MENA brief Jun 15: Erdogan warns of ‘devastating war’, Gaza internet restored
Iran announced it will scale back cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), expressing deep dissatisfaction over what it...
Geostrategy
MENA Brief June 14: Iran-Israel War, Abu Dhabi Summit, Saudi Football Rise, & More
Tensions spiked as Iran fired ballistic missiles at Israel in retaliation for Israeli air raids that killed senior Iranian military...
Geostrategy
Geostrategy
Saudi Arabia says no Israel normalization without Palestinian state
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - Saudi Arabia said Wednesday it will not formalize ties with Israel unless a Palestinian state is established,...
- Both US President Donald Trump and his predecessor Joe Biden have backed Israel and Saudi Arabia having diplomatic relations
- Riyadh paused tentative talks on the matter early in the Gaza conflict and hardened its rhetoric as the war continued
Geostrategy
Trump doubles down on Gaza shock plan, says Israel will turn over the territory to US
Trump said that by the time of the handover, Palestinians "would have already been resettled in far safer and more...
- Trump first made the stunning proposal to audible gasps during a joint press conference with Netanyahu on Tuesday, whom he was hosting at the White House for talks
- Suggesting "long-term ownership" by the US, Trump said he would make Gaza the Riviera of the Middle East, and that "this could be something that could be so magnificient".
Geostrategy
West Bank’s Jenin camp going in ‘catastrophic direction’: UNRWA
The Israeli military launched a major offensive in the West Bank on January 21 aimed at rooting out Palestinian armed...
- The operation has also seen troops levelling buildings in a refugee camp adjacent to Jenin, according to UNRWA spokeswoman Juliette Touma.
- "Large parts of the camp were completely destroyed in a series of detonations by the Israeli forces. It is estimated that 100 houses were destroyed or heavily damaged," she said.
World Economic Forum
Risks are interconnected, need collaborative solutions, says WEF’s Mark Elsner
Davos, Switzerland – Mark Elsner, Head, Global Risks Initiative, World Economic Forum sat with TRENDS during WEF’s summit in Davos...
- The Global Risks Report 2025, with insights from over 900 experts, identifies state-based armed conflict as the most immediate risk for 2025.
- The report was circulated ahead of the Davos meeting, which serves as a platform for advancing dialogue, cooperation, and partnerships.
Geostrategy
Trump, Netanyahu to discuss Gaza ceasefire, regional stability in White House meeting
Trump has floated a controversial plan to relocate Palestinians to neighboring countries, but Egypt, Jordan, and ceasefire mediator Qatar have...
- Netanyahu is in Washington for talks with the new Trump administration on a second, longer-term phase of Israel's fragile truce with the Palestinian group Hamas
- Trump has meanwhile repeatedly touted a plan to "clean out" Gaza, calling for Palestinians to move to neighboring countries such as Egypt or Jordan
Business
OPEC+ sticks to oil output plan after Trump’s price demand
In a bid to boost prices, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) headed by Saudi Arabia and Russian-led allies...
- In December, eight OPEC+ countries announced they would start phasing out 2.2 million bpd of voluntary supply cuts from April.
- The decision to stick to the alliance's timetable to unwind cuts comes after Trump said last month that he would ask Saudi Arabia and OPEC to lower oil prices.
Geostrategy
Syrian President’s first foreign trip to Saudi Arabia signals Syria’s shift away from Iran’s influence.
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh, marking his first foreign visit and signaling...
- Al-Sharaa’s visit signals Syria’s pivot away from Iran and closer ties with the Gulf states
- Saudi Arabia is leading efforts to reintegrate Syria into the regional fold and push for sanctions relief
World Economic Forum
Maori-led AI initiative can revolutionize language preservation, says Peter-Lucas Jones
Davos, Switzerland -- Peter-Lucas Jones, a Kaitaia native, who has been listed in the prestigious Time100 AI 2024 List, was...
- Peter-Lucas Jones, a Time100 AI 2024 List honoree, discussed AI's role in preserving the Te Reo Maori language at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
- His team at Te Hiku Media developed Te Reo Maori natural language processing tools and an automatic speech recognition model.
World Economic Forum
Readying for jobs of tomorrow: WEF’s Till Leopold stresses upskilling
Davos, Switzerland -- In the next five years, millions of jobs will be created. Governments, employers, and education institutions, therefore,...
- The key report findings highlighted that there will be 78 million new job opportunities by 2030 but urgent upskilling is needed to prepare workforces.
- The fastest-growing skills by 2030 will include technological skills alongside human skills, such as cognitive skills and collaboration.
World Economic Forum
Davos25: Working in silos can’t resolve systemic issues, says Catalyst Now’s Galtung
Davos, Switzerland -- Some of the biggest problems in the world today are systemic problems, which cannot be resolved with...
- From 200 organizations in 2020, Catalyst Now has grown to 3,800 organizations working in 140 countries.
- It's for the first time that there's a Social Innovation House in Davos. There is a commitment to do it again next year.
MENA brief Jun 15: Erdogan warns of ‘devastating war’, Gaza internet restored
Iran announced it will scale back cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), expressing deep dissatisfaction over what it...
Geostrategy
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Israeli embassy staffers shot in Washington: how it unfolded
Elias Rodriguez faces murder and other charges after allegedly gunning down two Israeli embassy staffers outside the Capital Jewish Museum...
Israeli director Nadav Lapid decries ‘blindness’ over Gaza
Cannes, France - Director Nadav Lapid said his new film "Yes" about a musician asked to re-write the Israeli national...
Geostrategy
Why Israel gets support from central, eastern Europe
Their solidarity came to the fore on Wednesday, when Austria and Germany broke ranks with European Union peers to argue...
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Business
Turkey says increasing energy exports to war-torn Syria
Damascus, Syria -- Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said Thursday in Damascus that his country would ramp up energy exports...
- Syria's Islamist authorities, who toppled Bashar al-Assad in December, are seeking to rebuild the country's infrastructure and economy after almost 14 years of civil war.
- The conflict badly damaged Syria's power infrastructure, leading to cuts that can last for more than 20 hours a day.
Geostrategy
Iran-US nuclear talks set for Rome this week: Oman mediator
Iran and the United States will hold the next round of talks on the Islamic republic's nuclear programme in Rome...
- The arch-foes have held four rounds of nuclear talks since April 12, the highest-level contact between them since US President Donald Trump abandoned the 2015 nuclear deal
- Western countries, including the United States, have long accused Iran of seeking to acquire atomic weapons, while Iran insists its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes
Geostrategy
Gazans mourn at dawn after night of intense Israeli strikes
Gaza's civil defence agency said that more than 20 air strikes hit Khan Yunis and its surroundings overnight, with the...
- First responders have reported dozens of deaths daily since Israel intensified its attacks in the coastal territory, home to 2.4 million Palestinians
- Every morning, the civil defence agency has provided death tolls for overnight air strikes that often hit houses in rural areas or apartment buildings