Middle East

Sepp Blatter, the former president of FIFA when Qatar was awarded the 2022 World Cup hosting rights in 2010, told Swiss newspaper Tages Anzeiger “Qatar is a mistake,” adding that “the choice ...

A Qatar World Cup ambassador has told German television broadcaster ZDF that homosexuality was “damage in the mind”, as the Gulf state prepares to host the global tournament in less ...

Ratings agency S&P on Friday raised Qatar’s long-term sovereign credit rating to “AA” from “AA-“, citing improvements in the government’s fiscal position. “Qatar’s debt interest ...

Iran acknowledged for the first time on Saturday that it had supplied Moscow with drones but said they were sent before the war in Ukraine, where Russia has used drones ...

National investment agency Invest Cyprus on Friday announced that through a mission in Kuwait made a series of contacts and presented to local government officials and investors Cyprus’ business and ...

Iran held state-sponsored annual rallies on Friday marking the 1979 seizure of the US embassy in Tehran, as the clerical establishment that has ruled since then struggles to suppress nationwide protests ...

Dubai’s Emirates has suspended flights to Nigeria for the second time since September citing an inability to repatriate funds from Africa’s biggest economy, the airline said on Thursday. ...

Egypt’s non-oil private sector remained deep in contraction in October, the 23rd straight month of decline, a survey showed on Thursday. The S&P Global Egypt Purchasing Managers’ ...

Qatar’s central bank said on Wednesday it will increase its interest rates by between 50 and 75 basis points, following the US Federal Reserve’s latest rate hike. The Central Bank ...

Pope Francis spoke against the death penalty on Thursday at the start of a trip to Bahrain where the Shi’ite Muslim opposition accuse the Sunni monarchy of overseeing human ...

A near-final tally of votes on Thursday showed former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on track to re-election with a clear parliamentary majority boosted by ultranationalists who want tougher crackdowns ...

The United Arab Emirates’ non-oil private sector picked up again in October, growing at a pace close to August’s three-year high, while employment expanded at its fastest in six ...

Israeli forces killed a Palestinian man in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, the Palestinian Health Ministry said, during a raid that the Israeli military said elicited violent riots. Early ...

A group of current and former Iranian sportspeople say they have no choice but to turn on their own country, citing what they called state-sponsored violence and discrimination against ordinary ...

The Qatar Investment Authority plans to raise its stake in Swiss lender Credit Suisse Group AG (CSGN.S) by investing in a share sale alongside the Saudi National Bank (1180.SE), ...

The United States and United Arab Emirates have reached an agreement to spend $100 billion on clean energy projects with a goal of adding 100 gigawatts globally by 2035, US Secretary of State ...

Israel’s former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was set to return to power in one of the most right-wing coalitions in Israel’s history, causing jitters among Palestinians and Arab ...

Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared well placed to return to power after exit polls following Tuesday’s election showed his right-wing bloc heading for a narrow majority lifted ...

Iranian university students pressed ahead with sit-down strikes on Tuesday in support of some of the biggest protests since the 1979 revolution, ignoring harsh warnings by elite security forces and a ...

Saudi Arabia’s market regulator said on Monday it had approved a concurrent and dual listing of Americana Group, the Middle East and North Africa franchisee of fast-food chains KFC ...

Egypt’s move to raise interest rates is a step in the right direction and a flexible exchange rate will help protect its economy from shocks at a time of ...

Israelis began voting for the fifth time in less than four years on Tuesday, with former premier Benjamin Netanyahu bidding for a comeback in a race likely to turn on ...

Iran will hold public trials of about 1,000 people charged in Tehran over unrest, a semi-official news agency said on Monday, as authorities step up efforts to crush more than six ...

Israelis vote for the fifth time in four years on Tuesday in an election in which former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s comeback bid may depend on a far-right party ...