Author: Steven Sahiounie

The UN chief on Friday expressed “profound” concern over the growing tensions between Israel and the Lebanese Hezbollah group, saying the world “cannot afford Lebanon to become another Gaza.” “I felt compelled today to voice my profound concerns about escalation between Israel and Hezbollah along the Blue Line,” Antonio Guterres told reporters in New York, hinting at “escalation in bellicose rhetoric from both sides as if an all-out war was imminent.” Warning against a wider regional conflict in the Middle East, Guterres said: “One rash move – one miscalculation — could trigger a catastrophe that goes far beyond the border,…

Syrian Airlines Company stated that its first fight carrying onboard the Syrian hajjis coming from Madinah Airport to Damascus International Airport arrives tomorrow, Saturday. The company noted that the flight has 160 Hajjis onboard, adding that the air  journeys are operating according to the permissions given till upcoming July 6th. Source: SANA

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s state-backed initiatives, including NEOM and Vision 2030, are driving growth in the construction sector, attracting substantial domestic and international investments, an analysis showed. In its latest report, global consultancy firm Turner & Townsend highlighted that the construction activities are also driven by the Kingdom’s preparations for EXPO 2030 and the 2034 FIFA World Cup. This comes as Saudi Arabia emerged as the leader in global construction activity for the first quarter, with the Kingdom having $1.5 trillion of projects in the pipeline, according to a report released earlier this month by real estate services firm JLL. The…

RIYADH: Business giant Al Habtoor Group has filed an arbitration case against Marriott International, the Dubai-based conglomerate confirmed to Arab News.

RIYADH: Significant investment is needed to unlock the potential 1,400 gigawatts of offshore wind energy in the Middle East and North Africa, an analysis has found.

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia led the Middle East in mergers and acquisitions in the chemicals sector in the first quarter of 2024, with $500 million worth of deals, according to recent data.

NATO will carry out its mission in Ukraine, but Hungary will not participate in it, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban reiterated on the Kossuth radio station. “NATO will set up its mission in Ukraine, but Hungary will not participate in it and will not provide its troops, weapons or financial resources for this purpose,” the prime minister said. He recalled that he had agreed on this with the alliance’s secretary general Jens Stoltenberg and his likely successor, acting prime minister of the Netherlands Mark Rutte. Hungary received guarantees from them that it would be able to refrain from participating in possible…

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, Ayman Safadi, urged the international community to act immediately to stop the war crimes committed by Israel against the Palestinian people and lift its inhumanitarian blockade of Gaza to protect the Palestinian people from massacres and famine, and to protect international law and the humanitarian values that Israel has violated because of its continued immunisation from accountability and impunity. During a phone call on Thursday with the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of the European Union, Josep Borrell, Safadi stressed that the war crimes documented by many…

The Palestinian Presidency has commended the Republic of Armenia’s decision to officially recognize the State of Palestine as an independent and sovereign nation. In a press statement, the Presidency expressed deep appreciation for “this courageous and significant decision,” viewing it as a “pivotal step towards enhancing bilateral relations and fostering peace and stability in the region.” The Presidency thanked Armenia for its “bold and wise move, which underscores the strong bonds of friendship between the two nations.” It also commended the commitment of the government and people of Armenia to supporting the Palestinian people and their legitimate rights to their…

The peace initiative that Russian President Vladimir Putin outlined on June 14 is Moscow’s fourth proposal on settling the Ukraine conflict, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Friday. “Now we have come up with the next, actually fourth proposal from Russia [on Ukrainian settlement] in the form of an initiative by President Putin on June 14,” the top diplomat said at a press conference after a session of the CSTO (Collective Security Treaty Organization) Council of Foreign Ministers. Had the agreement on the political settlement not been disrupted in February 2014, Ukraine would have now been within the 1991…