Middle East Experience

US vice president Al Gore told AFP Friday it was "absurd" for petrostates such as Azerbaijan to host UN climate talks, saying the selection process should be overhauled.Mukhtar Babayev, a former oil executive who now serves as Azerbaijan's ecology minister, chairs COP29 in Baku while the country's leader, Ilham Aliyev, caused a stir this week by calling fossil fuels a "gift of the God". It comes after last year's climate talks in the oil-dependent United Arab Emirates -- presided over by the head of its state oil company -- also raised hackles among activists.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Gore says 'absurd' to hold UN climate talks in petrostates

A senior Hamas official on Friday said the group is "ready for a ceasefire" in Gaza, urging US President-elect Donald Trump to "pressure" Israel as it continued to pound the Palestinian territory.It comes nearly a week after Qatar, which hosts much of the Palestinian group's political bureau, announced it was suspending its role as a mediator in the war and urging all parties to show "seriousness".
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Hamas says 'ready for ceasefire' as Israel presses Gaza campaign

The US charged an Iranian man last week in connection with an alleged plot to assassinate President-elect Donald Trump.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Iran gave secret assurances to US it wouldn't target Trump, WSJ report

A senior adviser to Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei met Lebanese officials in Beirut Friday, the third high-profile Iranian solidarity visit since the Israel-Hezbollah war began in September.Speaking after meeting Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Parliament speaker Nabih Berri -- a Hezbollah ally at the forefront of ceasefire negotiations -- Ali Larijani said he "hopes for a swift solution to the suffering of the Lebanese people".
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Top Iran adviser in Beirut to show support for Lebanon, Hezbollah

Suzanne Karkaba and her father Ali were both civil defence rescuers whose job was to save the injured and recover the dead in Lebanon's war. When an Israeli strike killed him on Thursday and it was his turn to be rescued, there wasn't much left. She had to identify him by his fingers.Karkaba then rushed back to the bombed civil defence centre to search for her fellow first responders under the rubble.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Lebanon rescuer picks up 'pieces' of father after Israel strike

Kushner, 43, has a close relationship with Saudi Arabia, which congressional investigators say has invested $2 billion in his private equity fund, Affinity Partners.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Jared Kushner likely to continue Middle East efforts from outside Trump admin, CNN reports

God voted not only for Trump but for all these presidents, Democrat and Republican alike. God – along with us – chose them and placed them in a position to impact the world.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: God chose Donald Trump to win the election and change the world

Sasha Ariev, 25, the older sister of hostage Karina Ariev, said volunteers working in the demonstration were themselves observers for the army in the past.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Jerusalem hosts demonstration to raise awareness of IDF observers killed, abducted on October 7

“Free Palestine” and “blood on your hands” were spray painted onto University of Washington President Ana Mari Cauce's property.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Pro-Palestinian vandals invade home of UW president, carve Hamas symbols and slash tires

Looting of aid reaching Gaza has been made easier by Israel's army targeting the local police which would otherwise be able to prevent it, a group of non-governmental organisations said Friday.A report by the 29 NGOs, including Save the Children, Oxfam and Care, said that humanitarian aid entering the Palestinian territory had fallen to an all-time low, averaging 37 humanitarian trucks per day in October, and 69 in the first week of November.This compared with an average of 500 a day before the October 7, 2023, unprecedented attack by Hamas militants on Israel.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: NGOs say Israel targeting Gaza police helps looters of aid