Middle East Experience

Budget airline flydubai on Thursday launched direct flights to Tel Aviv, the first scheduled commercial service between the two cities, following the normalization of ties between the UAE and Israel.For all the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be on hand for the arrival of the inaugural flight after its nearly four-hour trip, his spokesman said.“PM Netanyahu will attend this morning the welcoming ceremony for the first @flydubai commercial flight that will arrive at Ben-Gurion International Airport,” Ofir Gendelman said in a tweet.“These are the fruits of peace Dear Emirati tourists, welcome to Israel!”The United Arab Emirates in September signed a landmark US-brokered deal to formalize relations with Israel, the first such agreement by an Arab state in the Gulf.With their economies hard hit by the coronavirus pandemic, the UAE and Israel are hoping for rapid dividends from the normalization deal, including an influx of tourists as Dubai enters its winter high season.“The start of scheduled flights will contribute to economic development and create further opportunities for investment,” flydubai CEO Ghaith al-Ghaith said when the service was announced earlier this month.The Dubai carrier will fly the route twice daily, and Israeli airlines El Al and Israir are both expected to launch their commercial services between the cities next month.Etihad Airways, based in the UAE capital Abu Dhabi, has said it will begin flying to Tel Aviv in March 2021.The UAE became only the third Arab country to normalize ties with Israel, following Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994.The two countries have already signed treaties on visa-free travel -- although that is yet to come into force -- along with accords on investment protection, science and technology.Since the historic agreement, Bahrain and Sudan have followed suit and agreed to forge ties.The agreements shattered a longstanding Arab consensus that there should be no normalization with Israel until it reaches a comprehensive peace deal with the Palestinians.Several Gulf Arab states have for years been quietly building relations with Israel on the basis of shared animosity towards Iran, with the US supporting the process.After the UAE deal was announced by President Donald Trump in August, El Al flew a delegation of US and Israeli officials -- led by Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner -- to Abu Dhabi in an historic direct service between the two countries.That was followed by an official visit by a UAE delegation to Tel Aviv as well as a string of charter flights carrying business groups.Read more:First plane with Israeli tourists lands in UAE after normalization dealUAE-Israel direct flights to start November 26UAE-Israel relations take off with aviation deal, includes 28 weekly Tel Aviv flights
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: UAE-Israel: Flydubai launches first direct scheduled Dubai-Tel Aviv flight

“Pumpkin pie recipe,” “turkey recipe” and “Black Friday” were three of the most searched terms in the US on Wednesday, one day ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, according to Google Trends.For all the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.“Pumpkin pie” ranked third with over 500,000 searches, while “turkey recipe,” the main dish served during the holiday, came in sixth with more than 200,000 searches.“Apple pie recipe” and “pecan pie” also made the top 20 list.In addition to food, many Americans look forward to the day after Thanksgiving when all retailers release their “Black Friday” deals, the biggest sales of the year to kick off the Christmas and holiday shopping season.“Walmart PS5” was the second most searched term as the Playstation 5 is sold out everywhere, but global retailer Walmart announced on its US website a restock for Black Friday.Traditionally, shoppers line up for hours ahead of stores opening in order to get their hands on items such as the PS5 and other normally expensive electronics at reduced prices. However, due to the coronavirus pandemic, this year many stores including Walmart changed their approach and either offered online discounts or split “Black Friday’ across several days to reduce crowding.Despite calls from officials urging people to avoid gatherings and travel as COVID-19 cases in the US hit record highs this week, the country’s busiest travel season has kicked off and dinners and gatherings are still planned to go ahead.The US has so far confirmed nearly 13 million cases and 262,222 deaths, according to the latest Johns Hopkins tally as of November 26.Read more:Coronavirus will hit Black Friday spending – but not in Saudi and UAE, report revealsPlaystation 5: All Middle East gamers need to know about Sony’s latest consoleAmericans defy pandemic, political leaders to travel for Thanksgiving
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Pumpkin pie, turkey recipes, ‘Black Friday’ top Google searches ahead of Thanksgiving

Several family olive groves in Israel are specialized in first-crop olive oil, a cloudy oil containing very fresh, very strong flavors.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Israel becoming powerhouse of first-crop olive oil

Palestinians and Jordanians are working to ensure that Gulf visitors to Al-Aqsa Mosque in the Palestinian half of Jerusalem abide by the same rituals and traditions that all Muslims have practiced when visiting the holy sites.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Palestinians in quandary about new visitors from Gulf

The Iranian-backed Houthi militia in Yemen has given long-awaited approval for a United Nations plan to visit and assess a deteriorating oil tanker off Yemen’s coast that is threatening to spill 1.1 million barrels of crude oil into the Red Sea.Staff and equipment could be expected to arrive at the tanker by late January or early February, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters on Tuesday.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Hussein al-Azzi, the Houthi deputy foreign minister, said on Sunday Houthi authorities had sent a letter confirming they would welcome the UN team of experts, adding they were waiting for confirmation of an arrival date. “It represents an important step forward in this critical work,” Dujarric said, adding the letter was received on Saturday.The United Nations has warned that the Safer, stranded since 2015, could spill four times as much oil as the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster near Alaska, but access to the vessel has been complicated by the war in Yemen.The Iran-backed Houthi militia, which controls the area where the tanker is moored and the national oil firm that owns it, agreed in July to allow a technical team to assess the ship and conduct whatever repairs may be feasible.But final agreement on logistical arrangements did not materialize.Dujarric said the experts would assess the tanker and could undertake light maintenance. The United Nations has a plan, but now needs to procure equipment and permits which will take time, he explained.“The de facto authorities have assured us that they will provide all the necessary facilitation to ensure that the expert team can deploy as quickly as possible,” he said.The Safer, built in 1974, is moored off the Ras Issa oil terminal, 60 kilometer (40 miles) north of the port of Hodeidah.UN and Houthi officials say water has entered the Safer’s engine room at least twice since 2015. The latest leak in May was plugged by Safer Corp divers and Houthi naval units.The United Nations says a major rupture could severely harm Red Sea ecosystems and shut Hodeidah port, Yemen’s main entry point for imports and aid.“The agreement to allow access to the SAFER tanker is welcome (and overdue). Making it safe as soon as possible will prevent a potentially huge environmental disaster,” Britain’s ambassador to Yemen Michael Aron said on Wednesday.
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Iranian-backed Houthi militia approves UN plan to assess decaying Yemen oil tanker

Nearly half of Israelis want US President-elect Joe Biden to relaunch negotiations with the Palestinians, according to new polling.Read more: UAE-Israel: Nobel Peace Prize nominations for Abu Dhabi Crown Prince, Netanyahu“A plurality of 49 percent support the relaunching of negotiations with the Palestinians under an incoming Biden administration,” according a poll conducted with European Union funding by the Geneva Initiative, an Israeli-Palestinian organization.The survey, conducted from November 16 to 17, polled over 500 Israelis.Making peace with the Palestinians took second priority, however, when participants answered which Arab leaders Israel should make peace with next, following its normalization with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.Twenty-nine percent of participants said Saudi Arabia, while 28 percent said the Palestinians.Participants were also asked to pick from four potential solutions to the conflict: 48 percent chose the two-state solution as the most preferable option, with only 11 percent choosing a one state solution with equal rights for both peoples.Another 11 percent picked one state with less rights for Palestinians, while 20 percent chose none of the above.Read more: Israeli PM Netanyahu sends condolences to Bahrain's king on death of PMThe preference for a two-state solution broadly aligns with recent polling on the Palestinian side.The Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research interviewed 1,200 Palestinians in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip in August, and found 43 percent of Palestinians support the two-state solution.Biden on Israel-PalestineThe next four years of a Biden presidency will make or break the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, Israeli and Palestinian experts told Al Arabiya English earlier this month.The US under Biden will be a more “credible mediator” between the Israelis and Palestinians than it was under current American president Donald Trump, according to Bernard Sabella, a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council in Jerusalem.Under Trump, the State Department cut more than $200 million in aid to the West Bank and Gaza, and $25 million in aid for Palestinians in East Jerusalem, in 2018.The Trump administration also halted all US funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) – an estimated $360 million per year - saying that the organization was “irredeemably flawed.”The US embassy in Israel was also moved from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, recognizing Jerusalem as the “united” capital of Israel.Biden has promised to restore economic assistance to the Palestinians and reopen the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) office in Washington, but said he will keep the US embassy in Jerusalem.Read more:Saudi Arabia cracks down on abuse against women with prison term, up to $13,332 fineUAE-Israel: Flydubai launches first direct scheduled Dubai-Tel Aviv flightStress, worry and pain have soared in Lebanon, finds Negative Experience Index
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Nearly half of Israelis want Biden to relaunch negotiations with Palestinians: Poll

Today’s top stories on The Round Up 🇹🇷 The Amir Sheikh Tamim visits Turkey 🛥️ Qatar’s coast guards stop two Bahraini boats 🇺🇳 Doha and UN launch counterterrorism programme 💛 Qatar Charity helps millions in Somalia 🏥 A life-changing surgery at Al Ahli hospital Want more from Doha News? Website: www.dohanews.co Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dohanews Twitter: https://twitter.com/dohanews ..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: The Round Up | 26 Nov 2020 – Doha News

More than 16 million Covid-19 tests have been carried out in the country so far..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Coronavirus: UAE reports 1,305 Covid-19 cases, 826 recoveries, 1 death

Scottish government lawyer says appeal judges should use evidence from second Libyan suspect..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Scottish court urged to use diaries to uphold Lockerbie bomb case

Tunisians are unanimous in their dissatisfaction with the content of their traditional audiovisual media, despite a more open media landscape since 2011..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Fall to sensationalism lends Tunisian media to criticism