Author: Steven Sahiounie

France’s Foreign Ministry has condemned an Israeli airstrike in Gaza that led to the death of one of its diplomatic staff in Rafah. The man, whose name has not been revealed, was taking cover at a colleague’s house when the building came under attack on Wednesday. Following her arrival on an official visit to Israel on Sunday, French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna called for an “immediate and durable” truce. The diplomat also expressed concern over the rising civilian death toll in Gaza amid the ongoing Israeli military operation in the Palestinian enclave. In a statement released on Saturday, the Foreign…

The foreign ministers of Germany, France and the UK called on Israel to stop bombing Gaza on Sunday in a joint editorial published in the Sunday Times and Welt am Sonntag. Their French counterpart echoed the demand during a news conference with the Israeli foreign minister later that day. “Too many civilians have been killed,” UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron and German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock wrote. “The Israeli government should do more to discriminate sufficiently between terrorists and civilians, ensuring its campaign targets Hamas leaders and operatives.” French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna urged an “immediate truce” so as to…

The Gaza Strip should be completely leveled and transformed into an empty museum like the Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland, discouraging the Palestinians from ever trying to live there again, the head of a town council in northern Israel has argued. “A security strip should be established from the sea to the Gaza border fence, completely empty, as a reminder of what was once there,” Metula council chief David Azoulai said in an interview with Tel Aviv’s Radio 103FM. “It should resemble the Auschwitz concentration camp.” Rather than advising Gazans to flee southward as Israel’s war against Hamas rages on, the Palestinians should be…

The move reflects SAMA’s continuous efforts to develop the financial sector as a whole and empower the Fintech sector in particular, the release said The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) has issued “Rules for regulating buy now pay later (BNPL) companies”, as part of its role in supervising and controlling BNPL companies, according to a SAMA press release. The move reflects SAMA’s continuous efforts to develop the financial sector as a whole and empower the Fintech sector in particular, the release said. Under these rules, BNPL activity is defined as “a type of financing that allows a consumer to purchase goods…

The bank’s previous forecasts for the exchange rate in for Q1 2024 were between EGP 35 and EGP 40 per $1 The UK-based bank HSBC expected a further devaluation of the Egyptian pound during the first quarter (Q1) of 2024, which could range between EGP 40 and EGP 45 against the US dollar, Ahram Online reported, citing a report by the bank. The bank’s previous forecasts for the exchange rate in for Q1 2024 were between EGP 35 and EGP 40 per $1. This devaluation is expected to facilitate the completion of the International Monetary Fund’s loan program, the report…

The rules, among other measures, implement tougher licensing regulations BEIJING – China’s State Council, led by Premier Li Qiang, on Sunday published rules that come into force on May 1 for the supervision and management of non-banking payment institutions. The rules, among other measures, implement tougher licensing regulations and call for stronger risk management of non-bank payment platforms to prevent misappropriation of funds and other criminal activities, People’s Bank of China, the country’s central bank, and the Ministry of Justice said in a joint statement on Sunday. The rules also require institutions to strengthen the protection of user information, clearly…

This gap is likely to be bridged mainly by foreign direct investment (FDI) and official financial inflows, the IIF noted Arab Finance: The Institute of International Finance (IIF) has estimated Egypt’s financing gap for fiscal year (FY) 2023/2024 at around $7 billion, Asharq Business reported, citing a report by the IIF. This gap is likely to be bridged mainly by foreign direct investment (FDI) and official financial inflows, the IIF noted. Moreover, the institute expects Egypt’s real gross domestic product (GDP) to grow by 3.3% in the current fiscal year, which is below the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) expectations of…

The World Health Organization has voiced grave concern over the condition of the al-Shifa hospital in northern Gaza, which has been devastated by Israeli bombardments. In a statement released on Sunday, the WHO described the emergency department of the hospital as a “bloodbath.” The world health body said tens of thousands of displaced people are using the hospital building and grounds for shelter, and that there’s a severe shortage of drinking water and food. The statement comes after a team from the WHO and other United Nations agencies was able to deliver medical supplies Saturday to the hospital, the largest in…

Pope Francis has condemned Israel for using “terrorism” tactics during its aggression on the besieged Gaza Strip. The pontiff deplored the recent killing by the Israeli military of two Christian women who had taken refuge in a church complex at his weekly address at St. Peter’s Square on Sunday. “I continue to receive very grave and painful news from Gaza,” said the Pope. “Unarmed civilians are the objects of bombings and shootings. And this happened even inside the Holy Family parish complex, where there are no terrorists, but families, children, people who are sick or disabled, nuns,” he said. “Some…

The UN Human Rights Office in the occupied Palestinian territories has expressed concern over the high number of journalists who have been killed in Gaza since Israel launched its genocidal war on the besieged territory on October 7. OHCHR has verified the killing of 50 journalists and media workers and has received information that 30 more may have died, amounting to approximately 6 percent of all those registered with the Journalists’ Syndicate in Gaza. “Journalists and media workers, utilizing a variety of tools, including social media, have kept the world informed in real-time of the horrors that civilians in Gaza…