Middle East

November 9, 2024 2:31 PM

Jordan’s tourism industry struggling as Gaza war deters visitors

Enas Al Hinti has cut staff pay in half and asked workers to take unpaid leave in an effort to keep her hotel in ancient Petra open as Western holidaymakers fearful of conflict shun destinations in the Middle East. A crisis across the region's tourism industry since the start of the Israel-Hamas war 13 months ago is being felt acutely in Jordan, whose border with Israel along the Red Sea and Dead Sea is studded with beach resorts. Sites such as Petra, Wadi Rum and crusader castles have been dr...

October 16, 2024 9:04 PM

‘Age of electricity’ to follow looming fossil fuel peak, IEA says

The world is on the brink of a new age of electricity with fossil fuel demand set to peak by the end of the decade, meaning surplus oil and gas supplies could drive investment into green energy, the International Energy Agency said on Wednesday. But in a release accompanying its annual World Energy Outlook report, the agency also flagged a high level of uncertainty as conflicts embroil the oil and gas-producing Middle East and Russia and as countries representing half of global energy demand ha...

October 14, 2024 11:26 AM

Two Indigo flights to Middle East from Mumbai grounded after bomb threat

Two IndiGo flights operating from Mumbai Airport to different cities in the Middle East received bomb threats on Monday morning, ANI reported. In response to the threats, both aircraft were moved to an isolation bay as a precautionary security measure. The bomb threats were reported for IndiGo flight 6E 1275, which was en route to Muscat, and flight 6E 56, headed for Jeddah. "IndiGo flight 6E 1275 operating from Mumbai to Muscat and IndiGo flight 6E 56 operating from Mumbai to Jeddah received...

October 3, 2024 10:00 AM

China urges UN Security Council to de-escalate Middle East crisis

China called on the United Nations Security Council to take "urgent actions" to de-escalate the situation in the Middle East as Israel launched fresh air strikes in Lebanon. China's permanent representative to the U.N., Fu Cong, said during a Security Council briefing on Wednesday, that it needed to make clear and unequivocal demands to stop the cycle of violence over the Israeli-Lebanon conflict. "The Security Council bears the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace...

October 3, 2024 9:10 AM

‘We condemn this outrageous act of aggression by Iran,’ US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin says

US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin issued a statement condemning Iran's act of aggression against Israel. On Wednesday, Austin stated that the US would always defend its forces and interests in the Middle East, and would continue to support the defence of Israel and its regional partners. In a post on X, he said, "Yesterday, US forces in the Middle East intercepted multiple missiles launched by Iran toward Israel, as we fulfilled our commitment to partner with Israel in its defence. We condem...

September 30, 2024 10:30 PM

US envoy to UN: We want de-escalation in Middle East

The United States does not want to see violence spread in the Middle East and wants to see a de-escalation, the U.S. envoy to the United Nations said on Monday. "We want to find a path to peace, so that Palestinians and Israelis have safety and Lebanese and Israelis living on the northern border find security and safety as well," U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield told reporters. When asked if Israel had told the U.S. that it was going to carry out an incursion into Lebanon, T...

September 25, 2024 11:43 AM

OPEC boosts long-term oil demand outlook, driven by developing world growth

OPEC raised its forecasts for world oil demand for the medium and long term in an annual outlook, citing growth led by India, Africa and the Middle East and a slower shift to electric vehicles and cleaner fuels. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, in its 2024 World Oil Outlook published on Tuesday, sees demand growing for a longer period than other forecasters like BP and the International Energy Agency, which expect oil use to peak this decade. "Future energy demand is foun...

August 13, 2024 11:29 AM

US prepared for possible significant attacks in Middle East by Iran, White House says

The U.S. has prepared for what could be significant attacks by Iran or its proxies in the Middle East as soon as this week, White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said on Monday. Kirby said the U.S. had increased its regional force posture and shared Israel's concerns about a possible Iranian-backed attack after Iran and Palestinian Islamist group Hamas accused Israel of carrying out the assassination of a Hamas leader in Tehran last month. "We share the same concerns and expect...

September 16, 2024 5:54 PM

India at UN calls for immediate ceasefire in Gaza strip, urges for unconditional release of hostages

India at the United Nations has reiterated its call for an immediate and complete ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and called for the release of the hostages without any conditions. Delivering his remarks at the United Nations Security Council's (UNSC) Open Debate on the Middle East on Wednesday, India's Deputy Representative to the UN, R Ravindra, also underlined that India's developmental assistance to Palestine, in various forms over the years, amounts close to USD 120 million. "India was among t...

September 16, 2024 6:41 PM

Israeli tanks hit evacuation zone west of Rafah, 21 dead, Gaza health officials say

Israeli strikes on a tent camp in an evacuation area west of Rafah killed at least 21 on Tuesday, Gaza health authorities said, and tanks advanced to the centre of the southern Gaza city for the first time after a night of heavy bombardment. Two days after an Israeli airstrike on another camp stirred global condemnation, Gaza emergency services said four tank shells hit a cluster of tents in Al-Mawasi, a coastal area that Israel had advised civilians in Rafah to move to for safety. At least 12...