A village in the Seychelles called La Misere is demanding millions in damages for pollution caused by the construction of a huge palace for the United Arab Emirates president, residents said Thursday. Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed bin Sultan al-Nahyan, also the prince of Abu Dhabi, is building a lavish compound on the highest spot of […]

The financially troubled Gulf emirate of Dubai on Monday opened the world’s tallest building, a glistening concrete, glass and steel pinnacle rising 828 metres (2,717 feet) out of the desert sands. Blazing fireworks rippled up and down the massive structure after it was officially opened by Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashed al-Maktoum. He renamed […]

Dropping $111 million on a Paris pied-à-terre may seem excessive to some, but not to Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani. The Emir of Qatar has recently purchased one of France’s most mythic private homes, the Hôtel Lambert. Designed by Louis Le Vau in 1640, the property, which sits at the tip of the Ile Saint-Louis, […]

Thailand’s revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej is the world’s richest royal, with a fortune estimated at $US35 billion, according to a Forbes magazine list dominated by Middle Eastern monarchs riding high on surging oil prices. King Bhumibol, 80 years old and the world’s longest-reigning monarch after six decades on the throne, is regarded as semi-divine by […]