Contents: Trump’s Mideast visit triggers renewal of sharp split between Saudi Arabia and Qatar; Qatar claims that it was cyber-attacked after media reports supporting Iran; Vitriolic Saudi-Qatari fault line reopened this week by Trump’s visit; Some useful information that’s good to know
TEL AVIV – In an unprecedented move, an Israeli Knesset minister met in public with officials from Gulf states and a Palestinian diplomat in Ecuador, and credited President Donald Trump’s efforts in the Middle East for bringing it about.
While Israelis here are celebrating the country’s Independence Day today, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) passed a resolution disavowing Israeli sovereignty over Jerusalem and ignoring Jewish ties to the religion’s holiest sites.
Contents: With Arab world in chaos, Arab League summit displays lack of leadership and influence; Arab League plays it safe by only condemning Israel and terrorism
Fox News delivers an astonishing report about the extent of Iran’s smuggling network.
Iran’s foreign minister on Sunday stepped up efforts to improve ties with Gulf Arab Sunni states urging them to work with their Shi’ite rival to address “anxieties” and violence across the region.
It remains uncertain where the 10 unidentified prisoners, who have been allegedly pardoned and “temporarily” transferred to Oman from the U.S. military prison in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, will go afterwards.
Outgoing President Barack Obama has transferred 10 prisoners from the U.S. military detention center in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba to Oman on his way out of the White House.
On Thursday, Reuters tapped U.S., European, and even Iranian sources to report that Iran “has stepped up weapons transfers to the Houthis, the militia fighting the Saudi-backed government in Yemen.”
Iran, considered the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism, has increased its shipments of military supplies to Shiite Houthi rebels fighting a Saudi-led and U.S.-assisted coalition in Yemen, Reuters has learned from Western and Iranian officials on condition of anonymity.
Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen launched an airstrike against an aid ship owned by a company from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a member of the largely Sunni Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), and part of the Saudi-led Arab alliance fighting the Shiite rebels, according to the state-controlled Emirates News Agency (WAM).
The Houthi rebels in Yemen receive Iranian arms shipments via a “sister state” as well as two African countries, the Saudi Alwatan newspaper reported.
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) members and the United States have reached an agreement to prevent the shipment of Iranian weapons to Yemen, according to Abdullatif al-Zayani, the alliance’s secretary general.
Contents: Italy debates military intervention in Libya after ISIS kills Italian hostages; Looking back at the 2011 ‘Arab Spring’ Libya military intervention; Russian media calls Gaddafi’s Libya an ‘oasis of stability’; Police in Turkey use force to shut down opposition newspaper
Contents: India about to deploy its first nuclear-armed submarine, in challenge to China; China’s military takes control of another Philippines fishing ground; Mideast Sunni-Shia split grows as GCC says Hezbollah is terrorist organization
TEL AVIV – Oman announced that it will not host the 2016 Youth Sailing World Championships because of Israeli participation. World Sailing updated its regulations following Malaysia’s refusal to allow reigning Israeli champions to play their national anthem and display the Israeli
Contents: Saudi Arabia and Iran accuse each other of terrorism; Arab countries deeply divided over Iran vs Saudi Arabia confrontation
On Wednesday, the Sunni nations of Qatar and Djibouti announced they would be severing diplomatic ties with the Islamic Republic of Iran, becoming the 9th and 10th nations to officially cut relations, roll back ties, or condemn the Shiite theocracy in the past week.
Instead of supporting Israel in a planned raid against Iran’s nuclear program, the Obama administration utilized the nation’s premier espionage resources to engage the regime in Tehran and keep Jerusalem in the dark, a Wall Street Journal report recounted.
Contents: Yemen’s Houthis sign letter agreeing to peace plan; Generational frustration grows among West Bank Palestinians; Russia Ministry of Defense videos found to be deceptive; The sleazy world of loan sharking — legally
Amman (AFP) – As hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees languish in camps or risk their lives to reach Europe, questions are being asked about why wealthy Gulf states have accepted so few.
As hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees languish in camps or risk their lives to reach Europe, questions are being asked about why wealthy Gulf states have accepted so few. By the end of August, more than four million Syrians
Contents: Behind the scenes in the Iran nuclear deal; The Arab world is disintegrating into war; Saudi Arabia conducts major anti-terrorism sweep against ISIS; Massive bomb attack in Iraq market kills over 130
The Pentagon announced Saturday that six Guantánamo Bay detainees, all Yemenis, had been transferred out of the military facility and into Oman, bordering their native country. Among the group were two men believed to have served as bodyguards for Osama Bin Laden.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Charging toward an Iran nuclear agreement, President Barack Obama is assuring Arab allies that they are safe from the threat of an empowered Tehran as he seeks to shore up some of America’s most critical security partnerships.
Iran attempts to seize Singapore-flagged ship in Persian Gulf; Obama concludes bizarre meeting with GCC at Camp David; The Truman Doctrine and the Carter Doctrine
The leaders from four Persian Gulf states, including Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saudi, are expected to skip President Obama’s meetings with Arab rulers from the Gulf Cooperation Council this week.
Puerto Rico bankruptcy may be imminent, potentially a ‘seminal event’; Israel releases tax revenue collections to Palestinian Authority; Mideast nations line up for and against Saudi airstrikes in Yemen; Mideast countries opposed to Saudi intervention in Yemen
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration, coming a step closer to reaching its goal of shutting down the Guantanamo Bay prison, has released five Yemenis from the detention center.
