News
Yasmina Smart Speakers Now Feature Ramadan-Specific Content
Yango Group’s AI assistant is helping to enhance Ramadan 2025 with Quran recitations, prayer reminders, bedtime stories, and mindfulness tips.
Yango Group is helping to make Ramadan 2025 more immersive with the latest updates to its AI assistant, Yasmina. Designed for its smart speaker lineup, these features include Quran recitations in over 30 new voices, Ramadan-specific content, and bedtime stories for children — bringing families closer during the holy month.
World-Renowned Reciters
For those who cherish listening to the Quran, Yasmina now offers recitations from more than 30 world-renowned speakers, including Mishary Rashid Al-Afasy, Abdul Basit Muhammad Abdul Samad, and Yasir al-Dawsari. Whether you want to hear a complete recitation or a specific Surah, Yasmina provides a seamless experience. Just say, “Yasmina, play Surah At-Tawbah”.
Ramadan-Focused Content

Beyond Quran recitations, Yasmina is now packed with content designed to support spiritual growth. Users can access Ayat Al-Siyam and daily Ramadan Duas in both Arabic and English with simple voice commands like, “Yasmina, play Ramadan Dua” or “ياسمينة، شغلي أدعية رمضانية”.
Additionally, the assistant provides daily mindfulness tips, promoting reflection and well-being. To hear one, just ask, “Yasmina, what is your Ramadan advice for today?” or “ياسمينة، أيش نصيحة رمضان لليوم؟”.
Prayer Time Reminders

Yasmina’s smart speakers can now provide accurate prayer times for any location worldwide and even set reminders. A simple command like, “Yasmina, remind me of Fajr today,” ensures you stay on track with your prayers.
Bedtime Stories For Kids
Ramadan is an important time for families, and Yasmina now brings a special feature to help with bedtime routines. The smart assistant can play stories in both Arabic and English, with content ranging from Puss in Boots to tales from Shamandar, a popular children’s podcast. Parents can simply say, “ياسمينة، شغّلي قصص للنوم” or “Yasmina, play bedtime stories for children”.
Automatic Shutdown
Finally, for added convenience, Yasmina allows users to set a timer for automatic shutdown. Whether playing Quran recitations, Duas, or bedtime stories, just say, “Yasmina, turn off the device after half an hour”.
AI That Enhances Ramadan
“Ramadan is a time for reflection, family, and community,” said Rami Abu Arja, Senior Innovation Marketing Manager at Yasmina, Yango Group Middle East. “As we embrace this holy month, Yasmina stands ready to ease the daily lives of families across the GCC with its intelligent and culturally aware features. Whether it’s helping adults deepen their spiritual practice or lulling children to sleep with bedtime stories, Yasmina is here to help”.
News
Visa’s Return To Syria Starts With A Test And A Bank In Lebanon
Foreign visitors will be the first users to benefit, but whether Syria’s own banks and cardholders follow is still an open question.
Visa is returning to Syria. Its first live international card transaction in the country was a test rather than a launch, and the milestone event ran through a Lebanese bank.
The acquirer (the bank on the merchant’s side of a card payment) was Fransabank Lebanon, with Paymera as the other named partner. Nadim Moujaes, who heads a Fransabank Group subsidiary, describes the test as both the culmination of “longstanding efforts to link Syria back to international payment networks” and “the first step in a larger path”.
Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa makes the first electronic payment in Syria using a @Visa card at a store in Damascus, following the lifting of US sanctions on Syria. pic.twitter.com/lpAN7nQ6Fc
— Tech Magazine (@TechMGZN) August 27, 2026
“We are excited to have successfully tested live transactions today as we plan to enable international visitors to use their Visa cards while in Syria,” says Leila Serhan, Visa’s senior vice president and group country manager for the North Africa, Levant and Pakistan region. Although a significant first step, that plan doesn’t come with a hard date for when a visitor’s card will work normally.
Mohammed Safwat Raslan, governor of the Central Bank of Syria, says the test paves the way for international card acceptance in Syria and that maintaining strong compliance, risk management and operational controls will remain essential. Serhan likewise stresses that Visa has worked within applicable legal, regulatory and compliance requirements. For a test transaction, it seems there was a great deal of attention paid to the rules, with the entire operation being carefully managed.
Also Read: Lebanon’s 5G Era Begins With 150 Stations And A $1M Budget
The test is the latest step in a sequence that began in December 2025, when Visa announced a strategic roadmap to support Syria’s integration into the global digital economy. In February 2026 it hosted its first industry gathering of banks, ecosystem partners and policymakers in Damascus and, the same month, signed an agreement with Syria’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology in San Francisco.
Michel Kattouah, Paymera’s CEO, called the test “the return of international card acceptance,” but while that’s positive news, there’s no word yet on when a Syrian bank will issue a Visa card to a Syrian customer.
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