Author: Steven Sahiounie

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged Tuesday to launch an incursion into the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are sheltering from the almost 7-month-long war, as ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas appear to be gaining steam.Netanyahu’s comments came hours before US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrives in Israel to advance the truce talks — which appear to be one of the most serious rounds of negotiations between Israel and Hamas since the war began. The deal is meant to free hostages, bring some relief to the population and avert an Israeli offensive…

Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu held a meeting at the headquarters of Russia’s unified group of forces and received reports on the current situation in the special military operation zone, the Russian Defense Ministry said. “During the meeting, the Russian defense minister noted that battlegroups continue implementing their tasks on operational directions in accordance with the plan of the special military operation and pointed out the necessity to increase supplies of weapons, military hardware and munitions,” the military agency said. Shoigu said that it is necessary to increase the volume and quality of arms supplies and military hardware to support…

King Abdullah of Jordan and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday reiterated the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. During their meeting in Amman, at which they were joined by Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah, the king said it was imperative that swift action is taken to ease the escalating humanitarian crisis in the territory and protect innocent civilians. He called for the unimpeded delivery of humanitarian aid, including relief supplies and medical assistance, to Gaza using all available channels, and cautioned against any Israeli military operations in the city of Rafah, in southern Gaza, which has…

MOSCOW, April 29. /TASS/. The volume of Russian gas supplies to Europe through Ukraine is 41.9 mln cubic meters per day, a Gazprom spokesman told reporters.

MOSCOW, April 30. /TASS/. A ceremony for launching the small-size missile ship Taifun and the patrol ship Viktor Veliky will be held next month, the Russian Defense Ministry announced.

The Financial Times notes that more than half of the European banks’ tax payments correspond to Austria’s Raiffeisen Bank International

According to the document, the banks in question include the Central Bank of Russia, VTB, Alfa Bank, Sberbank, Vneshekonombank, Otkrytiye, Sovkombank, Rosbank, Zenit and Sankt-Peterburg

RIYADH: In a bid to boost the country’s development, Sudan has consolidated its energy and mining ministries, and is pursuing nuclear power as a source of electricity, a senior official said at the World Economic Forum here on Monday. Speaking to Arab News, Minister of Energy and Petroleum Moheiddin Naeem Mohamed Saeed said the merging of the ministries is aimed at capitalizing on the nation’s gold resources. Pursuing nuclear energy would boost the war-torn country’s development, he added. “Sudan’s significant gold production will be leveraged to drive development in other sectors,” the minister said. Meanwhile, Saeed said that he found…

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index continued its upward momentum for the second consecutive day, gaining 25 points to close at 12,394.91. 

Saudi oil giant Aramco inked agreement to buy 40 percent stake in Gas and Oil Pakistan Ltd. in December 2023