The new head of state reiterated Iran's controversial regional policy, even as it has been at the very core of tensions between the Islamic Republic's hard-line establishment and the West.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Raisi reasserts Iran's regional policy in swearing-in ceremony
US urges Iran to return to nuclear talks as Raisi sworn in
Talks over reviving the nuclear deal remain on hold — a process the Biden administration warned "cannot go on indefinitely."
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: US urges Iran to return to nuclear talks as Raisi sworn in
Intel: US family seeks Biden's help freeing detained Saudi aid worker
The United States said it’s urging Saudi Arabia to resolve the case of Abdulrahman al-Sadhan, an aid worker sentenced to prison for allegedly running a Twitter account critical of the kingdom’s rulers.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Intel: US family seeks Biden's help freeing detained Saudi aid worker
Israel’s Bennett striving for new center-right electorate
As new prime minister in a government composed of the right, center and left, Naftali Bennett strives to create for himself a new political base.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Israel’s Bennett striving for new center-right electorate
Hezbollah, Israel exchange fire across southern Lebanon border
Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah organization said it had fired dozens of rockets at open ground near Israeli positions in the disputed Shebaa Farms area on Friday in response to Israeli air strikes in Lebanon this week.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Suggesting its attack was calibrated to avoid further escalation, Hezbollah said it had targeted open ground near Israeli forces in retaliation for Israeli air strikes that had also struck open areas.Israel said it did not wish to escalate to a full war, though it was ready for one.Rockets were fired towards Israel from southern Lebanon triggering sirens in northern Israel and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties. Israeli media reported that some of the rockets had been intercepted by Israel’s Iron Dome defense system.The Israeli military said sirens had sounded in the Upper Galilee in northern Israel, and in the Golan Heights, part of territory Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East war.Rockets fired from Lebanon two days ago drew retaliatory Israeli shelling and air strikes, in an escalation of cross-border hostilities amid friction with Iran.Read more:Lebanon’s President Aoun says Israel’s air strikes show ‘aggression’ escalationUS condemns rocket attacks from Lebanon on IsraelIsrael conducts air strikes on targets in south Lebanon: Statement
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Hezbollah, Israel exchange fire across southern Lebanon border
Tunisian president says there is ‘no turning back,’ rejects calls for talks
Tunisia’s President Kais Saied said on Thursday there was “no turning back” from his decision to freeze parliament and assume executive power, moves his opponents have branded a coup.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Speaking in a video published by his office, Saied also rejected calls for talks over the crisis, saying “there is no dialog except with the honest” and that no dialog was possible with “cancer cells.”The biggest party in parliament, the Islamist Ennahda, which has been the most vocal opponent of Saied’s moves, had called for dialog in a statement earlier on Thursday.Some 11 days after his intervention, Saied has not named a new prime minister, announced any steps to end the emergency or declared his longer-term intentions.The powerful labor union, as well as both the US and France, have called on him to quickly appoint a new government. The union is preparing a roadmap to end the crisis that it says it will present to Saied.US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez and ranking member Jim Risch said on Thursday they were deeply concerned by the situation.“President Saied must recommit to the democratic principles that underpin US-Tunisia relations, and the military must observe its role in a constitutional democracy,” they said in a joint statement.Ousted Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi appeared in public for the first time on Thursday since he was dismissed. He was shown in pictures published by the anti-corruption watchdog that it said were taken on Thursday at its office.Read more: Tunisia’s labor union urges ‘rapid’ new PM appointmentTunisian democracy was destroyed by corruption long before President Saied’s actionsWHO says Tunisia over worst of COVID-19 wave but must speed up jabs
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Tunisian president says there is ‘no turning back,’ rejects calls for talks
UNIFIL says situation very serious, urges Lebanon, Israel to cease fire
The UN peacekeeping force patrolling the Lebanon-Israel border, UNIFIL, warned of a “very dangerous situation” after the Lebanese Hezbollah movement and the Israeli army traded fire on Friday.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.“This is a very dangerous situation, with escalatory actions seen on both sides over the past two days,” it said, adding that it was working to “prevent the situation from spiraling out of control.”Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah organization said it had fired dozens of rockets at open ground near Israeli positions in the disputed Shebaa Farms area on Friday in response to Israeli air strikes in Lebanon this week.In a statement, Hezbollah said the Israeli air strikes had hit open ground in Lebanon.Rockets were fired towards Israel from southern Lebanon triggering sirens in northern Israel and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties. Israeli media reported that some of the rockets had been intercepted by Israel’s Iron Dome defense system.Read more:Lebanon's Hezbollah says it fired rockets in response to Israeli air strikesLebanon’s President Aoun says Israel’s air strikes show ‘aggression’ escalationUS condemns rocket attacks from Lebanon on Israel
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: UNIFIL says situation very serious, urges Lebanon, Israel to cease fire
UAE reports 1,520 new COVID-19 cases, two deaths
The United Arab Emirates reported 1,508 new COVID-19 infections, 1,481 recoveries and two deaths in 24 hours, the country’s National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority reported on Friday.Health authorities conducted 273,251 COVID-19 tests to determine Friday’s numbers.For more coronavirus news, visit our dedicated page.To date, 690,009 cases have been reported across the UAE since the start of the pandemic.According to NCEMA, the country’s death toll from COVID-19 sits at 1,969.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Most of the UAE’s population have been vaccinated against the virus, with 79 percent already inoculated with at least one dose and 70 percent of the population fully vaccinated.Read more:UAE on UK’s COVID-19 travel amber list: All you need to know‘A game-changer:’ Expats react to UK putting UAE on COVID-19 amber listUAE announces Islamic New Year holiday for all private sector employees
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: UAE reports 1,520 new COVID-19 cases, two deaths
UAE: 49,079 Covid vaccine doses administered in 24 hours
The total doses administered now stand at 17 million..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: UAE: 49,079 Covid vaccine doses administered in 24 hours
Hezbollah members intercepted by locals in rare challenge to Iran-backed group
Hezbollah fighters who fired rockets towards Israeli forces from Lebanon on Friday were intercepted by locals afterwards, the group said, a rare challenge to the Iran-backed organization as its members passed through a Druze area of the south.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Hezbollah fired a barrage of rockets towards Israeli forces in the disputed Shebaa Farms area, saying it had targeted open ground in retaliation for Israeli air strikes that hit open ground in Lebanon on Thursday. Israel responded to Friday’s rockets with artillery fire into Lebanon.As the Hezbollah fighters returned from the launch, “a number of citizens intercepted them” as they passed through the Chouya area, Hezbollah said in a statement.A video circulated on social media and broadcast by Lebanese TV stations showed a crowd of men gathered around a blue, flat-back truck loaded with rocket launchers in Chouya, a predominantly Druze area of the south.The Lebanese army said in a statement it had detained the “four people who launched the rockets and seized the launcher used in the operation”.In its statement, Hezbollah said the launch had taken place “in a wooded area totally far from residential areas, to preserve the security of citizens”.Hezbollah said it always took the utmost care to avoid exposing people to harm “during its resistance work”, and would continue to do so.Walid Jumblatt, Lebanon’s leading Druze politician, urged calm after the incident. “We hope that we all exit this tense atmosphere on social media,” he wrote on Twitter.Hezbollah enjoys strong support among Shias who form the majority in southern Lebanon, where its fighters helped drive out Israeli forces that occupied the area until 2000.But its powerful arsenal has long been a point of conflict in Lebanon, where its political opponents say the arsenal undermines the Lebanese state and should be handed over to the army.Read more: Hezbollah, Israel exchange fire across southern Lebanon borderUNIFIL says situation very serious, urges Lebanon, Israel to cease fireLebanon’s President Aoun says Israel’s air strikes show ‘aggression’ escalation
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Hezbollah members intercepted by locals in rare challenge to Iran-backed group