China calls CIA videos ‘absurd’ attempt to recruit spies for America
China's Ministry of State Security (MSS) said the placement of what amounted to job advertisements on social media platform X...
Geostrategy
Pro-Palestinian protest leader details 104 days spent in US custody
Mahmoud Khalil, one of the most prominent leaders of pro-Palestinian protests on US campuses, recounted his experience surviving 104 days...
Geostrategy
Geostrategy
Morocco sees room for ‘return to normal’ in German ties
Berlin's foreign ministry called Morocco an "important link between North and South, politically, culturally and economically".It also said Morocco "plays...
- Rabat in March said it was suspending contacts with the German embassy in the North African kingdom over "deep misunderstandings" on "issues fundamental for Morocco"
- Germany's criticism of former US president Donald Trump's recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over the disputed Western Sahara was among the apparent points of friction
Geostrategy
Morocco marks anniversary of renewed ties with Israel
Morocco and Israel have marked the first anniversary of the US-sponsored resumption of diplomatic relations between them.
- The rapprochement was part of a string of normalization deals between Israel and several Arab countries
- It was brokered by the administration of then US president Donald Trump and known as the Abraham Accords
Geostrategy
US top official confers with Israel, Iran on nuclear deal
Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett's government has called for a halt to international efforts to revive the Iran nuclear deal....
- Negotiations to restore the pact known as the Joint Collective Plan of Action resumed in November
- Washington was a party to the original agreement, but withdrew under president Donald Trump in 2018
Business
Qatar and Iraq discuss cooperation in transportation sector
Minister of Transport Jassim bin Saif Al Sulaiti, and Minister of Transport of the Republic of Iraq Nasser Hussein Bandar...
- The total number of passengers who used the Doha Metro during the FIFA Arab Cup 2021 exceeded 2.5mn with an average of 130,000 passengers daily.
- According to Qatar Rail, the Doha Metro operated 50,000 trips during the tournament, covering 885,000km, and the average time between trains was 2.5 minutes
Economy
Queues grow longer at Istanbul’s discount bread shops
The queues are a worrying sight for Turkey's veteran President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is trying to fight inflation by...
- Countries usually raise borrowing rates to slow spending and bring down prices -- a policy mix the Turkish leader, a pious Muslim, rejects citing Islamic laws against usury.
- One newspaper claimed Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu was playing a "dirty game" by shutting down many of the discount bread shops, making the queues longer at existing ones.
Geostrategy
Turkey authorizes use of domestically developed Turkovac vaccine
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday announced the emergency use approval of Turkey's first domestically-developed coronavirus vaccine. In June, Turkovac...
- In June, Turkovac entered Phase III trials involving 40,800 participants in Turkey. No official data about its efficacy have been released.
- Developers said the Turkovac vaccine works along the same scientific principles as China's CoronaVac, which Turkey has been using since the start of the year.
Geostrategy
Saudi-led coalition rejects Iran charges on Yemen envoy evacuation
Iran's envoy to Yemen, Hassan Eyrlou, died on Tuesday despite being flown out from the Huthi rebel-held capital in a...
- Coalition spokesman Turki Al-Maliki on Wednesday condemned Iran's "defamatory" comments.
- Regional rivals Riyadh and Tehran support opposite sides in several conflict zones across the region, including in Yemen.
Business
Saudi Ports Authority announces new direct shipping service to Djibouti
The Saudi Ports Authority (MAWANI) has announced a new direct shipping service connecting Saudi Arabia to Djibouti, through the container...
- The service will connect Jeddah Islamic Port to Djibouti through the container transport company, Transmar.
- Jeddah Islamic Port is one of the three Saudi ports included in the 2021 edition of Lloyd's List of Top 100 Ports.
Geostrategy
Libya vote ‘impossible’ Friday: parliament committee
The vote was intended to mark a fresh start for war-torn Libya a year after more than a decade after...
- The vote was intended to mark a fresh start for war-torn Libya a year after more than a decade after its 2011 revolt that toppled and killed dictator Moamer Kadhafi
- But speculation had been mounting for weeks that the poll would not take place on time, given bitter disputes over its legal basis
Geostrategy
UN agency says to cut food aid to Yemen for want of funds
Yemen has been devastated by a civil war between the Saudi-backed government and Iran-backed Huthi rebels since 2014.
- Yemen has been devastated by a civil war between the Saudi-backed government and Iran-backed Huthi rebels since 2014
- The fighting has killed tens of thousands, displaced millions and left some 80 percent of Yemenis dependent on aid
Most Read
Revenue from Saudi cinema may exceed $1bn by 2030KSA, UAE play well as e-gaming trends across GCCExclusive: Middle East’s retail sector rides on AR and hybrid shopping to become $600bn digital economyTECOM Group profit soars 13%UAE startups eye Saudi Arabia for growth, expansionSaudi Arabia leads GCC AI healthcare raceDisparity remains as Saudis, Emiratis see wealth gains
China calls CIA videos ‘absurd’ attempt to recruit spies for America
China's Ministry of State Security (MSS) said the placement of what amounted to job advertisements on social media platform X...
Geostrategy
Company News
DP World, TPA ink pact
Business
Latest News
Saudi Arabia signs MoUs with four countries for development in mining industry
RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA – The Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources has signed four Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with the...
Geostrategy
Iran’s navy seizes oil tanker off Oman in dispute with US
The announcement came hours after a British-navy maritime security agency said armed men boarded the Greek-owned, Marshall Islands-flagged St Nikolas...
Geostrategy
South Africa accuses Israel of genocide at top UN court
A world away from the death and destruction in Gaza and Israel, robed lawyers battled it out over technical legal...
Geostrategy
Most Read
Israel army claims two journalists slain in Gaza strike were ‘terror operatives’
Israeli army said Mustafa Thuria was identified in a document found by troops in Gaza to be a member of...
- Hamza Wael Dahdouh and Mustafa Thuria, who also worked as a video stringer for AFP and other news organizations, were killed on Sunday
- The Israeli army said that both the deceased journalist were members of Gaza-based fighters organizations actively involved in attacks against IDF
Geostrategy
Chinese foreign minister to visit Egypt, Tunisia this week: ministry
Wang's overseas travel will coincide with another trip abroad by a top Chinese official, Premier Li Qiang, this week. Li...
- Wang's visit to Egypt will follow that of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who is set to meet President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo
- China has historically been sympathetic to the Palestinian cause and supportive of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
Geostrategy
WHO urges Israel to allow aid delivery in ‘indescribable’ Gaza
"Delivering humanitarian aid in Gaza continues to face nearly insurmountable challenges," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press conference....
- Ghebreyesus said that WHO teams have had to cancel six planned missions to northern Gaza since December 26 due to lack of assurances of safe passage.
- "People are standing in line for hours for a small amount of water, which may not be clean, or bread, which alone is not sufficiently nutritious," he said.