalia have joined hands under a new collaboration in the country to strengthen operational response activities for COVID-19. The new collaboration aims to accelerate support for the frontline work of WHO in combating COVID-19 in a seemingly vast country where transportation of vital medical supplies and personnel needed for rapid response to the outbreak remain a perpetual challenge owing to suspension of commercial and cargo flights

The news that a French patient tested positive for Covid-19 in December means countries will have to go back and test old samples to try to pin down when the outbreak really began on their shores, experts have told RTÉ News.

A message from the President of the European Parliament David Sassoli, the President of the European Council Charles Michel and the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen 

MANSEHRA: The Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl leader Mufti Kifayatullah, who received a warm welcome by his party workers on his release, has reiterated his earlier stance of a ‘respectable’ burial of patients died of Covid-19.“I am not afraid of jails and would never allow police and...

For years, Western companies have struggled to profit from a Chinese consumer market that thrives on cheap knock-offs of iconic brands. But that frustration is now turning into optimism, as local courts begin to stamp out thieves and cheats, lawyers say.More companies are filing intellectual property (IP) lawsuits amid a shift in attitude towards protecting original ideas, trademarks and patents, according to official data. The rush has accelerated after the phase-one trade deal in the US-China…

Tourism is a key component in the European economy, accounting for 10 per cent of all activity, but it now faces its greatest challenge – how to survive the coronavirus pandemic?International tourist arrivals could plunge by 60 to 80 per cent in 2020 owing to the coronavirus, the World Tourism Organisation warned on Thursday, meaning the local business is going to be essential.France is the world’s leading destination for holiday travel but President Emmanuel Macron warned earlier this week it…

Researchers have identified a coronavirus mutation that has quickly become dominant as Covid-19 spreads around the world, but it is unclear yet whether the strain will prove more contagious or deadly than the original.A study led by Bette Korber, a computational biologist at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, found 13 mutations in the spike protein that the coronavirus uses to infect human cells.One of these, known as D614G, was described as being of “urgent concern” because it…

Europe marked the 75th anniversary of the surrender of Nazi Germany to Allied forces in low-key fashion Friday because of coronavirus lockdown restrictions across the continent.The big celebrations planned were either cancelled or dramatically scaled back. There were no mass gatherings, no hugging or kissing, but the day of liberation was emotionally charged from Belfast to Berlin. For the few surviving World War II veterans, many living in nursing homes under virus lockdowns, it has been a…

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As we celebrate the International Wheelchair Day this coming Sunday on March 1st, we are sharing the results of a report into the 'Most Wheelchair-Friendly Cities in Europe'. Prague ranked at spot #15 and was found to be more accessible than larger cities like Paris or London.

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The propensity to steal and misuse public cash is confounding.

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Before coronavirus, Europe lacked empathy for migrants. The pandemic can teach us compassion ǀ View

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The deadly impact of Covid-19 on Europe's care homes

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Get to work on a bike - European governments work to put in place wider and more cycle paths

BERLIN: Europe and the United States mark 75 years since the end of World War II on Friday in a sombre mood as the coronavirus pandemic forced the cancellation of elaborate ceremonies even as Berlin declares an exceptional holiday for the first time.German Chancellor Angela Merkel will join...

BERLIN: The world must draw lessons from the past and work together to beat the coronavirus pandemic, European leaders urged as the continent marked 75 years since the end of World War II in Europe. With parades and commemoration events cancelled or scaled down to contain the outbreak, Europe and...

KARACHI: Afghan Taliban chief Mulla Akhtar Mansour’s five properties of over Rs32 million in Karachi have been seized by the anti-terrorism court for auction, sources said on Thursday.Mulla Mansour, who was killed in a drone strike along the Pakistan-Iran border on May 21, 2016, had...

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KARACHI: Afghan Taliban chief Mullah Akhtar Mansour’s five properties, estimated to be worth over Rs32 million and purchased by him in Karachi by using fake identities, have been taken over by the anti-terrorism court for auction, sources told Dawn on Thursday.

The FIA had booked Mullah Mansour, aliases Mohammad Wali and Gul Mohammad, Akhtar Mohammad and Amaar in a case lodged under Section 11H (pertaining to fundraising and money laundering) of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997, read with sections 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating) and 471 (using as genuine a forged document) of the Pakistan Penal Code.

Mullah Mansour, who was killed in a drone strike along the Pakistan-Iran border on May 21, 2016, had purchased five properties, including plots and houses, in Karachi.

This revelation came in a report submitted by the Federal Investigation Agency to the ATC-II in July last year regarding an investigation into a case related to alleged fundraising by the slain Afghan Taliban leader and his accomplices through the purchase of properties on the back of forged identities.

Mullah Akhtar Mansour bought Rs32m properties in Karachi using fake identities

Since January, the court had been directing the investigation officer (IO) to complete the process of attachment of Mullah Mansour’s properties and proclamation of his two alleged absconding accomplices — Akhtar Mohammad and Amaar — under sections 87 and 88 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

On April 24, the court had ordered the Nazir (a court official) to take over the properties of Mullah Mansour after the IO submitted a compliance report regarding completion of the attachment process of the properties by the Federal Investigation Agency.

The court had ordered the Nazir to auction those properties and get advertisements published in newspapers.

When the matter came up before the ATC-II judge recently, the court’s Nazir filed a report regarding seizure of property owned by Mullah Akhtar Mansour on behalf of the court.

The judge asked the Nazir to file a report about publication of the auction advertisement in newspapers on the next date of hearing.

The judge granted a request by Rehmatullah Domki, the investigation officer, to hear the case next month. She scheduled a hearing from June 11.

During a previous hearing, the IO had informed the court that the FIA had unearthed five properties purchased by the Taliban leader before his death. An estimated value of the properties is Rs32 million.

The court had already called for reports from the commissioners of Peshawar and Quetta regarding the process of proclamation of Mullah Mansour’s alleged absconding accomplices and attachment of their properties.

Published in Dawn, May 8th, 2020

The auction of commercial properties held by the Chandigarh Housing Board flopped with just two booths finding any takers on Wednesday. A total of 145 booths, bay shops and a restaurant site were to go under the hammer. The two properties that were auctioned fetched a little over the reserve price. The CHB auction of booths held in 2009 had also flopped with no property being auctioned. Among the booths that were auctioned was one in Sector 38 (West). This fetched Rs 61.13 lakh, just Rs 25,000 more than the reserve price. Another booth in Manimajra fetched Rs 60.25 lakh, which was Rs 27,000 more than the reserve price. The […]

CHENNAI: As if land grab bids and ‘double documents’ are not menace enough for property owners/buyers, the state registration department shocked the Madras high court on Monday, saying it is difficult to issue encumbrance certificates without any fault. An encumbrance certificate (EC) is the basic document which reveals the current status of an immovable property. It is supposed to contain correct ownership details of a piece of property and inform the applicant whether it is encumbered or mortgaged in favour of a bank or any individual. However, responding to an anticipatory bail petition of a landowner who ended up purchasing another person’s property as the EC did not reflect latest […]

CHENNAI: The Kotturpuram branch of Indian Bank has invited tenders for auction of a property belonging to film producer and director Gautham Vasudev Menon in Adyar. As per details on Tenders India (a government tender information system), the auction process for the property located on First Main Road in Indira Nagar, has begun with the tender value being quoted at 12.26 crore. The winning bidder, expected to put up 50 lakh as a deposit. The property is 7,091 sqft, and the market price of each ground (2,400 sqft) in the area is 4.5 crore to 5 crore. “This particular account has been a non-performing asset (NPA) for some time and […]

Mumbai: During 1Q 2014, the Mumbai office markets witnessed a further decline in office space absorption indicating cautious occupier sentiment. This lack of demand can be attributed to a low level of IT/ITeS sector participation in the overall absorption, which is currently the primary demand generating sector across the cities. This quarter only about 0.42 million sq ft of Grade A office space was leased with a few mid-sized deals concluded in Central and Western Suburbs, and Navi Mumbai. Construction activities remained slow. No projects / phases of projects were completed this quarter. Developers also refrained from launching new projects due to low demand. More than 7.5 million sq ft […]

BANGALORE: Online real estate portal CommonFloor has raised $30 million (over Rs180 crore) in its fifth round from existing investor Tiger Global. In January, the Bangalore-based company had raised about Rs 65 crore from Tiger Global and Accel Partners. Sumit Jain, cofounder and chief executive officer of CommonFloor, confirmed the investment. “We will invest in technology, product development, hiring and expanding to at least 22 new cities in the next one year,” he said. While the company did not disclose the valuation it received, Jain said that Common Floor expects to earn a revenue of $25 million in the next one year. “We have grown 100% in terms of revenue […]

Dentons’ Real Estate team advised CPI Property Group (CPI), the largest commercial property owner in the Czech Republic, Berlin and the CEE region, on the acquisition of a 50.3% share in the ownership of Chałubińskiego 8 office building in Warsaw. The divestment was made by First Property Group, an investment company and the manager of real estate funds operating in Great Britain and Central Europe.

Global law firm Dentons has advised the Israeli biotech company Pluristem on a €50 million loan provided by the European Investment Bank (EIB). The financing is part of a cooperation agreement between the EIB and the Israel Innovation Authority, which aims to strengthen Israeli-EU cooperation in innovative research in the field of biotech, pharmaceutical research and public health.