Solar-powered aircraft on last leg of global trip

CAIRO • An aircraft powered by solar energy has left Egypt on the last leg of the first fuel-free flight around the globe. Solar Impulse 2 took off from Cairo yesterday en route to Abu Dhabi, its final destination, on a flight expected to take between 48 and 72 hours.

REUTERS

Iran destroys 'immoral' satellite dishes

TEHERAN • Iran has destroyed 100,000 satellite dishes and receivers as part of a widespread crackdown against the devices, a news website reported. The ceremony took place in Teheran yesterday in the presence of General Mohammad Reza Naghdi, head of Iran's militia. "Most satellite channels... deviate the society's morality and culture," he said at the event.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

French President's popularity rises

PARIS • French President Francois Hollande's popularity rating has inched up from near record lows this month, despite criticism over security issues since the Bastille Day attack in Nice, two polls showed. In a BVA poll published on Saturday, 19 per cent of respondents said they had a favourable opinion of him, up from a record low of 18 per cent last month.

REUTERS

Deal to cut use of greenhouse gases nears

VIENNA • A global deal to cut the use of hydrofluorocarbons - potent greenhouse gases used in aerosols, refrigerants and air-conditioning - seems within grasp, delegates said after 10 days of talks on climate change in Vienna yesterday. A final deal is set to be reached in October in Kigali, Rwanda.

REUTERS