IN BRIEF (Page 12)

United States

Yahoo delays sale of core business

Yahoo said on Monday its $4.8 billion deal to sell its core internet assets to US telecom titan Verizon has been delayed several months. The closing originally set for this quarter has been pushed into next quarter due to "work required to meet closing conditions", the California online pioneer said, adding that it was "working expeditiously to close the transaction as soon as practicable".

Iran

Teheran favors better Saudi ties

Iran's Foreign Ministry said on Monday that the Islamic republic seeks to improve relations with Saudi Arabia, Teheran Times reported. The newspaper quoted spokesman Bahram Qasemi as saying that despite Saudi Arabia's "hostile" approach toward Teheran, Iran does not favor "eternally" troubled relations with the Muslim country. The two neighbors have been locked in bitter controversies over the ongoing conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Yemen.

Russia

Consumption of alcohol decreases

Alcohol consumption per person in Russia has decreased by more than 33 percent since 2009 as a result of anti-alcoholic efforts, Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported on Tuesday. The annual alcohol consumption per person has dropped from 15 liters in 2009 to about 10 liters now, RIA Novosti reported.

Israel

Report: Netanyahu probe widens

Israeli police have widened a probe into Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, already under investigation in a graft case that has shaken the country's politics, media reports said. Police are now looking into two other matters related to Netanyahu, Channel 10 television reported on Monday night. One of the matters appears to involve a deal for Israel to purchase German submarines, while the second affair remained unclear.

United Arab Emirates

Dubai remains busiest airport

Dubai remains home to the world's busiest international airport after seeing 83.6 million passengers in 2016. Paul Griffiths, CEO of Dubai Airports, says in a statement that authorities hope to have 89 million passengers in 2017. Dubai International Airport first surpassed London Heathrow as the world's busiest airport for international traffic in 2014.

Egypt

Video: Italian tortured to death

Egyptian state television aired footage on Monday of an Italian student taken weeks before he was abducted and tortured to death, the first images of him involving the case to be made public. The video of Cambridge graduate student Giulio Regeni was purportedly taken secretly by Mohammed Abdullah, head of an unofficial street vendors union. It was unclear why Abdullah made the recording, taken from a hidden angle.

(China Daily 01/25/2017 page12)