Middle East Experience

Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Interior Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud, Minister of Culture Prince Badr bin Farhan Al Saud and the chairman of the General Entertainment Authority Turki al-Alshikh received their first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine on Friday.Read the latest updates in our dedicated coronavirus section.“I took the first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and thank God all is well and I did not feel anything. I urge you all to take it,” chairman Turki al-Alshikh said in a Twitter post he shared with a video.Prince Badr shared a photo of himself receiving the shot with a caption: “His highness, the Crown Prince [Mohammed bin Salman] led Saudi Arabia’s battle against COVID-19 and today we are reaping the benefits of his efforts and vision.”The Crown Prince also received his first dose of the vaccine on Friday, according to a video released by the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA).Meanwhile, the Ministry of Interior shared a video of Prince Abdulaziz receiving his first dose of the shot.Saudi Arabia opened registration for the COVID-19 vaccine via the Ministry of Health's Sehhaty mobile application on December 15. Since then, over 500,000 people have signed up to receive the shot, according to the health minister.The Ministry of Health has confirmed the safety and efficacy of the vaccine, after successful tests showed it provided a strong immune response and antibodies in trial participants, according to SPA.Read more:Saudi Arabia opens COVID-19 vaccine registration via Sehhaty appSaudi Arabia’s Crown Prince gets COVID-19 vaccineSaudi Arabia launches second center for COVID-19 vaccines in Jeddah
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Coronavirus: Saudi interior, culture ministers, GEA chairman receive COVID-19 vaccine

Confirmed coronavirus cases in the UAE have surpassed 200,000 with 1,277 new infections recorded over the past 24 hours.Read the latest updates in our dedicated coronavirus section.The Ministry of Health has confirmed a total of 200,892 COVID-19 cases as of December 26 with 177,407 recoveries after 1,542 individuals recovered.The death toll increased to 655 after two people who had previously tested positive for the virus died of complications, according to the official WAM news agency.An additional 157,461 tests were administered over the past 24 hours, WAM reported.The Ministry of Health continued to urge people to comply with preventative measures such as wearing face masks and avoiding large gatherings in addition to social distancing.Read more:Saudi interior, culture ministers, GEA chairman receive COVID-19 vaccineAustralian golfer Greg Norman hospitalized with COVID-19Lebanon detects new COVID-19 strain on MEA flight from UK
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Coronavirus: UAE COVID-19 cases cross 200,000 with 1,227 new infections

Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud has requested from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Secretary General to formally invite Gulf leaders to the 41st GCC Summit to be held in the capital Riyadh on January 5, according to a press release.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.“I had the honor today to personally deliver King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud’s invitation to the President of the United Arab Emirates H.H. Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan to attend the 41st GCC Summit taking place in Riyadh on January 5, 2021. The invitation was received by the Vice-President of the United Arab Emirates H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum today in Dubai,” Secretary General Dr. Nayef Falah al-Hajraf said in the statement.GCC leaders have held the annual meeting to “discuss coordination, integration, and interconnection between the member States and their citizens in economic development, commerce, education, and culture.”According to the statement, “the GCC’s focus today is on meeting the ambitions of the region’s young and digital population and enabling them to drive the region forward while remembering their shared heritage.”The six member states include Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait.During the upcoming summit, it is expected that leaders will focus on what steps should be taken to overcome the impact that the coronavirus pandemic has had on the Gulf countries and how to revive the economies, WAM reported.Read more:Saudi interior, culture ministers, GEA chairman receive COVID-19 vaccineAny new Iran deal must prevent Tehran from having nuclear weapons: GCC chief at IISSGCC Secretary General praises Saudi presidency of the G20 Summit
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Saudi Arabia’s King Salman asks GCC Sec. Gen. to invite Gulf leaders to GCC Summit

An intensive care unit at an Egyptian hospital caught fire on Saturday, killing seven coronavirus patients, officials said.Read the latest updates in our dedicated coronavirus section.Local police said the blaze erupted at a private hospital in Obour, an outlying district of the greater Cairo area.The fire injured at least five others. The injured and other patients were evacuated to nearby hospitals, the police said.Firefighters were able to put out the blaze, the cause of which police and prosecutors are investigating.The state-run al-Ahram daily reported that an initial investigation blamed an electric short-circuit for the fire.A similar blaze erupted at the coronavirus ward of a private hospital in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria in June, leaving seven patients dead and one injured.There was another fire in May in a coronavirus isolation center in Cairo that didn't cause any casualties.Egypt has seen a surge in the confirmed cases of the virus, forcing the government to reopen most of its hospitals designated to treat and isolate COVID-19 patients after the first wave of the pandemic subsided.The Health Ministry reported its highest daily number of confirmed cases on Friday at 1,113, along with 49 deaths.The new numbers have brought the county’s official tally to more than 130,126 cases, including at least 7,309 deaths.However, the actual numbers of cases in Egypt, the Arab world’s most populous county with over 100 million people, are thought to be far higher, in part due to limited testing.Read more:Hungary starts COVID-19 vaccinations for healthcare workersAustralian golfer Greg Norman hospitalized with COVID-19Saudi interior, culture ministers, GEA chairman receive COVID-19 vaccine
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Coronavirus: Egypt hospital fire kills seven COVID-19 patients

The checkpoints of the Syrian regime and the pro-Iranian militias along the main road between Deir-ez-Zor and al-Bukamal are imposing royalties on merchants and local residents in their areas of control.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Pro-Iran militias in Syria soak merchants for cash at checkpoints

Lebanon registered 14 new coronavirus-related deaths and 2,136 cases Friday, as Caretaker Health Minister Hamad Hasan announced that one new registered coronavirus case on a flight from Britain carried the new variant of the virus..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Lebanon registers 2,136 new virus cases, 14 deaths

Acclaimed coming-of-age story 'You Will Die at Twenty' is only the eight film to have been made inside Sudan..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: A Sudan in transition presents first-ever film for Oscars

The RV exploded just after an automated message emanated from it warning of a bomb.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Police search for clues to mysterious motorhome blast in Nashville

In an interview given to the Saudi news website Elaph, Brig.-Gen. Hidai Zilberman addressed Iran and the tactics deployed by the IDF in order to address the looming threat.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: IDF spokesperson: Iranian retaliation likely to come from Iraq, Yemen

Bennet said he would make significant concessions including on Israeli sovereignty
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Bennett: Netanyahu offered me alternate PM, Defense Ministry