Middle East Experience

The Russian army claimed on Wednesday it had taken control of the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson as Moscow’s invasion of the pro-Western country went into its seventh day.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.“The Russian divisions of the armed forces have taken the regional center of Kherson under full control,” defense ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said in televised remarks.The city is around 130 kilometers from the Crimean peninsula, which was annexed by Russia in 2014.Mariupol City Council released a statement on Wednesday saying that the city, around 420 kilometers east of Kherson, is still under Ukrainian control.Read more: UN General Assembly set to censure Russia over Ukraine invasionTwitter to comply with EU sanctions on Russian state mediaExplainer: What danger do cluster bombs pose?
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Russian forces take full control of Kherson in Ukraine: Report

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday that if a third World War were to take place, it would involve nuclear weapons and be destructive, the RIA news agency reported.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Lavrov has said that Russia, which launched what it calls a special military operation against Ukraine last week, would face a “real danger” if Kyiv acquired nuclear weapons.Lavrov, quoted by Russian news agencies RIA and TASS on Tuesday, also said Moscow found it unacceptable that some European countries hosted US nuclear weapons.He was also quoted as saying that the West must not build military facilities in any countries of the former Soviet Union.Lavrov told a Geneva disarmament meeting on Tuesday that Kyiv has been seeking to acquire nuclear weapons, calling this a real danger that it needed to prevent.At the same meeting, Ukraine’s foreign minister accused Russia of war crimes through its shelling of his country and called for a special meeting to address Russian aggression and weapons of mass destruction.On Sunday, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his defense chiefs to put the country’s “deterrence forces” on high alert, accusing Western countries of taking “unfriendly” steps against his country amid Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.Moscow has the world’s second-largest arsenal of nuclear weapons and a huge cache of ballistic missiles which form the backbone of the country’s deterrence forces.Read more: Russian FM Lavrov says time for US to remove nuclear weapons from EuropeRussia’s isolation grows as Ukraine fighting rages, denying Putin decisive early gainVast Russian army convoy spotted north of Ukraine’s Kyiv
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Russia’s Lavrov says a third World War would be nuclear and destructive: Report

As the last few months of cool weather wrap up in the UAE, desert camping is still one of the top activities for residents, but trekkers are being warned about the risk of encountering venomous snakes, spider, and scorpions.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Faateh Ahmad, 31, is part of Dubai Offroaders, a group of off-road enthusiasts that spend weekend adventures in the sand and valley.“We have a trip every Saturday afternoon and we have been organizing them since 2008. So every weekend basically,” he said.“The dangerous species I would recommend people to be cautious of are Deathstalker scorpions, they are small and yellow and highly poisonous. The other species of scorpions Androctonus crassicauda, that are much bigger and black in color, may seem scarier but are not so poisonous.”Ahmad said the two types species are in great numbers in Dubai, especially around al-Qudra, and in Sharjah, near Badayer and Tawi Nazwa.“In Ras al-Khaimah and Umm al-Quwain, people need to be cautious of various species of vipers, specifically the Horned Viper,” he said.“I, unfortunately, have come across all these species. I had my first encounter with a viper when I was just nine-years-old, I was terrified.”According to Ahmad, these species “don’t bother you unless you step on them accidentally, even the scorpions. But they attack you if they feel threatened.”The UAE has 13 native species of snakes, but the four viper species are most concerning.Residents should seek medical help if bitten by one of these.The Arabian horned viper (Cerastes gasperettii) – also known as the sand viper – is common in sandy habitats, even those with the lowest rainfall, between sea level and 400 meters elevation.The Sindh saw-scaled viper (Echis carinatus sochureki) lives in higher-rainfall areas in sandy and gravel bed habitats north of the UAE capital Abu Dhabi up into Ras al-Khaimah, and in a narrow strip along the east coast.The Persian horned viper (Pseudocerastes persicus) lives in the Hajar Mountains from sea level up to 1,400 meters.Of the UAE’s many scorpion species, there are two that people are most likely to encounter.The Arabian thick-tailed scorpion (Androctonus crassicauda), which is found in the sandy deserts and the Hottentotta jayakari, which is more abundant and typically located in mountainous areas, sometimes found under stones.Both are nocturnal, so are active at night and seek shelter during the day.Read more: Talabat’s new HQ scores Dubai’s largest office deal since 2019UAE’s Air Arabia to operate Russia flights as long as legalEXPO 2020 Dubai scraps mask mandate in outdoor spaces
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Campers warned about venomous snakes, spiders, scorpions lurking in UAE’s deserts

A Ukrainian member of parliament claimed that Russian forces are deliberately targeting civilians with high-powered vacuum bombs, in an interview with Al Arabiya on Monday.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Vacuum bombs were dropped on the eastern city of Okhtyrka, said Valentyn Nalyvaichenko, who was previously head of Ukraine’s security service.The controversial munitions deploy two explosions – one that disperses flammable material and another that lights it.They can be much more destructive than conventional bombs of the same size.“It’s true that Russia is carefully and intentionally selecting civilians and killing them, Ukrainians, by launching rockets on civilian cities,” he said.As the war raged on nearly a week after Russian forces invaded on February 24, Nalyvaichenko painted a grim picture of the future of his country and the wider continent.“We either stop this invasion and these criminals, war criminals, and war in Ukraine, or they'll continue to exterminate us, and then they will not stop their move towards Europe…” he said.“We have no other choice [but] to protect our people, our country, and to fight till the last the last minute, until the last meter of our own soil.”Nalyvaichenko cut the interview short after air raid sirens started blaring, saying that he was heading to a shelter.At least 132 civilians in Ukraine, including 13 children, have died since the beginning of the invasion, the UN human rights office (OHCHR) said on Tuesday.Russia was amassing troops near the Ukrainian capital Kiev after six days of shelling numerous cities.While Russian forces, which outnumber Ukraine’s by roughly five-to-one, failed to take control of large areas of land, heavy shelling of urban areas continued.The southern city of Kherson fell to Russian forces on Wednesday, according to a Russian army spokesperson.Nearly 836,000 refugees have fled the conflict for safety in neighboring countries, United Nations figures showed on Wednesday.With agenciesRead more: At least 21 killed by shelling as Russian troops land in Ukraine’s KharkivIndian student killed in shelling Ukraine’s Kharkiv: India’s foreign ministryRussian missiles hit city administration, residential areas: Kharkiv official
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Ukrainian MP says Russian forces deliberately targeting civilians with vacuum bombs

The European Union is excluding seven Russian banks from the SWIFT messaging system that underpins global transactions as part of its sanctions over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the EU official journal said on Wednesday.The banks, which will be given 10 days to wind-down their SWIFT operations, are Russia’s second-largest bank VTB , along with Bank Otrkitie, Novikombank, Promsvyazbank, Bank Rossiya, Sovcombank and VEB.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.A senior EU official explained that the banks on its list were chosen based on their connections to the Russian state, with public banks already subject to sanctions following Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014.“All these banks that we have listed under SWIFT... they are all based on their connection to the state and the implicit connection to the war effort. We have not gone for a blanket ban across the whole banking system,” the official said.Sberbank, Russia’s largest lender, and Gazprombank have not been included in the list because they are the main channels for payments for Russian oil and gas, which EU countries are still buying despite the conflict.The EU official said it was not possible simply to allow energy-related transactions and exclude others as SWIFT was unable to differentiate between types of payments. The official added that these two banks were nevertheless subject to other measures.The European Union, United States, Britain and Canada moved on Saturday to block certain Russian banks from SWIFT, although did not say at that point which banks would be hit.SWIFT has some 11,000 members and has no clear global rival. China has set up a system, although it remains small, EU officials said, while despite the existence of a Russian system, SWIFT was still used for some 70 percent of transfers within Russia.Otherwise, banks could still carrying out transfers through work-arounds such as faxes or bilateral messaging systems, if they existed.Read more:Russia’s Lavrov says a third World War would be nuclear and destructive: ReportEU bans Russian media outlets, banks from SWIFT: EU presidencyUS, allies target ‘fortress Russia’ with new sanctions, including SWIFT ban
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: EU excludes seven Russian banks from SWIFT: Official journal

In an exclusive interview with Doha News, Ukraine's Ambassador to the state of Qatar Mr Andril Kuzmenko speaks about the..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Ukraine's Ambassador to Qatar: This was a brutal and unprovoked act of aggression

Until mere months ago, Musallam al-Barrak, an opposition figure in Kuwait lived in self-exile fearing jail at home..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Kuwait's pardoned dissidents return to a country in crisis

The announcement also affects Russian clubs involved in European competitions..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: FIFA bans Russia from all international tournaments

With war raging in Ukraine and Iran apparently in no rush to reach a nuclear agreement as it advances its nuclear program, Israel's allied need to make a choice.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: If the West can stand up to Russia, it can stand up to Iran - analysis

Israeli President Isaac Herzog, who hosted the Cypriot president last December, declared the war in Ukraine to be “an affront to the international order.”
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Ukraine-Russia war: Herzog condemns war while visiting Cyprus