Category: 2. Middle East

Sudan’s gold industry has become the lifeblood of its war, with nearly all of the trade channelled through the United Arab Emirates, enriching both the army and paramilitaries, according to official and NGO sources.

The two-year conflict has decimated Sudan’s economy, yet last month the army-backed government announced record gold production in 2024.

Demand for the country’s vast gold reserves was “a key factor in prolonging the war,” Sudanese economist Abdelazim al-Amawy told AFP.

“To solve…

The Iran-backed Huthis said Thursday they targeted an Israeli airport and army site as well as a US warship, soon after Israel reported intercepting missiles launched from Yemen.

The Huthis “targeted Ben Gurion airport… with a ballistic missile… and a military target” south of Tel Aviv, their military spokesman Yahya Saree said.

Earlier Thursday, the Israeli military said it intercepted two missiles launched from Yemen “prior to crossing into Israeli territory” after it activated air raid…

Six people died on Thursday when a tourist submarine sank off Egypt’s Red Sea coast, state media reported, with Russia’s consulate saying 45 Russian citizens were aboard.

Russia’s consulate in Hurghada, a town popular with tourists from the country, said the vessel was carrying “45 tourists, including minors”, and that four people had died.

“According to initial data, most of those on board were rescued and taken to their hotels and hospitals in Hurghada,” the consulate said.

The website of…

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun visits France on Friday, his first trip to a European country since his January election and as Paris pushes Beirut for long-demanded political and economic reforms.

He is due to meet President Emmanuel Macron, who on a visit to Beirut days after Aoun’s appointment said France would hold an international aid conference to support Lebanon’s reconstruction after a devastating war between Israel and Hezbollah.

No date for the conference has been announced.

Aoun was…

Six people died on Thursday, two of them minors, when a tourist submarine carrying dozens of Russian visitors sank off Egypt’s Red Sea coast near a major resort town.

Egyptian state media put the toll at six, while Russian state news agencies quoted General Consul Viktor Voropaev as saying that five people were confirmed dead, two of them minors.

Russia’s consulate in the tourist hub of Hurghada earlier said the vessel was carrying “45 tourists, including minors” on an underwater excursion to…

Israel’s parliament on Thursday passed a law expanding the power of politicians over judge appointments in defiance of a years-long protest movement against the judicial reforms pushed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The approval came with Netanyahu’s government, the most right-wing in Israeli history, locked in a standoff with the supreme court after the premier began proceedings to dismiss Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara and announced the sacking of Ronen Bar, head of the internal…