Manama, Bahrain--Bahrain will support Arab tourism in order to enhance social, cultural and historical integration among Arab people, according to Fatima bin Jaafar Al Sairafi, Bahrain's Minister of Tourism.According to the minister, this would raise the contribution of the tourism sector to Arab countries’ national development.In a statement to the...

The shooters were "neutralized", police said, and an AFP photographer later saw two bodies at the scene of the attack on a highway east of Jerusalem, where five cars were riddled with bullets. "The three terrorists... got out of their vehicle and started shooting automatic weapons at vehicles that were...

The International Court of Justice is holding a week of hearings after a request from the UN, with an unprecedented 52 countries giving their views on Israel's occupation. Most speakers have demanded that Israel end its occupation, which came after a six-day Arab-Israeli war in 1967, but Washington came to...

"The recognition of a Palestinian state is not a taboo for France," he said at a joint press conference in Paris with Jordan's King Abdullah II. Macron also repeated a warning against Israel attacking the city of Rafah, the southernmost point in the besieged and bombarded Palestinian territory of Gaza.

In a post in Hebrew on social media platform X, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the Jewish country will continue to oppose unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state. Such recognition, in his opinion, would offer an "enormous reward to unprecedented terrorism.

Jeddah, UAE--The Arab Tourism Organization (ATO) has signed a partnership agreement with the International Strategic Management (ISM) company to achieve growth and innovation within the tourism sector in Arab countries. The agreement comes as an extension of the ATO’s efforts to develop and enhance the tourism industry in the Arab...

Despite maintaining its ties with Israel since the Israel-Hamas war began in October, the UAE has been at pains to express solidarity with Palestinians as anger mounted in the Arab world over the conflict.

Dubai, UAE -- International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief Kristalina Georgieva has forecasted that the total GDP growth for the Middle East region would reach 2.9 percent this year, surpassing the figures from 2023.Speaking on the sidelines of the pre-summit day of WGS 2024's Eighth Arab Fiscal Forum, Georgieva emphasized the...

The value of certificates of origin issued stood at US$65m.

Cairo, Egypt - Nestled in the heart of the historic capital here, a cultural center synonymous with the city's art scene has been razed, the latest heritage site torn down for contentious development projects.Authorities have been aggressively remaking parts of Cairo, a longtime cultural beacon of the Arab world, to expand...

"First of all, they are not proportional. All of these constitute disproportionate use of force," Erdogan told journalists after Friday prayers in Istanbul. Oman, a mediator in attempts to end Yemen's long-running civil war, expressed its "worry" at the strikes on Houthi rebel military targets that, according to the Houthis,...

Among the Arab countries, Egypt recorded the highest debt-to-GDP ratio of 92.7 percent while US and China are on an unsustainable fiscal path.

Antony Blinken will leave Washington on Thursday evening on a trip that will include Israel, marking his fourth trip to the region and fifth to Israel since Hamas fighters carried out the deadliest-ever attack inside Israel on October 7. No details have been offered about which Arab country he will...

According to United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, it had received reports of up to three explosions 1-5 nautical miles from the merchant vessel, which was travelling between the coasts of Eritrea and Yemen. The US Central Command later said Houthi rebels had fired two anti-ship ballistic missiles into the southern...

London, UK - Britain's former prime minister Tony Blair has strongly denied an Israeli media report linking him to talks last week about the resettlement of Palestinians from Gaza in other countries.Channel 12 claimed on Sunday that Blair, who left office in 2007 and served as a Middle East envoy charged...

DUBAI, UAE – Egypt stands as the most populous Arab country with 113 million people, marking it the 14th largest population worldwide, according to a recent overview by the World Population Review and Worldometer.The data, highlighting population sizes of various countries worldwide, pointed out that the global population has reached...

Abu Dhabi, UAE - The United Arab Emirates was named the most economically competitive nation in the Arab world, a report on Arab Economic Competitiveness Index released by the Arab Monetary Fund (AMF).UAE's sustained progress across crucial sectors, including its economy and investment environment are said to be the reasons...

New York, USA - The UN General Assembly (UNGA) adopted a resolution by 185 votes on 'The UN Human Rights Training and Documentation Center for South-West Asia and the Arab Region'.Qatar sponsored and facilitated negotiations every two years since its establishment in 2008, with its headquarters in Doha.Sheikha Al Maha...

The outcome of the December 10-12 poll was widely expected after the former army chief with a fondness for infrastructure mega-projects campaigned against a small field of relative unknowns. It secures 69-year-old Sisi his third and, according to the Egyptian constitution, final term in office, starting in April and set...

The vote is expected to consolidate the position of the ruling Coordination Framework coalition, an Iran-aligned bloc that brings together Shiite Islamist parties with factions of Hashed al-Shaabi, a network of former paramilitary units integrated into the regular army.

Filippo Grandi, head of the UN refugee agency, warned Wednesday that pushing Gazans across the frontier would be "extremely destabilizing for Egypt". "It's very important to insist that this evacuation of people beyond (the border) must not be promoted, must not be advanced, forced," the UNHCR chief told journalists in...

At the annual Doha Forum that ended Monday, Qatar reiterated that no Arab country would send in forces to stabilize the situation after the guns of Israel and Hamas fall silent.

Speaking at the 12th Arab Energy Conference organized by the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC), Qatar's Energy Minister Saad bin Sherida Al Kaabi stressed the importance of addressing energy security challenges and called for increased investments in energy efficiency, low-carbon technologies, and renewable energy sources.

Istanbul, Turkey - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday denounced the UN Security Council after the United States vetoed a ceasefire resolution for Gaza, describing the international body as the 'Israel protection council'."Since October 7, the security council has become an Israel protection and defense council," Erdogan said.The United States on...

MOSCOW, RUSSIA - The chief of Russia’s foreign intelligence service, or SVR, believes the Arab world will take center stage in the struggle for a new world order next year.Sergey Naryshkin believes that in the Arab countries "the globalist elites’ ambitions to play the role of an international hegemon, which...

Santiago, Chile - Thousands of miles from the Middle East, in a stadium in Santiago, Chile, the nation of Palestine exists, if only for the 90 minutes of a soccer match.Chileans and Palestinians created that alternate reality again on Thursday when Club Deportivo Palestino, which traces its origins to Palestinian immigrants...

Cairo, Egypt - Tunisian film star Hend Sabri has resigned as World Food Program goodwill ambassador in protest at what she called the use of starvation as a weapon of war in Gaza.Sabri, a leading figure in Arab cinema, said that she had decided with "a heavy heart and deep sadness"...

Dubai, UAE -- The United Arab Emirates (UAE) holds nearly 40 percent of the aircraft fleet in the Arab region, Director-General of the Arab Civil Aviation Organisation (ACAO) Abdennabi Manar said.Speaking to the Emirates News Agency (WAM) on the sidelines of the ongoing third International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Conference...

The Israeli army said its forces conducted "counterterrorism activities" in the city, during which "engineering vehicles uncovered explosive devices planted on routes to attack the forces". "In addition, soldiers questioned and apprehended wanted suspects, and during exchanges of fire with armed assailants, a number of the assailants were killed," the...

Erdogan returned from a summit on Saturday of Arab and Muslim leaders in the Saudi capital Riyadh, which condemned Israeli forces' "barbaric actions" in Gaza without approving concrete punitive measures. He is due to visit Germany on Friday and plans to travel to Egypt and host Iran's president in the...

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - Saudi Foreign Ministry said on Saturday that the Kingdom will hold a joint Arab Islamic extraordinary summit here instead of two summits.“In response to the unprecedented circumstances in Gaza, and after consultation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with the League of the Arab States and...

The suffering and death in Gaza has prompted growing calls for a halt in five weeks of fighting in order to protect civilian lives in the densely populated territory. French President Emmanuel Macron called on Israel to stop bombing civilians in Gaza, saying there was "no justification" and the deaths...

The high-level meeting in Cairo comes ahead of Saturday's summits in Saudi Arabia, where Arab and Muslim leaders are expected to press for an end to more than a month of fighting.

The emergency meetings of the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation come after over one month of Israeli bombardment has killed more than 10,000 people in Gaza, many of them children, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. With Israel's leaders rebuffing talk of a ceasefire until the captives...

Over 760,000 Palestinians fled or were driven from their homes in what is referred to by Palestinians as the "Nakba" (catastrophe in Arabic). Around 180,000 fled to Gaza, with the rest scattered across the West Bank and neighboring Arab countries, specifically Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.

Manama, Bahrain - In a convenience store in Bahrain, 14-year-old Jana Abdullah carries a tablet as she shops, checking a list of Western brands to avoid as Israel pounds Gaza in its campaign to destroy Hamas.Jana and her 10-year-old brother, Ali, used to eat at McDonald's nearly daily but they are...

Leading Arab opposition to Israel's planned invasion of the Gaza Strip, Saudi Arabia has denounced "any ground operations" due to the threat posed to Palestinian civilians. The kingdom's foreign ministry cautioned against the danger of continuing to "carry out these blatant and unjustified violations of international law against the brotherly...

In the latest violence, four Palestinians were killed in Jenin and one in Qalqilya, both in the northern West Bank. One Palestinian was also killed in Qalandia, just north of Jerusalem. The health ministry blamed Israeli "bullets and missiles".

Antonio Guterres addressed a Cairo summit and pleaded for a "humanitarian ceasefire" in the war between Israel and Hamas fighters that has caused devastation in much of Gaza. He said the Palestinian enclave of 2.4 million people was living through a humanitarian catastrophe with thousands dead and more than a...

Abir Bakr, a lawyer for Palestinian singer Dalal Abu Amneh who was arrested briefly four days ago, told AFP her client "went to the police station to file a complaint after she received hundreds of messages in both English and Arabic threatening her and her family with death".

Frankfurt, Germany - The postponement of a Palestinian author's award ceremony at the Frankfurt Book Fair due to the Israel-Hamas conflict triggered condemnation Monday from high-profile authors, while several Arab publishing groups withdrew.The annual fair is the world's biggest publishing trade event, bringing together thousands of book industry players and authors.After...

At least nine Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire in the occupied West Bank during rallies in solidarity with war-battered Gaza, the Palestinian health ministry said. AFP correspondents and a security official reported clashes in Ramallah, Nablus, Tulkarem, Hebron and other cities, nearly a week after Hamas attacked southern Israel.

"No to the occupation! No to America!" chanted demonstrators gathered in central Baghdad after Shiite leader Moqtada Sadr called for a protest "in support of Gaza" and against Israel, an AFP journalist reported.

Beirut, Lebanon -- In mosques, football stadiums and towns across the Arab world, pro-Palestinian sentiment has surged after a shock Hamas attack on Israel, sparking a groundswell of solidarity for the Palestinians.From Ramallah to Beirut, Damascus, Baghdad and Cairo, people have distributed sweets, danced and chanted prayers in support of...

Tulkarem, Palestinian Territories - Israeli forces killed two Palestinian fighters in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, the Palestinian health ministry said, as the Israeli army confirmed its soldiers had been engaged in a shootout.The army also said five Israeli police officers were wounded by an explosive device in a separate...

The Biden administration made the decision after Israel in July promised a series of steps to comply with longstanding US demands to treat all US passport holders equally -- without discriminating against Americans who are of Palestinian or other Arab heritage or who are Muslim. Visa-free travel marks "a critical...

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, a former army chief, has ruled for nearly a decade in the Arab world's most populous country, which is now mired in a deep economic crisis. Experts had predicted Sisi would move forward the 2024 election, ahead of a possible switch to a flexible exchange rate...

Yinchuan, China--The sixth China-Arab States Expo commenced today in Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, marking yet another chapter in the ever-expanding economic and trade nexus between China and its Arab counterparts.Spanning a sprawling 40,000 square meters, the Expo boasts an offline exhibition arena with participation from over 1,000...

Netanyahu, who has repeatedly used the UN stage to issue dark warnings about Tehran, briefly gave pause at the General Assembly when he appeared to threaten nuclear attack if Tehran pursues its own atomic bomb. "Above all -- above all -- Iran must face a credible nuclear threat. As long...

Dubai, UAE -- Dubai has maintained its ranking among the top five global maritime centres on the 2023 International Shipping Centre Development (ISCD) Index for the fourth consecutive year.The city also earned the top rank for sea freight and logistics services in the Arab world, as per the latest report...