Middle East

Jerusalem, Jul 20: Israel's parliament on Thursday adopted a law defining the country as the nation state of the Jewish people, provoking fears it could lead to blatant discrimination against Arab citizens. Arab lawmakers and Palestinians called the law "racist" and said it legalised "apartheid" following a tumultuous debate in parliament. Others said it neglects to specify equality and Israel's

Istanbul, Jul 17: Turkey’s state of emergency which was imposed after the failed 2016 coup is to end Wednesday but the opposition fears it will be replaced by even more repressive legislative measures. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared the state of emergency on July 20, 2016, five days after warplanes bombed Ankara and bloody clashes broke out in Istanbul in a doomed putsch bid that claimed

Jeddah, Jul 16: King Salman on Sunday approved the implementation of an electronic sick-leave system, and directed relevant authorities to coordinate with the Civil Service Ministry in case of any amendments to the terms for granting sick leave. He also approved a program to train Saudi professionals in clinical coding. The Saudi Health Council and the Human Resources Development Fund (Hadaf) are

Buenos Aires, Jul 13: Argentina has asked Russia to arrest former Iranian foreign minister Ali Akbar Velayati for extradition in connection with the 1994 bombing of a Jewish center in Buenos Aires, the foreign ministry said Thursday. Velayati is in Russia as a special adviser to President Hassan Rouhani and will travel to China on Friday, so the same request has also been made to Chinese

Damascus, Jul 12: The Israeli Air Force (IAF) on Wednesday night carried out air strikes in Syria's Quneitra region near the border, in retaliation to Syrian drone infiltration. The Israeli military confirmed the attacks, saying they came in response to the drone infiltration, reported The Times of Israel. As per local media reports, the Syrian drone was shot down by the military after entering

Baghdad, Jul 11: Thousands of protesting tribesmen in southern Iraq have threatened to “paralyze” oil production if the hundreds of companies running the oil fields fail to employ them. Tensions in Basra escalated after police opened fire to disperse protesters who had blocked the road leading to West Qurna, home of the largest oil fields in Iraq, on Sunday. One demonstrator was killed and three

Jeddah, Jul 9: A member of Saudi Arabia’s security forces and a foreign citizen were killed in an attack at a checkpoint in Buraidah, Qassim Province, on Sunday. Two of the attackers were also killed and another injured in the ensuing gunfight, the Saudi Press Agency reported. The three men opened fire at 3:45 p.m. local time from a Hyundai Elantra, an Interior Ministry spokesman said. “A security

Dubai, Jul 8: The property transactions in Dubai in the first half of 2018 has seen approximately 16 per cent decline compared to the same period a year ago. According to Dubai Land Department (DLD), overall property transactions in Dubai totalled Dh111 billion from January to June this year. This was done through 27,642 transactions. The Land Department numbers represent properties and plots sold

Dubai, Jul 8: Another world record has been broken in Dubai, as a major business hub has recently pieced together the world’s largest puzzle. The Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) confirmed on Sunday that it has successfully claimed a new Guinness World Records title for the largest jigsaw puzzle by surface area. In celebration of the Year of Zayed, the 12,000-piece puzzle features the image

Amman/Beirut, Jul 7: South Syrian rebels agreed to give up arms in a Russian-brokered cease-fire deal on Friday, rebel sources said, surrendering Daraa province to the government in another major victory for President Bashar Assad and his Russian alies. The Syrian government recovered the crucial Nassib border crossing with Jordan, held by rebels for three years, state media reported, after a