Middle East Experience

The suspension of Covid tests means health officials would no longer able to track the spread of the disease..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Syria at risk of new health crisis amid Covid surge and supply shortages

The 20-year-old opener won the emerging player award when the tournament was staged in the UAE last year..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: IPL 2021: Padikkal eager to forge his own identity

Imprisoned filmmaker Mohammad Nourizad has faced torture and sexual….
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Iran 'toying with life' of dissident filmmaker: Amnesty

Current comptroller Matanyahu Englman said his office has been tracking the issue and may initiate a more comprehensive probe given the extent of the tragedy.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Comptroller warned that Lag Ba’omer Meron was disaster waiting to happen

President Reuven Rivlin lit 45 candles on Friday afternoon to commemorate the 45 victims reported at the time from Mount Meron.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Lag Ba'omer: These are the victims of the Mount Meron stampede

With Ethiopia threatening to proceed with the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam’s second filling, Egypt and Sudan look for a goodwill gesture and ramp up diplomacy.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Nile Dam dispute could be heading to Security Council

Some of this year's Ramadan TV series in Egypt are being called out over gratuitous scenes of violence against women.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Critics of Ramadan TV say violence against women not entertainment

The final phase of ending America’s “forever war” in Afghanistan after 20 years formally began Saturday, with the withdrawal of the last US and NATO troops by the end of summer.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.President Joe Biden had set May 1 as the official start of the withdrawal of the remaining forces — about 2,500-3,500 US troops and about 7,000 NATO soldiers.Even before Saturday, the herculean task of packing up had begun.The military has been taking inventory, deciding what is shipped back to the US, what is handed to the Afghan security forces and what is sold as junk in Afghanistan’s markets. In recent weeks, the military has been flying out equipment on massive C-17 cargo planes.The US is estimated to have spent more than $2 trillion in Afghanistan in the past two decades, according to the Costs of War project at Brown University, which documents the hidden costs of the US military engagement.Defense department officials and diplomats told The Associated Press the withdrawal has involved closing smaller bases over the last year. They said that since Biden announced the end-of-summer withdrawal date in mid-April, only roughly 60 military personnel had left the country.The US and its NATO allies went into Afghanistan together on Oct. 7, 2001 to hunt the al-Qaeda perpetrators of the 9/11 terrorist attacks who lived under the protection of the country’s Taliban rulers. Two months later, the Taliban had been defeated and al-Qaeda fighters and their leader, Osama bin Laden, were on the run.In his withdrawal announcement last month, Biden said the initial mission was accomplished a decade ago when US Navy SEALS killed bin Laden in his hideout in neighboring Pakistan. Since then, al-Qaeda has been degraded, while the terrorist threat has “metastasized” into a global phenomenon that is not contained by keeping thousands of troops in one country, he said.Until now the US and NATO have received no promises from the Taliban that they won’t attack troops during the pullout. In a response to AP questions, Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen said the Taliban leadership was still mulling over its strategy.The insurgent group continues to accuse Washington of breaching the deal it signed with Biden’s predecessor more than a year ago. In that agreement, the US said it would have all troops out by May 1.In a statement Saturday, Taliban military spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the passing of the May 1 deadline for a complete withdrawal “opened the way for (Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan) mujahidin to take every counteraction it deems appropriate against the occupying forces.”However, he said fighters on the battlefield will wait for a decision from the leadership before launching any attacks and that decision will be based on “the sovereignty, values and higher interests of the country.”Violence has spiked in Afghanistan since the February 2020 deal was signed. Peace talks between the Taliban and Afghan government, which were part of the agreement, quickly bogged down. On Friday, a truck bomb in eastern Logar province killed 21 people, many of them police and students.Afghans have paid the highest price since 2001, with 47,245 civilians killed, according to the Costs of War project. Millions more have been displaced inside Afghanistan or have fled to Pakistan, Iran and Europe.Afghanistan’s security forces are expected to come under increasing pressure from the Taliban after the withdrawal if no peace agreement is reached in the interim, according to Afghan watchers.Since the start of the war they have taken heavy losses, with estimates ranging from 66,000 to 69,000 Afghan troops killed. The Afghan military has been battered by corruption. The US and NATO pay $4 billion a year to sustain the force.Some 300,000 Afghan troops are on the books, although the actual number is believed to be lower. Commanders have been found to inflate the numbers to collect paychecks of so-called “ghost soldiers,” according to the US watchdog monitoring Washington’s spending in Afghanistan.Last year was the only year US and NATO troops did not suffer a loss. The Defense Department says 2,442 US troops have been killed and 20,666 wounded since 2001. It is estimated that over 3,800 US private security contractors have been killed. The Pentagon does not track their deaths.The conflict also has killed 1,144 personnel from NATO countries.The Taliban, meanwhile, are at their strongest since being ousted in 2001. While mapping their gains and territorial holds is difficult, they are believed to hold sway or outright control over nearly half of Afghanistan.“We are telling the departing Americans ... you fought a meaningless war and paid a cost for that and we also offered huge sacrifices for our liberation,” Shaheen told the AP on Friday.Striking a more conciliatory tone, he added: “If you ... open a new chapter of helping Afghans in reconstruction and rehabilitation of the country, the Afghans will appreciate that.”In announcing the departure, Biden said waiting for ideal conditions to leave would consign America to an indefinite stay.In the Afghan capital and throughout the country, there is a growing fear that chaos will follow the departure of the last foreign troops. After billions of dollars and decades of war, many Afghans wonder at whether it was worth it.Read more:German military wraps up Afghanistan training mission ahead of withdrawalCar bomb kills at least 30, injures dozens in Afghanistan’s eastern Logar provinceAfghan talks should rotate among countries, envoy says amid delay, rising violence
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Formal start of final phase of Afghan pullout by US, NATO

Dubai will build a new business park to host specialized agricultural firms as the Middle East’s business hub pushes for food security.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.The first phase of the project, dubbed “Food Tech Valley,” will include headquarters, research and development facilities, innovation center, smart food logistics hub and areas for vertical farming, according to a tweet by Dubai’s ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.Dubai, a desert city that needs to import nearly all its food, has been seeking to secure food supplies along with other emirates in the United Arab Emirates federation. A global surge in food prices and the disruption to supply chains caused by the pandemic pushed the country to accelerate plans to grow more crops and farm more livestock. The oil-rich UAE currently imports about 90 percent of its food needs.“The UAE’s food trade exceeds 100 billion ($27 billion) annually,” Dubai’s ruler, who’s also prime minister of the UAE, said in the tweet. “Our country is a global food logistics hub, and we will work to create a nurturing environment for agribusinesses to develop new farming technologies and enhance our future food security.”Read more:Ancient stone structures in Saudi Arabia older than previously thoughtEgypt archeologists unearth 110 ancient tombs in Nile DeltaInfluencers Josh Paler Lin, Leia Se kicked off Bali island after fake mask prank
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Dubai plans new park for agriculture firms in push for food security

High-ranking diplomats from China, Germany, France, Russia and Britain are set to resume talks Saturday focused on bringing the US back into their landmark nuclear deal with Iran.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.The US will not have a representative at the table when the diplomats meet in Vienna because former President Donald Trump unilaterally pulled the country out of the deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, in 2018. Trump also restored and augmented sanctions to try to force Iran into renegotiating the pact with more concessions.US President Joe Biden wants to rejoin the deal, however, and a US delegation in Vienna is taking part in indirect talks with Iran, with diplomats from the other world powers acting as go-betweens.The Biden administration is considering a rollback of some of the most stringent Trump-era sanctions in a bid to get Iran to come back into compliance with the terms of the nuclear agreement, according to information from current and former US officials and others familiar with the matter earlier this week.Ahead of the main talks, Russia’s top representative Mikhail Ulyanov said JCPOA members met on the side with officials from the US delegation but that the Iranian delegation was not ready to meet with US diplomats.“JCPOA participants held today informal consultations with the US delegation at the Vienna talks on full restoration of the nuclear deal,” Ulyanov tweeted. “Without Iran who is still not ready to meet with US diplomats.”The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA, promised Iran economic incentives in exchange for curbs on its nuclear program. The reimposition of US sanctions has left the Islamic Republic’s economy reeling. Tehran has responded by steadily increasing its violations of the restrictions of the deal, such as increasing the purity of uranium it enriches and its stockpiles, in a thus-far unsuccessful effort to pressure the other countries to provide relief.The ultimate goal of the deal is to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear bomb, something it insists it doesn’t want to do. Iran now has enough enriched uranium to make a bomb, but nowhere near the amount it had before the nuclear deal was signed.The Vienna talks began in early April and have included several rounds of high-level discussions. Expert groups also have been working on proposals on how to resolve the issues around American sanctions and Iranian compliance, as well as the “possible sequencing” of the US return.Read more: Third working group on US-Iran nuclear deal meets for first time in Vienna: DiplomatSaudi Arabia urges Iran to engage in Vienna nuclear talks, calls for stricter dealIran sees Vienna talks moving forward, warns against excessive demands
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Diplomats from five nations resuming Iran nuclear talks