TEHERAN (BLOOMBERG, AFP, REUTERS) – As many as 6.43 million Iranians, or nearly 25 per cent of the workforce, could lose their jobs due to the coronavirus outbreak, according to a study by the country’s Parliament Research Centre. A minimum of 2.87 million jobs will be lost, the study finds, citing latest official figures. Non-oil […]

Umm Haroun and Exit 7 spark anger among Palestinians, who say the series promote normalising ties with Israel. Palestinian factions and figures have slammed a Saudi TV drama series that promotes normalising ties with Israel, a state regarded as an illegal occupying power under international law. The shows, Umm Haroun and Exit 7, are being broadcast […]

TEL AVIV (REUTERS) – Military jets flew in formation over Tel Aviv’s deserted parks and streets on Wednesday (April 29), cheered on from rooftops by flag-waving residents in face masks as Israel marked its independence day under lockdown. In a normal year, locals would celebrate the day by flocking to beaches and other public spaces […]

Deal seen as latest move by Sudan’s government to remove the country from a US list of state sponsors of ‘terrorism’. Sudan’s Ministry of Justice says it has finalised a settlement deal with the families of 17 United States sailors killed in an attack on a US Navy warship at a port in Yemen in the […]

Displaced people need sufficient aid to survive, UN says, adding virus is likely to be circulating in war-torn country. The United Nations has said nearly one million displaced people in Yemen risk losing their shelter, warning of a dire funding shortfall and “a very real probability” that the new coronavirus is already circulating undetected in the war-torn […]

WASHINGTON (AFP) – The United States said on Monday (April 27) it was ready to recognise Israel’s annexation of much of the West Bank but asked the new unity government also to negotiate with the Palestinians. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has reached a power-sharing deal to remain in office after three inconclusive elections, has […]

CAIRO (AFP) – The Arab League said Monday (April 27) it will convene an urgent virtual meeting this week to discuss how to galvanise opposition to Israeli plans to annex parts of the occupied West Bank. The extraordinary meeting – scheduled for Thursday at the request of the Palestinian leadership – will bring together Arab […]

President Rouhani says country will be divided up into colour-coded regions based on number of infections and deaths. Iran plans to reopen mosques in parts of the country that have been consistently free of the coronavirus outbreak as restrictions on Iranians gradually ease.  Iran, one of the Middle Eastern countries hardest hit by the pandemic, […]

Joint statement by Germany, France, Italy and EU’s top diplomat comes after GNA rejects bloc’s naval mission. The foreign ministers of Germany, France and Italy, along with the European Union’s top diplomat, have issued a joint call for a ceasefire in Libya, urging the warring sides in the North African country to resume peace talks. […]

RIYADH (REUTERS) – Saudi Arabia is ending flogging as a form of punishment, according to a document from the kingdom’s top court seen by Reuters on Friday (April 24). The decision by the General Commission for the Supreme Court, taken some time this month, will see the punishment replaced by prison sentences or fines, or […]