Iraqis cover soil with clay to curb sandstorms
Samawah, Iraq -- Deep in Iraq’s southern desert, bulldozers and earthmovers spread layers of moist clay over sand dunes as...
Geostrategy
14 countries condemn Israel’s expansion of West Bank settlements, say actions ‘violate international law’
Fourteen countries, including France, Britain, and Germany, condemned on Wednesday Israel's recent approval of new Jewish settlements in the occupied...
Geostrategy
Geostrategy
Yemen rebels say seized vessel owned by Israeli businessman
A Yemeni maritime source said the Huthis had "seized a commercial vessel" and took it to the port of Salif...
- The announcement came days after the rebel group threatened to target Israeli vessels in the waterway over Israel's war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip
- The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the vessel was owned by a British company and operated by a Japanese firm
Economy
Dubai Customs logs 13% growth in transactions in first nine months of 2023
DUBAI, UAE – Dubai Customs has experienced a robust 13 percent increase with 21.6 million transactions during the first nine...
- The upswing aligns with the targets of Dubai’s economic agenda D33, which seeks to double foreign trade.
- By the end of the third quarter of 2023, Dubai Customs had processed approximately 18.8 million customs declarations.
Geostrategy
Israel police claim Hamas was not aware of a music festival on October 7
DUBAI - An investigation carried out by Israeli police has concluded that Hamas, involved in the October 7 attack, had...
- The police probe revealed that an Israeli military helicopter arrived at the scene and opened heavy fire.
- The development comes as Israel revised the official death toll of the October 7 attacks, lowering the figure to around 1,200 people.
Geostrategy
‘Horrendous events’ in Gaza in past days ‘beggar belief’: UN rights chief
"The killing of so many people at schools turned shelters, hundreds fleeing for their lives from Al-Shifa Hospital, amid continuing...
- All 31 premature babies at Al-Shifa hospital had been evacuated Sunday from the facility which the WHO has described as a "death zone".
- A deal to free hostages Hamas seized in its October 7 attack on Israel now hinges on "minor" practical issues, Qatar's prime minister said.
Geostrategy
FMs from Palestinian Authority, Muslim nations to visit China
Officials will include the foreign ministers of the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt and Indonesia,...
- Following the outbreak of war last month, Chinese officials including Foreign Minister Wang Yi have called for an immediate ceasefire and a "cooling down" of the situation.
- China has historically been sympathetic to the Palestinians and supported a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Geostrategy
Climate action slowed in 2022, severe weather events increased
Paris, France -- National climate policy action across the countries that produce nearly two-thirds of total greenhouse gas emissions only...
- National climate policy action across the countries that produce nearly two-thirds of total greenhouse gas emissions only increased by 1% in 2022, lowest since 2000.
- In contrast, between 2000 and 2021, national climate policy action increased by an average of 10 percent a year, according to a new OECD analysis of policy adoption.
Business
Big tech firms have been fined billions, but not paid them
PARIS, FRANCE - Rarely a month goes by without big tech companies getting fined for price fixing, squashing competitors or misusing...
- Ireland's data regulator confirmed that Meta has not paid any of the US$2.2 billion in fines issued since last September.
- Amazon is still appealing against a US$812 million fine from 2021, Luxembourg's data regulator said.
Geostrategy
Opposition parties stage rare rally in South Sudan
Two years after attaining statehood, the world's newest nation collapsed into a civil war that claimed 400,000 lives before a...
- The coalition of 12 opposition parties gathered in Juba to demand unimpeded access to participate in the country's first national elections since 2011
- President Salva Kiir, South Sudan's only ruler since independence, has vowed to hold elections in 2024 -- nine years behind the original schedule
Business
Foreign firms race to open offices in Saudi Arabia before deadline
Announced in February 2021, Saudi Arabia's regional headquarters (RHQ) program is widely seen as a bid to compete with Dubai...
- So far, 162 regional headquarters licenses have been granted in sectors including pharmaceuticals, IT and construction, "with many others being processed", the ministry said.
- The program is "an early litmus test of the degree to which foreign businesses are prepared or willing to comply with and buy into Saudi initiatives", an analyst said.
Geostrategy
Turkey FM warns of escalation in nuclear arms race
Tehran, Iran-- Expressing deep concern over Israel's possession of nuclear weapons, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has warned of a...
- Fidan said the failure to denuclearize the region will ramp up the nuclear arms race in the region and the wider world, leading to increased nuclearization in the area
- The foreign minister said the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation were playing crucial roles in addressing the Gaza crisis on the international stage
Iraqis cover soil with clay to curb sandstorms
Samawah, Iraq -- Deep in Iraq’s southern desert, bulldozers and earthmovers spread layers of moist clay over sand dunes as...
Geostrategy
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US envoy says Hezbollah involvement in Iran-Israel war would be ‘very bad decision’
The US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack warned Lebanese militant group Hezbollah on Thursday against getting involved in the...
Geostrategy
Iran appoints new Revolutionary Guards intelligence chief
Major General Mohammad Pakpour, the commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), appointed Brigadier General Majid Khadami as the...
Geostrategy
US military aircraft no longer visible at base in Qatar: satellite images
Dozens of US military aircraft are no longer on the tarmac at a major US base in Qatar, satellite images...
Geostrategy
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Geostrategy
21 Palestinians waiting for aid among 72 killed by Israeli forces in Gaza
Civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP that six people were killed while waiting for aid in the southern Gaza...
- In northern Gaza, Bassal said that nine separate Israeli strikes killed another 51 people, updating earlier tolls provided by his agency.
- At least 300 Palestinians have been killed in recent weeks while trying to reach aid distribution points in Gaza, which is suffering from famine-like conditions.
Geostrategy
MENA Brief | June 19: GCC central banks hold interest rates steady, Diriyah House launched in London
As most currencies in the region are pegged to the US dollar, monetary policy follows the decisions taken in Washington,...
- Saudi-based Cluster2 Airports Company signed a strategic MoU with Airbus. The agreement will see the deployment of the Agnet Turnaround platform across Cluster2’s 22 airports.
- Saudi National Bank (SNB) has issued $1.25 billion in Tier 2 bonds at a 6% profit rate under its $10 billion Euro Medium Term Note program.
Geostrategy
Almost 3,000 Australians seek to flee Israel-Iran conflict
Australia has started evacuating almost 3,000 citizens caught up in the rapidly spiralling conflict between Israel and Iran, Foreign Minister...
- rescue efforts had been hampered by missile barrages that made it "too risky" for civilian aircraft to land in either country, Wong said
- Some 1,500 Australians had registered to be evacuated from Iran, while more than 1,200 were seeking to get out of Israel, she said