Türkiye's Karpowership to Supply Iraq with up to 590 MW Electricity
Two floating power plants will dock at Khor Al Zubair and Umm Qasr ports in Basra and are expected to be operational within the month.
The initial contract, signed with Iraq's Ministry of Electricity and the General Company for Electric Energy Production, is for 71 days, the company said in a statement.
Iraq experienced power outages in central and southern regions this month as a sudden shutdown at a power plant led to a fault in the electricity grid.
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Arab News
an hour ago
- Arab News
Police disperse pro-Palestinian staff protests at Microsoft HQ in Washington
WASHINGTON: Police dismantled a protest encampment set up by current and former Microsoft employees at the tech giant's headquarters in Redmond, Washington, over the company's cloud services being used by the Israeli military for surveillance operations against Palestinians. Members of the worker-led campaign group, No Azure for Apartheid, occupied Microsoft's East Campus in Redmond on Tuesday, demanding the company end its ties with Israel. The group accused Microsoft of complicity in war crimes in Gaza and the West Bank through its support of Israeli military and intelligence operations. 'In establishing the Liberated Zone, we are liberating our workplace and reclaiming our labor by refusing to do any work that could contribute to genocide and other crimes against humanity in Palestine,' said Microsoft worker Julius Shan in a letter to the company on Tuesday. 'We choose to take this step to escalate against Microsoft's active role in powering 22 months of genocide in Palestine,' he added. Microsoft workers occupy HQ in protest against company's ties to Israeli military. (Supplied) The protests follow a recent investigation by The Guardian with the Israeli-Palestinian publication +972 Magazine and Hebrew-language outlet Local Call, which revealed that Microsoft's Azure cloud services were being used by Israeli authorities to facilitate mass surveillance of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. The system reportedly enabled the storage of millions of daily mobile phone call recordings made by Palestinians and assisted in identifying bombing targets in Gaza. On Friday, Microsoft said it launched an 'urgent' external inquiry into the allegations as executives denied their knowledge of the nature of Israel's use of Azure technology. In a statement, Microsoft said 'using Azure for the storage of data files of phone calls obtained through broad or mass surveillance of civilians in Gaza and the West Bank' would be prohibited by its terms of service. Responding to the announcement, the 'No Azure for Apartheid' group described the inquiry as 'yet another tactic to delay' meeting its demands. The group demanded that Microsoft ends sales, deals and services to all Israeli entities, call for a ceasefire and an end to the starvation in Gaza, pay reparations to the Palestinians, and end discrimination against pro-Palestinian workers. Hossam Nasr, one of the group's organizers, told Arab News that Tuesday's encampment aimed to be reminiscent of the US student-led protests at prominent universities last year. However, police officers interrupted the protests after two hours, saying the demonstrators trespassed private property and therefore were subject to arrest. In a statement to Arab News, a Microsoft spokesperson said: 'The group was asked to leave, and they left.' The demonstrators moved to a nearby public sidewalk as police officers and Microsoft security dismantled the encampment activities. In the company's plaza, demonstrators paid artistic tributes to the Palestinian victims in Gaza and held placards that read 'Join The Worker Intifada – No Labor for Genocide' targeted at Microsoft. They set up tents and a negotiation table with a large banner that read 'Microsoft Execs, Come to the Table.' The space was also filled with shrouds symbolizing the dead in Gaza, and a large plate reading, 'Stop Starving Gaza.' Police dismantled protest encampment set up by current and former Microsoft employees over the company's ties to Israeli military. (Supplied) The protests come amid growing pressure on the US tech giant from Microsoft employees and investors over its ties to the Israeli military and the role its technologies have played in the 22-month war on Gaza. Earlier in April during Microsoft's 50th anniversary celebration, an employee interrupted a panel between CEO Satya Nadella, former CEO Steve Ballmer and founder Bill Gates. Another disrupted an address from AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman. Both employees were fired. Nasr, and another organizer, Abdo Mohamed, told Arab News they were terminated for organizing what the tech giant called an 'unauthorized' vigil at Microsoft's Redmond headquarters for Palestinians killed during the war in Gaza. In response to the mounting criticism, Microsoft launched a investigation earlier this year. In May, the company said it had 'found no evidence to date' the Israeli military had failed to comply with its terms of service or used Azure 'to target or harm people' in Gaza. It said it provides Israel's Ministry of Defense with software, professional services, Azure cloud services, and Azure AI services such as language translation, as well as cybersecurity support, but denied these technologies are used to target civilians. However, the company acknowledged its limited visibility into how its technology is deployed on private or on-premises systems.
Arab News
13 hours ago
- Arab News
PIF launches ‘azm' program to equip Saudis for labor market needs
JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund launched a strategic program designed to build skills, address labor market needs, and support economic diversification to boost national talent. The 'azm' workforce development program was unveiled at a signing ceremony attended by Education Minister Yousef Al-Benyan and PIF Governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan, alongside partners from the Technical and Vocational Training Corp., Colleges of Excellence, Human Resources Development Fund, and Roshn Group. The launch underscores PIF's role in advancing Vision 2030, Saudi Arabia's plan to transition to a knowledge-based economy and reduce reliance on oil revenues. PIF held a signing ceremony with several partners to officially launch 'azm' program, unveiling specialized training programs to recruit and equip young Saudi talent with the tools to meet emerging industry demands and build a stronger economy from the ground up. @tvtcweb… — Public Investment Fund (@PIF_en) August 19, 2025 In a post on its official X account, PIF said it launched 'the 'azm' program to empower national talents and equip them with the expertise and skills required by the labor market, thereby contributing to building a stronger and more diverse national economy, through a signing ceremony that included the program's partners.' According to the sovereign wealth fund, azm aims to create a pipeline of technically skilled Saudis to meet the needs of PIF's investments, portfolio companies, and ecosystem partners. It focuses on employer-driven skill development, with 80 percent of training based on hands-on, real-world applications. Under the program, PIF signed memoranda of understanding with TVTC and the Colleges of Excellence to manage and deliver training. The agreements cover curriculum development, contracting with local and international providers, overseeing registration and evaluation, and operating training facilities. In the presence of HE Yousef Al-Benyan, Minister of Education, and HE Yasir Al-Rumayyan, Governor of #PIF, #ROSHNGROUP announces its Strategic Partnership of PIF's #azmprogram, marking an important step toward achieving the goals of #SaudiVision2030, focused on promoting local… — ROSHN Group | مجموعة روشن (@Roshnksa) August 19, 2025 'Future cooperation between Colleges of Excellence and the fund includes launching an academic entity under the azm program to serve as a specialized training body in developing technical and professional skills for Saudi youth,' the Colleges of Excellence posted on its X account. The fund said azm will offer tailored training at competitive costs, apply rigorous learner selection, and provide financial incentives to cover tuition. Employers partnering with the program will gain access to a job-ready Saudi workforce trained to their specifications. PIF said azm leverages its existing experience in delivering training across portfolio companies and taps into a broad network of local and international providers. It also benefits from strong ties with accreditation bodies and access to government funding mechanisms for workforce development.
Arab News
14 hours ago
- Arab News
Police disperse pro-Palestinian protests at Microsoft HQ in Washington
WASHINGTON: Police dismantled a protest encampment set up by current and former Microsoft employees at the tech giant's headquarters in Redmond, Washington, over the company's cloud services being used by the Israeli military for surveillance operations against Palestinians. Members of the worker-led campaign group, No Azure for Apartheid, occupied Microsoft's East Campus in Redmond on Tuesday, demanding the company end its ties with Israel. The group accused Microsoft of complicity in war crimes in Gaza and the West Bank through its support of Israeli military and intelligence operations. 'In establishing the Liberated Zone, we are liberating our workplace and reclaiming our labor by refusing to do any work that could contribute to genocide and other crimes against humanity in Palestine,' said Microsoft worker Julius Shan in a letter to the company on Tuesday. 'We choose to take this step to escalate against Microsoft's active role in powering 22 months of genocide in Palestine,' he added. The protests follow a recent investigation by The Guardian with the Israeli-Palestinian publication +972 Magazine and Hebrew-language outlet Local Call, which revealed that Microsoft's Azure cloud services were being used by Israeli authorities to facilitate mass surveillance of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. The system reportedly enabled the storage of millions of daily mobile phone call recordings made by Palestinians and assisted in identifying bombing targets in Gaza. On Friday, Microsoft said it launched an 'urgent' external inquiry into the allegations as executives denied their knowledge of the nature of Israel's use of Azure technology. In a statement, Microsoft said 'using Azure for the storage of data files of phone calls obtained through broad or mass surveillance of civilians in Gaza and the West Bank' would be prohibited by its terms of service. Responding to the announcement, the 'No Azure for Apartheid' group described the inquiry as 'yet another tactic to delay' meeting its demands. The group demanded that Microsoft ends sales, deals and services to all Israeli entities, call for a ceasefire and an end to the starvation in Gaza, pay reparations to the Palestinians, and end discrimination against pro-Palestinian workers. Hossam Nasr, one of the group's organizers, told Arab News that Tuesday's encampment aimed to be reminiscent of the US student-led protests at prominent universities last year. However, police officers interrupted the protests after two hours, saying the demonstrators trespassed private property and therefore were subject to arrest. The demonstrators left to a nearby public sidewalk as police officers and Microsoft security dismantled the encampment activities. In the company's plaza, demonstrators paid artistic tributes to the Palestinian victims in Gaza and held placards that read 'Join The Worker Intifada – No Labor for Genocide' targeted at Microsoft. They set up tents and a negotiation table with a large banner that read 'Microsoft Execs, Come to the Table.' The space was also filled with shrouds symbolizing the dead in Gaza, and a large plate reading, 'Stop Starving Gaza.' The protests come amid growing pressure on the US tech giant from Microsoft employees and investors over its ties to the Israeli military and the role its technologies have played in the 22-month war on Gaza. Earlier in April during Microsoft's 50th anniversary celebration, an employee interrupted a panel between CEO Satya Nadella, former CEO Steve Ballmer and founder Bill Gates. Another disrupted an address from AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman. Both employees were fired. Nasr, and another organizer, Abdo Mohamed, told Arab News they were terminated for organizing what the tech giant called an 'unauthorized' vigil at Microsoft's Redmond headquarters for Palestinians killed during the war in Gaza. In response to the mounting criticism, Microsoft launched a investigation earlier this year. In May, the company said it had 'found no evidence to date' the Israeli military had failed to comply with its terms of service or used Azure 'to target or harm people' in Gaza. It said it provides Israel's Ministry of Defense with software, professional services, Azure cloud services, and Azure AI services such as language translation, as well as cybersecurity support, but denied these technologies are used to target civilians. However, the company acknowledged its limited visibility into how its technology is deployed on private or on-premises systems. Arab News has contacted Microsoft for comment.
