Notations On Our World (Special Edition): The Middle East Today

 

 

 

A work by Egyptian artist Mahmoud Hawary in Cairo. AP TURKEY/SYRIA EARTHQUAKE A couple were pulled alive from under a collapsed apartment building more than 12 days after the earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria. It has claimed the lives of more than 44,000 people. More than 10,600 Syrians have "voluntarily" returned there from Turkey after the quake, Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar said. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken pledged $100 million in additional aid after arriving in Turkey yesterday for a tour of the damage. The UAE's second field hospital in Turkey opened on Saturday and has started receiving patients. Dr Abdullah Al Rabeeah, supervisor general of KSrelief, has said that there would be more aid for earthquake survivors in Syria and Turkey. Experts tell The National that the high death toll could have been avoided if Turkey had learnt its lesson from the 1999 earthquake. IRAN Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said yesterday that Iran was responsible for an attack on an oil tanker this month. Iran International TV, the UK-based independent network, announced it had been forced on police advice to shut down its London studios. SYRIA Israeli forces fired missiles yesterday at a central area of Damascus where major security compounds are located, pro-government media said, in a rare attack deep within the capital. SUDAN The commander of Sudan’s most powerful paramilitary says he is committed to the goal of creating a “single army”, a reference to calls to integrate his Rapid Support Forces into the military. UAE Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, UAE Special Envoy for Climate Change and Cop28 president-designate, met several officials and leaders at the Munich Security Conference, which ended yesterday. Defence conglomerate Edge revealed a line-up of 11 new unmanned and autonomous products and systems at the start of the International Defence Exhibition and Conference (Idex 2023), in line with the UAE's expanding manufacturing sector. EGYPT One month ahead of Ramadan, a three-month government price-fixing scheme for rice, one of Egypt’s most strategic goods, has come to an end. It's left the country's 104-million people contending with record high prices. Meanwhile Ramadan lanterns, a quintessential symbol of the holy month, have shot up in price this season. SAUDI ARABIA Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, Saudi Arabia's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, has said he “cannot rule out” a nuclear arms race in the region. PLUS … Writing from the 59th Munich Security Conference, The National's Mina Al-Oraibi said the event wrapped up with a continued sense of concern about how the Ukraine war will end — and what its long-term ramifications will be. 'Point of no return': Lebanese people speak to The National about the value of their currency, saying that using the Lebanese pound is like being forced to invest in a stock that everyone knows will fall. Our editorial team writes that the UAE's Abrahamic Family House is a new home for an old tradition of tolerance. On today’s Trending Middle East podcast: Idex 2023 in Abu Dhabi - where the latest in military technology and weapons systems will be showcased. AND … History beckons as three Arabs prepare to board the International Space Station.