UAE leads UN resolution on conflict-free diamond trade

UAE leads UN resolution on conflict-free diamond trade
Although non-binding, the resolution reinforces global support for a conflict-free diamond trade. (WAM)
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Updated 09 April 2025

UAE leads UN resolution on conflict-free diamond trade

UAE leads UN resolution on conflict-free diamond trade
  • The resolution focuses on breaking the link between illicit rough diamond transactions and armed conflict

DUBAI: The UAE, as chair of the Kimberley Process for 2024, led the adoption of a UN General Assembly resolution addressing the role of diamonds in fueling conflict, WAM reported on Wednesday. 

The resolution focuses on breaking the link between illicit rough diamond transactions and armed conflict, supporting conflict prevention efforts.

Under the UAE’s presidency, the Kimberley Process established its first permanent secretariat in Gaborone, Botswana. The resolution also notes the accession of Uzbekistan as the 60th country to join the Kimberley Process and the lifting of the export ban on rough diamonds from the Central African Republic.

Although non-binding, the resolution reinforces global support for a conflict-free diamond trade.


Turkish court to rule on legitimacy of opposition party congress

Turkish court to rule on legitimacy of opposition party congress
Updated 57 min 45 sec ago

Turkish court to rule on legitimacy of opposition party congress

Turkish court to rule on legitimacy of opposition party congress
  • The case alleges electoral fraud including buying votes and procedural violations

ANKARA: A Turkish court is expected to rule Monday on whether to annul an internal leadership election of the country’s main opposition party over alleged irregularities, a decision that could restore the party’s unpopular former leader and inflame political tensions.
The court in Ankara is set to deliver its verdict on the legitimacy of the 38th congress of Republican People’s Party, or CHP, held in November 2023, which ousted long-time leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu and the election of current chairman Ozgur Ozel.
The case alleges electoral fraud including buying votes and procedural violations. The CHP has denied the accusations, describing the legal action as a politically motivated attempt by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government to undermine the opposition through judicial pressure rather than democratic means.
Erdogan’s government maintains Turkiye’s courts are impartial and free from political interference, insisting investigations into the party are solely focused on corruption.
Critics view the case as part of a broader crackdown on the CHP, which made significant gains in last year’s local elections. They argue the move is designed to weaken the opposition ahead of national elections scheduled for 2028, which could be held earlier.
Municipalities controlled by the CHP have faced waves of arrests this year. Among those targeted is Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, who remains in pre-trial custody on corruption charges he denies. Imamoglu is widely seen as a potential challenger to Erdogan and his March arrest triggered widespread protests.
Earlier this month, a court removed the CHP’s elected provincial leadership in Istanbul and appointed an interim chairman to oversee the local branch. Police escorted the court-appointed official to the party’s Istanbul headquarters, using pepper spray to disperse party members and supporters who resisted his arrival.
If the congress is annulled, the court could appoint trustees to oversee the party or reinstate Kilicdaroglu as chairman, a move likely to deepen internal divisions.
Kilicdaroglu has signaled his willingness to return to leadership but observers note he remains deeply unpopular among CHP supporters after a string of electoral defeats against Erdogan.


UAE’s humanitarian ship for Gaza arrives in Egypt

UAE’s humanitarian ship for Gaza arrives in Egypt
Updated 15 September 2025

UAE’s humanitarian ship for Gaza arrives in Egypt

UAE’s humanitarian ship for Gaza arrives in Egypt
  • The aid shipment comprises 5,000 tonnes of food parcels, 1,900 tonnes of supplies for community kitchens, 100 tonnes of medical tents as well as five fully equipped ambulances

DUBAI: The UAE’s Hamdan Humanitarian Ship, which sailed off from Khalifa Port on August 30, has arrived at Al-Arish Port in Egypt where food and medical supplies would be unloaded and subsequently delivered to residents in the besieged Gaza Strip.

The ship, part of the UAE’s Operation Chivalrous Knight 3 humanitarian initiative for Gaza which provides essential aid through land convoys, sea shipments and airdrops, was loaded with 7,000 tonnes of food, medical and relief aid, state news agency WAM reported.

The aid shipment comprises 5,000 tonnes of food parcels, 1,900 tonnes of supplies for community kitchens, 100 tonnes of medical tents as well as five fully equipped ambulances.

The Emirates has so far dispatched 20 aid ships to Gaza, and has delivered approximately 90,000 tonnes of humanitarian aid, at a cost of $1.8 billion, since Operation Chivalrous Knight 3 was launched.

In August, the UAE inaugurated a 7.5-kilometer water pipeline that would transport desalinated water from Emirati desalination plants in Egypt to the Gaza Strip. The pipeline has a capacity of around 2 million gallons per day and could serve more than one million people.


‘Qatar is not alone. Arab and Islamic worlds stand beside it,’ says Arab League chief

‘Qatar is not alone. Arab and Islamic worlds stand beside it,’ says Arab League chief
Updated 15 September 2025

‘Qatar is not alone. Arab and Islamic worlds stand beside it,’ says Arab League chief

‘Qatar is not alone. Arab and Islamic worlds stand beside it,’ says Arab League chief
  • Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit addresses preparatory meeting as Qatar’s PM urges the world to punish Israel

DOHA: Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit on Sunday criticized Israel and warned that “silence in the face of a crime ... paves the way for more crimes.”
Speaking at a preparatory meeting on the eve of an emergency summit of Arab and Islamic leaders in Doha, Aboul Gheit said  that the summit itself sends a powerful message: “Qatar is not alone. The Arab and Islamic worlds stand beside it.”
He warned that Israel’s actions are “the direct outcome of two years of international silence on the genocide in Gaza, which has emboldened the occupiers to act without consequence.”
Qatar organized the summit after Israel carried out an unprecedented air strike targeting the residences of several Hamas officials in Doha on Sept. 9, 2025.
According to Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Majed Al-Ansari, Monday’s meeting of Arab and Islamic leaders will consider “a draft resolution on the Israeli attack on the state of Qatar.”
Speaking during the same preparatory meeting, Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani urged the international community to “stop using double standards” and punish Israel for what he described as its “crimes.”
“The time has come for the international community to stop using double standards and to punish Israel for all the crimes it has committed, and Israel needs to know that the ongoing war of extermination that our brotherly Palestinian people is being subjected to, and whose aim is to expel them from their land, will not work,” said Sheikh Mohammed, who also serves as foreign minister.
Although the Israeli strike, which killed six people, missed the Hamas peace negotiators who were its real targets, the brazen act  represented “an attack on the principle of mediation itself.”
The attack “can only be described as state terrorism, an approach pursued by the current extremist Israeli government, which flouts international law,” Sheikh Mohammed said. 
“The reckless and treacherous Israeli aggression was committed while the state of Qatar was hosting official and public negotiations, with the knowledge of the Israeli side itself, and with the aim of achieving a ceasefire in Gaza,” he said.
Ahead of the summit, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty held phone consultations with his counterparts in , Turkiye, and Pakistan.
Egypt’s Foreign Ministry said the talks focused on assessing the crisis and “exploring ways to confront the severe political and security challenges facing the region.”
The ministers emphasized the need for Arab-Islamic unity and for sustained coordination across political, diplomatic, and economic fields to safeguard common interests and stabilize the region.
Among the leaders attending will be Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani. Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas arrived in Doha on Sunday.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was also expected to attend, Turkish media reported.


Lebanon says one killed in Israeli strike on south

Lebanon says one killed in Israeli strike on south
Updated 14 September 2025

Lebanon says one killed in Israeli strike on south

Lebanon says one killed in Israeli strike on south
  • Israeli has continued to strike Iran-backed Hezbollah despite a ceasefire last November

BEIRUT: The Lebanese health ministry said one person was killed on Sunday in an Israeli strike in the south of the country, where Israel frequently targets Hezbollah.
“A raid by the Israeli enemy on a car in the town of Burj Qalawiyah killed one person,” the ministry said in a statement.
On Friday, the ministry said one person was killed in an Israeli strike in the town of Aitaroun, also in southern Lebanon.
The Israeli military has continued to strike Iran-backed Hezbollah despite a ceasefire last November that ended more than a year of hostilities between them.
Under pressure from the United States and fearing an escalation of Israeli strikes, the Lebanese government is now moving to disarm Hezbollah.
The group, which previously dominated Lebanese politics and was thought to be better armed than the military, was severely weakened by the war with Israel.
According to Beirut, the Lebanese army must complete its disarmament of Hezbollah in areas near the Israeli border within three months.


Algerian presidency announces new government after naming PM

Algerian presidency announces new government after naming PM
Updated 14 September 2025

Algerian presidency announces new government after naming PM

Algerian presidency announces new government after naming PM
  • Sifi Ghrieb, the new PM, has previously served as chairman of the board for Algerian Qatari Steel
  • President Abdelmadjid Tebboune will continue to head the defense ministry in the new government

ALGIERS: The Algerian presidency announced on Sunday the formation of a new government under the leadership of Sifi Ghrieb, who was named prime minister earlier in the day having held the role in an interim capacity.
Ghrieb was first appointed interim premier after his predecessor, Nadir Larbaoui, was dismissed on August 28 by President Abdelmadjid Tebboune without explanation.
On Sunday, Tebboune’s office said Ghrieb would permanently assume the role, later confirming he had formed a government following a request from the presidency.
“The president of the republic honored me today by naming me prime minister and entrusting me with the formation of a new government,” Ghrieb said in a short video, adding he had been instructed “to prioritize serving the Algerian people and advancing the national economy.”
Ghrieb holds a doctorate in materials science and previously served as chairman of the board for Algerian Qatari Steel.
According to a statement from the presidency, the heads of the foreign affairs and justice portfolios — Ahmed Attaf and Lotfi Boudjemaa, respectively — will remain unchanged, while Tebboune himself will continue to head the defense ministry.
Transport minister Said Sayoud will retain the role while also taking over as interior minister, with former interior minister Brahim Merad becoming state minister in charge of state services and local authorities
The energy portfolio has been split between hydrocarbons, led by the incumbent Mohamed Arkab, and renewables, to be led by Mourad Adjal.
Professor of cardiology Mohamed Esseddik Ait Messaoudene will take over the ministry of health.