MENA brief Jun 11: Umrah returns, ADGM surges, Abu Dhabi property market up
China has extended visa-free entry for up to 30 days to citizens of Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait, and Bahrain—boosting bilateral...Geostrategy
Trump warns of decision time as Iran prepares nuclear counter-proposal
In a key sticking point, Iran has insisted on the right to enrich uranium at low levels for civilian use...Geostrategy
Blinken in Israel to push ceasefire plan for Gaza
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will hold talks with key Israeli opposition figures on Tuesday, a day after he...On Monday, the UN Security Council adopted a US-drafted resolution supporting a six-week ceasefire plan,
Four Israeli soldiers had been killed in fighting in southern Gaza yesterday
Israeli forces kill 4 Palestinians in West Bank
The Israeli military said it shot at a group of four people who attempted to flee in a vehicle and...A general strike was called in Ramallah by Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas in response to the killings, along with a pre-planned rally for Palestinians jailed by Israel
Israel has occupied the West Bank since the 1967 war and hundreds of thousands of settlers have since moved to the Palestinian territory, in breach of international law
Blinken meets Sisi in Cairo at start of Mideast tour
Blinken said his message to regional governments was that "if you want a ceasefire, press Hamas to say yes" to...Blinken said he had a "very good exchange" with Sisi
The two had also been expected to discuss plans to reopen the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza
Blinken returns to Mideast in push for truce
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was heading back to the Middle East on Monday to push a ceasefire plan,...The US also called for a UN Security Council vote on a truce
Overall Israel's military offensive has killed at least 37,084 people in Gaza
Israel army says senior commander resigns over Oct 7 attack
Israel's army said Sunday that a senior commander had resigned over what he called his failure to prevent the October...Rosenfeld wrote in a resignation letter released by the army: "Everyone has to take responsibility for their part, and I am the one responsible in Division 143."
"On October 7, I failed my life's mission: to protect the envelope," he wrote, referring to the southern Israeli communities on the border with Gaza
US destroys drones, missiles in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen
Houthi television channel Al-Massirah meanwhile said there were air strikes in the Yemeni capital Sanaa and elsewhere in the country...The Houthis have been targeting vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since November 2023 in attacks they say are in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza
Houthi attacks have sent insurance costs spiraling for vessels transiting the Red Sea and prompted many shipping firms to take the longer passage around the southern tip of Africa
Israel pounds Gaza refugee camp as war enters ninth month
In a new diplomatic push, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit Israel and key regional partners Egypt, Jordan...Efforts to mediate the first ceasefire in the bloody conflict since a week-long pause in November appear to have stalled a week after US President Joe Biden offered a new roadmap
Hamas has yet to respond to Biden's proposal, while Israel has expressed openness to discussions but remains committed to destroying the Palestinian group
Gaza hospital says 37 dead in strike on UN school Israel says used by Hamas
"The government of Israel has said that they are going to release more information about this strike, including the names...The raid came after US, Qatari and Egyptian mediators resumed talks aimed at securing a truce and hostage-captive swap in the eight-month war
The Israeli military said it had "eliminated" several fighters in a "precise strike on a Hamas compound embedded inside a UNRWA school."
Israeli army claims deadly strike on ‘Hamas compound’ inside UN school in Gaza
The hospital reported an electrical generator failure earlier in the night, which risked complicating the treatment of patients. Prior to...Israeli "fighter jets... conducted a precise strike on a Hamas compound embedded inside an UNRWA school in the area of Nuseirat", the army said in a statement
The Hamas media office said at least 27 people were killed and dozens injured in the strike and taken to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital
Qatar PM, Egypt intelligence chief meet Hamas in Doha
Qatar, with the United States and Egypt, has been engaged in months of negotiations over details for a ceasefire in...The lead mediators met with the Palestinian militant group to "discuss a deal for a truce in Gaza and the exchange of hostages and prisoners."
CIA chief Bill Burns was also expected in Qatar to continue working with mediators to reach an agreement on a cessation of hostilities, the informed source had told AFP
