Thursday, June 04, 2009 CAIRO: US President Barack Obama said on Thursday that the US bond with Israel is "unbreakable," in a much-anticipated speech aimed at healing America's rift with the Islamic world."America's strong bonds with Israel are well known," Obama told the world's Muslims in a speech from Cairo University. "This bond is unbreakable.""It is based upon cultural and historical ties, and the recognition that the aspiration for a Jewish homeland is rooted in a tragic history that cannot be denied," said Obama, who is to head to Germany's Buchenwald concentration camp after Egypt.He said that denying the Holocaust is "baseless, ignorant, and hateful."
Sunday, February 28, 2010 HAVANA: Hundreds of wealthy merchants and cigar aficionados from all parts of the world gathered in Havana this week to bid high stakes for humidors full of premium cigars. Cuba's annual Habanos festival ended on Friday night with an auction of ornate humidors of cedar and mahogany stacked with hand-rolled stogies that raised 800,000 euros ($1.09 million dollars). Habanos S.A. executives this month said cigar sales fell 8 percent to $360 million in 2009, so they have created the Julieta, a smaller, milder version of the Romeo y Julieta cigar, aimed specifically at female smokers. Women now make up only 5 to 10 percent of customers for Habanos. But even with the creation of the Julieta, Garcia said Habanos has only modest hopes for 2010 sales, due largely to a weak economy in Spain, the biggest market for Cuban cigars. The flavor of premium tobacco relies on the soil and climate in which it is grown. The western province of Pinar Del Rio, famous fo...
Comments