UN chief blasts ‘lack of compassion’ for Palestinians in Gaza
United Nations, United States -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday slammed the international community for turning a blind eye...
Geostrategy
Israel recalls Gaza negotiators after Hamas responds to ceasefire plan
Mediators have been shuttling between Israeli and Hamas delegations in Qatar for more than two weeks, but the indirect talks have...
Geostrategy
Economy
Algeria jails Bouteflika-era energy minister for 20 years
An Algerian appeals court on Tuesday upheld a 20-year prison sentence for corruption against Chakib Khelil, energy minister for a...
- Khelil, now 82, quit his post in 2010 and moved to the US after being associated with a scandal involving high-ranking Sonatrach officials who were later jailed
- He returned to Algeria in 2016 after the cases were dropped - then left again after Bouteflika's resignation in 2019 that sparked investigations into graft by his officials
Geostrategy
US sanctions Russia’s defence sector, bans its gold import
United States is seeking to crack down on Russians seeking to skirt existing sanctions by "covertly" acquiring US, Japanese and...
- The sanctions target state company Rostec and other firms critical to the defense industry.
- The new moves blacklist 70 entities and 29 individuals, which freezes all the USA held assets.
Geostrategy
US, Iran chief negotiators to start nuclear talks in Qatar
US special envoy Robert Malley and Iran's Ali Bagheri have landed in Doha and met officials after more than a...
- The Doha talks come just two weeks before US President Joe Biden visits the region for the first time since taking office.
- The deal has been hanging by a thread since 2018, when then US president Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from it.
Israel to dissolve parliament, hold new elections
The Israeli parliament unanimously approved early Tuesday a draft bill to dissolve parliament, a key legislative step that pushes the...
- The Bennett coalition said it wanted quick approval of the law after he announced last week that his year-old alliance was no longer tenable
- Netanyahu and his allies have been holding talks seeking to form a new Netanyahu-led government within the current parliament
Geostrategy
Indian police arrest journalist, a critic of Modi
Indian police on Monday arrested the co-founder of a top fact-checking website who has been a vocal critic of Prime...
- Mohammed Zubair was arrested in Delhi after being called in for questioning in an earlier case
- Most government critics however see Zubair's arrest as part of a crackdown on free-speech and rights activists
Geostrategy
Iran signals approval for Turkey’s military operation in Syria
Iran's foreign minister signaled that Tehran would not oppose a new proposed Turkish military operation targeting outlawed Kurdish militants in...
- Erdogan has said he expects Turkey's allies to "understand and respect" the proposed military campaign
- Turkish president has confirmed that the offensive on Syria would begin "as soon as our preparations are finished"
Business
Turkey supplies combat drones to Ukrainian army
Turkish drone-manufacturer Baykar, which has President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's son-in-law as one of its directors, offered three of its drones...
- Turkey has never announced any military aid to Ukraine, but this delivery could hardly take place without Erdogan's endorsement
- Ukraine has already said that the Turkish drones it had at the start of the war had proved their worth against the Russian forces
Geostrategy
Iran says indirect nuke deal talks with US to resume this week
Talks to revive the nuclear deal began in Vienna in April last year but hit a snag in March this...
- The negotiations will be separate from broader talks in Vienna between Iran and major powers that are mediated by the EU.
- The nuclear deal has been hanging by a thread since 2018, when then US president Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from it.
Geostrategy
Saudi-Italian space agencies ink pact on cooperation
The Saudi Space Commission and the Italian Space Agency sign a memorandum of understanding for enhancing cooperation in the field...
- Saudi Space Commission, Italian Space Agency sign an MoU to enhance cooperation in space-related activities for peaceful purpose
- Federation of Saudi Chambers and General Confederation of Italian Industry ink an MoU to establish a joint Italian-Saudi business council
Infographics
MENA nations make some ‘genuine progress’
Several MENA countries have fared well on all three domains of the Genuine Progress Indicator, which has been hailed as...
- The GPI nets the positive and negative results of economic growth to examine whether or not it has benefited people overall.
- GPI incorporates environmental and social factors which are not measured by GDP.
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UN chief blasts ‘lack of compassion’ for Palestinians in Gaza
United Nations, United States -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday slammed the international community for turning a blind eye...
Geostrategy
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Palestinian gunmen kill 1 Israeli, injure 8 others in occupied West Bank
The shooters were "neutralized", police said, and an AFP photographer later saw two bodies at the scene of the attack...
Geostrategy
Israel parliament rejects unilateral recognition of Palestinian state
On Wednesday, Israel's parliament backed Netanyahu's proposal of opposing any unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state, with 99 out of...
Saudi foreign minister seeks G20 action on Gaza
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil - Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan called on G20 nations to apply pressure for...
Geostrategy
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Geostrategy
Israeli strike on MSF shelter in Gaza kills two
According to MSF, the attack killed the daughter-in-law and wife of one of their colleagues, and wounded six people, including...
- Israeli troops fired at the building, which was clearly marked with the MSF logo
- The charity said Israeli forces had been informed of the precise location" of the MSF shelter
Geostrategy
Israeli air attack kills two in Damascus, says state media
An Israeli strike on a residential area of Damascus killed at least two people, Syrian state media reported, the latest...
- The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based war monitor, said that "a Syrian civilian" was killed as well as two foreign nationals.
- An AFP photographer said the strike hit a nine-storey building, with damage centered around the fourth floor and the exterior of building partially blackened.
Geostrategy
Israelis unsure of ‘absolute victory’ in Gaza, finds poll
Jerusalem - Despite Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's insistence the Gaza war will end with Israel achieving "absolute victory", a majority...
- The Israel Democracy Institute think tank said only 38.3 percent of Israelis polled believed there was a "very high" or "fairly high" likelihood of an "absolute victory" in war.
- Some 55.3 percent of respondents conversely said there was a "fairly low" or "very low likelihood" of such an outcome. Just over six percent of the 612 respondents were undecided.