Russia, Ukraine begin a fresh round of talks in Istanbul, Kremlin plays down breakthrough hopes
Ukraine said it hoped the two countries would discuss the release of prisoners and lay the ground for a meeting...
Geostrategy
Trump claims Obama ‘coup’ as Epstein questions mount
Washington, United States - President Donald Trump sought Tuesday to distract from the growing furor over his administration's handling of...
Geostrategy
Geostrategy
Violence erupts in Iraq on third anniversary of protests
Waving portraits of the "martyrs" killed in rallies three years ago, hundreds of protestors clashed with security forces in Iraqi...
- Protesters were heard chanting "the people demand the fall of the regime", as thousands demonstrated in Baghdad's iconic Tahrir Square
- On Wednesday, three unclaimed rockets were fired at Baghdad's Green Zone, wounding seven security force personnel, as parliament held its first session
Geostrategy
Houthi rebels warn Yemen truce at “dead end”
A day before the UN-mediated truce is to expire, Houthi rebels have warned that the ceasefire in Yemen is at...
- US ambassador to Yemen Steven Fagin said in a tweet on Saturday that he was "concerned about the lack of progress" in talks to extend the truce
- He appealed to both the groups not to throw away the progress of the last six months and to extend and expand the truce
Geostrategy
World Bank declares $530mn aid for Ukraine’s ‘urgent needs’
"The toll of destruction, damage, and dislocation in Ukraine is staggering and continues to grow," Anna Bjerde, the bank's regional...
- The new funding came on the same day Russian President Putin formally announced the annexation of four Moscow-held areas of Ukraine.
- The bank said it had already mobilized almost $13 billion in emergency funding for Ukraine, $11 billion of which had already been disbursed.
Geostrategy
‘Nord Stream 2 pipeline has stopped leaking gas’
The Nord Stream 2 pipeline is no longer leaking under the Baltic Sea because an equilibrium has been reached between...
- While the pipelines are not currently in operation, they both still contained gas before they fell victim to apparent sabotage, producing four leaks.
- All the leaks are in the Baltic Sea off the Danish island of Bornholm.
Geostrategy
Russia suspends gas supply to Italy due to transport issues
SOFIA, BULGARIA - Russia's Gazprom has suspended gas deliveries to Italy's Eni, blaming a transport problem in Austria, the Italian...
- Most of Russian gas delivered to Italy passes via Ukraine through Trans Austria Gas Pipeline (TAG), to Tarvisio in northern Italy
- Before the war in Ukraine, Italy imported 95 percent of the gas it consumes -- about 45 percent of which came from Russia.
Geostrategy
Lebanon receives US ‘offer’ over Israel maritime border
Lebanon said it received a letter from US envoy Amos Hochstein containing an "offer" on a maritime border deal with...
- PM Najib Mikati met with US ambassador to Lebanon Dorothy Shea "who delivered a written offer from the US mediator"
- The US-mediated negotiations restarted in early June after Israel moved a production vessel near the Karish offshore field
Geostrategy
OPEC+ to meet in Vienna on Oct 5 for the first time since 2020
The OPEC+ oil cartel will meet in Vienna next week for the first time since Covid curbs were introduced in...
- The gathering will take place as speculation grows of major output cuts in the face of recession fears affecting demand for crude.
- Oil prices soared to almost $140 a barrel in March after Russia invaded Ukraine, but have since fallen to around $80 per barrel amid recession fears.
Business
EU decides to cut power use, levy energy firms
The EU executive believes it can raise €140 billion from the levies on non-gas electricity producers and on energy majors...
- European households and businesses are already staggering under surging energy bills, fueling record inflation that in the eurozone has hit 10 percent
- The EU ministers’ agreement came a day after Germany announced a $195 billion energy aid package to shield its consumers
Business
Maradona ‘Hand of God’ jersey to go on display in Qatar
The shirt, which sold for $9.3 million to a secret buyer, has been loaned to Qatar's 3-2-1 sports museum and...
- Qatar has not named the shirt's new owner, who paid a then record price for any sports memorabilia object
- Maradona scored both goals in the World Cup quarter-final 2-1 victory over England in Mexico City's Aztec Stadium in 1986
Geostrategy
‘Worry and fear’: Incessant Israeli drones heighten Gaza anxiety
The "sound of drones flying above my family and friends stops the games, the chatting and the laughter", Palestinian poet...
- Unmanned surveillance aircraft have become an integral part of Israel's 15-year-old blockade of the impoverished enclave
- Each month, Israel uses drones above Gaza for 4,000 flying hours, the equivalent of deploying five of the unmanned aircraft permanently in the sky
Most Read
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
Russia, Ukraine begin a fresh round of talks in Istanbul, Kremlin plays down breakthrough hopes
Ukraine said it hoped the two countries would discuss the release of prisoners and lay the ground for a meeting...
Geostrategy
Company News
Latest News
Top Europe rights court to issue landmark climate verdicts
STRASBOURG, FRANCE – Europe's top rights court will on Tuesday issue unprecedented verdicts in three separate cases on the responsibility of...
Geostrategy
‘Terrible’ Israel-Hamas conflict ‘must end’: UK’s Sunak
The British government on Friday called for "utmost transparency" and a "wholly independent review" into the killing of seven aid...
Israelis rally against Netanyahu as Gaza war reaches half-year mark
Organizers said about 100,000 people converged at a Tel Aviv crossroads renamed "Democracy Square" since mass protests against controversial judicial...
Most Read
Geostrategy
US, Russian, Belarusian astronauts return to earth after 14 days in space
Moscow, Russia - A NASA astronaut, a Russian cosmonaut and Belarus's first ever space traveler on Saturday returned to Earth safely...
- "Today, at 10:17am Moscow time (0717 GMT), the descent vehicle of Sozuz MS-24 manned spacecraft landed near the Kazakh city of Jezkazgan," Roscosmos reported.
- The spacecraft took off from the Baikonur space port in Kazakhstan on March 23 after a two-day delay following a hitch in pre-launch preparations.
Geostrategy
Seven children killed in Syria’s as explosive device goes off
Damascus, Syria - Seven children were killed in southern Syria's Daraa province on Saturday when an "explosive device" detonated, state media...
- The Britain-based monitor said militias were accused of planting the device in order to target an unidentified person in the area.
- Syria's war, which escalated into a deadly conflict that pulled in gunmen and foreign armies, has killed more than 507,000 people.
Geostrategy
UN agency chief laments Gaza war as ‘betrayal of humanity’
United Nations - Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza has escalated into a "betrayal of humanity", the United Nations' humanitarian...
- UN humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths called for a "collective determination that there be a reckoning for this betrayal of humanity".
- "Each day, this war claims more civilian victims," said Griffiths, who will leave his post at the end of June due to health reasons.