Egypt seeks broader alliance with US over Libya
Egypt seeks broader alliance with US over Libya
CAIRO — As U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry sought Egyptian support on Saturday for an international coalition to combat jihadi groups, Egypt pressed for broader international efforts to fight militants in its troubled neighbor, Libya.
The Egyptian position adds another layer to the complexities facing the United States as it seeks support among allies in the Middle East to battle militants who have overtaken a third of Iraq and Syria and threaten to upend the region.
Cairo’s call also risks further aggravating regional rivalries that could undermine U.S. efforts to build a durable coalition. Qatar and Turkey back Islamist-allied militias in Libya, while Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia support their opponents.
Military officials said that in exchange for Egypt’s support for the coalition to combat the so-called Islamic State group, it seeks assurances that sorting out Libya will be at the top of the U.S. agenda. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press.
‘New’ Scots vote crucial to independence campaign
GLASGOW, Scotland — On the south side of Glasgow, in the heartland of Scotland’s Asian community, support for independence from the United Kingdom is strong as Thursday’s referendum nears.
Colorful displays of Yes posters outnumber those backing the Better Together campaign. Talk on the street is of opportunity and a chance to create a fairer country more welcoming to immigrants.
Glasgow is Scotland’s largest city, and its most ethnically diverse. Over the last 60 years an influx of Indians, Pakistanis, Bengalis, Chinese, Italians, Poles and others have created new communities which, because of their relative small size, have had to merge with the culture of their adopted country.
Across Scotland, there are some 140,000 people who class themselves as Asian Scots, along with around 30,000 Africans, 7,000 from the Caribbean, 55,000 Poles and over 160,000 other non-British EU Citizens eligible to vote in the landmark referendum. These “New Scots” represent more than 4 percent of the population and with the polls putting both sides of the debate neck-and-neck just days before Thursday’s vote, their views could be critical.
Alyas Hamidi, 21, was born in Glasgow and regards himself first and foremost as a Glaswegian. In public, with his friends, he is a Scot but at home — where English is rarely spoken with his parents and grandparents — he is Iranian. He identifies with both places — and wants his adopted homeland to embrace independence.
Will Apple Pay be tipping point?
NEW YORK — Apple wants the plastic credit card to become as rare as the paper check.
On Tuesday, the company announced Apple Pay, a digital payment system that lets people pay for retail store purchases using their phones rather than cash or credit cards. The service, which will work both with iPhones and Apple’s new Watch, is backed by a host of big retailers, along with most major banks and credit card issuers, including Visa, MasterCard and American Express.
Citi Investment Research analyst Mark May believes the sum total of mobile payments could grow from $1 billion in 2013 to $58.4 billion by 2017.
Payment digitization paints an enticing vision of shopping’s future: simply tap your device against a checkout screen and walk away with your new shoes.
By wire sources