Latest news with #MiddleEast-focused
Time of India
2 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Harvard under fire as more than 14,000 push back against $500 million Trump deal: Campus activists vow to fight political interference
Harvard University is under mounting pressure from its own community to walk away from a potential settlement with the Trump administration that critics say could undermine academic freedom and set a dangerous precedent for higher education, The Harvard Crimson reported. A letter signed by more than 14,000 students, faculty, alumni, and members of the public was sent Wednesday to University President Alan M. Garber '76 and the Harvard Corporation — the institution's highest governing body. It warns that striking a deal to restore billions in frozen federal research funds in exchange for political concessions would have a 'chilling effect' not only on Harvard but across American academia. High-stakes negotiations The New York Times revealed earlier this week that talks between Harvard and the White House, ongoing since June, are nearing a resolution. The reported terms: Harvard would pay $500 million to vocational and educational programmes in return for full restoration of its research funding — but is resisting the administration's demand for an external compliance monitor. Harvard's Ivy League peers have already accepted similar deals. Columbia University agreed to pay $220 million, allow continuing administrative reviews of certain academic programmes, and submit to oversight by an outside monitor. Brown University paid $50 million to state workforce development initiatives. Both schools also handed over admissions data on race and gender — a move critics argue infringes on academic autonomy. Contentious demands As reported by The Harvard Crimson , the letter's organisers including student group Students for Freedom and alumni coalition Crimson Courage, say the administration's demands go further: punish pro-Palestinian student groups, curb campus protests, and place certain Middle East-focused academic centres under heightened oversight. The signatories are calling on Harvard to: Protect international affiliates from politically motivated targeting Reject what they describe as 'extortionate' fines Keep admissions and hiring decisions free from political or ideological interference Campus pushback grows Student protests and alumni advocacy have intensified. Students for Freedom staged two large demonstrations last semester, while Crimson Courage rallied 12,000 alumni to sign an amicus brief supporting Harvard's lawsuit against the federal funding freeze. 'Academic freedom and democracy are inherently tied, and once you knock down one side, the rest of the dominoes fall,' Evelyn J. Kim '95, a Crimson Courage organiser, told The Harvard Crimson . A Harvard spokesperson declined to comment on the letter or the status of settlement talks. Ready to navigate global policies? Secure your overseas future. Get expert guidance now!
Reuters
29-07-2025
- Business
- Reuters
StanChart announces new chief risk officer
LONDON, July 29 (Reuters) - Standard Chartered (STAN.L), opens new tab has appointed Jason Forrester as its new Chief Risk Officer, the British bank said on Tuesday. Forrester joined the lender five years ago and is currently Co-Head, Chief Risk Officer, Corporate & Investment Banking, it said. Forrester previously worked at Credit Suisse for 21 years, and replaces Sadia Ricke, who is leaving the bank, StanChart said. The Asia, Africa and Middle East-focused bank reports its first half financial results on Thursday, with investors focused on whether it can sustain recent momentum in growing revenues while managing risks associated with market turmoil from U.S. President Donald Trump's trade tariffs.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
SPECIAL REPORT: JUNE HARVARD CAPS / HARRIS POLL: MAJORITY OF VOTERS SAY TRUMP ADMINISTRATION SHOULD SUPPORT ISRAEL'S EFFORT TO TAKE OUT IRAN'S NUCLEAR WEAPONS PROGRAM
85% OF VOTERS BELIEVE IRAN SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED TO OBTAIN A NUCLEAR WEAPON 62% OF VOTERS SUPPORT ISRAEL'S OPERATIONS IN GAZA, SAYING THEY ARE JUSTIFIED UNTIL HAMAS RETURNS ALL HOSTAGES NEW YORK and CAMBRIDGE, Mass., June 13, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Stagwell (NASDAQ: STGW) today conducted a limited release of Middle East-focused results from the June Harvard CAPS / Harris poll, a monthly collaboration between the Center for American Political Studies at Harvard (CAPS) and the Harris Poll and HarrisX. "We're seeing majority voter approval for Israel's actions in Iran, with 60% of saying the U.S. should support Israel's military effort," said Mark Penn, Co-Director of the Harvard CAPS / Harris poll and Stagwell Chairman and CEO. "Voters feel very strongly that Iran should not be able to continue with their nuclear enrichment program." VOTERS WANT THE ELIMINATION OF IRAN'S NUCLEAR ENRICHMENT PROGRAM AS A PRECONDITION FOR ANY U.S.-IRAN DEAL 74% of voters say Iran giving up nuclear enrichment should be a precondition for any U.S.-Iran deal (Democrats: 72%; Republicans: 73%; Independents; 76%). 60% of voters support Trump opening negotiations with Iran directly over nuclear weapons. 32% of voters say such negotiations would lead to a good deal (-7 pts., May 2025), 23% say they would lead to a bad deal, and 45% say they would lead to no deal at all. MAJORITY OF VOTERS SUPPORT MILITARY ACTION TO TAKE OUT IRAN'S NUCLEAR WEAPONS PROGRAM 85% of voters say Iran should not be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon, including a strong majority across political parties. 54% of voters support taking out Iran's nuclear weapons program with a military operation. 60% of voters say the administration should support an Israel effort to take out Iran's nuclear weapons program if there is no acceptable deal (Democrats: 47%; Republicans: 78%; Independents: 54%). VOTERS SAY ISRAEL IS JUSTIFIED IN MILITARY RESPONSE UNTIL HAMAS HAS RETURNED ALL HOSTAGES 62% of voters say Israel is justified in continuing its military operations in Gaza until Hamas has returned all hostages (Democrats: 50%; Republicans: 78%; Independents: 56%). 80% of voters support Hamas releasing all remaining hostages without any conditions, including a majority across political parties. 75% of voters and a majority across political parties and age groups support Israel over Hamas. 51% of voters support President Donald Trump's handling of the conflict so far (-3). 72% of voters 18-24 y.o. oppose his handling of the conflict. The June Harvard CAPS / Harris poll survey was conducted online within the United States on June 11-12, 2025, among 2,097 registered voters by The Harris Poll and HarrisX. Follow the Harvard CAPS / Harris poll podcast at or on iHeart Radio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and other podcast platforms. About The Harris Poll & HarrisX The Harris Poll is a global consulting and market research firm that strives to reveal the authentic values of modern society to inspire leaders to create a better tomorrow. It works with clients in three primary areas: building twenty-first-century corporate reputation, crafting brand strategy and performance tracking, and earning organic media through public relations research. One of the longest-running surveys in the U.S., The Harris Poll has tracked public opinion, motivations, and social sentiment since 1963, and is now part of Stagwell, the challenger holding company built to transform marketing. HarrisX is a technology-driven market research and data analytics company that conducts multi-method research in the U.S. and over 40 countries around the world on behalf of Fortune 100 companies, public policy institutions, global leaders, NGOs and philanthropic organizations. HarrisX was the most accurate pollster of the 2020 U.S. presidential election. About the Harvard Center for American Political Studies The Center for American Political Studies (CAPS) is committed to and fosters the interdisciplinary study of U.S. politics. Governed by a group of political scientists, sociologists, historians, and economists within the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Harvard University, CAPS drives discussion, research, public outreach, and pedagogy about all aspects of U.S. politics. CAPS encourages cutting-edge research using a variety of methodologies, including historical analysis, social surveys, and formal mathematical modeling, and it often cooperates with other Harvard centers to support research training and encourage cross-national research about the United States in comparative and global contexts. More information at Contact:Carrie Hsupr@ View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Stagwell Inc.
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Linda McMahon says Harvard and Columbia making ‘progress' to meet Trump's demands to stop antisemitism
Trump's Education Secretary, Linda McMahon, praised the administration for pushing Harvard and Columbia University to make 'progress' on tackling campus antisemitism. "I have seen progress. And you know why I think we're seeing progress? Because we are putting these measures in place, and we're saying we're putting teeth behind what we're looking at," McMahon told NBC News. 'They talk a lot about it, but I think we really started to see a lot of their actions once we were taking action," McMahon added. The comments come as the administration continues its unprecedented campaign to force changes at both universities, on allegations that they didn't do enough to combat campus antisemitism during contentious protests surrounding the Israel-Hamas war. In April, the administration froze more than $2.2 billion in federal funding to Harvard after it refused to comply with a series of sweeping on-campus changes the administration demanded, prompting the university to sue. The Trump administration also imperiled $400 million to Columbia in March, though the New York university has taken a different tack than its Massachusetts peer in the Ivy League, largely agreeing to administration demands to restore the funds. Both schools were making concerted efforts to address antisemitism on campus before Trump took office. Columbia created an antisemitism task force in 2023, while Harvard followed suit in 2024, and the schools have worked to reform student training practices, disciplinary policies, and protest rules prior to Trump's crackdown on the universities beginning. Harvard also settled a major antisemitism suit from students and adopted a new campus definition of antisemitism in January, right as Trump took office. However, once the administration was underway, the universities have taken sharply divergent approaches, though neither has spared the Ivy League universities from scrutiny from the administration. In April, the administration demanded that Harvard institute unprecedented changes, including ending all diversity policies, cooperating with federal law enforcement, and subjecting itself to a 'viewpoint diversity' audit, among other reforms. The university declined, and soon after the administration froze the $2.2 billion in grants and contracts, prompting Harvard to sue. Since then, the administration has continued to ratchet up pressure on Harvard, attempting to strip its ability to enroll international students and threatening to revoke Harvard's tax-exempt status. In March, Columbia largely acceded to the administration's requests, instituting changes like empowering a new campus police force to arrest students, committing to hiring faculty with greater 'intellectual diversity,' partially banning face masks at protests, and restructuring Middle East-focused university departments. Nonetheless, on Wednesday, the Department of Education claimed that Columbia was 'in violation of federal antidiscrimination laws and therefore fails to meet the standards for accreditation.' Harvard President Alan Garber has accused the administration of trying to unconstitutionally interfere with the university's affairs and choosing punishments that have little to do with tackling antisemitism. 'The sanctions that the government chose to impose against us — having to do with cutting off federal support at Harvard — those are not sanctions that will particularly aid us in the fight against antisemitism,' Garber told alumni in April. The administration has at times struggled to explain its own education policies. During a hearing in the House on Wednesday, McMahon appeared unable to answer questions about whether teaching students about the Tulsa race massacre or the fact that Joe Biden won the 2020 election would amount to 'illegal DEI,' a practice the administration says should bar schools from receiving federal funds. When asked about whether the administration's push to force universities to hire more ideologically diverse staff meant Harvard had to hire people like Holocaust deniers, McMahon responded and said, 'I believe that there should be diversity of viewpoints relative to teachings and opinions on campuses.' Officials have also spoken openly about their desire to police student opinion and political activity. 'It's very important that we are making sure that the students who are coming in and being on these campuses aren't activists, that they're not causing these activities,' McMahon added in her NBC News interview. This spring, the administration briefly revoked, then reinstated, legal status for thousands of internationals on student visas in the U.S.
Business Times
20-05-2025
- Business
- Business Times
Brookfield, Lunate earmark US$1 billion for Mideast real estate
[DUBAI] Brookfield Asset Management is partnering with the Abu Dhabi-based asset manager Lunate on a US$1 billion joint venture to invest in residential real estate in the Middle East, which is home to some of the world's hottest property markets. The new venture will focus on investing in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates' finance hubs where property values have surged in recent years. Lunate will commit a significant cornerstone investment, according to a statement on Tuesday (May 20). The deal is the latest example of the allure of markets like Dubai, where property prices have surged 70 per cent in the last four years. The city is starting to entice a slew of new Wall Street investors, with Brookfield among firms looking to expand, Bloomberg News has reported. 'Our joint venture with Lunate is significant as we expand into the high-quality residential real estate sector, driven by a rising population seeking premium properties,' Brookfield's Managing Partner and Regional Head for the Middle East Jad Ellawn said. The latest deal deepens ties between the two firms, and comes a year after the US$110 billion Lunate bought a stake in the largest office tower in Dubai's financial hub from Brookfield. Brookfield has become one of the biggest foreign investors in the Middle East by building a private equity portfolio of US$8 billion and amassing infrastructure and real estate assets worth US$5 billion. It intends to raise at least US$2 billion for a Middle East-focused fund – the biggest of its kind – while weighing a string of new investments. BLOOMBERG
