GCC unveils strategic vision for regional stability
For the first time in its 43-year history, the bloc has set a strategic vision that prioritizes diplomacy and dialogue...Geostrategy
Israeli strikes kill dozens in Syria and Lebanon, rile Russia and Iran
In Syria, "Israeli strikes" targeted a Hizbollah "rockets depot" in Aleppo province, killing 36 Syrian soldiers, seven Hezbollah members and...Geostrategy
French energy giant TotalEnergies accused of fuelling Russian bombers
French daily Le Monde said it was able to track the supply chain from the Termokarstovoye gas field in Siberia,...TotalEnergies -- formerly Total -- owns 49 percent of Terneftegaz, the company that extracts gas from the Termokarstovoye field, according to its 2021 annual report.
Beginning days before the war started in late February and through July, 42,700 tonnes of fuel were sent to the airbases at Morozovsk and Malshevo.
US President orders air strikes against ‘Iran-backed militias’ in Syria
The air strikes ordered by US President Joe Biden hit nine bunkers in a complex, in eastern Syria, used for...The US military had originally intended to hit 11 of 13 bunkers in the complex but called off strikes on two after groups of people were seen near them
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights on Wednesday said the strikes killed six fighters that were guarding the targeted facilities
Macron warns ‘sacrifices’ ahead after ‘end of abundance’
After a summer marked by drought, massive wildfires and continuing loss of life in Ukraine, the 44-year-old leader delivered a...The speech appeared designed to prepare the country for what promises to be a difficult winter ahead, with energy prices rising sharply and many families struggling with inflation
The severe drought over the summer, leading to water restrictions across most of the country, has also caused many French people to express fears about the climate change
Iran begins military drone drills to show ‘power’
Iranian army displayed its first division of ships and submarines capable of carrying armed drones in July when US President...The drills, according to Iran, will take place from the Gulf and the Sea of Oman in the south, to the eastern, western, northern and central parts of the country
The US and Israel have previously accused Tehran of using drones and missiles to attack US forces and Israel-linked ships in the Gulf
US says Iran eased demands for nuclear deal
The United States is expected shortly to respond to Iran through European Union mediators, after a year and a half...Biden has supported returning to the accord trashed by former president Donald Trump and Iran has pressed hard in negotiations in Vienna
The senior US official said Iran would again face "the most comprehensive inspections regime ever negotiated
Algeria detains ex-premier in crackdown on corruption
Noureddine Bedoui, the former prime minister of Algeria, has been detained on court orders, two days after another court had...Bedoui, who served as interior minister, was seen as an unwavering Bouteflika loyalist and was despised by the Hirak protest movement that toppled them both
After Bouteflika's fall, prosecutors launched graft investigations against people in his close circle, which led to several other top figures receiving hefty prison sentences
Kuwait central bank issues $792 bonds, tawarruq for three months
The Central Bank of Kuwait (CBK) has issued bonds and related Tawarruq worth Kuwaiti Dinar 240 million ($792 million) payable...The bank said in a statement that the new securities have a return rate of 2.625 percent.
Tawarruq is a financing arrangement where the buyer can obtain cash immediately through a series of sale transactions.
Eight more grain silos collapse at blast-ravaged Beirut port
A cloud of dust rose over the port after the collapse, which brought down the last of the northern block...The silos had absorbed much of the impact of the massive explosion of haphazardly stored ammonium nitrate fertiliser that killed more than 200 people on August 4, 2020.
Only 12 of the original 48 silos are still standing, all of them in the southern block, said French civil engineer Emmanuel Durand, who has installed sensors on the silos.
Sadr supporters begin sit-in outside top Iraq judicial body
Several hundred supporters of Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr launched a sit-in outside Iraq's top judicial body on Tuesday, ratcheting up...On August 10, Sadr gave the Supreme Judicial Council one week to dissolve parliament to end the political deadlock
Last week, caretaker Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhemi convened crisis talks with party leaders, but they were boycotted by the Sadrists
Jordan king Abdullah meets Arab leaders in Egypt
The king was received by Egypt President Abdel Fattah El Sisi and a number of senior Egyptian officials on arrival...The king was received by Egypt President Abdel Fattah El Sisi and a number of senior Egyptian officials on arrival at El Alamein International Airport on Egypt’s north coast
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi and visiting President of the UAE, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan underlined the importance of strengthening Arab unity
