Deal restored: Hamas, Israel finalize exchange of Palestinian prisoners for bodies of Israeli hostages
Mediators have revived a deal for Israel to release Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the bodies of four Israeli hostages,...Geostrategy
Israel army pulls out of Lebanon border villages, holds five positions: source
Israel's army has pulled out of southern Lebanese villages but remains in five positions as a deadline for the withdrawal...Geostrategy
Over 240,000 Lebanon expats register to vote in polls
Lebanon's diaspora -- estimated to number at least three times the country's 6-million population -- will take part in the...More than 93,000 had registered for the last parliamentary polls in 2018, Lebanon's first expat vote.
Europe accounted for the largest number of registered expat voters, with nearly 75,000, followed by Asia with 61,000 voters
Economic growth of Arab countries this year
This week’s TRENDS Explainer Video highlights how economic growth looks like in the Arab countries this year as per the...Middle Eastern countries responded to the pandemic with swift and stringent measures to mitigate its spread and impact. However, most of them continued to face an uncertain future
Containing the health crisis, cushioning income losses, and expanding social spending had become immediate priorities. Most of the Arab governments, however, managed it well
Iraq and Germany call for stopping networks of human trafficking
Iraq and Germany have said there was a need for moving quickly to stop the networks of human trafficking. Iraqi...Iraqi foreign minister stressed support for voluntary return of migrants stranded along Belarus-Poland border.
The two sides also expressed keenness to strenghten means of bilateral cooperation.
Gaza anger mounts at cost, ‘humiliation’ of outside journeys
The common complaint in Gaza is that the journey, often made on stuffy buses, is made deliberately more arduous and..."Someone from Hamas called and told me to erase everything"
Gaza, an impoverished territory of some two million people, where Hamas fought its most recent war with Israel in May, is a difficult place to enter or leave
Egypt returns to Gaza with post-war reconstruction
Egypt is helping Gaza rebuild after the last bout of fighting between Israel and the Hamas in May.After years of retreat, Egypt is making its presence felt again in the neighboring Palestinian enclave of Gaza
As a result, it is emerging as a key benefactor in the aftermath of the last bout of fighting between Hamas and Israel earlier this year
Lebanese army stops boat carrying 90 people off coast
Women and children were among the group intercepted Friday by a navy patrol off the coast of Qalamoun in northern...Women and children were among the group intercepted Friday by a navy patrol off the coast of Qalamoun in northern Lebanon
The boat almost sank in bad weather but all on board were rescued and taken to the shore, says Lebanese army
Iraq seeks economic bloc with Turkey, Iran; ease in entry visa procedures
A regional economic bloc must be formed and includes Iraq, Turkey and Iran to become a regional power that allows...The Iraqi delegation highlights investment opportunities in the fields of agriculture and health
Baghdad also invites Turkish companies to invest in Iraq and address the water problem in the country
Iraq adopts comprehensive counter-terrorism strategy
Iraq has attributed 'the victory over terrorism' to a comprehensive national strategy that it has adopted to deal with violent...Iraqi foreign minister Fouad Hussein said the victory over terrorism has led the Iraqi government in its various institutions to move towards the reconstruction of liberated cities
"The victory over terrorism has provided us with the transition to important objectives at the internal, regional and international levels"
Iran MP’s office torched after protest remarks
Unidentified assailants torched the office front of an ultraconservative Iranian lawmaker whose recent comments on deadly anti-government protests in 2019...Protesters took to the streets across Iran in November 2019 after a surprise fuel price hike, in Iran's most vocal eruption of public dissent in a decade
Petrol pumps were torched, police stations attacked and shops looted before security forces stepped in amid a near-total internet blackout
Austin says US capable of deploying force in Middle East
The United States warned Saturday it was capable of deploying "overwhelming force" in the Middle East as it faced questions...Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told the Manama Dialogue in Bahrain's capital that all options would be open if diplomacy fails to halt Iran's nuclear program
The Pentagon chief was asked why Washington did not respond to last month's drone-and-artillery attack on a base used by the US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State in Syria
