logo

Maersk resumes Haifa port calls

Zawya5 hours ago

Shipping company Maersk said on Friday it had decided to resume vessel calls at Israel's Haifa port.
"With the prospect of current cease-fire agreement bringing de-escalation to the conflict, we have decided to resume vessel calls to the Port of Haifa, and acceptance for both import and export cargo is now open," Maersk said in a statement.
Maersk last Friday said it had temporarily paused vessel calls at Haifa port, amid Israel's conflict with Iran.
(Reporting by Stine Jacobsen editing by Terje Solsvik and Louise Rasmussen)

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Age of AI: How technology is set to transform government and business in UAE and the world
Age of AI: How technology is set to transform government and business in UAE and the world

The National

time28 minutes ago

  • The National

Age of AI: How technology is set to transform government and business in UAE and the world

The power of artificial intelligence is extraordinary. It can, among much else, help to diagnose diseases, make investments and create pictures, songs, novels and university essays. It is no wonder then that the UAE authorities are keen to harness its potential through a wide-scale roll-out. As reported last week, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, said that from January, the National Artificial Intelligence System will be an advisory member of the UAE Cabinet, the Ministerial Development Council and the boards of government firms and federal bodies. It is the latest move to promote AI. In 2017, the UAE became the first country in the world to have a Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, and it also has a national AI strategy and an AI university. New AI era Ashley Braganza, professor of organisational transformation at London's Brunel University, says governments globally 'are on the threshold' when it comes to adopting AI. 'Governments in many countries are talking about the use of AI to provide services for citizens,' he says. 'If we were to have this conversation as early as a year to 18 months from now, we'd be talking about AI in a wide range of the delivery of public sector services in different parts of the world.' Prof Braganza, who hosts The AI Adoption Podcast, says the technology will change how public sector employees interact, and how citizens engage with public services. It will, he says, 'be transformative'. 'If you are a civil servant, you can say: 'In this situation, with this kind of citizen that I'm dealing with, what should be the course of action, or what are the forms that need to be completed, or what information do we need to get from this individual?'' he says. 'It brings all this together and that, I think, is where the transformation is going to be seen. It will change working practices within the public sector.' Widespread adoption of AI by governments worldwide in the future should come as no surprise as it is 'very much a general-purpose technology', says Prof Mark Daley, the chief AI officer at Western University in Canada. 'It is a technology that allows some degree of cognitive offloading,' he says. 'Tasks that needed direct human supervision can, more and more as the models get better, be offloading to a machine assistant. 'It still has to be verified by a human, but it increases the capacity of each individual human to carry out work. The exact nature of that is totally dependent on the job function and the preferences of those individual humans.' It can make people 'significantly more productive and happier', he says, by carrying out 'intellectual drudgery', such as going through 500 emails to find any mention of a particular topic. Complementing not replacing For now, Prof Daley says, AI can carry out what might be seen as more mundane intellectual tasks, such as answering routine emails, but is not ready to completely replace many job functions. 'We're not quite there yet,' he says. 'The technology is remarkable and when it works it's fantastic, but it's still very brittle and there's still a lot of failure modes that require human oversight.' Using a word he coined, Prof Braganza sees AI as being likely to cause the 'gigification' of work, taking out the less demanding tasks within any particular job and leaving people to undertake the most difficult functions. 'What you end up with is people being employed for that last 20 to 30 per cent [of a job], where people are able to look at that very complicated issue and be able to deal with that,' he says. 'You will see over time a paring down of working roles, as opposed to AI coming in and the entire organisation's workforce collapsing.' The technology is advancing rapidly and Prof Daley says that it is not hard to imagine a future where agentic AI – a form of the technology where AI 'agents' carry out functions independently – does eventually completely take over many human roles. AI is not just a technology for governments in high-income nations: it allows advances in developing countries too. A parallel can be drawn, Prof Daley says, with the way that African nations rapidly increased mobile phone penetration, 'leapfrogging' the widespread dependence on landlines. 'We're probably going to see the same thing play out here,' he says. 'Nimble, fast-moving developing countries are going to say, 'Let's just integrate AI into our processes as we are evolving them.'' Safeguards in place With AI – as with people – there are concerns about bias, and it may not even be obvious that such biases are lurking within algorithms, Prof Braganza says. 'If you're talking about AI being used by police, health, social security, childcare – in those situations, some of those decisions can have very deep, very wide effects if they go wrong,' he says. Prof Braganza notes that a human caseworker or call centre employee may deal with, say, a few dozen customers in a day – but over the same time period, an AI model may adjudicate in thousands of cases. 'Somebody applying for a loan, for example, if that algorithm is biased, then 10,000 applications in the last one hour may well have been affected,' he says. Yet Prof Daley says that as the technology becomes more sophisticated, bias can be removed. 'With the frontier AI we have right now, with the reasoning models … you can actually explain in English what criteria you're looking for, what biases it should watch for, and you can construct a system that is essentially less biased than any human would be,' he said. 'You can require it to explicitly state how it is making decisions against all these possible sources of bias,' he says. 'There's a possibility to use these models in a way that actually increases procedural fairness, but you have to be really mindful about how you're using them.' For all the concerns relating to AI in government or business, the technology's adoption is going to continue. Its use is likely to become existential for companies. 'If a productivity enhancer is invented and you decline to adopt it, you as a firm or an individual will be outcompeted by those who do adopt it. There seems little question to me [that] AI is a productivity enhancer across a broad range of domains,' Prof Daley says.

Dubai's Global Village 2026 retail proposals: Details revealed
Dubai's Global Village 2026 retail proposals: Details revealed

Gulf Business

timean hour ago

  • Gulf Business

Dubai's Global Village 2026 retail proposals: Details revealed

Image credit: Global Village/Website Global Village, the UAE's leading multicultural family destination for culture, shopping, and entertainment, has announced it is now accepting business proposals for its retail shops and guest services categories for the highly anticipated Season 30. Read- This announcement follows the park's record-breaking Season 29, which welcomed an unprecedented 10.5 million visitors, solidifying its position as one of the most beloved and visited destinations in the region. Entrepreneurs and businesses interested in expanding or launching their ventures now have the opportunity to tap into Global Village's expansive international audience. Expanding opportunities for Season 30 Global Village is encouraging new and returning partners to participate in what promises to be its most spectacular season yet. Season 30 represents a major milestone, and Global Village is aiming to enhance the experience further with innovative business concepts and elevated guest experiences. Earlier in June, the destination had already opened proposals for two other key categories: Restaurant and Coffee Shops and the O pen Market. Entrepreneurs in the culinary space, particularly those with fresh dining or street food ideas, are invited to bring their visions to life at popular areas within the park such as the Indian Chaat Bazaar and the Road of Asia. Those with new market concepts are also being welcomed to submit proposals, adding fresh diversity to the upcoming season. Full A Platform for business success With a proven track record of supporting small and medium enterprises, Global Village has become a reliable springboard for business growth. In Season 29 alone, more than 3,500 shopping outlets and over 250 dining options were featured across the park, alongside 75+ new partners and 80 newly launched concepts. The destination's diverse offering and collaborative ecosystem have helped partners achieve significant visibility and financial success. Global Village is renowned for providing a safe, vibrant, and commercially viable platform for business owners across sectors, from food and beverage to retail and guest experience services. Recap of a record-breaking Season 29 Season 29 marked a new chapter in Global Village's legacy. The season concluded with a historic 10.5 million visitors, surpassing the previous year's 10 million and setting a new benchmark in footfall. More than 400 performers entertained guests with 40,000+ shows, while 3 0 pavilions represented over 90 cultures, offering an immersive journey through international art, food, and traditions. Fernando Eiroa, CEO of Dubai Holding Entertainment, commented on the achievement: 'Welcoming over 10.5 million guests this season reaffirms Global Village's position as one of the emirate's leading and most inclusive destinations. While our scale is unmatched, it is our spirit of cultural connection and community that truly sets us apart. We offer a world-class family experience that brings people together through entertainment, dining, and retail from across the globe.' From live concerts and international street acts to immersive family attractions and unique dining spots, Season 29 delivered the most dynamic entertainment schedule in the destination's history. As Global Village looks ahead to Season 30, preparations are already underway to introduce even more groundbreaking concepts, elevated visitor services, and new opportunities for entrepreneurs to shine on a global stage. With strong momentum and an expanding global reputation, the For more information and proposal submissions.

Dubai Summer Surprises begins: Up to 75 per cent discounts; win 30 gold bars in raffles
Dubai Summer Surprises begins: Up to 75 per cent discounts; win 30 gold bars in raffles

Khaleej Times

timean hour ago

  • Khaleej Times

Dubai Summer Surprises begins: Up to 75 per cent discounts; win 30 gold bars in raffles

Summer in Dubai just got more exciting for shopaholics, families looking for leisure activities and visitors seeking fun experiences. The 28th edition of Dubai Summer Surprises (DSS) kicked off today, packing in exciting bargains, free activities, live entertainment and world-class gastronomy offers to make this season more enjoyable for everyone. This edition runs for 66 days, from June 27 to August 31, with pocket-friendly prices and great value for everyone. Whether planning a staycation, shopping spree, or weekend outing, DSS is packed with ways for residents and visitors to enjoy more of the city for less. Epic bargains and mall promotions An epic 9 weeks of unbeatable promotions and exclusive in-store offers kicks off today as part of the summer-long DSS Sales Season, starting with the Summer Holiday Offers until July 17. Shoppers can enjoy discounts of up to 75 per cent at more than 800 brands and over 3,000 stores, along with chances to win incredible prizes through a line-up of exciting mall and retailer campaigns. 30 gold bars, 9 new cars Shoppers can also win the season's biggest-ever prizes in citywide raffles, including the Dubai Shopping Malls Group DSS Raffle from June 27 to August 31, which is giving away the keys to nine brand-new cars; the Dubai Gold & Jewellery Group Raffles from June 27 to August 30, offering 30 gold bars to 30 winners; and the Visa Jewellery Programme from June 27 to August 30, with 50 winners receiving a share of Dh175,000 in jewellery vouchers. Several more chances to win will be announced in the coming weeks. Dine out for less Summer Restaurant Week invites diners to experience some of Dubai's best-loved restaurants at exceptional value from to July 4 to 13. Exclusive set menus will be available at more than 55 casual dining destinations, with two-course lunches priced at Dh95 and three-course dinners at Dh150. Bookings are open now, exclusively through OpenTable. For the first time ever, DSS is introducing 10 Dirham Dish from August 1 to 31, celebrating the richness of the local dining scene by offering dishes at an accessible price point of just Dh10. The DSS Entertainer returns for 2025 with over 7,500 Buy One Get One Free offers across premium and casual dining, brunches, delivery, attractions, leisure, spas, salons, fitness, and more. Free things to do On Friday, June 27, Dubai Festival City Mall hosted Japanese dance crew Sabrina and Palestinian-Jordanian pop artist Reina Khoury, while Abri & the Band and singer-songwriter Noel Kharman takes to the stage on Saturday, 28 June. At City Centre Mirdif, Syrian vocalist Al Shami and Jordanian indie rock band Jadal will perform live on Saturday, June 28, with roaming entertainers and energetic live acts.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store