Georgian security forces carry out a counter-terrorism raid in the capital Tbilisi on November 22, 2017. Irakli Gedenidze / Reuters
Georgian security forces carry out a counter-terrorism raid in the capital Tbilisi on November 22, 2017. Irakli Gedenidze / Reuters

ISIL militant wanted over Istanbul airport attack killed in Georgia's capital



A one-armed Chechen warlord suspected of organising the 2016 attack at Istanbul's airport was killed during a counter-terror operation in Tbilisi last week, Georgian special services confirmed on Friday.

Chechen double-amputee Akhmed Chatayev was one of three men killed during last week's operation on the outskirts of the Georgian capital, spokeswoman Nino Giorgobiani said.

Chatayev's identity "has been confirmed as a result of an investigation and the analysis of DNA and fingerprints carried out with the help of our colleagues from the United States", she said.

Authorities earlier said that one suspected member of a "terrorist group" had been arrested and three more had been killed during an operation in Tbilisi's suburban Isani district.

Speculation had swirled that the one-armed, one-legged leader of an ISIL cell in Istanbul was killed during the operation which also saw one soldier killed and four others wounded.

Authorities had earlier refused to confirm his identity.

Ms Giorgobiani said in an earlier statement that the three men "refused to surrender, opened fire with automatic rifles and threw hand grenades at counter-terrorist units".

Turkish media have identified Chatayev as the organiser of the June 2016 triple suicide bombing at Istanbul's main airport in which 46 people were killed and about 200 wounded.

Chatayev, who reportedly found accommodation for the bombers, was in 2015 put on a terror blacklist by the US treasury and the UN Security Council for his ties to ISIL and Al Qaeda.

Dozens of suspects in the airport attack are on trial in Turkey, accused of murder, attempting to overthrow the constitutional order and membership of a terror group.

The defendants include Russian nationals, among them Chechens, along with Algerian, Tunisian, Egyptian, Syrian and Turkish citizens.

Turkey has suffered a string of attacks blamed on ISIL militants that have killed more than 300 people since 2015. Turkish police have recently conducted almost daily operations against ISIL cells across the country following concerns that hundreds of members of the extremist group have crossed into Turkey from Syria.

Turkish media reported on Friday that police in Istanbul detained 62 foreigners suspected of links to ISIL in overnight raids.

They were arrested from 12 addresses in eight districts of Istanbul, the privately-owned Dogan news agency said.

They are suspected of providing financial support to fighters in "conflict zones", with the authorities opening deportation proceedings against them, it said.

Earlier this month, Dogan said nearly 800 alleged ISIL members had crossed into Turkey from Syria, though it did not say over what period.

Police detained 634 ISIL suspects last month, according to interior ministry figures.

There are concerns that those foreigners who fought with ISIL in Syria or Iraq will pose security risks at home after the extremist group lost most of its territory in the two countries.

At least 5,600 people, residents of 33 countries, have returned home, the Soufan Centre, a nonprofit security analysis group, said in October.

Prime minister Binali Yildirim on Friday claimed Turkey had stopped a total of 50,000 "foreign fighters" although he did not say over what period. This figure is believed to include those who were blocked at Turkish airports.

He also said Turkey had caught 5,000 ISIL suspects.

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UPI facts

More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions

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Men’s singles 
Group A:
Son Wan-ho (Kor), Lee Chong Wei (Mas), Ng Long Angus (HK), Chen Long (Chn)
Group B: Kidambi Srikanth (Ind), Shi Yugi (Chn), Chou Tien Chen (Tpe), Viktor Axelsen (Den)

Women’s Singles 
Group A:
Akane Yamaguchi (Jpn), Pusarla Sindhu (Ind), Sayaka Sato (Jpn), He Bingjiao (Chn)
Group B: Tai Tzu Ying (Tpe), Sung Hi-hyun (Kor), Ratchanok Intanon (Tha), Chen Yufei (Chn)

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Gender equality in the workplace still 200 years away

It will take centuries to achieve gender parity in workplaces around the globe, according to a December report from the World Economic Forum.

The WEF study said there had been some improvements in wage equality in 2018 compared to 2017, when the global gender gap widened for the first time in a decade.

But it warned that these were offset by declining representation of women in politics, coupled with greater inequality in their access to health and education.

At current rates, the global gender gap across a range of areas will not close for another 108 years, while it is expected to take 202 years to close the workplace gap, WEF found.

The Geneva-based organisation's annual report tracked disparities between the sexes in 149 countries across four areas: education, health, economic opportunity and political empowerment.

After years of advances in education, health and political representation, women registered setbacks in all three areas this year, WEF said.

Only in the area of economic opportunity did the gender gap narrow somewhat, although there is not much to celebrate, with the global wage gap narrowing to nearly 51 per cent.

And the number of women in leadership roles has risen to 34 per cent globally, WEF said.

At the same time, the report showed there are now proportionately fewer women than men participating in the workforce, suggesting that automation is having a disproportionate impact on jobs traditionally performed by women.

And women are significantly under-represented in growing areas of employment that require science, technology, engineering and mathematics skills, WEF said.

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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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The White Lotus: Season three

Creator: Mike White

Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell

Rating: 4.5/5

Specs

Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request

Director: Laxman Utekar

Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna

Rating: 1/5

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
 
Started: 2021
 
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
 
Based: Tunisia 
 
Sector: Water technology 
 
Number of staff: 22 
 
Investment raised: $4 million 
Test

Director: S Sashikanth

Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan

Star rating: 2/5

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