Iranian tankers leave blockade zone as US-Iran deal moves toward signing
Iranian crude exports resumed ahead of a planned US-Iran signing ceremony, even as disputes over Lebanon, shipping rules and implementation...
Geostrategy
US and Iran agree to ‘immediate’ end to military operations, will sign MoU in Switzerland
The content of the agreement, which follows weeks of fraught negotiations and periodic threats from Trump of fresh hostilities unless...
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Geostrategy
US slams Israel’s use of American weapons in Gaza
The US has warned that the reputational damage Israel will suffer if it storms a city where an estimated 1.4...
- Israel's main international ally said it was "reasonable to assess" that Israel has used weapons in ways inconsistent with international humanitarian law
- Relations between the two allies sunk earlier in the week after US President Joe Biden threatened to halt some arms deliveries if Israel went ahead with an assault on Rafah
Geostrategy
Kuwait emir dissolves parliament in new political crisis
The state's ruler attributed his move to the "interference" of some MPs in the emir's powers and others imposing "conditions"...
- The Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) said "an emiri order was issued to dissolve the national assembly and suspend some articles of the constitution for a period not exceeding four years
- It said the emir, Sheikh Meshaal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, and the council of ministers were "assuming the powers granted to the national assembly."
Geostrategy
Hamas says ‘ball is completely’ in Israel’s hands in Gaza truce talks
"The negotiating delegation left Cairo heading to Doha. In practice, the occupation (Israel) rejected the proposal submitted by the mediators...
- State-linked Egyptian outlet Al-Qahera News reported Thursday that representatives of both camps left Cairo after two days of negotiations
- Efforts by Egypt and other mediators, namely Qatar and the United States, "continue to bring the points of view of the two parties closer together", the outlet added
Geostrategy
Israel hits Rafah despite US warning on arms transfers
In an interview with CNN on Wednesday, Biden warned he would stop some US weapons supplies to Israel if it...
- An AFP correspondent and witnesses on Thursday reported Israeli strikes on several parts of Rafah, where the United Nations said 1.4 million people were sheltering
- Israel has already defied international objections by sending in tanks and conducting what it called "targeted raids" in the east of Rafah
Geostrategy
Israel destroys dozens of Bedouin homes in Negev desert
Israeli authorities destroyed around 50 homes belonging to Bedouins in the Negev desert on Wednesday, an AFP journalist reported, with...
- Israel considers the homes built in Wadi al-Khalil to be illegal
- Only 11,000 bedouins remained within Israel's borders after the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
Biden threatens to stop arm shipments if Israel invades Rafah
Biden, a self-described Zionist, had long resisted stopping any of the $3 billion in weapons the United States sends each...
- In an interview with CNN Biden also deplored the fact that civilians had been killed by the dropping of US bombs on the Palestinian territory
- His fresh warning came after the US last week halted a shipment of huge American bombs to Israel as it appeared ready to proceed with a major attack on Rafah
Geostrategy
Empty streets and ‘fear’ in Gaza’s Rafah since Israeli incursion
Rafah, Palestinian Territories - Displaced Gazan Marwan al-Masri, sheltering in Rafah, said on Wednesday "life has completely ceased" since Israeli tanks...
- More than 1.4 million people had crammed into Rafah, a city on the Gaza Strip's southern border with Egypt, as Israeli forces pushed their way southward
- Caught between Israeli shelling from the east, an Egyptian border to the south and the Mediterranean to the west, many fleeing Rafah went north
Geostrategy
Israel seizes Rafah crossing as Gaza truce talks resume
Egypt's state-linked Al-Qahera News reported that mediators from Qatar, the United States and Egypt were meeting with a Hamas delegation.
- A senior Hamas official warned this would be Israel's "last chance" to free the estimated 128 captives still held in Gaza, including 36 officials who are dead
- Israel's offensive has killed at least 34,789 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run territory's health ministry
Geostrategy
Hamas accepts Gaza truce proposal, Israel urges Rafah evacuation
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said the proposal "is far from Israel's essential demands", but the government will send...
- The Hamas announcement brought cheering crowds onto the street amid tears of happiness, chants of "Allahu Akbar" ("God is greatest") and celebratory shooting in the air
- Israel's military meanwhile reiterated an earlier call for residents of east Rafah to evacuate as it prepares for a "ground operation" in the southern Gaza city
Hamas says delegation heading to Cairo for truce talks
The hawkish prime minister has insisted he will send ground troops into Rafah, despite strong concerns voiced by UN agencies...
- Foreign mediators have been waiting for a Hamas response to a proposal to halt the fighting for 40 days and exchange hostages for Palestinian captives
- A major stumbling block has been that, while Hamas has demanded a lasting ceasefire, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to continue to fight
Iranian tankers leave blockade zone as US-Iran deal moves toward signing
Iranian crude exports resumed ahead of a planned US-Iran signing ceremony, even as disputes over Lebanon, shipping rules and implementation...
Geostrategy
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Who recognises the State of Palestine, who doesn’t, and why does it make a difference?
Here is an overview of diplomatic recognition of the state, which was unilaterally proclaimed by the Palestinian leadership in exile...
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Embattled Turkey opposition re-elects leader at party congress
Turkey's main opposition CHP re-elected its leader Ozgur Ozel at an extraordinary congress Sunday as the party fights off a...
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Israel’s Netanyahu says peace with Lebanon and Syria possible
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that Israel's war with Lebanese militant group Hezbollah had created the possibility for peace...
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Geostrategy
UAE Council warns 98% of cyberattacks rely on social engineering
Abu Dhabi, UAE -- The UAE Cyber Security Council has cautioned that social engineering remains the most common tool used...
- The Council’s Cyber Pulse campaign is raising awareness about the risks of social engineering and urging the public to verify sources before sharing personal data.
- The council recommended monitoring official alerts and keeping up to date with cybersecurity guidance to remain protected.
Business
Dubai Integrated Economic Zones posts record $91 billion trade in 2024
Dubai, UAE – The Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority (DIEZ) recorded its highest-ever trade performance in 2024, with total trade...
- The Authority’s zones handled 444,300 tons of goods last year, with electronics and precious metals driving 94 percent of overall trade.
- Dubai’s overall non-oil trade also reached record levels in 2024, with DIEZ contributing its largest-ever share.
Geostrategy
Seismic shift: UK, Australia and Canada recognize Palestinian state
Portugal was also to recognize Palestinian statehood, as Israel came under huge international pressure over the war in Gaza where...
- A poll released by YouGov on Friday showed two-thirds of young Britons aged 18-25 supported Palestinian statehood.
- Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy acknowledged at the UN in July that "Britain bears a special burden of responsibility to support the two-state solution".