Daily headlines from the UAE and around the world brought to you by Gulf News. Dubai issues mandatory health insurance laws. India's anti-graft law. Saudi Arabia's stance on Syria. Indian envoy arrested in New York. Istithmar sells Fontainebleau stake. Bayern Munich in Club World Cup final. World Youth Chess Championships in Al Ain.See more at: http://gulfnews.com/gntv
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00:00Good day. Welcome to the Gulf News update for Wednesday, December the 18th. Here are
00:09the top stories at this hour. Companies of varying sizes were issued deadlines
00:13by the Dubai Health Authority to meet mandatory health insurance coverage laws starting next
00:18year. A new timetable offers deadlines for three categories of companies based upon the
00:23number of employees on their payroll. Companies with more than 1,000 employees, for example,
00:27must insure all of its workers by October 2014, while smaller companies will have until
00:33mid-2016 to meet the provision. India's lower House of Parliament has approved
00:38a key anti-graft bill that provides for setting up an independent ombudsman to investigate
00:43and prosecute government officials suspected of corruption. The Lokpal Bill was passed
00:48by the lower House of Parliament this morning. The bill has to be ratified by the Indian
00:53president before it becomes a law. The bill had been pending for more than 40 years,
00:57but the latest version was introduced after anti-graft activist Anna Hazare went on an
01:02indefinite fast in Delhi in 2011 in support of a strong anti-graft law.
01:08The West's policies on Iran and Syria are a dangerous gamble, and Saudi Arabia is prepared
01:13to act on its own to safeguard security in the region. That's according to a top Saudi
01:18diplomat. We believe that many of the West's policies
01:20on both Iran and Syria risk the stability and security of the Middle East, said Prince
01:26Mohammed bin Nawaf bin Abdul Aziz, Saudi Arabia's ambassador to Britain.
01:32An Indian diplomat said she faced repeated handcuffing, stripping and cavity searches
01:36following her arrest in New York City on visa fraud charges. In an email published in Indian
01:42media today, Devyani Kobragadi, India's deputy consul general in New York, said she was treated
01:47like a common criminal despite her incessant assertions of immunity. Rattled by the scale
01:52of the anger in India, the US State Department sought to calm tensions and said the arrest
01:57last Thursday shouldn't be allowed to damage bilateral relations.
02:02Business and Dubai World unit Istithmar World has sold its 50% stake in Miami Beach's landmark
02:08Fontainebleau Hotel back to South Florida developer Turnberry. Dubai World originally
02:13paid $375 million in 2008 for its 50% stake in the hotel.
02:20In sport, European champions Bayern Munich book their place in the Club World Cup final
02:24with a comprehensive 3-0 win over Asian champions Guangzhou Evergrande in last night's semifinal
02:29in Morocco. Closer to home and more than 1,800 of the world's top young chess talents have
02:35descended on the UAE ahead of the World Youth Chess Championships. The event gets underway
02:40in L.A. today. And finally, the weather. Today's high across the country will be 27 degrees
02:45Celsius, dropping to 18 degrees at night. That's all for now. Thanks for watching and
02:49as always, you can get the latest news on gulfnews.com.