This week the surge of the Omicron variant has led the countries to impose a series of further restrictions in the Middle East. So far, the Omicron variant has been detected in Israel, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and only today
The Suez Canal Authority reported that the Ever AIM, a giant container ship sister of the one who blocked the Suez Canal early this year, successfully made it through the canal as part of a south-north convoy. Retailers in the continent of
Thousands of migrant workers have worked under alleged abusive labor practices in the preparation for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, according to Amnesty International’s statement regarding Qatar’s new labor reforms. The labor reforms were said to have been updated, with
Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi has claimed to know who carried out the 7th of November drone attack on his home while leading a cabinet meeting. “We will pursue those who committed the crime. We know them well,” he told the group
Extreme weather conditions are an annual event in the Middle East Floods or extreme heat are weather phenomena that are already part of everyday life in Europe. However, climate change has not only left its mark on Europe. The Middle East
The green era will find its way to a climate neutral Saudi Arabia in 2060 Countries like Saudi Arabia have so far been seen as a roadblock on achieving climate neutrality. An official U-turn has taken place in Saudi Arabia since
On October 26, the U.S. State Department approved its first sale to Saudi Arabia, which has caused some controversy and criticism of the Biden administration. The sale included 280 AIM-120C-7/C-8 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAM), 596 LAU-128 Missile Rail Launchers (MRL)
The Royal Air Force’s participation in a military exercise in the Middle East did not go unnoticed. They joined the US Air Force, Israeli Air Force, Emirates Air Force, and other air forces in military exercises. It was another episode in a
In mid-October, Azerbaijani leader Ilham Aliyev laid into Iranian officials in a short video. He wore a military uniform and said, “Don’t make us angry. Calm down. If you say something about us in the media again, we will walk over your
Iran’s petrol distribution network was completely parlayed in a cyberattack a few days ago. Iran’s intranet-based petrol system was targeted which allows motorists to purchase subsidized fuel using smart cards which have been issued by the government. The majority of Iranians depend
A former senior Saudi intelligence officer has claimed that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is a “psychopath with no empathy” who once boasted that he could kill the kingdom’s ruler at the time, King Abdullah, and replace him with his own father. In an
In a recent press conference, Secretary of State Antony Blinken – along with his counterparts from Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) – advised Iran that “time is running short” for them to re-enter the 2015 nuclear deal agreement that put
Iran has amassed more than 120kg of 20% enriched uranium, well above the level agreed to in the 2015 deal with world powers, the head of the country’s atomic energy agency has told state television. “We have passed 120 kilograms,” said Mohammad
A report by Tactics Institiute For Security and Counter Terrorism criticised the continued money laundering activities in United Arab Emirates and called for strict rules to be implemented to end the phenomenon. The report claimed that UAE has failed in dealing with
The former UK ambassador to Afghanistan Sir Nicholas Kay has said the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office is playing catch-up with other countries as the Taliban assume power there, as he also became the first senior diplomat to call for a lessons learned inquiry
It all began so beautifully, with the ruler of Dubai photographed planting the first tree of his ambitious environmental initiative, as smiling officials applauded around him. In 2010, the One Million Trees initiative was announced by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, the vice president and prime
The first 20 minutes of Hogir Hirori’s extraordinary documentary has the beat of a gripping thriller, full of hushed voices, car chases, and the terrifying sounds of gunfight. Much of it shot at night, the film follows Mahmud, a member of an
The Taliban have claimed a huge symbolic victory after their fighters seized a large city for the first time in northern Afghanistan as part of a seemingly unstoppable offensive in which they have captured five provincial capitals in just three days. Armed men swept
Men who boarded and seized a ship in the Gulf of Oman have left the vessel and all those remaining on board are safe, officials say. A UK maritime security agency said the potential hijacking of the Panama-flagged MV Asphalt Princess had
Denmark’s attempt to return hundreds of Syrians to Damascus after deeming the city safe will “set a dangerous precedent” for other countries to do the same, say lawyers who are preparing to take the Danish government to the European court of human rights (ECHR)
Zeynab Serekaniye, a Kurdish woman with a gap-toothed smile and a warm demeanor, never imagined she’d join a militia. The 26-year-old grew up in Ras al-Ayn, a town in north-east Syria. The only girl in a family of five, she liked to fight
Israel is offering a booster shot of Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine to adults with weak immune systems, but says it is still weighing up whether they should be given to the general public. The rapid spread of the Delta variant has fuelled a rise in
Donald Rumsfeld, secretary of defense under George W Bush, who died on 30 June at the age of 88, enjoyed one all-important attribute, which was to appear larger than he actually was. He enhanced his comparatively diminutive 5ft 8in stature with the aid of
Israel hit Islamist militant sites in Gaza with airstrikes on Friday in retaliation for incendiary balloon launches from the Palestinian enclave, in the latest unrest since a ceasefire ended May’s conflict. Security sources with Hamas, the Islamist group that runs Israeli-blockaded Gaza, said the
The UK transport secretary has refused to say he would book a foreign holiday for himself and his family yet, even as travel restrictions are eased for several destinations. Grant Shapps warned anyone looking to travel abroad that the rules could change
In early April, inmates at Bahrain’s Jau prison crowded into the corridors to protest. They were angry about a lack of medical treatment and fearing for their lives after the death of another inmate. Their sit-in at building 13 lasted 10 days,
Boris Johnson has been accused of putting trade before torture after he met senior Bahraini officials in Downing Street to discuss a free trade deal with the Gulf states. Neither the Foreign Office nor Downing Street advertised the meeting with the country’s
Saudi Arabia has announced that this year’s hajj pilgrimage will be limited to 60,000 vaccinated people from within the kingdom because of the coronavirus pandemic. The kingdom ran a reduced pilgrimage last year, but still allowed a small number of people to
Israeli police have blocked a planned march by Jewish nationalists through Palestinian neighbourhoods of Jerusalem after a similar parade last month played a key role in building the tensions that led to the latest Gaza conflict. In a statement, police said a permit for
Iran and the UN’s nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), have overcome their differences to seal a one-month “stop-gap” extension of limited UN inspections of Iran’s nuclear activities. The agreement, lasting until 24 June, comes despite the speaker of the
Israel and Palestinian militants halted their fire for several hours early on Thursday amid efforts to reach a truce, although intense rocket fire and further airstrikes throughout the day dashed hopes of an imminent ceasefire. It was not immediately clear if the
Israeli police have stormed the sacred Jerusalem compound that holds the Dome of the Rock amid mounting international concern over the worsening violence in the city. Following the most serious clashes in the city since 2017, the Palestine Red Crescent reported 305
A senior diplomat at the Swiss embassy in Tehran has been found dead after falling from a high-rise building where she lived in the north of the city, a spokesman for emergency services was quoted as saying by Iranian news agencies. The
Iraq’s interior ministry has said 82 people died and 110 were injured in a catastrophic fire that broke out in the intensive care unit of a Baghdad hospital tending to severely ill coronavirus patients. Negligence on the part of hospital authorities has
Recent secret talks reportedly held between Iran and Saudi Arabia focused on the war in Yemen, and ways to end a conflict that is one of the most dire humanitarian disasters in the world and poses a lingering security threat to the Saudi kingdom. An unnamed Iranian
France, Germany and the UK have warned that Iran took a dangerous step towards the production of a nuclear weapon by enriching uranium to levels for which there is no “credible civilian need”. Tehran, which claims its nuclear ambitions are limited to creating energy, announced
Jordan’s king has claimed authorities foiled an act of sedition with the weekend arrests of a former crown prince and 17 other people, describing the events as the “most painful” ordeal of his reign. “Nothing can come close to the shock and the pain
At the peak of Israel’s Covid vaccination drive, the halls of a huge basketball arena in Jerusalem were filled with people, each anxiously waiting up to two hours until their number was called. More than 3,000 people a day were being vaccinated
Joe Biden has said the US is looking at what it can do to help free the 400-metre container ship Ever Given from its position blocking the Suez canal as the trade route crisis stretched into a fifth day. “We have equipment and capacity
Israel is due to hold its fourth round of elections on Tuesday, although the result could simply extend a two-year-long political stalemate and possibly lead to a dreaded fifth vote. Multiple failed attempts to form stable governments after largely inconclusive previous elections
The British wife of Syria’s ruler, Bashar al-Assad, is facing possible terrorism charges and the loss of her British citizenship after the Metropolitan police opened a preliminary investigation into claims she has incited, aided and encouraged war crimes by Syrian government forces. Asma
The conflict in Yemen has taken a “sharp escalatory turn” and the country is speeding towards the worst famine the world has seen in decades, UN officials have warned, as the US under Joe Biden takes a renewed interest in finding a diplomatic solution
As Loujain al-Hathloul marked her first day outside prison in nearly three years, Saudi Arabia’s de facto leader, Mohammed bin Salman, was bracing for a reaction from Washington to what amounts to a peace offering on his part. Prince Mohammed views the decision
British officials authorised the export of almost £1.4bn of weapons to Saudi Arabia in the quarter after the UK resumed sales of weapons that could be used in the war in Yemen. Campaigners accused ministers of “putting profit before Yemeni lives” and said the
Israel’s health ministry has said it will offer coronavirus vaccines to anyone over the age of 16, as part of a rapid campaign in which the majority of older and vulnerable people have already received shots. The ministry has told healthcare providers
And journalist Hooman Mirghasemi, an analyst at Iran International TV, warned the US and Iran had come “incredibly close” to a disastrous full-blown war last year – with conflict a possibility even in the last days of the Trump administration. An account in the name of Ayatollah
As if the Boohoo online fashion company had not generated enough controversy in recent months, its bosses once again found themselves in the headlines last week for hosting a four-day meeting with suppliers in the luxurious surroundings of a Dubai hotel. The company’s top
Syria’s White Helmets, who rescue victims from the rubble of airstrikes, have added making personal protective equipment to their efforts saving lives in areas of the country outside Bashar al-Assad’s control. The civil defence service’s uniform-making unit has recently pivoted to manufacturing PPE
The Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, has announced parliamentary and presidential elections, the first in 15 years, in an effort to heal long-standing internal divisions. The move is widely seen as a response to criticism of the democratic legitimacy of Palestinian political institutions,
Israeli airstrikes on east Syria killed 57 regime forces and allied Iran-backed fighters in the deadliest such strikes since the start of the conflict, a war monitoring group said on Wednesday. The overnight raids against arms depots and military positions killed at