Mogadishu, September 16 (QNA) – On behalf of HH the Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, HE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Dr. Khalid bin Mohamed Al Attiyah participated today in Mogadishu in the inauguration ceremony of Prof. Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud who was elected president of the Federal Republic of Somalia.
HE Dr. Al Attiyah met on the sidelines of the inauguration ceremony Somali president-elect, and conveyed to him the greetings of HH the Emir and HH the Heir Apparent Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.
During the meeting, they discussed a number of issues of common interest for both countries. (QNA)

New York, September 16 (QNA) – Fordham University in New York conferred an honorary degree upon the head of the United Nations General Assembly, HE Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser, in a ceremony held on the University s Bronx campus. Speaking on the occasion, Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of Fordham praised the conferral of a of Doctor of Laws honoris causa, upon Al-Nasser, a “tireless champion for the peaceful settlement of disputes through resolution.”
“It is a great grace to hold you up as an example to be looked to and followed,  he said. “You have shown us truly the way to peace, the way to dialog, the way to conversation, the way to building up the human family.”
Al-Nasser was elected as president of the U.N. General Assembly s 66th session on June 22, 2011 and assumed presidency on Sept. 13.
During his service, HE Al-Nasser has worked to advance international peace and security, sustainable development, improvement of international disaster response, and to revitalize the Assembly s critical role in promoting these causes.  (QNA)

Doha, September 16 (QNA) – HE Dr Mohammed Bin Saleh Al-Sada, the Minister of Energy and Industry, Chairman and Managing Director of Qatar Petroleum, today held official discussions with a Ministerial delegation from the Sultanate of Brunei, who are on official visit to Qatar.
HE Dr Al-Sada met  Minister of Energy Dr Pehin Dato Mohammad Yasmin Umar, and Second Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Pehin Dato Lim Jock Seng.
Talks during the meeting covered cooperation between Qatar and Brunei, and means to enhance it, mainly in the energy sector, in addition to issues of mutual interests.
The meeting was attended by members of the Brunei delegation and a number of senior officials of Qatar Petroleum. (QNA)

Doha, September 16 (QNA) – Qatar First Investment Bank (QFIB) announced the acquisition of two properties in prime locations in Central London – The Leinster Inn Hotel at Leinster Square, and Westbourne House, Westbourne Grove, London. QFIB has acquired these prime properties in association with a consortium of investors from the GCC, the bank said Sunday in a press release.
The objective of these acquisitions is to capitalize on the growing demand for real estate in Central London by converting both properties into high-end luxury residential apartments, it said.
 Speaking in the occasion, Emad Mansour, CEO of QFIB has expressed pleasure over these two acquisitions in spite of the fact that they are outside our target geographical market.
“Due to the growing global demand for London’s prime residential property sector, these deals presented themselves as an attractive opportunity for QFIB to enter the UK market.,” he said.
The Leinster Inn is a grade II building that dates back to 1857. This terraced building spans 31,500 square feet and is located in the heart of the Bayswater Conservation Area in the City of Westminster.
Located in nearby Westbourne Grove is Westbourne House, a 1980’s office building, which features 35,047 square feet of high quality office and retail space.
QFIB is a pioneering Islamic investment bank launched in 2009 with an authorized capital of QAR 3.65 billion (US$ 1 billion) and a paid up capital of QAR 1.6 billion (US$ 430 million) providing the financial strength to capitalize on lucrative investments.
Adopting an investment strategy that centers on sector and geographical diversification, QFIB focus on sectors that benefit from key drivers of economic change these include energy, financial services, industrials, real estate and health care services. (QNA)

Doha, September 16 (QNA) – Qatar’s Schools Olympic Program (SOP), which involves more than 300 schools and 20,000 people, is gearing up for the kick-off of its 6th edition on October 8th. The Steering Committee met at the Qatar Olympic Committee headquarters to finalise arrangements for its 2012-2013 season, themed Sports and Investment , and delivered in partnership with Enterprise Qatar.
The steering committee also discussed a number of new sports that are under consideration, and selected tennis as 2012 s newest addition.
The SOP will hold a teachers technical meeting on September 19th to outline the activities and schedule of this year’s edition for participating teachers, while also introducing them to the new SOP logo.
Khalil Al Jaber, Qatar Olympic Committee Sports Affairs Director, said: “SOP plays an important role in the social and sporting life of the participating schools as it promotes community spirit, a balanced healthy lifestyle and for this edition, emphasizes the role that business plays in sports.”
Al Jaber continued, “We have completed much of our preparation and are now ready to deliver a spectacular 6th edition of Qatar s premier schools sporting event, which we are confident will be the best yet.”
This year’s Schools Olympic Program, which will run from October 2012 to April 2013, begins on a high note as Qatar celebrates this summer s historical achievements at the London Olympics, where it won two bronze medals for Naser Al Attiyah and Moataz Barsham. Barsham was one of the participants in the SOP first season.
Held annually in Qatar since 2007, the SOP is a collaborative effort of the Qatar Olympic Committee, the Supreme Education Council, Qatar School Sport Federation and Qatar Paralympics Committee to engage the community in an active, healthy lifestyle and promote a sporting culture in Qatar, in line with the goals of Qatar s National Vision 2030.  (QNA)

Doha, September 16 (QNA) – The Qatar Exchange was in the green area  Sunday adding 36.85 points (or 0.43%) to advance to 8,600.04 points from 8,563.19 Thursday. The volume of the shares traded was up to 8,419,323 from 7,499,830 on Thursday and the value of shares increased to QR284,085,262.56 from QR282,501,099.13 Thursday.
Among the top gainers were Industries Qatar which was up 0.84% to QR143.30, Commercial Bank of Qatar rose 2.30% to QR75.50, Barwa real estate  gained 1.16% to QR30.55 and Doha Bank up by 0.53% to QR56.40.
The Banking and Financial sector index was up 5.71 points while Consumer Goods and Services sector index added 83.17 points. The industrial sector was rose by 11.40  points while insurance sector lost 3.83 points.(QNA)

Doha, September 16 (QNA) – HE the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor Al Thani met here on Sunday morning with Brunei Darussalam Second Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Lim Jock Seng and his accompanying delegation. At the outset of the meeting, Brunei Foreign Minister conveyed the greetings of Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah to HH the Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani and HH the Deputy Emir and Heir Apparent Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and his wishes for the relations between the two countries further growth and prosperity.
During the meeting, the two sides reviewed bilateral relations and ways of enhancing and developing them in addition to issues of mutual concern. (QNA)

Doha, September 16 (QNA) – HH the Deputy Emir and Heir Apparent Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani has sent a cable of congratulations to the President of the United Mexican States on the occasion of his country’s National Day. (QNA)