Flydubai suspends Israel flights after emergency landing
Flight FZ1073 was carrying 174 people, most of them Israeli nationals, when a violent confrontation reportedly broke out in the...
Geostrategy
Saudi Arabia, UAE climb WEF Tourism Index despite Middle East conflict disruption
Saudi Arabia jumps 17 places since 2019 on workforce reform and Vision 2030 investment, while the UAE tops the world...
Business
Geostrategy
Hamas calls for swift hostage-prisoner swap as talks set to begin
Foreign ministers of several countries, including Egypt, said the talks were a "real opportunity" to achieve a comprehensive and sustainable...
- The diplomatic push follows Hamas's positive response to Trump's roadmap for an end to the fighting and the release of hostages in exchange for Palestinians in Israeli jails.
- The White House said Trump had also sent two envoys to Egypt -- his son-in-law Jared Kushner and Middle East negotiator Steve Witkoff.
Geostrategy
Bangladesh deploys warships to protect prized hilsa fish
Dhaka, Bangladesh -- Bangladesh's defense force said it has deployed warships and patrol aircraft as part of a special surveillance...
- The herring-like hilsa return from the Bay of Bengal to rivers each year to lay eggs.
- Bangladeshi authorities said on Saturday they had imposed a three-week ban on fishing from October 4-25 to safeguard the spawning areas.
Geostrategy
Syria selects members of first post-Assad parliament
Damascus, Syria -- Syria will select members of its first post-Assad parliament on Sunday in a process criticized as undemocratic,...
- more than 1,500 candidates -- just 14 percent of them women -- are running for the assembly, which will have a renewable 30-month mandate.
- Sharaa is to appoint 70 representatives out of the 210-member body.
Geostrategy
Opec+ plus to raise oil production by 137,000 barrels a day in Nov
The increase was less than many analysts expected, with the cartel seeking to avoid pressuring prices amid weak demand. OPEC+...
- Opec+'s priority at the start of the year was to maintain prices high by limiting supply, but it changed strategy starting in April.
- Since April, the V8 group -- comprising Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria and Oman -- has boosted production by 2.5 mbpd in total.
Geostrategy
Hundreds of thousands turn out at pro-Palestinian marches in Europe
Huge numbers turned out at pro-Palestinian rallies in Europe on Saturday, calling for an immediate end to the war in...
- Organisers of the protest in Rome said hundreds of thousands of people had turned out for a fourth day running, after Israel intercepted the flotilla seeking to reach Gaza
- Elsewhere, several thousand people marched through the centre of the Irish capital, Dublin, to mark what organisers said was "two years of genocide" in Gaza
Geostrategy
Israel confirms 137 more activists from Gaza-bound flotilla deported to Turkey
Jerusalem, Undefined - Israel said on Saturday that it had deported 137 more activists who were detained while taking part...
- The Israeli foreign ministry said those deported were citizens of the United States, Italy, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Jordan and several other countries
- The Global Sumud Flotilla set sail last month, ferrying politicians and activists including Swedish campaigner Greta Thunberg towards Gaza, where the United Nations says famine is
Geostrategy
Hamas says ready for peace talks, Trump urges Israel to halt Gaza bombing
Trump's peace proposal, backed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calls for a halt to hostilities in the nearly two-year...
- "President Trump's statements on the immediate cessation of Israeli bombings in the Gaza Strip are encouraging," Hamas spokesman Taher al-Nunu told AFP
- "Hamas is ready to immediately begin negotiations to achieve a prisoner exchange, end the war and ensure the withdrawal of the (Israeli) army from the Gaza Strip," he added
Geostrategy
Palestinian agency says water supply resumes in central Gaza
The Ramallah-based Palestinian Water Authority said Friday that running water would return to central Gaza after damage to supply lines...
- Almost all Gazans have been displaced during the nearly two years of war, increasing the population density in central Gaza, which has been less affected by airstrikes
- The repairs on the water main took time, the Water Authority said, because of military activity and the presence of Israeli forces, and had to be done in coordination with Israel
Geostrategy
Trump demands Hamas agree to deal by Sunday or face ‘all hell’
"If this LAST CHANCE agreement is not reached, all HELL, like no one has ever seen before, will break out...
- In the post, Trump said "innocent Palestinians" should evacuate an unspecified area in anticipation of a potential assault on Hamas's remaining forces.
- Trump's deal calls for a ceasefire, the release of hostages within 72 hours, Hamas's disarmament and a gradual Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.
Geostrategy
Not all ‘A’s: Unconventional paths that led to Nobels
Stockholm, Sweden -- Some Nobel laureates were straight-A students from the get-go. But others AFP spoke to recounted how they...
- Many Nobel laureates had unconventional academic starts, including cutting classes, getting expelled, or performing poorly in their studies.
- Laureates like Einstein and Frances Arnold overcame early educational struggles to achieve groundbreaking scientific recognition.
Flydubai suspends Israel flights after emergency landing
Flight FZ1073 was carrying 174 people, most of them Israeli nationals, when a violent confrontation reportedly broke out in the...
Geostrategy
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Iran claims retaliation against US as Hezbollah protests Israel-Lebanon agreement
Tehran warned of broader retaliation if attacked again as Washington defended its military action, while unrest spread to Beirut after...
Geostrategy
IAEA prepares to inspect Iran nuclear sites as US, Gulf states back Tehran accord
In Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz said Israeli forces would remain indefinitely in what they...
Geostrategy
Summer Davos: WEF urges scaling innovation into growth and jobs
Dubai, UAE -- Global political and business leaders called for faster adoption of emerging technologies and closer international cooperation to...
Geostrategy
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Geostrategy
Rubio meets UAE president as US-Iran technical talks set to resume next week
Rubio and Sheikh Mohamed reviewed strategic cooperation between the UAE and the US and discussed regional developments, with particular focus...
- The announcement comes as diplomatic activity intensifies across the region following the U.S.-Iran accord.
- Brent crude fell below $75 a barrel on Wednesday for the first time since the conflict began earlier this year.
Geostrategy
Oman opens temporary Hormuz shipping corridor as efforts intensify to restore maritime traffic
Muscat said the measure was intended to safeguard freedom of navigation in accordance with international maritime law and without imposing...
- IMO says more than 11,000 seafarers stranded in Gulf region will be evacuated under phased operation.
- Iran rejects U.S. claims it agreed to renewed IAEA inspections at nuclear facilities damaged during war.
Geostrategy
UN inquiry says Israeli targeting of Palestinian children points to ‘genocidal intent’ in Gaza
The findings were published by the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry, which said it had found evidence that Palestinian...
- The inquiry, established by the UN Human Rights Council in 2021, said at least 20,179 children had been killed and more than 44,000 injured in Gaza.
- The report also cited widespread trauma, displacement, starvation, family separation and the collapse of education and healthcare systems.