G7 urges Iran de-escalation as Trump makes hasty summit exit as ally Israel pounds Iran
The G7 statement said that Israel "has a right to defend itself" and stressed "the importance of the protection of...
Geostrategy
Netanyahu sees Gaza hostage release ‘opening’, orders talks
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday he ordered negotiators to "advance" talks on releasing hostages held in Gaza, after...
Geostrategy
Economy
Tunisia president dissolves top judicial watchdog
Kais Saied has concentrated all executive power since July 25, when he dismissed his Prime Minister and suspended parliament.
- Tunisian President has dissolved a major independent judicial watchdog saying that the Superior Council of the Judiciary "is a thing of the past"
- Tunisia was the only democracy to emerge from the Arab Spring revolts but civil society groups and Saied's opponents express fear of it in danger
Arts & Culture
Oman fines men for wearing wrong dishdasha
The hallmark of the Gulf sultanate, the long and elegant robes Dishdashas, have fallen prey to rising hemlines and elaborate...
- Omani ministry set dress code on dishdasha that it should be made mostly out of cotton with embroidery only on the collar, front slit and cuffs. The fabric must be a single color
- Anybody caught violating the dress code will be fined 1,000 Omani rials ($2,600), or double that in the case of a second violation
Economy
Syrian opposition groups make new bid to unite against Assad
The political groups, now mainly based abroad, have seen their influence wane in recent years as Iran and Russia steadfastly...
- Riad Hijab, who defected to the opposition when he was Assad's prime minister in 2012, did not say what mistakes had been made
- However, his entourage said opposition parties had failed to communicate with ordinary Syrians and make themselves relevant to their daily battles
Business
Second anti-drug judge shot dead in 6 months in Iraq
Judge Ahmed Faisal was headed home in his car in the city of Amara when unknown assailants blocked his route...
- Drug consumption was rare in Iraq during the reign of dictator Saddam Hussein, with both users and dealers facing the death penalty if found guilty
- But after his 2003 ouster it boomed across Iraq, which had long been a transit route for drugs going to Europe from Afghanistan and Iran
Geostrategy
Russia preparing full-scale invasion of Ukraine, says US
Russia has now put in place 70 percent of the forces it would need for such an attack, US officials...
- Russia is said to have assembled as many as 110,000 troops along its border with Ukraine
- However, US intelligence has not determined if President Vladimir Putin has actually decided to invade
Geostrategy
Morocco mourns as boy, stuck in a well for days, found dead
Through the days-long operation to extricate little Rayan Oram from the bottom of the 32-meter (100-foot) well shaft near the...
- Rescuers did not give up hope of recovering the child alive, although officials acknowledged they had no firm evidence of his condition
- Rescuers had tried to get oxygen and water down to the child, but it was not clear whether he was able to use them
Geostrategy
Iran terms US sanctions relief ‘good but not enough’
US steps on lifting sanctions are "good but not enough", Iran said Saturday, following Washington's announcement it was waiving sanctions...
- The US action came as talks to restore a 2015 deal between Tehran and world powers over its nuclear program reached an advanced stage
- The secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council also reflected Tehran's view that the US move falls short
Science
A study says top Everest glacier is shrinking
Ice on a glacier near the summit of Mount Everest that took millennia to form has shrunk dramatically in the...
- The South Col formation may already have lost around 55 meters (180 feet) of thickness in the last 25 years, according to research led by the University of Maine
- Carbon dating showed the top layer of ice was around 2,000 years old, suggesting that the glacier was thinning more than 80 times faster than the time it took to form
Geostrategy
Palestinian PM calls for Israel’s exclusion from African Union
Palestinian prime minister Mohammed Shtayyeh has urged the African Union to withdraw Israel's observer status as heads of state from...
- The relationship with Israel is a rare point of contention for a body that values consensus and is expected to dominate the Addis Ababa summit
- The dispute erupted last July when Moussa Faki Mahamat, chair of the African Union Commission, accepted Israel's accreditation to the bloc
Geostrategy
Coups, Covid-19 repercussions cloud African Union summit
The two-day summit should discuss how to be more proactive in addressing factors that give rise to coups, including terrorism-related...
- The summit comes as the 55-member bloc faces pressure to push for a ceasefire in host country Ethiopia
- A 15-month war there has killed thousands of people and driven hundreds of thousands to the brink of starvation
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Revenue from Saudi cinema may exceed $1bn by 2030KSA, UAE play well as e-gaming trends across GCCExclusive: Middle East’s retail sector rides on AR and hybrid shopping to become $600bn digital economyTECOM Group profit soars 13%UAE startups eye Saudi Arabia for growth, expansionSaudi Arabia leads GCC AI healthcare raceDisparity remains as Saudis, Emiratis see wealth gains
G7 urges Iran de-escalation as Trump makes hasty summit exit as ally Israel pounds Iran
The G7 statement said that Israel "has a right to defend itself" and stressed "the importance of the protection of...
Geostrategy
Company News
Ryanair profits soar
Business
Latest News
Toyota expects to book profit of US$30bn
Its third-quarter net profit jumped to US$7 billion.
Business
British-owned cargo ship hit by drone off Yemen in latest Houthi attack
Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said last week that the movement's armed forces had targeted an American merchant ship named...
Geostrategy
Israeli settler violence ‘must stop’: French FM
French minister denounced anti-Palestinian rhetoric and "even calls to commit war crimes" by Israeli officials, after some Netanyahu allies have...
Most Read
Geostrategy
China, Russia blame US for stoking Middle East tensions
The US forces targeted many positions in Syria and Iraq in retaliation for a drone attack on a base in...
- Russian ambassador said US attacks are aimed to stoke the conflict
- China's ambassador said US actions will worsen the "tit-for-tat violence in the Middle East"
Economy
OECD predicts rise in global economy amid Middle East ‘risk’
The OECD raised its 2024 world economic growth forecast Monday but warned that the Middle East conflict posed a risk,...
- The OECD now expects a 2.9 percent expansion, up from 2.7 percent in its previous forecast in November, as it sharply lifted the outlook for the US
- While inflation is falling in major economies, "it is too soon to be sure that underlying price pressures are fully contained", the OECD added
Business
McDonald Q4 profit up
McDonald's cited war in the Middle East as a drag.
- Profits in the quarter grew seven percent to $2.0 billion, while revenues increased eight percent to $6.4 billion.
- Global comparable sales grew 3.4 percent in fourth quarter, down from 8.8 percent in the third quarter and below the annual average