US President Donald Trump said on Friday that he planned to revoke Harvard University's tax-exempt status.
It was not immediately clear whether he has the authority to unilaterally take that action and any attempt is likely to end up being decided by the courts.
“We are going to be taking away Harvard’s tax-exempt status. It’s what they deserve,” he wrote said in a post on his Truth Social platform.
Under US tax law, universities, churches, various non-profit groups and charities fall under the 501(c) 3 tax exemption. A change to this status could have ramifications for other universities beyond Harvard, as well as churches and non-profits.
A Harvard representative did not mince words when asked for a response from The National to Mr Trump's social media remarks.
“The government has long exempted universities from taxes in order to support their educational mission," the representative said. "The tax exemption means that more of every dollar can go towards scholarships for students, life-saving and life-enhancing medical research, and technological advancements that drive economic growth."
The representative also described Mr Trump's vow as unprecedented and said that, if it came to fruition, it would affect financial aid for students, as well as medical research programmes. "The unlawful use of this instrument more broadly would have grave consequences for the future of higher education in America."
Mr Trump did not expand on how he intended to remove Harvard's tax-exempt status. It is the latest in a row between Mr Trump and Harvard, one of the world's most prestigious universities.
The university last month announced plans to sue the Trump administration to stop a freeze on billions of dollars in funding. The lawsuit, filed in federal court, accuses the Trump administration of an unconstitutional campaign to “punish Harvard for protecting its constitutional rights”, according to the university's newspaper, The Crimson.
The Trump administration withheld funding from universities including Harvard and Columbia in response to pro-Palestine demonstrations, in what it was described as a failure to control anti-Semitism on campus.
“The trade-off put to Harvard and other universities is clear: allow the government to micromanage your academic institution or jeopardise the institution’s ability to pursue medical breakthroughs, scientific discoveries and innovative solutions,” Harvard’s lawyers wrote in April.
The Trump administration's decision to cut funding to Harvard followed $400 million in cuts to Columbia over accusations that the institutions tolerated anti-Semitism on campus.
In recent weeks, the White House has called for sweeping changes to how Harvard is governed, and sought to influence the university's hiring practices and admissions procedures.
It has also looked for a role in deciding how Harvard operates its diversity offices and to what extent it co-operates with immigration screenings for international students. Harvard has largely balked at those attempts, both in press statements and in lawsuits.
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
Results
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Tori Amos
Native Invader
Decca
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The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
World Sevens Series standing after Dubai
1. South Africa
2. New Zealand
3. England
4. Fiji
5. Australia
6. Samoa
7. Kenya
8. Scotland
9. France
10. Spain
11. Argentina
12. Canada
13. Wales
14. Uganda
15. United States
16. Russia
Innotech Profile
Date started: 2013
Founder/CEO: Othman Al Mandhari
Based: Muscat, Oman
Sector: Additive manufacturing, 3D printing technologies
Size: 15 full-time employees
Stage: Seed stage and seeking Series A round of financing
Investors: Oman Technology Fund from 2017 to 2019, exited through an agreement with a new investor to secure new funding that it under negotiation right now.
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Constant Variable (CVT)
Power: 141bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: Dh64,500
On sale: Now