Rubio says Israel annexation moves in West Bank, settler violence ‘threatening’ Gaza peace deal
Israeli lawmakers voted Wednesday to advance two bills on annexing the occupied West Bank, barely a week after President Donald...
Geostrategy
ICJ says Israel obliged to allow aid into Gaza as Turkey, Qatar move to protect truce
The ICJ ruling came as aid groups scrambled to scale up much-needed humanitarian assistance into Gaza, seizing upon a fragile...
Geostrategy
Geostrategy
US implores Israel to let worshipers pray at Al-Aqsa in Ramadan
United States has been pressing for a deal before Ramadan begins in which Israel would halt strikes in Gaza and...
- Israel has been assessing how to address worship in Jerusalem during Ramadan
- An Israeli minister said that Palestinians should not be allowed entry to Jerusalem to pray
Business
Air France-KLM posts profit
The airline reported record revenue of US$32.49bn in 2023.
- The airline also posted revenue of $32.49bn, while adding that it had returned to positive equity for the first time since 2019
- The airline alongwith subsidiary Transavia transported a total of 93.6 million passengers last year, up 10.3 million on 2022
Geostrategy
Israeli fighter jets bomb south Lebanon, killing two
Lebanon's Hizbollah, a Hamas ally, has exchanged near-daily fire with the Israeli army since war erupted between Israel and the...
- On Wednesday morning, Hamas's armed wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades said in a statement it targeted two Israeli military sites with two barrages of "Grad rockets"
- The attack from south Lebanon came in "response to Zionist massacres against civilians in the Gaza Strip and the assassination of martyred leaders and their brothers in Beirut
Gaza health ministry says war deaths exceed 30,000 as famine looms
The latest overall toll for Palestinians killed in the war came after at least 79 people died overnight across the...
- While mediators say a truce deal between Israel and Hamas could be just days away, aid agencies have sounded the alarm of a looming famine in Gaza's north
- Citing the deteriorating conditions in Gaza, USAID head Samantha Power said Israel needed to open more crossings so that vitally needed humanitarian assistance can be dispatched
Business
Reliance, Disney announce giant India media merger
The statement said Disney will hold 36.8 percent, Reliance will hold a 16.3 percent stake, and Viacom18 another 46.8 percent....
- India's entertainment market is already one of the world's biggest, with the merger expected to further shake up the multi-billion-dollar industry
- Reliance, an oil-to-telecom conglomerate led by billionaire tycoon Mukesh Ambani, will invest $1.4 billion into the new company
Geostrategy
Israel strikes Damascus amid soaring regional tensions
According to Syria's defense ministry, Israeli fighter jets carried out strikes "from the direction of the occupied Syrian Golan", targeting...
- Explosions followed by the sirens of ambulances were heard in the capital
- The Israeli strikes killed two Syrian pro-Hizbollah fighters as per a war monitor
Geostrategy
Biden faces backlash in Michigan primary over Gaza ceasefire stance
Though Biden handily won the vote, the uncommitted ballots, representing 13 percent of votes cast Tuesday, sent a "clear and...
- The midwestern state is home to a large number of Arab and Muslim Americans, previously firmly part of the Democratic fold that helped elect Biden in 2020.
- "It is my hope, Mr. President, that you listen to us," said Abdullah Hammoud, the mayor of Dearborn. "That you choose the people of America over Netanyahu", he said.
Geostrategy
India, US at loggerheads over WTO reform at Abu Dhabi talks
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates -- A US-led push to reform the World Trade Organization's embattled dispute settlement system sparked divisions...
- Washington's push for reform has angered India, which accused the US on Wednesday of bringing the WTO to a "standstill".
- India threatened to hold off on any new deals before progress is made on the appellate body, which could imperil agreements on fisheries subsidies and agriculture.
Geostrategy
Saudi Arabia’s PIF announces tennis partnership with ATP
In a joint statement, the two bodies said the partnership marked "a significant shared commitment to enhancing global tennis". The...
- PIF will also partner with ATP Tour events in Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid, Beijing and the ATP Finals, in addition to the Next Gen ATP Finals, hosted in Jeddah until 2027.
- "Our strategic partnership with PIF marks a major moment for tennis," said ATP chief executive Massimo Calvelli in the joint statement.
Israel minister says Arab trade ties unfazed by Gaza war
In January, Israel's cabinet approved an additional 55 billion shekels ($15 billion) to meet the cost of the war, while...
- When asked about Israel's economic losses due to the war, Barkat said it could add "anywhere between 150 to 200 billion shekels ($42-55 billion)" to the country's national debt
- Barkat said Gaza war could help Israel boost sales of military technology, noting there is "high interest" from many countries, without specifying if Arab states were among them
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Rubio says Israel annexation moves in West Bank, settler violence ‘threatening’ Gaza peace deal
Israeli lawmakers voted Wednesday to advance two bills on annexing the occupied West Bank, barely a week after President Donald...
Geostrategy
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In Cairo, the little indie cinema that could
Arts & Culture
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Trump says US will send Ukraine Patriot air defense systems, and may sanction Russia
President Donald Trump on Sunday said Washington would send Patriot air defense systems to Kyiv and hinted at new sanctions...
Geostrategy
Gaza civil defence says Israeli strikes kill 43 as truce talks deadlocked
Israel's military blamed it on a "technical error" when targeting a militant in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza,...
Geostrategy
Russia’s Lavrov visits Beijing to discuss Ukraine
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met Sunday in Beijing with his Chinese counterpart to discuss Ukraine and relations with the...
Geostrategy
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Business
Syria signs $800 mn port deal with DP World to develop Tartus port
Damascus, Syria -- Syria signed a $800 million deal with UAE-based company DP World on Sunday to develop the port...
- DP World operates dozens of marine and inland ports and terminals globally, particularly in Asia, Africa and Europe.
- The Syrian civil war devastated the country's infrastructure, and the new authorities hope to use the lifting of Western sanctions to attract investments and fuel reconstruction.
Geostrategy
UAE extradites 3 suspects to Belgium over alleged organized crime links
Dubai, United Arab Emirates -- Police in Dubai said three individuals accused of a litany of crimes, including drugs and...
- Officials said the three suspects had been wanted in Belgium in connection with cases of "cross-border organized crime".
- In December, reports first surfaced that one of Belgium's most wanted international drug traffickers, Othman El Ballouti, had been arrested in Dubai.
Economy
Macron calls on EU to ‘defend European interests’ in US tariff talks
French President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday condemned US President Donald Trump's threat to impose 30-percent tariffs on the European Union,...
- US President Donald Trump on Saturday warned that Mexico and the EU would be slapped with 30-percent tariffs starting on August 1
- Expressing France's "very strong disapproval" of the announcement, Macron called on the bloc to "step up the preparation of credible countermeasures