COP29 opens with Trump climate withdrawal looming
he COP29 climate talks open Monday in Azerbaijan, under the long shadow cast by Donald Trump's re-election. Trump has pledged...
Economy
Qatar halts Gaza mediation efforts amid stalled talks on ceasefire and hostage release
The Gulf emirate, which has hosted Hamas's political leadership since 2012 with US blessing, has been involved in months of...
Geostrategy
Fire kills 49 in Kuwait building housing foreign workers
Kuwait City, Kuwait -- A fire killed 49 people in Kuwait when it ripped through a building housing nearly 200 foreign...
- The blaze, which broke out in the six-story building south of Kuwait City at around dawn, also left dozens of people injured, the health ministry said.
- The health ministry had previously announced 43 injured in the blaze in the Mangaf area, which is heavily populated with migrant laborers.
Business
IEA sees ‘major’ oil supply surplus emerging by 2030
Paris, France -- The world is likely to have a "major surplus" of oil by 2030 as production is ramped up...
- Global demand is expected to "level off" at 106 million barrels per day (bpd) toward the end of this decade while overall supply capacity could reach 114 million bpd.
- The forecast comes days after the OPEC+ group of major crude producers signaled they would start to unwind output cuts this autumn.
Geostrategy
Blinken heads to key mediator Qatar after Hamas seeks tweaks to truce deal
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was heading on Wednesday to talks in key mediator Qatar after Hamas gave a...
- Hamas proposed an amended ceasefire timeline and the complete withdrawal of Israeli troops
- Blinken said in Israel on Tuesday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has committed himself to the plan
Oil and gas industry hops on generative AI bandwagon
In recent years the downstream industry, which includes refineries that process crude oil into gasoline, has increasingly relied on so-called...
- Long before the current craze surrounding generative AI, the energy sector employed traditional artificial intelligence through its use of data to identify oil and gas deposits
- The new AI programs can also be employed broadly in the workforce instead of being limited to programmers and data analysts, as has been the case with traditional AI
Geostrategy
Erdogan visits opposition party headquarters first time in 18 years
Istanbul, Turkey - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited the opposition CHP party headquarters on Tuesday, the first time in 18...
- The one-and-a-half-hour meeting between Erdogan and CHP leader Ozgur Ozel in the capital Ankara comes more than a month after their first encounter in May
- Erdogan has signalled "softening" in politics after the March vote observers called his worst defeat since his Islamic-rooted AKP party took power in 2002
Geostrategy
Blinken in Israel to push ceasefire plan for Gaza
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will hold talks with key Israeli opposition figures on Tuesday, a day after he...
- On Monday, the UN Security Council adopted a US-drafted resolution supporting a six-week ceasefire plan,
- Four Israeli soldiers had been killed in fighting in southern Gaza yesterday
Business
Intel suspends expansion of factory plan in Israel
New York, United States - Intel is halting the expansion of a major factory project in Israel, which was going to...
- The chip giant in December said it was going to expand an ongoing $10 billion plan at the Kiryat Gat site, in the south of the country, currently under construction
- Solicited by AFP, Intel on Monday gave no reason for the pause for the next phase and made no link to the ongoing conflict with Hamas in Gaza
Geostrategy
Israeli forces kill 4 Palestinians in West Bank
The Israeli military said it shot at a group of four people who attempted to flee in a vehicle and...
- A general strike was called in Ramallah by Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas in response to the killings, along with a pre-planned rally for Palestinians jailed by Israel
- Israel has occupied the West Bank since the 1967 war and hundreds of thousands of settlers have since moved to the Palestinian territory, in breach of international law
Business
Virgin Galactic completes final spaceflight before two-year pause
Washington, United States -- Virgin Galactic on Saturday successfully completed its last spaceflight before heading into a two-year pause on commercial...
- One of the private astronauts was Tuva Atasever, a Turkish space agency astronaut whose seat was contracted through another space company, Axiom.
- During the flight, Atasever wore custom headgear with brain activity monitoring sensors to collect physiological data.
Geostrategy
UN Security Council to vote on US Gaza ceasefire resolution
The text of the resolution "welcomes" the truce and hostage release proposal announced on May 31 by President Joe Biden,...
- The United States, a staunch ally of Israel, has been widely criticized for having blocked several UN draft resolutions calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.
- Under the proposal, Israel would withdraw from Gaza population centers and Hamas would free hostages. The ceasefire would last an initial six weeks.
COP29 opens with Trump climate withdrawal looming
he COP29 climate talks open Monday in Azerbaijan, under the long shadow cast by Donald Trump's re-election. Trump has pledged...
Economy
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FIFA defers decision on Palestinian request to suspend Israel
FIFA president Gianni Infantino said in a statement: "The FIFA Council has implemented due diligence on this very sensitive matter...
Libya’s eastern administration lifts oil production, export blockade
The Benghazi-based administration, which controls most of Libya's oilfields, said in a Facebook post it was "lifting the force majeure...
Geostrategy
Updates: President Biden says ‘discussing’ possible Israeli strikes on Iran oil facilities
Oil prices shoot up as Biden suggests that Israel might target Iranian oil facilities, while GCC Arab states, including Qatar,...
Geostrategy
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Geostrategy
Regional Updates: Iran “not looking for war” but will retaliate fiercely to any Israeli attack
Iranian leadership vows strong retaliation if Israel attacks Iran as Hezbollah kills eight Israeli soldiers and destroys 3 tanks while...
- Hezbollah said it repelled an Israeli infiltration into southern Lebanon on Wednesday, as Israel reported eight soldiers were killed and 3 tanks destroyed
- US President Joe Biden rules out supporting an Israeli strike on Iran's nuclear sites as Israel aims to garber support for an attack against Iran
Geostrategy
Israel declares UN chief ‘persona non grata’ over Iran attack response
"Anyone who cannot unequivocally condemn Iran's heinous attack on Israel does not deserve to step foot on Israeli soil," said...
- Following Iran's missile attack on Israel late Tuesday, Guterres condemned the "broadening conflict in the Middle East", slamming "escalation after escalation" in the region.
- Israel has been a harsh critic of the UN, with ties between the state and the international body souring even more after the October 7 Hamas attacks.
Geostrategy
G7 says diplomatic solution is still possible in Middle East
Rome, Italy -- The G7 on Wednesday vowed to work together to reduce tensions in the Middle East and said a...
- Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called a telephone meeting of the body Wednesday to address the escalating Mideast crisis.
- "In a constantly evolving scenario, it was agreed to work together to promote a reduction of tensions at the regional level," said the statement released by the Italian government.