The Times of India - Middle East

Sudan to normalize ties with Israel, in new breakthrough for Trump

Fri, 23 Oct 2020 21:06:58 GMT

Sudan on Friday agreed to be the latest Arab nation to recognize Israel in a diplomatic coup announced by President Donald Trump days before US elections.

Iran blacklists US ambassador in Iraq, reciprocating US move

Fri, 23 Oct 2020 17:16:28 GMT

Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said on Twitter that ambassador Matthew Tueller "has had a central role in coordinating terrorist acts in Iraq & beyond" including the assassination of Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani, killed by a U.S. missile strike at Baghdad in January.

US embassy in Turkey issues alert on potential attacks

Fri, 23 Oct 2020 16:58:22 GMT

“The US Mission in Turkey has received credible reports of potential terrorist attacks and kidnappings against US citizens and foreign nationals in Istanbul, including against the US Consulate General, as well as potentially other locations in Turkey,” the embassy said in a statement.

Erdogan confirms Russian S-400 tests despite US obejections

Fri, 23 Oct 2020 16:10:07 GMT

Washington has strongly objected to NATO member Turkey's acquisition of the Russian anti-aircraft system and suspended Turkey from its F-35 fighter jet program, saying the S-400s are a threat to the stealth fighter jets and wouldn't be interoperable with NATO systems.

Syria fuel crisis eases as Iran delivers new oil supplies

Fri, 23 Oct 2020 14:45:21 GMT

A vessel began unloading 38,000 tonnes of gasoline at the Baniyas oil terminal on Monday, three weeks after another ship carrying Iranian crude unloaded its one million barrel cargo, three shippers and a Damascus-based businessman familiar with the shipment told Reuters.

One year on, how is Lebanon's Hariri back?

Fri, 23 Oct 2020 13:50:26 GMT

What circumstances brought him back? What do the international community and key players inside the Lebanon think? And will the consensus on him being named make his tricky task any easier?

Work from Dubai – Dubai launches virtual working programme for overseas professionals

Thu, 22 Oct 2020 16:25:00 GMT

Saad al-Hariri named as Lebanon's new prime minister

Thu, 22 Oct 2020 14:36:51 GMT

Lebanon's President Michel Aoun designated Sunni Muslim politician Saad al-Hariri as prime minister on Thursday to form a new government to tackle the worst crisis since the country's 1975-1990 civil war.

Iran summons envoy over 'baseless' US election claims

Thu, 22 Oct 2020 13:46:35 GMT

US authorities "have put forward a baseless claim on the verge of the country's election so that they would advance their undemocratic and predefined scenario through shifting the blame," ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said in a statement.

Lebanon launches new quest for PM

Thu, 22 Oct 2020 12:11:54 GMT

The frontrunner is none other than Saad Hariri, who already held the position twice and resigned a year ago under pressure from an unprecedented protest movement demanding a complete overhaul of Lebanon's political system.

'Trump Heights' a symbol of US shift on Mideast policy

Wed, 21 Oct 2020 07:06:28 GMT

'Trump Heights' is an Israeli settlement, inaugurated in June 2019 by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a celebration to mark US President Donald Trump's recognition of the Golan as Israeli territory. For residents, it is the most visible legacy Trump has had here. Since Trump's declaration and the decision to build the place, we see a lot of interest from investors.

Jamal Khashoggi fiancee sues Saudi prince in US over murder

Tue, 20 Oct 2020 21:23:39 GMT

UAE government delegation heads to Israel for first official visit

Tue, 20 Oct 2020 11:07:57 GMT

The first-ever official United Arab Emirates delegation to Israel set off on Tuesday after the two countries normalised ties last month under a US-brokered accord forged largely over shared fears of Iran. An Etihad Airways plane carrying Emirati govt officials, with US dignitaries accompanying them, is said to have left the UAE capital Abu Dhabi, headed to Ben-Gurion Airport.

As US vote looms, Gulf powers count Trump blessings

Tue, 20 Oct 2020 07:06:10 GMT

More than three years on, regional leaders are playing their diplomatic cards in support of an erratic but valuable partner in Washington as he seeks a second term -- one that would likely lead to even deeper tensions with Iran and more opportunities for their one-time enemy, Israel.

Egypt says another trove of ancient coffins found in Saqqara

Mon, 19 Oct 2020 17:59:35 GMT

Egyptian archaeologists have unearthed another trove of ancient coffins in a vast necropolis south of Cairo, authorities said Monday. Archaeologists also found colourful, gilded wooden statues, the ministry said. Details of the new discovery will be announced in a news conference at the famed Step Pyramid of Djoser, it said.

Covid-19 may inflict a decade of economic pain to Mideast, Central Asia, IMF says

Mon, 19 Oct 2020 13:39:03 GMT

Saudi woman in Guinness book for world's largest coffee painting

Mon, 19 Oct 2020 12:33:27 GMT

A Saudi Arabian artist has entered her name in the Guinness Book of World Records by drawing the world's largest coffee painting using expired granules, becoming the first woman from the kingdom to achieve the feat.

First commercial passenger flight from UAE lands in Israel

Mon, 19 Oct 2020 11:55:24 GMT

Etihad Airways Flight No. 9607 landed at Israel's Ben-Gurion international airport just after 7 am. The Boeing 787 Dreamliner departed for Abu Dhabi later Monday with an Israeli travel and tourism delegation on board, according to an Etihad statement.

Wars and peace: Israeli ties with the Arab world

Sun, 18 Oct 2020 13:40:07 GMT

The United Arab Emirates and Bahrain became the third and fourth Arab states to agree to normalise ties with Israel, following Egypt's peace deal with Israel in 1979 and a 1994 pact with Jordan.

Iran says UN arms embargo on Tehran has been lifted

Sun, 18 Oct 2020 12:31:53 GMT

Tehran, which could now purchase weapons from Russia, China and elsewhere, has hailed the development as a diplomatic victory over its arch enemy the United States, which had tried to maintain an indefinite freeze on arms sales.