Middle East Experience

The UAE reported 3,243 new cases of coronavirus, the highest single-day new COVID-19 cases ever recorded since the beginning of the pandemic, the Ministry of Health's data for Tuesday showed.This was a sharp increase from the 2,404 cases reported a day prior.The ministry also reported 2,195 recoveries and six deaths over the past 24 hours. The UAE's COVID-19 tally currently stood at 236,225 confirmed cases, 210,561 recovered patients, and 717 deaths.Visit our dedicated coronavirus site here for all the latest updates."The vaccine is considered as one of the most important solutions available to reduce the impact of the disease and the severity of its spread," officials said during the UAE's government media breifing on Tuesday."National and local efforts have been combined to provide the vaccine through increasing the number of health centers in the UAE to more than 150 medical centers, spread across the UAE."The UAE had announced in December opening several locations where residents and nationals could receive the Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine voluntarily. Initially launched in the capital Abu Dhabi, the campaign was extended to include all of the country's emirates. Dubai began on December 23 the free vaccination campaign using Pfizer-BioNTech’s vaccine.The National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority (NCEMA) said the UAE has delivered 108,401 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine in the last 24 hours, to reach 1,275,652 as a total number of doses and with a rate of 12.9 doses per 100 people as vaccine distribution.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Read more:Coronavirus: UAE records 2,404 new COVID-19 cases as cases continue to rapidly riseWhen will we take off face masks ? Not for another year, say UAE doctorsCoronavirus: UAE surgeons record demand for ‘lockdown plastic surgeries’ in 2020
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Coronavirus: UAE reports jump in cases up to 3,243, highest since outbreak started

The first Qatari vehicle entered Saudi Arabia on Saturday after the reopening of the Salwa border between the two Gulf countries, according to an Al Arabiya correspondent.Read the latest updates in our dedicated coronavirus section.He also said several other vehicles from Qatar were waiting at the border for procedures to enter the neighboring country.The Kingdom formally reopened its airspace, land and sea borders with Qatar on Monday, one day before the GCC Summit was held in AlUla.Both countries have implemented strict health rules amid the coronavirus outbreak. Those entering Qatar from Saudi Arabia are required to present a negative test result, undergo a fresh test at the border, and quarantine in a government-approved hotel for one week, according to AFP.Meanwhile those entering Saudi Arabia from Qatar will also be required to present a negative test result and undergo a new test at the health center on the border. They will also be required to quarantine in the Kingdom.Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt have formally restored ties to Doha after more than three years of a boycott.Qatar Airways on Thursday said it would begin rerouting some of its flights through Saudi airspace.The UAE on Friday also announced it would open all of its borders with Qatar, adding that it will end all measures taken against the Gulf state following the signing of the AlUla declaration.Read more:Saudi Arabia opens health center at Qatar border, sets entry conditionsSaudi Arabia to resume international travel, lift restrictions on March 31Saudi Arabia-Qatar relations: Timeline of significant events in the Gulf crisis
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: First Qatari vehicle enters Saudi Arabia after reopening of Salwa border

With the Horn of Africa increasingly becoming an integral part of the Middle East’s security landscape, the fallout from Ethiopia's current crisis will have a significant impact on states of the region.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Ethiopia’s worsening crisis threatens regional, Mideast security

A Sriwijaya Air plane thought to have 62 people on board lost contact after taking off from Indonesia’s capital Jakarta on Saturday and rescuers said suspected debris had been found in the sea off the city.Read the latest: Location of missing Sriwijaya flight 182 found: Indonesian navyThe Boeing 737-500, en route to Pontianak in West Kalimantan, lost contact shortly after taking off just after 2.30 p.m. (0730 GMT), a search and rescue official told local television.Indonesian Transport Minister Budi Karya told a news conference that 62 people had been aboard, including 12 crew. Another official had said earlier there were 56 passengers and six crew.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Reliable tracking service Flightradar24 said on its Twitter feed that Flight SJ182 “lost more than 10,000 feet of altitude in less than one minute, about 4 minutes after departure from Jakarta”.Bagus Puruhito, head of the country's search and rescue agency Basarnas, said teams had been dispatched to search the waters north of Jakarta. No radio beacon signal had been detected, the agency said.Agus Haryono, another official with the agency, told Reuters that debris suspected to be from the plane had been found in the sea, but it had not been confirmed that it came from the missing flight.A Boeing spokeswoman said, “We are aware of media reports from Jakarta, and are closely monitoring the situation. We are working to gather more information”.Surachman, a local government official, told Kompas TV that fishermen found what appeared to be the wreckage. Other channels showed pictures of suspected wreckage.“We found some cables, a piece of jeans, and pieces of metal on the water,” Zulkifli, a security official, told CNNIndonesia.com.Nurhasan, a fisherman in the area known as Thousand Islands, told local media that he and his crew had found several pieces of metal.The aircraft was 27 years old, according to registration details included in the Flightradar24 tracking data.It was raining at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport at the time of take-off for Pontianak, around 740 kilometer (460 miles) away.Video images from the airport showed pictures of relatives of the passengers in tears as they awaited news of the fate of the aircraft.A Boeing 737 MAX operated by Indonesian airline Lion Air crashed off Jakarta in late 2018, killing all 189 passengers and crew. The plane that lost contact on Saturday is a much older model.Search operationRescue official Agus said 50 people were taking part in the search and that they would keep searching into the night.Founded in 2003, Jakarta-based Sriwijaya Air group flies largely within Indonesia.The airline has a solid safety record until now, with no onboard casualties in four incidents recorded on the Aviation Safety Network database, though a farmer was killed when a Boeing 737-200 left the runway in 2008 following a hydraulic problem.The Boeing 737 is the world’s most-sold family of aircraft and has undergone several makeovers since it entered service in 1968.The 737-500 is two generations of development before the most recent 737 MAX, which has been embroiled in a worldwide safety crisis following crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia. It does not use the software system implicated in those crashes.Nonetheless, experts say planes such as Sriwijaya’s leased 737-500 are being phased out for newer fuel-saving models. Civil jets typically have an economic life of 25 years, meaning they become too expensive to keep flying beyond that compared to younger models, but they are built to last longer.Read more:One year since Iran downed Ukrainian plane, countries want justice deliveredFirst Qatari vehicle enters Saudi Arabia after reopening of Salwa borderFBI arrests US Capitol rioter photographed inside Nancy Pelosi’s office
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Indonesia finds suspected debris of Sriwijaya Flight 182 off Jakarata

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Tuesday that al-Qaeda terrorist group established a home base in Iran, but did not provide concrete evidence."Al-Masri’s presence inside Iran points to the reason that we're here today... al-Qaeda has a new home base: it is... Iran," he said in remarks delivered at the National Press Club in Washington.He added: "Today, we are drawing attention to the nature of the Iran-al-Qaeda relationship and are taking the actions necessary to crush al-Qaeda and its links to Iran. We urge all nations to do the same – for the good of our nations, and of the free world."For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.The New York Times reported in November that al-Qaeda's Abu Muhammad al-Masri, accused of helping to mastermind the 1998 bombings of two US embassies in Africa, was gunned down by Israeli operatives in Iran. Iran denied the report, saying there were no al-Qaeda "terrorists" on its soil.Pompeo said: "Tehran gives sanctuary to the terror group’s senior leaders as they plan attacks against America and our allies. Indeed, since 2015, Tehran has allowed al-Qaeda figures in the country to freely communicate with other al-Qaeda members and perform many functions that were previously directed from Afghanistan and Pakistan, including authorization for attacks, propaganda, and fundraising.""The Iran-al-Qaeda axis poses a grave threat to the security of nations and to the American homeland itself, and we are taking action," he added.Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Pompeo's accusations were "warmongering lies" and claimed that no September 11 "terrorists" came from Iran."(With) fictitious Iran 'declassifications' and AQ (al-Qaeda) claims, (Pompeo) is pathetically ending his disastrous career with more warmongering lies," Zarif tweeted.Pompeo announced designating al-Qaeda leaders Muhammad Abbatay, also known as Abd al-Rahman al-Maghrebi, and Sultan Yusuf Hasan al-Arif as Specially Designated Global Terrorists. He also announced a reward of up to $7 million for any information leading to the location and identification of "Iran-based key leader of al-Qaeda terrorist group" Abbatay - also known as al-Maghrebi.Earlier accusations by the George W. Bush adminstration of Iranian links to al-Qaeda's September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States have been discredited. But reports have surfaced over the years of al-Qaeda operatives hiding out in Iran.Shia Iran and al-Qaeda, a Sunni Muslim group, have long been sectarian foes.On Twitter, Pompeo said US sanctions on Iran took over two million barrels of Iranian oil a day off the market. He added: "Thanks to our sanctions, Iran's proposed military budget is down 24 percent this year. We've targeted more than 1,500 individuals and entities, depriving the regime of $70 billion that would've been used to fund terrorism, ballistic missiles, and nuclear programs."Pompeo stressed: "The US will never allow the world's largest state sponsor of terrorism (Iran) to freely buy and sell planes, tanks, missiles, and other kinds of conventional weapons."The administration of outgoing President Donald Trump has further increased its pressure on the Iranian regime with more sanctions targeting several industries and officials in Tehran.Tensions between Washington and Tehran, which have been increasing since 2018 when Trump unilaterally withdrew from Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal, reached historic heights last January when the US killed Soleimani, the former commander of the Quds Force, the overseas arm of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC).- With ReutersRead more:Iran warns US President Trump against any 'adventurism' before leaving White HouseUS Secretary Pompeo to release new information on Iran’s ties to al-QaedaIran's Zarif: Intelligence from Iraq shows Trump aims to fabricate 'pretext for war'US, Israel worked together to track and kill al-Qaeda operative in Iran
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: US top diplomat Pompeo says al-Qaeda has new home base in Iran

The Palestinian Authority decides to shut down the Palestinian Airlines, which is seen as a symbol of sovereignty, citing financial burdens and maintenance costs of its only two aircrafts.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: PA shuts down Palestinian Airlines, shuttering hopes for airport

Contract will be performed over a 12-year period.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Elbit wins 6 million contract for a UK naval training program

Iran says its navy and IRGC naval units are at the peak of their abilities.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Iran’s naval drill marks humiliation anniversary in message to US admin

Communities torn apart by a yearslong rift between Gulf rulers may need time to heal the wounds of a crisis that damaged social ties that have historically transcended borders.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Can World Cup soccer help heal Gulf wounds?

The book contains five stories that narrate the different experiences Sheikh Mohammed had while growing up..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Video: Sheikh Mohammed shares childhood memories in new book