Middle East Experience

Egypt is working on water projects with South Sudan in a bid to make up for water lost from the Nile as Ethiopia fills its Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Egypt explores water alternatives with Nile dam set to fill

Former US Secretary Mike Pompeo said lifting sanctions on Iran will not get the regime to “cease their malign activity” as the Biden administration considers a near wholesale rollback of some of the most stringent Trump-era sanctions imposed on the Middle Eastern country.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.“What I can't understand is how any administration could believe that if you release the sanctions and you lift the pressure campaign from the Iranians, why you would expect that they would behave in a way that's consistent with international norms,” Pompeo told Al Arabiya.“If you're not prepared to put pressure on the Iranians to cease their malign activity, their support for the Houthi rebels, their political support, their diplomatic support, their military support in terms of providing them weapon systems and capabilities resource supports, all the things that the Iranians have done over the past years if you don't deny the Iranians are able to do that, I don't know how this ends,” he addedThe Biden administration has considered lifting sanctions in an effort to try and get Iran to comply with the 2015 nuclear deal, according to current and former US officials and others familiar with the matter.American officials have refused to discuss which sanctions are being considered for removal. But they have stressed that they are open to lifting non-nuclear sanctions, such as those tied to terrorism, missile development and human rights, in addition to those related to the nuclear program.Pompeo also said rolling back the designation of Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis as terrorists is an “enormous mistake” adding that this will put not only ally countries in danger but Americans in the region as well.“No one disputes that the Houthis are terrorists,” he told Al Arabiya. “The administration didn't say we’re lifting these sanctions today because they are no longer terrorists. They lifted them because they wanted to appease the Ayatollah, and they want to appease the mullahs in Iran. That's dangerous.”According to Pompeo, the Iranians will take this as a sign of weakness which will then present “a real risk to our Arab partners, to our Israeli partners and friends, and to Americans traveling throughout the world.”Houthis have continuously attacked Saudi Arabia by firing ballistic missiles and using explosive-laden drones to target civilians in the Kingdom.Most attacks have been thwarted, however, according to the Arab Coalition.“I don't know how you convince the Houthis not to take that weaponry and fire missiles into southern Saudi Arabia to put frankly Americans who are traveling in Saudi Arabia at risk. I don't understand. I have no idea how the Biden administration thinks they're going to end that war without completely appeasing the Iranians, with respect to Yemen,” Pompeo added.With The Associated PressRead more:US eyes major rollback in Trump-era Iran sanctions to revive nuclear dealIran’s IRGC releases drone footage of US aircraft carrier and ‘suicide drone test’US, Israel agree to form working group focused on Iran’s drones, ballistic missiles
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Former US secretary says US should keep pressure on Iran with sanctions

Hamas is considering its next moves ahead of the expected announcement of the postponment of the Palestinian legislative elections.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Hamas braces for delay of Palestinian elections

A senior advisor to Iran’s president resigned from his post as head of a government-run think tank following allegations he was behind the leak of an audio recording in which Tehran’s foreign minister complained about the role of the military in diplomacy.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.The resignation of Hesamoddin Ashena, who headed the Center for Strategic Studies – a Tehran-based think tank and research arm of the president’s office – was reported by President Hassan Rouhani’s website on Thursday.Rouhani appointed government spokesman Ali Rabiei as the new head of the CSS, the website said.Ashena’s resignation comes after allegations by political opponents in Iran that he was behind the leak of a “confidential” interview of Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif conducted by the CSS last February.Also on Thursday, the semi-official ISNA news agency reported, citing an “informed source” in the judiciary, that more than 15 people have been banned from leaving the country over the leak.In the leaked recording, aired on Sunday by London-based Iran International TV station, Zarif was heard complaining about having little influence over foreign policy compared with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and its assassinated commander Qassem Soleimani.Soleimani, who headed the Quds Force – the overseas arm of the IRGC – was killed in a US airstrike in Iraq in January 2020.The recording caused an uproar among the political class in Iran, where criticism of the IRGC and Soleimani is considered a “red line.”Zarif said in an Instagram post on Wednesday that he “regretted” how the interview, which he described as a “confidential theoretical debate” intended to aid future administrations, turned into an “internal conflict.”He said his “honest” comments were mischaracterized as personal criticism.Rouhani said on Wednesday the Intelligence Ministry “must do its best to find out how this tape was stolen” and that “there will be no mercy for those who made a mistake on this.”Read more:Zarif’s leaked recording aimed to create ‘discord’ during Iran nuclear talks: RouhaniIran’s Zarif expresses regret over leaked recording, stops short of apologizingIran FM Zarif’s leaked interview draws wide array of reactions
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Top advisor to Iran’s president resigns over FM Zarif’s leaked audio

Three crew members aboard the cargo vessel that blocked global shipping in the Suez Canal last month will be allowed to return home, the ship’s manager said on Thursday.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.The Ever Given has been anchored in a lake between two sections of the canal since being dislodged on March 29 and is caught in a legal dispute linked to a $916 compensation claim made by the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) against the ship’s Japanese owner.“Our utmost priority remains the safety and wellbeing of our crew. We are in regular contact with them and their families, offering all necessary support,” said Ian Beveridge, the CEO of Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement (BSM).“While we are hoping that the vessel and her crew will be able to resume the voyage as soon as possible, we are incredibly proud of our master and crew who have and continue to perform their duties to the highest standards with exceptional professionalism under difficult circumstances,” he added.Two other crew members left the ship earlier in April due to urgent personal circumstances, the SCA said.Read more:Suez megaship owner haggles over $900m release demandEgypt signs $7.5 bln deal to build petrochemical complex in Ain Sokhna: CabinetEvergreen Line studying scope of Egypt court order over Suez container ship
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Three Ever Given crew members to leave the ship that blocked Suez Canal

Saudi Arabia confirmed 1,026 new COVID-19 cases, 1,055 recoveries and 11 deaths over the last 24 hours, the Kingdom’s health ministry announced on Thursday.For more coronavirus news, visit our dedicated page.There are now 9,852 active coronavirus cases in the Kingdom, 1,312 of which are critical.Thursday’s numbers brought the country’s death toll to 6,946, total recoveries to 399,509 and the total number of diagnosed cases since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak to 416,307.The majority of Thursday’s newly recorded infections were found in Riyadh and Mecca, accounting for 441 and 233 respectively.Read more:Saudi Arabia reports 1,062 new COVID-19 cases, 13 deathsProphet’s Mosque in Medina prepared to receive worshippers for last Ramadan daysVision 2030: Saudi Arabia’s real capital and inexhaustible oil barrel
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Saudi Arabia records 1,026 new COVID-19 cases, 11 deaths 

Talks to reunite Cyprus have again failed to unblock a four-year pause in negotiations over the future of the Eastern Mediterranean island.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Cyprus unification talks falter as Turkey clings to two-state idea

Days after the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) rejected reports that its director Bill Burns met with Iranian officials in Baghdad, a senior US official admitted that the agency's chief had "very good" talks with Iraqi officials.Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Joey Hood echoed the CIA statement that said no meeting took place between Burns and Iranian officials at the home of Iraqi FM Fuad Hussein.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Hood said the reports were “baloney, didn’t happen.”“But, obviously, he did have very good discussions with the Iraqis, and, you know, that’s very much worth it,” Hood said during a webinar with the Washington-based Middle East Institute.Hood, who will be heading to the Middle East this week with other US officials, also spoke about Iran’s malign activities. He added that under President Joe Biden, the US would no longer give Iran “plausible deniability.”The US official cited Biden’s comments in February when he conveyed warnings to the Iranians that they would be held accountable for any attacks on US troops or interests.Hood also welcomed efforts for dialogue between Saudi Arabia and Iran. “I don’t know how far it [bilateral talks] will go because, obviously, the government in Iran for the past several decades has had a very, very active policy of supporting armed groups in other people’s countries,” he said.The upcoming trip to the Middle East will include officials from the White House, Pentagon and State Department. “We want to hear that there is a recognition of our new approach of putting human rights at the center of our foreign policy,” Hood said. US officials will also be looking at ways to “warm up the old peace agreements with Israel and to find what the possibilities and limits are of the new normalization agreements with the other countries.”Read more: Saudi Crown Prince: We agree with the Biden administration on 90 pct of issuesThird working group on US-Iran nuclear deal meets for first time in Vienna: Diplomat
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: US State Department official reveals CIA director had ‘very good’ talks with Iraqis

The Israeli authorities arrested one man at an anti-eviction demonstration by young people in the Sheikh Jarrah area on Wednesday..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Palestinians in Sheikh Jarrah continue fight against Israeli eviction orders

Analysis: The beginning of a new chapter in Egypt-Turkey relations could also pave the way for changes in the wider region..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: What warming Egypt-Turkey ties could mean for the Middle East