Middle East Experience

The United Arab Emirates reported 491 new coronavirus cases on Thursday, marking the highest daily increase since early July.The increase comes after days of rising cases, with 399 new infections detected on Wednesday.The new cases were detected after authorities conducted 68,043 COVID-19 tests, reported health authorities on Twitter.Read the latest updates in our dedicated coronavirus section.With the 491 new cases, the total number of cases in the country is now 68,511.The vast majority of people infected with the virus have since recovered, with a further 402 patients recovering on Thursday.There were no new deaths from COVID-19 on Thursday, meaning the death toll remains at 378.Authorities warned last week that they could reimpose a lockdown if cases continued to rise.Asked on Friday if the national sterilization program, which had included a night time curfew, could again be enforced, National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority (NCEMA) spokesman Seif al-Zahri told Emirates TV: “Yes, that's possible in certain areas where we observe high infection cases.”Demand for personal protective equipment has also surged in Dubai as the COVID-19 outbreak shows no sign of stopping.Read more:Coronavirus: Entering Abu Dhabi now requires COVID-19 PCR test before reaching borderCoronavirus: UAE could reimpose lockdowns as COVID-19 cases rise, official saysUAE reports 461 new COVID-19 cases as infections continue to rise
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Coronavirus: UAE reports 491 new COVID-19 cases, highest increase since early July

Saudi Arabia confirmed 1,019 new coronavirus cases, with 30 COVID-19 related deaths on Thursday.There were 1,310 new recoveries, according to the country’s ministry of health.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.The total number of cases in the country is now 311,855, with a total death toll of 3,785.Saudi Arabia was recently ranked among the top 20 safest countries in the world during the ongoing pandemic, according to a comprehensive data analysis by Hong Kong-based Deep Knowledge Group.Saudi Arabia took the number one spot in the analysis’ “regional resiliency” index, which considers how a country’s demography, geopolitical stability, and societal discipline, and other factors influence safety during the COVID-19 outbreak.The Kingdom ranked seventh in the emergency preparedness index, which takes into account four factors including emergency military mobilization experience and level of societal emergency resilience – the overall level of preparedness that incorporates “psychological, cultural and religious practices and attitudes.”Saudi Arabia also ranked 19th in the “monitoring and detection” index, which included indicators of testing efficiency and transparency of data.Read more:Lebanese man asks fiancé to ‘rebuild future’ in proposal delayed by Beirut explosionTurkey gave Hamas members passports: ReportJordan’s Queen Rania wears dress by Saudi Arabian designer for 50th birthday portrait
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Coronavirus: Saudi Arabia records 1,019 new cases, 30 deaths

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo discussed Oman’s peacemaking role in the Gulf region with Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tariq Al Said during his visit to the Omani capital city Muscat on Thursday.Oman’s role in advancing peace and stability in the Gulf was a topic of conversation during the bilateral talk, according a statement by the US State Department.The two also “discussed the importance of a united Gulf Cooperation Council to advance prosperity in the region…and their shared commitment to bolstering the US- Oman bilateral economic partnership.”Before arriving in Oman, Pompeo visited the UAE’s capital city Abu Dhabi on Wednesday, the fourth stop on his Middle East tour that was prompted by the announcement of the UAE-Israel peace deal on August 13.Pompeo and UAE officials - Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan and National Security Advisor Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan - discussed the conflict in Libya and countering Iran during bilateral talks.The officials discussed “regional and bilateral issues of concern, including mutual support for de-escalation and a lasting ceasefire in Libya, Gulf unity, and countering Iran’s malign influence in the region,” the US State Department said in a statement.Secretary Pompeo also congratulated the UAE officials on “the monumental achievement” of the country’s historic agreement with Israel known as the Abraham Accord.Read more:Turkey gave Hamas members passports: ReportJordan’s Queen Rania wears dress by Saudi Arabian designer for 50th birthday portraitCoronavirus: Entering Abu Dhabi now requires COVID-19 PCR test before reaching border
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: US Secretary Pompeo discusses Oman’s peacemaking role, Gulf unity with Omani Sultan

Too many factors — especially tensions with Greece — are at play to determine whether recent gas discovery in the Black Sea will translate into massive commercial and political gains for Ankara.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: How Mediterranean standoff complicates Turkey's natural gas agenda

The United States continues to back an undivided Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, the State Department told Al Arabiya English on Thursday, as Arab allies maintain their stance of East Jerusalem being the capital of a future Palestinian state.“The United States’ position has not changed,” said a State Department spokesperson when asked if the Trump administration would amend their Mideast peace plan to propose East Jerusalem as the future Palestinian capital.The Trump plan, which supports a two-state solution to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, calls for an “united” Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and assigns a future Palestinian capital to be in a suburb area to the east of the city of Jerusalem.The Palestinians, according to the plan, would not control any part of the Old City of Jerusalem that includes the Islamic holy site Al Aqsa and the holiest place in Christianity the Church of the Holy Sepulchre – both demanded by the Palestinians.Previous US administrations have held the position that the city of Jerusalem should never be divided, according to former US Ambassador Dennis Ross.“Prior to the Trump Administration, the US position was that the city of Jerusalem should never be divided again, but that the political status of the city must be resolved through the negotiations between the parties,” said Ross, a former special assistant to US President Barack Obama, in an interview with Al Arabiya English.Trump’s predecessor President Barack Obama said during a 2008 AIPAC speech that “Jerusalem will remain the capital of Israel and it must remain undivided.”Palestinian, Arab, and other world leaders have long contended that any peace agreement must return territory Israel annexed in the 1967 war, as stated by the United Nations Security Council Resolution 242.This annexed territory includes the part of the city known as East Jerusalem - where 360,000 Palestinians currently live under Israeli occupation, confronted by a wall separating them from Palestinians in the West Bank, which the International Court of Justice (ICJ) concludes is against international law.Arab leaders emphasize East Jerusalem as Palestinian capitalAfter the United Arab Emirates’ historic agreement to normalize ties with Israel, Pompeo embarked on a Middle East tour on Monday beginning in Israel, with stops in Sudan, Bahrain, the UAE, and Oman.Pompeo said Monday that he was hopeful other Arab nations will follow the UAE.However Gulf countries such as Bahrain and Saudi Arabia have reiterated their support for the Arab Peace Initiative, which states that relations with Israel can only be reached upon actualization of a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as the capital.In a meeting with Pompeo on Wednesday, Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa emphasized an Israeli-Palestinian peace process that “leads to the establishment of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital,” according to the country’s state news agency.Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud has said the Kingdom is committed to the Arab Peace Initiative and former Saudi Arabian intelligence chief Prince Turki al-Faisal said his country has “set a price for concluding peace between Israel and the Arabs.”“It is the creation of a sovereign Palestinian state with Jerusalem as capital, as provided for by the initiative of the late King Abdullah,” Prince Turki wrote in the newspaper Asharq al-Awsat, and translated on Al Arabiya English’s dedicated In Translation page, on Friday.The Arab Peace Initiative was first presented by then-Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Abdullah bin Abdulaziz al Saud in 2002 and is support by the Arab League, whose members include Sudan, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Oman.Read more:Palestinians face major obstacles to hold first legislative elections since 2006Another Israel-Arab deal expected in coming weeks: Israeli ambassador to USSix major events in Oman-Israel relations: Timeline
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: After talks with Arab officials, US position ‘has not changed’ on Jerusalem: Official

If mishandled, Turkey’s threats of military action could trigger an uncontrolled escalation, leaving Ankara facing difficult choices.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: How much does Erdogan’s 'coercive diplomacy' benefit Turkey?

The man's lawyer said the accused doctor from the West Bank is involved in peaceful activism and was entrapped by British intelligence.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Palestinian man arrested for allegedly helping Irish nationalist group

The testing facilities will be based in seven schools in Dubai..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Coronavirus: All staff in Dubai schools must undergo PCR test

Pompeo's trip comes in advance of a planned visit next Monday to the UAE by an official Israeli delegation led by National Security Adviser Meir Ben Shabbat.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Pompeo ends Middle East tour with no further peace declarations

With lack of playing time in America, Croatian center lured by compatriot Vujcic to yellow-and-blue.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Big fish Zizic jumps from NBA to Maccabi Tel Aviv