Middle East Experience

Note was pre-scheduled to post • Earlier posts reveal that she had previously shared her struggle with mental illness and anorexia, which she had reportedly had since the age of 12
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Orthodox Jewish woman's suicide note posts on Instagram after her death

Khartoum is also a key broker in the Nile River dam talks with Egypt and Ethiopia.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Sudan’s fragile transition boosted by turnaround in ties with US, Israel

Egypt received offers from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait to invest in projects to expand the Cairo and Sphinx international airports, as part of efforts to boost tourism and put Egypt on the global transit map.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Saudi, Kuwaiti investments boost Cairo, Sphinx airports

Israeli jets flew very low over parts of Lebanon early Friday, terrifying residents on Christmas Eve, some of whom reported seeing missiles in the skies over Beirut.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Minutes later, Syria's official news agency reported explosions in the central Syrian town of Masyaf. Other Syrian media said Syrian air defenses responded to an Israeli attack near the town in the Hama province.There was no immediate word on what the target was or whether there were any casualties.Israeli jets regularly violate Lebanese airspace and have often struck inside Syria from Lebanese territory. But the Christmas Eve flights were louder than usual, frightening residents of Beirut who have endured multiple crises in the past year, including the catastrophic August 4 explosion at the city's port that killed over 200 people and destroyed parts of the capital. That explosion resulted from the detonation of a stockpile of ammonium nitrates that was improperly stored at the facility.There was no immediate word from Israel on Friday's flights and alleged attacks on Syria.In the past few years, Israel has acknowledged carrying out dozens of airstrikes in Syria, most of them aimed at suspected Iranian weapons shipments believed to be bound for Hezbollah. In recent months, Israeli officials have expressed concern that Hezbollah is trying to establish production facilities to make precision guided missiles.Masyaf is a significant military area for Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime that includes a military academy and a scientific research center. Israel has struck targets there several times in the past.Read more:Israel imposing third national COVID-19 lockdownExplosion hits gas pipeline in Egypt's North Sinai regionIran says US approved funds transfer to buy COVID-19 vaccines
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Explosions reported in Syria after Israeli jets fly over Lebanon capital Beirut

The United Arab Emirates reports 1,230 new coronavirus cases as the total number of infections nears 200,000, the country’s National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority (NCEMA) announced on Friday.Read the latest updates in our dedicated coronavirus section.The new cases were detected after the Ministry of Health conducted 143,901 tests “as part of its plans to expand the scope of the tests,” according to the authority.An additional 1,386 recoveries were also reported, raising the total to 175,865, according to the official WAM news agency.Meanwhile, six individuals who had previously tested positive for the virus died due to complications, raising the death toll to 653.Read more:How to get the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in DubaiMasks, social distancing to continue after COVID-19 vaccineWhere to get the COVID-19 Sinopharm vaccine in the UAE
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Coronavirus: UAE COVID-19 cases near 200,000 with 1,230 new infections

Lebanon health authorities have detected one case of the new COVID-19 strain on a UK flight that arrived in Beirut on December 21, acting Health Minister Hamad Hassan said in a tweet Friday.Read the latest updates in our dedicated coronavirus section.“A case of the new strain of COVID-19 was recorded on [Middle East Airlines] flight number 202 coming from London on December 21,” he said. “We call on travelers arriving from the United Kingdom, especially those on the mentioned flight, to comply with preventative measures.”Hassan also said the health ministry will follow up with the infected person and anyone who came into contact with the individual. He later told local news outlet Aljadeed that the person who tested positive is a Lebanese national and is in “stable condition.” He added that all of those who arrived on the London flight have been asked to quarantine for 10 days.While other countries decided to shut their borders to UK travel, Hassan reportedly told Aljadeed that his ministry made the recommendation to suspend flights from the UK, adding that the responsible government body should have made that decision.A surge in infections is straining Lebanon's healthcare system which has been struggling amid a financial crisis and after a huge port explosion in August smashed up hospitals in Beirut.Adding to the pressures, the economic meltdown has prompted many doctors to emigrate and raised concerns that subsidies on medicines will be removed.Lebanon, with an estimated population of 6 million, has reported 1,210 deaths as a result of COVID-19. A total of 165,933 cases have been confirmed as of December 24, according to the health ministry.Authorities have struggled to enforce coronavirus restrictions in a country where half the nation has slipped into poverty.New COVID-19 strainA new variant of the pandemic SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus has been spreading rapidly in Britain and prompting high levels of concern among its European neighbors and countries across the world leading some to implement travel bans to and from the UK.The strain, referred to by some experts as the B.1.1.7 lineage, is not the first new variant of the pandemic virus to emerge, but is said to be up to 70 percent more transmissible than the previously dominant strain in the United Kingdom.With ReutersRead more:The new coronavirus variant in Britain: Everything we know so farJordan suspends UK flights amid fears of new COVID-19 strainCOVID-19 vaccines still work against new virus strain: French health minister
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Coronavirus: Lebanon detects new COVID-19 strain on MEA flight from UK

Turkey’s loan expansion has helped resuscitate the economy, but at the expense of an alarming surge in consumer and corporate debt.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Mountain of debt growing under the rug in Turkey

News reports say emergency crews have responded to an explosion in downtown Nashville. Black smoke and flames were seen billowing from the area.Buildings shook in the immediate area and beyond after a loud boom was heard early Christmas morning. Police and fire crews were on the scene.The Metro Nashville Police Department says authorities believe an explosion that rocked the downtown area early on Christmas Day was a deliberate act.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Police spokesman Don Aaron said about three hours after the explosion shook the area that investigators believe it was “an intentional act.” Police earlier said they believe a vehicle was involved in the explosion.The Metro Nashville Office of Emergency Management told Nashville television station WKRN that a parked recreational vehicle exploded and damaged several buildings. No injuries were immediately reported.Buck McCoy, who lives near the area, posted videos on Facebook that show water pouring down the ceiling of his home. Alarms blare in the background and cries of people in great distress ring in the background. A fire is visible in the street outside. McCoy said the windows of his home were entirely blown out.“All my windows, every single one of them got blown into the next room. If I had been standing there it would have been horrible,” he said.“It felt like a bomb. It was that big,” he told The Associated Press.“There were about four cars on fire. I don’t know if it was so hot they just caught on fire, and the trees were all blown apart,” he said.Read more:EU nations convene meeting to start assessing post-Brexit trade deal with UKPope Francis says in Christmas message fraternity the watchword ‘at this moment’Boko Haram extremists in Nigeria kill seven villagers in Christmas eve attack
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: US: Explosion rocks downtown Nashville early Christmas morning

Houthi militants have reportedly beat a pregnant mother to death in Ibb in front of her four children while attempting a house raid to arrest her husband, according to activists.Local Yemeni media said the attack took place on Thursday when Houthi militants arriving in an armored vehicle stormed the house of the woman identified Ahlam al-Ashari in the al-Odain district in the Ibb province of Yemen.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.The 29-year-old mother was severely beaten in various parts of her body and sustained several deep wounds to her head and face, which led to her death immediately after she was transferred to al-Odain Hospital in order to treat her, according to local Yemeni media outlets.The Taiz Center for Human Rights has called for urgent investigations into the murder of the young mother and holds the Houthis accountable for her death.“The center stresses the need to uncover the circumstances of the case, prosecute the perpetrators and stop the repeated tampering and the successive attacks on human rights. This crime is a violation of all international norms and laws and human rights, and reflects the terrible collapse of rights and freedoms in the areas under the control of the militia coup and the increasing number of crimes committed by the Houthi security forces,” read a statement released by the center.The victim's father, Ali Abdulkarim al-Ashari confirmed in a complaint published by activists on social media that armed men from the al-Odain Security Department stormed his daughter's house and attacked her and her children, which led to her death.The victim's husband appeared in a video in distress and seeking help.“Where are those claiming to support the oppressed. They killed the mother of my children. My children have become orphans. Where is the ‘master’ who claims to support justice,” the husband said, referring to the Houthi leader Abdulmalik al-Houthi.Last year, a rights group said that the Houthi militia in Yemen are holding dozens of women without bringing them to trial or charging them with a crime, often torturing the detainees and blackmailing their families.An Associated Press investigation last December showed that thousands of Yemenis have been imprisoned by the Houthi militia during the five years of Yemen's war. Many of them suffered extreme torture - being smashed in their faces with batons, hung from chains by their wrists or genitals for weeks at a time, and scorched with acid.Read more:Houthi official accused of prison torture at Yemen’s Central Security prison‘Castrated, beaten, paralyzed’: Yemeni doctor reveals horrors of Houthi tortureUN Human Rights Council condemns Houthi abuses in Yemen
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Houthis beat pregnant Yemeni mother to death in front of children in Ibb: Activists

Germany is home to the fastest-growing medical cannabis market outside the US.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: First commercial medical cannabis export from Israel lands in Germany