Macron risks Israeli backlash with Palestinian recognition, yet seizes historic chance to reshape Middle East diplomacy
France and the UK will be the first permanent UN Security Council members to recognise a Palestinian state and, along...Geostrategy
Gaza, Palestinian future to dominate UN gathering to be attended by 140 world leaders
Kicking off Monday, Saudi Arabia and France will co-chair meetings on the future of the Israeli and Palestinian two-state solution, which...Geostrategy
GASTAT adopts chain-linking method to calculate Saudi Arabia’s real GDP
RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA – The General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) said in a press release it issued on Sunday that...The fourth quarter 2023 results and the annual results for the same year have been reached at by using the new methodology.
Saudi Arabia is the first country in the Gulf and Arab regions, and among the first G20 countries, to implement the chain-linking methodology.
Hizbollah fires dozens of rockets at Israel after deadly strikes
Hizbollah said it had fired dozens of rockets into northern Israel after Israeli strikes the day before left five dead...Meron is home to a major air control base that the Iran-backed group has targeted several times since the start of the year.
Hizbollah said it had acted "in response to Israeli attacks against villages in the south and the homes of civilians".
Netanyahu approach to Gaza war ‘hurting’ Israel, says Biden
With Gaza's humanitarian crisis growing more dire and Biden's left flank in uproar, the US president made contradictory remarks as...Israel's retaliatory operations in Gaza have killed more than 30,800 people,
Biden was evasive Saturday on the possibility of a new trip to Israel
Israel slams Canada, Sweden for resumption of UNRWA funding
Canada and Sweden announced over the weekend they were resuming funding for the cash-strapped UN agency, weeks after having suspended...Supporting UNRWA, which has been central to humanitarian efforts in the war-ravaged Gaza Strip, was a "serious mistake", the Israeli foreign ministry said in a statement
The renewed aid, according to the Israeli statement, showed that Canada and Sweden had chosen "to ignore the involvement of UNRWA employees in terrorist activity
CIA, Mossad chiefs meet to ‘advance’ hostage release deal
Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagari said Israel was preparing for "all possible operational scenarios" during Ramadan, and that it plans...Benjamin Netanyahu's office said Mossad chief met Friday with the head of the CIA
Israel did not send a delegation to the latest round of truce talks in Cairo
Israelis demand Netanyahu ouster and hostage release
With t-shirts and banners featuring the names and pictures of hostages seized during Hamas's October 7 attack, the crowd demanded...Some protesters called for an immediate ceasefire, a position the government has rejected
A protestor said Netanyahu's government "cannot stay in power" after the October 7 attack
Israeli strike on a Lebanon house kills five, wounds nine
Lebanon's official National News Agency said the Israeli strike on a house in the Khirbet Selm area killed a family...The attack destroyed the house, wounding at least nine others who lived nearby
A Lebanese couple and their son were killed in an Israeli strike on Tuesday
Thousands rally in London seeking a truce in Gaza
London, UK - Thousands of protesters marched in central London on Saturday to call for a ceasefire in Gaza amid ongoing...The march, from Hyde Park Corner to the US Embassy, was the fifth major demonstration of the year so far in the capital.
However, marches protesting Israeli assault in Gaza have seen dozens arrested for anti-Semitic chanting and banners.
Aid boat ready to set sail from Cyprus for Gaza
A boat laden with food for Palestinians in war-ravaged Gaza was "ready" to set sail from Cyprus, an NGO said,...The UN has repeatedly warned of looming famine, particularly in the Palestinian territory's north where no overland border crossings are open.
With ground access limited, countries have also turned to airdropping aid, although a parachute malfunction turned one delivery on Friday deadly.
High inflation leaves Nigeria struggling ahead of Ramadan
Lagos, Nigeria - The holy fasting month of Ramadan begins early next week in Nigeria, with the worst economic crisis in...With food inflation at around 35 percent, worshipers taking part in Friday prayers at the central mosque in Lagos said they were barely able to provide for their families
The government brought in reforms last year that have had a devastating effect on citizens of Africa's biggest economy, where around half the population is Muslim
