Middle East Experience

The fate of thousands of arbitrarily detained men and women should not rest in the hands of Egypt’s security agencies, namely the National Security Agency and General Intelligence, Amnesty International said today..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Egypt: Exclude security agencies from reviewing releases of jailed critics

A source close to Eliyahu also told the Post that the rabbi was summoned to the US embassy, asked to give over his passport and then his visa was taken out and the passport returned.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: US revokes visa of Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu

The capital of the United Arab Emirates has begun its ban on single-use plastic bags in its bid to encourage the use of reusable products.Effective as of Wednesday June 1, the Abu Dhabi ban is part of a wider initiative to protect the environment and reduce waste.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.The directive was announced on April 6, by the Abu Dhabi Media Office, and is in line with the Environmental Agency – Abu Dhabi’s (EAD) single-use plastic policy that was introduced in 2020.The ban is, for now, only on single-use plastic shopping bags. There are exemptions for bags designated for medicines in pharmacies, bag rolls for vegetables, meat, fish, chicken, grains and bread, large consumer shopping bags for clothing or electronic gadgets or toys, and waste bags.EAD is implementing measures to reduce demand for about 16 single-use plastic products that include cups, stirrers, lids and cutlery.It will also phase out single-use styrofoam cups, plates and food containers by 2024.It follows a similar announcement from the neighboring emirate of Dubai that it would start applying a 25-fil (6 cent) charge to plastic bags in July, also with the aim of phasing the disposable bags out in two years.The UAE, a major oil producer and the host of next year’s United Nations climate summit, has declared it aims to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.Plastic bags are known as one of the most problematic kinds of garbage, polluting streets and waterways and harming birds and marine creatures.Read more:Abu Dhabi to ban single-use plastic bags from JunePlastic left by campers in UAE’s deserts is killing camels: Vet researcherCOVID couture: Dubai-based designer upcycles Spinneys bags into eco-friendly products
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: UAE’s single-use plastic ban comes into force

Residents who have taken a smallpox vaccine are protected from the monkeypox virus by about 85 percent, health experts based in the United Arab Emirates have told Al Arabiya English.Dr. Gunjan Mahajan, special clinical pathologist at Burjeel Hospital in Dubai, said that human monkeypox infections are rare outside Central and Western Africa where the virus is endemic in animals and “circulates in heavily forested areas.”For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.“But as cases with no known travel links to Africa emerge in several countries, it became a concerning issue.”Dr. Amaka Kate Uzu, family medicine consultant at Bareen International Hospital in Abu Dhabi, echoed Dr. Mahajan’s sentiment.“Since the monkeypox virus is closely associated with the virus that causes smallpox, the smallpox vaccine can also protect individuals from monkeypox,” said the doctor.Monkeypox is a zoonotic virus – meaning it can be transmitted from animals to humans – and comes from a family of viruses which includes the now-eradicated smallpox virus.In the past, vaccines and drugs were developed to treat and eliminate smallpox, and have been known to provide some protection against the monkeypox virus.This has become a particularly concerning over the past month, as more cases began to emerge across the world.Monkeypox was first identified in humans in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1970, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Since then, most cases were reported in rural, heavily forested areas in Congo Basin. The first monkeypox outbreak outside of Africa was identified in the US in 2003 and was linked to pet prairie dogs which were housed with Gambian pouched rats and dormice that were imported from Ghana.The virus’ symptoms are very similar to those seen in smallpox patients in the past and can include skin eruption, fever, swelling of lymph nodes, or lack of energy, lesions, pustules, or vesicles forming on the skin.Who’s at risk? Dr. Mahajan told Al Arabiya English that children, pregnant women, and immunocompromised people were at a higher risk of a monkeypox infection, and, when asked about the virus’ potential to turn into a pandemic, said that it was highly unlikely, especially when compared to COVID-19.“The objective of addressing monkey pox cases is to raise awareness, inform preparedness, and provide guidance for immediate actions like contact tracing, treatment and prevention,” he added.Dr. Uzu added: “According to WHO, monkeypox outbreak is unlikely to lead into a pandemic. However, further investigations about this health condition are still ongoing.”She added that any quick-transmitting virus needs to be “checked and controlled at the beginning” of the outbreak.“The UAE is taking all the necessary precautions in order to make sure these health cases are checked, controlled, and monitored well,” she added.After three cases of the virus were recorded in the UAE earlier this week, the Dubai Health Authority released a circular on Monday, outlining that health professionals and facilities are required to notify the authority of any suspected or confirmed monkeypox cases.How is monkeypox transmitted? “Monkeypox is initially spread to a person through an infected animal in an endemic area, which could occur through a bite or scratch or any contact with the animal’s body or lesion fluids,” said Dr. Mahajan.“Among humans, once infected and symptomatic, they can pass the virus on to others through close physical contact,” he added. “Also, the rash, scabs and fluids from the skin lesions are especially infectious, therefore contaminated clothing or bedding can also spread the virus. Monkeypox virus is not as contagious as COVID-19 and requires extended close contact to transmit the disease.”The fatality rate of monkeypox has historically ranged from zero to 11 percent, but has proven to be much higher in young children, according to WHO. However, the fatality ratio has changed in recent years to around three to six percent.The DHA advises people to wash their hands for at least 20 seconds with soap and water or alcohol-based sanitizer, avoid contact with wild animals (dead or alive), cook meat properly, avoid contact with any objects that have been in contact with a sick animal, avoid contact with any person with a rash or any object that has been in contact with a sick person.The incubation period of the virus usually ranges from seven to 14 days, but can extend to 21 days, the UAE’s health ministry said on Monday.Uzu said studies are still ongoing in terms of monkeypox infection modes and risks. “Monkeypox is a zoonotic disease, hence contact with infected animals like rodents, squirrels, or primates can cause human infections.“The virus enters the body through broken skin even if it is not visible, the respiratory tract, or mucous membranes. Monkeypox does not spread easily among humans.”Read more:Disease experts call on WHO, governments for more action on monkeypoxThree new cases of monkeypox detected in the UAEReports of monkeypox in non-endemic countries suggests undetected transmission: WHO
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Smallpox vaccine offers 85 pct protection against monkeypox virus: UAE experts

In early March, as the US and its allies unleashed a wave of sanctions on Russia, President Joe Biden stood in the White House and said they wanted to deal a “powerful blow” to Putin’s war machine.But as the war in Ukraine approaches its 100th day, that machine is still very much operational. Russia is being propelled by a flood of cash that could average $800 million a day this year — and that’s just what the commodity superpower is raking in from oil and gas.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.For years, Russia has acted as a vast commodity supermarket selling what an insatiable world has needed: Not just energy, but wheat, nickel, aluminum, and palladium too.The invasion of Ukraine has pushed the US and the European Union to rethink this relationship. It’s taking time, though the EU took a further step this week by hammering out a compromise agreement on Russian oil imports.Russia is far from unscathed by the sanctions, which have made it a pariah across the developed world. Corporate giants have fled, many walking away from billions of dollars of assets, and the economy is heading for a deep recession. But Putin can ignore this damage for now, because his coffers are overflowing with the revenue from commodities, which have become more lucrative than ever thanks to the surge in global prices driven in part by the war in Ukraine.Even with some countries halting or phasing out energy purchases, Russia's oil-and-gas revenue will be about $285 billion this year, according to estimates from BloombergEconomics based on Economy Ministry projections. That would exceed the 2021 figure by more than one-fifth. Throw in other commodities, and it more than makes up for the $300 billion in foreign reserves frozen as part of the sanctions. EU leaders know that they should stop buying from Russia and indirectly funding a devastating war on Europe’s doorstep. But for all that ambition, national governments also know there will be repercussions for their own economies.They agreed this week to pursue a partial ban on Russian oil, paving the way for a sixth package of sanctions, but only after weeks of haggling and division.“There are always political constraints on the use of sanctions,” said Jeffrey Schott, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute in Washington.“You want to maximize the pain on your target and minimize the pain on your constituency at home, but unfortunately, that’s easier said than done.”In the US, officials are debating ways to ratchet up the financial pressure, possibly by helping to impose a cap on the price of Russian oil or slapping sanctions on countries and companies still trading with Russian businesses under restrictions. But such secondary sanctions are deeply divisive and risk damaging relations with other countries.The US has already banned Russian oil, but Europe is only slowly weaning itself off this dependency. That is giving Moscow time to find other markets — such as commodity guzzling behemoths China and India — to limit any to damage to export revenue, and its financial war chest. That means the money is gushing into Russia’s accounts, and the financial figures are a constant reminder to the West that dramatic change is needed. Oil-export revenue alone is up 50 percent from a year earlier, according to the International Energy Agency. Russia’s top oil producers made their highest combined profit in almost a decade in the first quarter, Moscow-based SberCIB Investment Research estimates. And wheat exports continue — at higher prices — as sanctions on Russian agriculture aren't even being discussed because the world needs its grain.The current account surplus, the broadest measure of trade in goods and services, more than tripled in the first four months of the year to almost $96 billion. That figure, the highest since at least 1994, mainly reflected a surge in commodity prices, though a plunge in imports under the weight of international sanctions was also a factor. The ruble has become another symbol used by Putin to project strength. Once mocked by Biden as “rubble” when it initially collapsed in response to the sanctions, it has since been propped up by Russia to become the world’s best-performing currency against the dollar this year.Putin has also tried to leverage Russia’s position as a commodity superpower. Amid concern about food shortages, he’s said he’ll allow exports of grain and fertilizer only if the sanctions on his country are lifted.“If the goal of sanctions was to stop the Russian military, it wasn’t realistic,” said Janis Kluge, senior associate for Eastern Europe and Eurasia at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs in Berlin. “It can still fund the war effort, it can still compensate for some of the damage sanctions are doing to its population.”One of the big holes in the sanctions against Russia is the willingness of other nations to continue oil purchases, albeit at a discount in some cases.Indian refiners purchased more than 40 million barrels of Russian oil between the start of the Ukraine invasion in late February and early May. That’s 20 percent more thanRussia-India flows for the whole of 2021, according to Bloomberg calculations based on trade ministry data. Refiners are seeking private deals instead of public tenders to get Russian barrels cheaper than market prices.China is also strengthening its energy links with the country, securing cheaper prices by buying oil that’s being shunned elsewhere. It’s boosted imports and is also in talks to replenish its strategic crude stockpiles with Russian oil.It is a similar story for steelmakers and coking coal. Imports from Russia rose for a third month in April to more than double last year’s level, according to official custom office data. And some sellers of Russian oil and coal have tried to make things easier for Chinese buyers by allowing transactions in yuan.“The vast majority of the world is not involved in imposing sanctions,” said Wouter Jacobs, founder and director of the Erasmus Commodity & Trade Centre at the Erasmus University in Rotterdam. “The trade will go on, the need for fuels will be there and buyers in Asia or the Middle East will step up, he said.”When it comes to gas, Russia has fewer options for diverting supplies, but the countries at the end of pipelines from Russia — some of which run through Ukraine — are also locked into a mutual dependency.About 40 percent of the EU’s gas needs are met by Russia, and this will be the bloc’s hardest link to sever. European deliveries even jumped in February and March as the invasion caused a price spike in European gas hubs, making purchases from Russia’s Gazprom PJSC cheaper for most customers with long-term contracts.Volumes have decreased since then, thanks to warmer weather and record inflows of liquefied natural gas from the US and other countries. There’s also been disruptions because of military activity, and Russia itself halted supplies to Poland, Bulgaria and Finland, which refused Putin’s demand to pay in rubles.Even as the EU reduces its dependency — Germany says it is down to 35 percent from 55 percent — there are complications at every step. Several big buyers of Russian gas have gone out of their way to keep buying the crucial fuel, and utilities such as Italy’s Eni SpA and Germany’s Uniper SE expect supplies to continue.While progress is slow, the direction is only toward more and more restrictions. Even with the uncertain timetable, the pressure on the Russian economy, and Putin’s finances, will eventually mount.The country’s energy sector is also facing an array of other factors beyond demand, from shipping and insurance restrictions to weak domestic demand. Oil production may drop more than 9 percent this year, while gas output may decline 5.6 percent, according to Russian Economy Ministry's base-case outlook.“In the Kremlin there's some optimism and even surprise that the Russian economy didn’t collapse from the onslaught of sanction,” said Tatiana Stanovaya, founder of political consultant R.Politik. “But looking ahead two to three years, there's a lot of questions about how the energy and manufacturing sectors will survive.”Read more:Saudi Arabia ready to help with diplomatic solution in Ukraine: FM to Russia’s LavrovRussia's nuclear forces holding maneuver drills: ReportRussia strikes ‘nitric acid tank’ at chemical plant in Ukraine: Official
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Explainer: How the world is paying for Putin’s war in Ukraine

Saudi Arabia is planning to build the world’s largest buildings in its megacity project NEOM, sources told Bloomberg.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Sources also told Al Arabiya that there are plans for two skyscrapers around 500 meters tall that extend horizontally for tens of miles.The skyscrapers would stretch from the Red Sea coast inland towards the desert and would house a mix of residential, retail, and office space.They would be larger than the world’s current biggest buildings, which are mostly factories or malls. The world’s current tallest man-made structure is the 828-metre-tall (2,717 ft) Burj Khalifa in Dubai.Designers have been asked to work on a half mile-long prototype, current and former NEOM employees told Bloomberg, asking not to be identified as the information is private.NEOM was announced by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in 2017 as part of the Kingdom’s drive to diversify its oil-reliant economy.The Crown Prince intends NEOM to be a futuristic, sustainable community joined together by The Line – a 170 kilometer stretched of car-free communities linked by public transport.“The Line is an out of the box idea,” NEOM CEO Nadhmi al-Nasr told Bloomberg, without commenting on specifics. “What we will present when we are ready to will be very well received, and will be viewed as revolutionary.”The massive buildings would be “different heights as you go,” adapting to the landscape, with their final size determined by engineering considerations and the terrain, he added.Saudi Arabia also began construction on the Jeddah Tower in 2013 – poised to be taller than the world’s current tallest building, Dubai’s Burj Khalifa.The Kingdom is currently home to the world’s fourth-tallest building: The Abraj al-Bait clock tower hotel in Mecca, which is 601 meters tall.“When people talk about The Line, they see a futuristic Hyperloop, Star Wars type of entity,” said Ali Shihabi, a member of NEOM’s advisory board told Bloomberg. “But when The Line was presented to the board, I saw a highly intelligent, well thought-out sustainable modern city that will accommodate from laborers to billionaires and that will be built in stages, so it will follow demand.”Read more:Saudia airline announces commercial flights to Saudi megacity project NEOMSaudi megaproject NEOM will be subject to Kingdom’s regulations: SPASaudi Arabia’s Crown Prince reveals project ‘THE LINE’ in futuristic city of NEOM
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Saudi Arabia plans to build world’s largest buildings in NEOM: Sources

A Yemeni aircraft left the Houthi-held capital Sanaa for Cairo Wednesday on the first commercial flight between the two cities since 2016, the latest gain from a two-month truce that is about to expire.The office of the United Nations special envoy for Yemen told AFP there were 77 people on board the Yemenia flight from Sanaa airport, which has been closed to commercial flights for nearly six years.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.It is the seventh such flight since the UN-brokered truce went into effect on April 2, but the agreement expires on Thursday and talks on extending it have faltered.The six previous flights had all been to the Jordanian capital Amman.Yemen has been gripped by conflict since the Iran-backed Houthis overran Sanaa in 2014, triggering intervention from the Arab Coalition in support of the internationally recognized government the following year.On May 16, a Yemenia plane carrying 126 passengers, including critically ill hospital patients and their relatives, became the first commercial flight to leave Sanaa since August 2016.Air traffic into Sanaa has been largely halted, but there have been exemptions for aid flights that are a key lifeline for the population.Despite accusations of violations from both the Arab Coalition and the Iran-backed Houthis, the truce has significantly reduced levels of violence.The Houthis have said they were considering renewing the ceasefire amid UN efforts to extend the truce.But on Tuesday, the United States warned the truce talks were in “trouble” as it pushed for an extension to help support millions of people at risk.Talks on extending the ceasefire “haven’t ended yet but seem to be in a bit of trouble,” the US ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, said.Aid agencies have urged Yemen’s warring parties to extend the truce, saying it had “positive humanitarian impacts”.“As organisations working across Yemen, we have seen the positive humanitarian impacts of the truce,” more than 30 aid agencies, including Save The Children, Oxfam and the Norwegian Refugee Council, said in a joint statement.They said the reopening of Sanaa airport to commercial flights had allowed hundreds of patients in “critical need of lifesaving medical treatment outside of the country” to finally receive it.The war has killed more than 150,000 people and displaced millions, creating the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, according to the UN.Read more:US warns talks on Yemen truce in ‘trouble’US Secretary of State thanks Saudi Arabia’s FM for efforts to extend Yemen truceUN talks to open roads to blockaded Yemen city inconclusive
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Flight leaves to Cairo from Yemen capital as truce expiry looms 

The Jerusalem March for Pride and Tolerance will open at 3 p.m. on Thursday.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Death threats sent to Jerusalem LGBTQ+ Pride march organizers

The cyberattack took place in June 2021, the attackers exploited popular software made by California-based firm Fortinet to control the hospital's computer network.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Iran responsible for attempted cyberattack on children's hospital -FBI

A bill to ban the display of the Palestinian flag, at universities and government institutions was set to be brought before the Knesset.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Palestinian, Israeli flags raised in Ramat Gan: 'We're meant to live together'