Middle East Experience

Kuwait finance minister said that there are “inaccurate statements” that were attributed to him and that public opinion should not be swayed by fake news..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: News of investments in Egypt infuriates Kuwaiti MPs

Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have both reported a spike in the number of COVID-19 cases, the health ministries from the neighboring countries reported on Wednesday.Cases in the Kingdom crossed the 1,000-threshold, recording 1,029 cases on Wednesday, with the most reported in the capital Riyadh at 341 new infections, according to the ministry’s website.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Three new deaths were recorded on Wednesday, bringing the total COVID-19 fatalities to 9,163 in Saudi Arabia.A total of 8,216 cases remain active in the Kingdom, of which 92 are deemed critical by the ministry.A similar trend followed in the UAE which reported 867 new COVID-19 cases, taking the total cases in the country to 912,953 since the start of the pandemic, according to the Emirates News Agency WAM.This marks a significant rise from 572 cases on Tuesday and 597 on Monday.The ministry also reported 637 recoveries on Wednesday, and no deaths from COVID-19 in June. The UAE has reported 2,305 COVID-19-related deaths since the beginning of the pandemic.On June 2, the Gulf country said it achieved a 100 percent vaccination of all targeted categories.Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia has also made great strides in its vaccination drive, with more than 66,230,743 doses administered, marking more than 96 percent of the population dual-vaccinated, according to a Reuters estimate.Saudi Arabia on Saturday welcomed its first batch of foreign Hajj pilgrims since before the coronavirus pandemic, which prompted authorities to sharply restrict the annual ritual in line with global health guidelines.Usually one of the world’s largest religious gatherings, about 2.5 million people participated in 2019.But after the onset of the pandemic in 2020, authorities announced they would only let 1,000 pilgrims take part. The following year, they increased the total to 60,000 fully vaccinated Saudi Arabian citizens and residents chosen through a lottery.In April, the Kingdom announced it would permit one million Muslims from inside and outside the country to participate in this year’s Hajj, which will take place in July.With Reuters & AFPRead more:German FM cuts trip after positive COVID-19 test in PakistanJapan to open to tourists after two years but only with masks, guidesOmicron sub-variant fuels Portugal’s COVID-19 surge
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Saudi Arabia, UAE COVID-19 cases spike as global numbers rise

The Omani ministry of energy and minerals said that it had not recently participated in any technical or commercial talks on the joint field..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Oman denies agreeing to share production with Iran at joint gas field

Placards relating to Turkey were discovered in the car of a man who allegedly drove his car into a group of school children in central Berlin on Wednesday, killing their teacher, a local politician said.“There are said to have been placards inside but there was no letter of confession,” said the city’s state interior minister, Iris Spranger, refuting an earlier media report from Bild daily.A car that drove into a crowd of people in western Berlin killed at least one person and injured 30 others.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.The incident took place near the scene of a fatal attack on December 19, 2016, when Anis Amri, a failed Tunisian asylum seeker with Islamist links, hijacked a truck, killed the driver and then plowed it into a crowded western Berlin Christmas market, killing 11 more people and injuring dozens of others.Read more:At least 17 killed, 50 more injured in train derailment in IranUkraine grain exports capped at two million tons a month if ports remain blockedBritain faces biggest rail strike in decades: Union
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Placards found in car that plowed into school group in Berlin: Politician

The step came as tensions have risen over stalled efforts to revive a 2015 deal that limited Iran’s nuclear activities in exchange for the easing of sanctions..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Iran Turns Off U.N. Surveillance Cameras at Nuclear Site

Completing vaccine schedule urged and wearing masks in crowded indoor spaces is recommended for high-risk patients and those in contact with them.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Omicron subvariants raise COVID-19 infections, no reason to panic - Zarka

Court filings detail the general’s efforts to help Qatar influence US policy in 2017 when a diplomatic crisis erupted between the gas-rich Gulf emirate and its neighbours..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: FBI seizes retired general’s data related to role in Qatar lobbying

This World Cup won't just see the first ever female referees in the history of the tournament, but also a robot referee..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Robo-ref? World Cup 2022 may have 'Robot Linesmen'

The Biden administration has no plans to support efforts to normalize or rehabilitate Syrian President Bashar al-Assad or lift sanctions on the regime, the top US diplomat for the Middle East said Wednesday.Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf told US lawmakers that Assad and “the coterie around him remain the single largest impediment” to a political solution in Syria.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.“The ultimate responsibility for this continued tragedy rests with Bashar al-Assad, backed by Russia and Iran, who brought his country to this terrible state and remains intransigent, refusing to provide Syrians any hope for a better future,” Leaf said in her testimony to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.While the Russian invasion of Ukraine has taken attention away from ongoing wars around the globe, including in Syria, Leaf said she planned to make Syria “a priority” within the State Department.Leaf was recently confirmed to her position after the process had been blocked for one year due to political bickering between Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill.The US diplomat said Washington would use all of its tools to press the Assad regime, including the Caesar Act sanctions.Shocked that Assad was welcomedPlaying down any efforts to rehabilitate Assad, Leaf and two senior senators blasted countries that had welcomed the Syrian president.Leaf said she was “shocked” to see Assad welcomed by the UAE in March. He made his first trip to an Arab country since the outbreak of the Syrian civil war.The top Republican senator on the Foreign Relations Committee, Jim Risch, said the visit was “sickening.”Reports suggest that some Arab states believe that bringing Syria back into the Arab League could drive a wedge between Damascus and Iran.Syria’s membership in the Arab League has been suspended since the war started.“I frankly am wholly skeptical. I think Assad takes from every direction, and he gives nothing in return,” Leaf said when discussing the potential to pull Assad away from Tehran and closer to Arab countries.Read more: US condemns, warns Turkey against plans for military operation in Syria
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: US has no plans to support normalization efforts with Syria’s Assad: Diplomat

Weinstein is currently serving a 23-year prison sentence in the United States after being convicted in 2020.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: UK prosecutors authorize indecent assault charges against Harvey Weinstein