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New expats in Dubai face major hurdles if their rent isn’t Ejari-registered / AI Image For thousands of expats arriving in Dubai this month, the hunt for the perfect home is the first major hurdle. However, a wave of sophisticated rental scams emerged in early 2026, targeting newcomers who are eager to secure housing quickly. Fraudsters are increasingly posing as legitimate agents or owners, offering luxury apartments at below-market rates to lure in unsuspecting tenants. These “phantom landlords” often present official-looking contracts but intentionally skip the most crucial step: Ejari registration. Without this government-verified document, a tenant has no legal standing, making them vulnerable to “double-leasing” (where the same unit is rented to multiple people) or vanishing “agents” who pocket the deposit and disappear.What is Ejari in Dubai?Ejari (Arabic for my rent) is the official online registration system managed by the Dubai Land Department and Real Estate Regulatory Agenc..

US President Donald Trump’s renewed focus on Greenland has taken an unusual turn, with the White House sharing an AI-generated image featuring the President walking alongside a penguin toward the Arctic island. The post, captioned “Embrace the penguin,” quickly drew attention online, not least because penguins do not live in Greenland or anywhere in the Northern Hemisphere.The image is now going viral on social media, triggering criticism and mockery from users who pointed out the geographical error, and others who were simply livid over Trump’s repeated assertion. The post came amid Trump’s continued rhetoric around Greenland, even as he has paused tariff-related tensions with Europe, and was seen by many as another symbolic assertion linked to his long-standing interest in the strategically located territory. However, the White House post was not the starting point of the internet’s sudden fascination with penguins. Even before Trump’s image went viral, penguins were already trending..

AdvertisementSemiconductorsTechNvidia CEO tours Shanghai amid fresh signs of China thawHuang’s Lunar New Year trip comes as the H200 AI chip faces US export rules and an uncertain China import stance
Reading Time:2 minutesWhy you can trust SCMPCoco Fengin GuangdongandWency Chenin ShanghaiPublished: 2:20pm, 24 Jan 2026Updated: 3:15pm, 24 Jan 2026Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has begun his latest trip to China – visiting a grocery market in Shanghai on Saturday after touring the chipmaker’s local office – at a time when Beijing is expected to allow imports of the company’s H200 artificial intelligence chips.
Huang was seen at a grocery market on Saturday in Shanghai’s busy Lujiazui area, looking relaxed, according to multiple photos circulated on social mediaw
Earlier, Huang met with Shanghai-based staff to review Nvidia’s milestones for 2025 and to discuss its product pipeline for the year ahead, although the H200 was not mentioned in the discussion, Tencent Holdings’ news portal reported on ..

AdvertisementAustraliaAsiaAustralasiaAustralian boy, 12, dies a week after shark attack in Sydney HarbourNico Antic was pulled from the water by friends and taken to hospital with severe injuries to both legs
Reading Time:1 minuteWhy you can trust SCMPReutersPublished: 2:00pm, 24 Jan 2026An Australian boy had died in hospital after being bitten by a shark in Sydney Harbour, his family said on Saturday after a series of shark attacks along the country’s east coast.Nico Antic, 12, was attacked on Sunday as he and friends were jumping off rocks in Vaucluse, around 9km (5.5 miles) from Sydney’s central business district.
He was pulled from the water by friends and taken to hospital with severe injuries to both legs.
Advertisement“We are heartbroken to share that our son, Nico, has passed away,” the family said in a statement. “Nico was a happy, friendly and sporty young boy with the most kind and generous spirit. He was always full of life and that’s how we’ll remember him.”
A lifeguard cl..

File photo: US President Donald Trump with Russian President Vladimir Putin (Picture credit: AP)
US President Donald Trump has reacted cautiously but positively to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s suggestion that he could use frozen Russian assets to pay for entry into Trump’s proposed “Board of Peace”.Also read: Who is in Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’ Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One while returning from the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos on Thursday, Trump said he was open to the idea if the funds were Putin’s own. Macron WARNS Putin After Trump; French Navy Boards Russia-linked Oil Tanker | 'Won't Tolerate…' Asked whether he would allow Putin to use frozen Russian assets for the contribution, Trump said, “I don't know about that. I mean, I've heard that.” After the reporter clarified that the comment came from Putin himself, Trump responded, “Very interesting. But he said he's going to use his money. His money. I think that's fine.”A..