A Syrian official said Saturday that the selection process planned for a transitional parliament next month will be postponed in Druze-majority Sweida and two Kurdish-held provinces.

Brussels, Belgium -- Members of the European Parliament have approved two proposals to provide Egypt and Jordan with loans worth €4 billion ($4.32 billion) and €500 million, respectively. The Parliament adopted the macro-financial assistance to Egypt with 452 votes in favor, 182 against and 40 abstentions. The proposal for Jordan...

Kuwait entered new political turbulence in May when the 83-year-old emir, Sheikh Meshal al-Ahmad al-Sabah, dissolved parliament just six weeks after elections. He also suspended some provisions of the constitution. He then named the second government since he took over as head of state in December.

The state's ruler attributed his move to the "interference" of some MPs in the emir's powers and others imposing "conditions" on helping to form a government. "We have faced difficulties and obstacles that cannot be tolerated," he said in a speech broadcast on state television.

Kuwait City, Kuwait - Opposition lawmakers maintained a majority in Kuwait's parliament, results showed Friday, after the Gulf state's third parliamentary vote in as many years held just months into the new emir's reign. Opposition candidates won 29 seats in the 50-member assembly, according to results carried by the official KUNA...

"We have to think seriously about doing it this semester," Sanchez told a group of Spanish journalists accompanying him on a tour of three Middle East countries Sanchez had said on March 9 he would propose that parliament vote in favor of this recognition by the end of the current...

Abu Dhabi, UAE-- The UAE and Russia have held talks to enhance the parliamentary cooperation between the two countries. In this connection, a remote meeting was held between Dr. Ali Rashid Al Nuaimi, Chairman of the Defence, Interior and Foreign Affairs Committee of the Federal National Council (FNC), and Grigory...

Kuwait City, Kuwait--Kuwait dissolved parliament on Thursday after a protracted stalemate between cabinet ministers and lawmakers dragged on despite the accession of a new emir in December. The official KUNA news agency said a "royal decree was issued to dissolve the national assembly" elected last June following a proposal by the...

The parliament ratified by a huge majority of 92 votes out of 133 an amendment to an article that prohibited the central bank from financing the public treasury. The new measure allows the central bank to lend the state US$2.2 billion to be repaid without interest in 10 years after...

Abdullah al-Yahya, a former ambassador to Argentina, was named in the coveted role as part of a hand-picked cabinet of 13 led by Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed Sabah al-Salem Al-Sabah. It is the first government under emir Sheikh Meshal al-Ahmed Al-Sabah, who came to power last month after the death...

Sheikh Meshal al-Ahmed Al-Sabah, who was sworn in as emir last month, named Sheikh Mohammed Sabah al-Salem Al-Sabah, a popular ex-foreign minister, as the new premier. He replaces Sheikh Ahmed Nawaf al-Ahmed al-Sabah, son of the late emir whose death has raised hopes of a political shift in the country.

Sweden and Finland bids earned approval from all NATO members except Turkey and Hungary. They remain the only NATO members left to ratify Sweden's bid 19 months after it applied for membership. Sweden and Finland dropped decades of military non-alignment and sought to join the organisation after Russia invaded Ukraine...

Officially taking over from his half-brother Sheikh Nawaf, who passed away on Saturday, Sheikh Meshal is faced with the task of pulling the country out of longstanding political paralysis and reforming a bloated public sector that have turned Kuwait into one of the Gulf's most laggard states.

"With great sadness and sorrow, we mourn... the death of Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, Emir of the State of Kuwait," said a statement aired on Kuwaiti state television. In November, Sheikh Nawaf was admitted to the hospital "due to an emergency health problem", according to the official KUNA news agency.

Around 80,000 Lebanese serve in the army, which is seen as a key pillar of the country's stability. The force is also deployed in the country's south, which has seen deadly exchanges of fire, mainly between the Israeli army and the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement, since the Israel-Hamas war began in...

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said on X, formerly Twitter, that she welcomed the agreement to "protect those who try to reveal inconvenient truths".

Carrying placards and waving Palestinian flags, thousands of protestors chanted slogans before Canada's Parliament in Ottawa, demanding a permanent ceasefire in the fighting between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Among the protestors were people from diverse backgrounds: Arabs, Muslims, Jews, anti-war, labor and social justice organizations.

The group, in a statement, said that Abbas Raad, son of the head of Hizbollah's parliamentary bloc Mohammed Raad, was "martyred on the road to Jerusalem". Later Hizbollah issued separate statements with the identities and photographs of four other fighters who were also killed. The group and Israel have been...

Military units "took over the Hamas parliament, the government building, the Hamas police headquarters and an engineering faculty that served as an institute for the production and development of weapons," the army said in a statement.

Tunis, Tunisia - Tunisia's parliament on Thursday began debating a bill that would criminalize any normalization of ties with Israel as fighting rages between Israeli forces and Gaza's Hamas rulers. The draft bill defines "normalization" as "recognition of the Zionist entity or the establishment of direct or indirect ties" with it,...

Tunis, Tunisia - The leader of Tunisian opposition party Ennahdha, Rached Ghannouchi, 82, had his jail sentence on terrorism-related charges raised to 15 months on appeal, his party said in a statement on Tuesday. An earlier ruling in May had sentenced Ghannouchi to 12 months in jail with the same fine...

Moscow, Russia - Russia will soon discuss revoking the ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, the speaker of the lower house of parliament said Friday. Vyacheslav Volodin made the announcement a day after President Vladimir Putin evoked the possibility of such a move, which could further escalate tensions between...

Israel's top court debated appeals against a law restricting how a prime minister can be removed from office, as current premier Benjamin Netanyahu faces protests against the judicial overhaul. Eleven of the Supreme Court's 15 judges sat to hear three appeals against legislation passed by parliament in March.

French President Emmanuel Macron's special envoy urged Lebanese factions to find a "third way" for electing a new president, warning that France and its allies were losing patience after a year of deadlock. "The life of the Lebanese state itself is at risk," Jean-Yves Le Drian, a former foreign minister,...

"Today India has awakened with a new consciousness," Modi said in the central hall of the old parliament building before leading fellow legislators by foot across to the new complex. Modi's Hindu-nationalist government called a special session of parliament to match the relocation, which coincides with the beginning of a...

"We condemn the decision of the Tunisian authorities to refuse entry for the delegation," the delegation, made up of five MEPs, said in a statement. "This conduct is unprecedented since (Tunisia's) democratic revolution in 2011", it said.

Cairo, Egypt-- Arab Parliament on Monday endorsed the call for victims of terrorism in the Arab world to be supported "financially and economically" to overcome tragedies. The parliament said that those affected by the evil claws of terrorism in the Arab world must be supported to overcome their tragedies. The...

Kakar's first task will be to choose a cabinet to run the country as it heads into an election period that could last for months. Parliament was officially dissolved last week, with elections due within 90 days according to the constitution.

New Delhi, India -- The UAE ranks first among the countries in the world in the employment of Indians, currently employing more than 3.55 million people from the world's most populous country, India's Minister of State for External Affairs, V Muraleedharan, told parliament. The number of Indians in the UAE...

New Delhi, India--The Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) signed with the UAE and operationalized last year is a “special achievement for India’s foreign and trade policy,” India's Minister of State for External Affairs, Dr. Rajkumar Ranjan Singh, told Lok Sabha, the lower House of India’s Parliament yesterday. He was answering...

Two men set the Quran alight outside parliament in Stockholm at a protest similar to previous ones that have sparked tensions between Sweden and Middle Eastern countries. Salwan Momika and Salwan Najem kicked and stomped on the Muslim holy book, then set its pages on fire before slamming it shut.

The bill must also be approved by the senate before being ratified by King Abdullah II and published in the official gazette.

During Tuesday's protest, Ennahdha spokesman Imed Khemiri denounced "the return of a policy of intimidation... which restricts freedom of expression and impacts the media".

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his coalition allies approved the bill in a Knesset vote boycotted by opposition lawmakers, some of whom shouted "shame, shame". Critics charge the judicial revamp could open the way to more authoritarian government by removing checks and balances on the Israeli executive.

Opponents have accused Netanyahu, who is on trial on corruption charge he denies, of trying to use the reforms to quash possible judgements against him. The prime minister has rejected the accusation.

"Once the data act enters into force, it will unlock the economic and societal potential of data and technologies and contribute to an internal market for data," said Sweden's minister for public administration Erik Slottner.

Almost 2,000 supporters gathered in Ain Zhalta, in the Druze heartland of the Chouf mountains, where members of the Progressive Socialist Party named the lawmaker as their new leader. The PSP was founded by Taymur's grandfather Kamal and has become all but synonymous with the Druze community.

Kuwait City, Kuwait-- Kuwait's Crown Prince Sheikh Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah urged parliament members to focus on reforms "for the sake of Kuwait" with objective of meeting aspirations of citizens to achieve prosperous future. "We are facing a new phase" during which MPs should focus on reforms, a phase full...

Switzerland's parliament will probe the government-orchestrated takeover of the stricken Credit Suisse bank by larger rival UBS. A parliamentary commission of inquiry will be established to shed light on how the Swiss authorities rapidly stitched together the merger of the wealthy Alpine country's two biggest banks over a weekend in...

Lawmakers from opposition won 29 of the 50 seats up for grabs in the election, according to results announced by the official Kuwait News Agency. The vote on Tuesday came after Kuwait's constitutional court in March annulled the results of last year's election -- in which the opposition made significant...

Polls opened on Tuesday in Kuwait's seventh general election in just over a decade, following repeated political crises that have undermined parliament and stalled reforms. More than 793,000 eligible voters will have the chance to determine the make-up of the 50-seat legislature in the Gulf state.

European Central Bank president Christine Lagarde said that a closely watched measure of eurozone inflation does not appear to have peaked yet, fueling expectations of further interest rate hikes. She told a hearing of the European parliament that the latest data suggests "indicators of underlying inflationary pressures remain high.

The UN-recognized Government of National Unity said the strikes hit "hideouts used by gangs of smugglers in fuel, narcotics and humans" and that they were ordered by interim PM Abdulhamid Dbeibah. But the country's parliament accused the Tripoli-based government of targeting the home of one of its lawmakers Ali Bouzribah,...

Kuwait - Kuwait's Constitutional Court has upheld a previous ruling that declared the September 2022 parliamentary election void, in which the opposition had made gains, Reuters reported.  The court rejected an appeal against this decision, which was filed by members of the 2022 parliament who argued that the court had...

Lawmakers came to blows in Iraqi Kurdistan's parliament in a dispute between the two biggest parties over the upcoming polls in the autonomous northern region. Parliamentarians were seen climbing desks and tearing up papers in a video posted to the legislature's YouTube channel, while footage shared by Iraqi media showed...

Parliament also announced an investigation into Bashagha. The chamber, backed by military strongman Khalifa Haftar, had picked Bashagha in February last year to lead a government to replace that of Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah, who sits in Tripoli.

Kuwait City, Kuwait -- At least 31 Kuwaitis have filed candidacy papers for Kuwait's National Assembly election set to take place on June 6.  The candidates presented their documents to the election affairs department affiliated with the Ministry of Interior on Saturday, bringing the total number of candidates to 61,...

Kuwait City, Kuwait -- Dozens of candidates have submitted their candidacy documents for Kuwait's National Assembly election, set to take place on June 6.  At least 31 Kuwaitis presented their documents to the election affairs department affiliated with the Ministry of Interior on Saturday, bringing the total number of candidates...

Iran's parliament voted in an impeachment session to remove the industry minister amid soaring prices as the Islamic republic's economy reels under the pressure of international sanctions. Reza Fatemi Amin failed to garner enough support in a vote of confidence that saw 162 MPs vote in favor of his removal...

Jordan's foreign ministry said that Israel has arrested Imad Adwan, a member of parliament, suspected of smuggling weapons and gold into the occupied West Bank. The ministry said that Amman is following the case and that he has been arrested "for interrogation in a case concerning alleged smuggling of quantities...