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Khalifa to discuss the editorial plan. The daily reported that the project aims to initially attract500,000 readers, the number of francophone residents in the Gulf. After the meeting, the kingof Bahrain gave instructions to the information ministry to ‘facilitate the publication inManama of the francophone daily,’ the paper reported on Monday. Othman al-Omeir, aformer journalist who used to publish the London-based al-Sharq al-Awsat, an Arabiclanguage daily, bought the group in 2004 for MAD 150m (over EUR 13m). The publishinggroup owns French language daily Le Matin, Arab language paper Assahra al-Maghribiya andSpanish daily La Manana, as well as the internet paper Morocco Times, published in English.Maroc Soir was the last paper thus far opened by the group, in November 2005. AKI News;http://blog.newspaperindex.com/2006/03/30/moroccan-publishing-group-maroc-soir-toexpand-in-the-gulf/;March 30, 2006Russia – United States of AmericaThe International Herald Tribune has become the first international daily newspaper to beprinted in Moscow. As of the beginning of February, the newspaper is being printed anddistributed in alliance with Independent Media Sanoma Magazines, an affiliate ofSanomaWSOY, the Finnish media conglomerate. Independent Media publishes The MoscowTimes, an English-language newspaper that appears Mondays through Fridays and has areputation for hard-hitting news and feature stories often not covered by the Russian press,which has come under increasing Kremlin pressure. "This will be the first time in Russianhistory that an international newspaper like the IHT will be published daily in Moscow,providing Russians and expatriates alike with global news at a time when freedom of speechis hotly discussed in Russia," Derk Sauer, chief executive of Independent Media, said in astatement. Michael Golden, publisher of the IHT, said in a statement, "This is only the latestsign of the IHT's strengthened focus on and commitment to covering Europe, includingEastern Europe." The IHT, which is part of The New York Times Co., is printed daily incooperation with local dailies in countries ranging from Israel and Germany to South Koreaand Lebanon. The New York Times already has a foothold in Russia. Since last year, Izvestia,the former newspaper of the Supreme Soviet of the U.S.S.R. and now a respected generalinterestdaily, has been publishing a weekly English-language section of selected featurearticles from The New York Times. Other Independent Media publications include The St.Petersburg Times and Vedomosti, a business newspaper that is published jointly with TheWall Street Journal and The Financial Times, supplementing original articles with translatedarticles from the foreign publications. Independent Media also has glossy magazines, like theRussian versions of Cosmopolitan and Harper's Bazaar, Yoga Journal, Harvard BusinessReview and the Robb Report, reflecting the wealth of some Russians and the increasingaffluence of many others. A number of Russian publications have some level of cooperationwith foreign publications. Profil, a business weekly, used to reprint translations of articlesfrom Business Week until a Russian edition of Business Week was started. Now Profil offersreprints from Der Spiegel. Gazeta, a daily newspaper, is a syndication partner with The DailyTelegraph and The Sunday Telegraph of London.http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/02/05/yourmoney/moscow06.php; February 5, 2006South AfricaSouth Africa’s business daily, Business Day, is introducing a monthly supplement that willfocus on the tourism industry. The Tourist hits the news stands on 5 May 2006. The Touristwill be published on a monthly basis as an insert to Business Day. Its focus will be on tourismas an economic sector, incorporating news, views and interviews with key role players in theindustry. Peter Bruce, editor of Business Day, says: “Business Day is expanding its coverageto include news worth knowing about the business of tourism. Investors, policymakers,31