The Saudi Journalists Association (SJA), and the organization of the Saudi Media Forum look back on a successful first edition of the international media forum that was held in Riyadh early December. By Arthur Blok | The red carpet was rolled out at the prestigious Hilton Residence earlier this month …

By Lamis Jdid* | In 2008, Thomas Friedman wrote a book that was considered a revolutionary way of rethinking our planet earth explaining the social and ecological challenges facing us and its serious consequences that could threaten life on earth. Spreading awareness on the impact we have on our planet …

BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Argentinian authorities ordered the freezing of Hezbollah assets in the country on Thursday and effectively designated the Lebanese Islamist group, which it blames for two attacks on its soil, a terrorist organization. The announcement came on the 25th anniversary of the bombing of a Jewish community …

Damascus – The Syrian talented anchor Ranim Al-Basha presents an English new weekly program on the Syrian official TV channel, entitled “Syria Insider Weekly”. The program talks about the most important issues of Syria, politically, economically culturally, and socially. The show that started 8 months ago, is produced by Sawsan …

By Dr. Haytham Mouzahem* — A year ago, I was invited to a closed seminar with an Iranian diplomat in Beirut, which brought together some 12 researchers and journalists to discuss the implications of the US sanctions imposed by US President Donald Trump on Iran following its withdrawal from the …

By Dr. Haytham Mouzahem — The Nakba of Palestine took place due to the Israeli occupation of most of Palestine and the creation of “Israel” entity on May 15, 1948. The 71st anniversary of the Nakba comes this year, weeks before the announcement of the U.S. administration of its peace …

The Levant News exclusive – DAMASCUS – Safa Salal – Near the line of cars on the street next to the Al-Jalaa fuel station in the Al-Mazza area, west of Damascus, three men were dancing the Dabkeh folklore dance while they are waiting to buy the “Gasoline” for their cars …

American president Donald Trump remains a strong supporter of the Saudi-led war in Yemen. At the same time the military intervention garners unconditional support at the home front. By Arthur Blok* Trump issued the second veto of his presidency earlier this week halting a congressional resolution that would have sought …

By: Sally S. Ali – England — Do not dream of me keep that ignition that missing inside of your nerves. Let them hurt love is a ticking bomb I am your neutraliser keeps you from exploding keeps your ticks on. Meet the people with a still face Keep your …

  By Ibrahim Alalou —    At 400×100 meters grape trellis, A sea of greeneries is created in semi-desert environment. Grapes(Vitis vinifera) are fruits, botanically a berry of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus Vitis. The cultivation of the domesticated grape began in the Near East 6000 …

Dr. Haytham Mouzahem is a Lebanese analyst and researcher who specializes in Islamic and Middle East affairs. He has authored many books on Islam, Shiism, Iran, and Islamic and Jihadi groups. He currently heads the Beirut Centre for Middle East Studies. He spoke to International Affairs Review on the current …

By Dr. Haytham Mouzahem – The sectarian and religious conflicts ruling the Islamic world today are not a unique or new phenomenon, nor in the political and authoritarian dimensions when religion was used to mobilize support for rulers or regimes. The Christian west also witnessed conflicts and sectarian divisions between …

By Jasmin Rasheed* — For over a decade now, Gaza has been under siege. Taking into account the financial policy adopted by the Hamas government and the fact that salaries to government employees are delayed by the Palestinian Authority and the Rafah crossing is closed for long periods every now …

By Arina Michel — How To Delete Duplicate Photos On Your Computer   We all have been in the situation, where we see all the identical and similar duplicate on the screen and not able to decide which one is original one with top-notch quality. Keeping too many replica files …

GAZA (AFP) – The Hamas-run Ministry of Prisoners and Liberties in the Gaza Strip announced that it had distributed housing units built with Iranian funding in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip to Palestinian prisoners released from Israeli jails. In a statement, Baha al-Madhoun, the ministry’s undersecretary, said in …

Since its inception in 2009, the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) in The Hague has divided Lebanon. Up until now far over half a billion USD has been spent and the meter is still running. In the past years the STL has made no arrests, it will probably never do …

By Areej Zaher* — By the end of 2018, Syria’s isolation days seemed to reach an end, and promising diplomatic ties with neighboring Arab countries were in the atmosphere. The visit of the Sudanese president Al-Bashir to Damascus and the re-opening of the UAE embassy marked a new era of …

BEIRUT (Reuters) – The United Arab Emirates is set to reopen its embassy in Damascus on Thursday, the Syrian information ministry said, a move that would mark a big diplomatic boost for President Bashar al-Assad from an Arab state that once supported his opponents. The embassy has been shut since …

The U.S. has established two new military bases in Iraq’s western Anbar province near the Syrian border, an Iraqi official revealed Tuesday. The move comes less than one week after U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans to withdraw all U.S. forces from Syria. “The U.S. Army has established two new …

BEIRUT (Reuters) – Israeli war planes attacked with missiles unspecified targets near Damascus, the Syrian capital, on Tuesday and injured three Syrian soldiers, Syrian state media quoted a military source as saying. “Our air defenses confronted hostile missiles launched by Israeli war planes from above the Lebanese territories and downed …

The Levant News Exclusive – by Jackson Smith — TV and home entertainment systems are a major form of recreational activities. After a long day at work, you sit in front of the screen watching TV programmes to relax. But do you ever wonder if you’re watching too much of …

The Levant News Exclusive – by Jackson Smith –Remote-controlled devices are ubiquitous today, and the number of such devices is only increasing. Once largely limited to TVs, the remote control is quite common in a wide range of devices today. This includes air conditioners, set-top boxes, room lighting, gaming consoles, …

By Areej Zaher* — For the recent fifth weeks, France has gone through inevitable unrest due to the last government statements regarding the sudden rise of the diesel prices. The public’s objection for this laws has escalated, and the yellow anger has marked these outbursts. However, we have to uproot …

  Whether it is a startup or a well-established business, your assets will always be your employees. It is due to their hard work that you are able to generate revenue for your business. Thus, it becomes a major responsibility of the business owners to take care of the needs …

  BY: SYED MOHAMMAD HUSSAIN —   “There is no attack on American culture more destructive and more historically dishonest than the secular Left’s relentless effort to drive God out of America’s public square.”  Newt Gingrich[1] Perhaps this quote made by Newt Gingrich- former Republican Party presidential nomination and 50th …

DUBAI (Reuters) – Iran’s navy on Saturday launched a domestically made destroyer, which state media said has radar-evading stealth properties, as tensions rise with arch-enemy, the United States. In a ceremony carried live on state television, the Sahand destroyer — which can sustain voyages lasting five months without resupply — …

”A common vision for Arab Digital Economy” is the bold plan driven by the Council of Arab Economic Unity, CAEU, at the League of Arab States to boost political and social stability in the Arab world through a digital economy. Dr. Ali Mohammed Al-Khouri, Advisor to the Council of Arab …

Ahmed Ali Al Sayegh, Minister of State and Chairman of Abu Dhabi Global Market, ADGM, led a UAE delegation to the G20 Investor Forum in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The 2018 Argentina G20 Presidency in collaboration with the World Bank organized a high-level G20 Investor Forum focused on institutional investors, including …

H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Ruler’s Representative in Al Dhafra Region, has commended the significant role played by Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) as a primary economic driver of the UAE. Sheikh Hamdan made the statements in a tour of Ruwais City, 240 kilometers west of Abu …

Stability in Saudi Arabia is the cornerstone of prosperity and progress in the Gulf, and China firmly supports Riyadh in its drive for economic diversification and social reform, President Xi Jinping told Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Meeting in Buenos Aires, host of the G20 summit of industrialized nations …

Gaza- In recent days, employees of international aid organizations, who are usually treated with hostility by the state of Israel, complain, according to sources, about a change for the worse in the attitude of Gazan residents and Hamas officials. According to these sources, the workers and volunteers of the international …

BEIRUT (Reuters) – More than 100 people were wounded in Syria’s Aleppo late on Saturday in a suspected toxic gas attack which the government and its ally, Russia, blamed on insurgents. A health official in Aleppo said victims suffered breathing difficulties, eye inflammation and other symptoms suggesting the use of …

By Dr. Abdul-Salam Ojeili – Translated by Ibrahim AL Alou – We left our hotel in Toronto last fall on an early morning heading to Detroit in the northern U.S.A. As we were pulling our car from the hotel’s parking lot, we were surprised to see the wide open road …

By Areej Zaher* — The world Bank has reported that Syrian conflict till 2017 had disastrous effects on about third of the residents and half of the medical and educational institutions, as a result of the collapse of vital economical systems. This caused the ending of 538 jobs of the …

By Areej Zaher* — Recently there have been some arguments in favour and against the new Syrian constitution after what sputnik published as a draft for a new constitution adding new powers to the parliament regarding the declaration of war, the removal of president, appointment of the ruler for the …

Did you know that most of the different languages we speak today can actually be placed in only a couple of groups by their origin? This is what illustrator Minna Sundberg has captured in an elegant infographic of a linguistic tree which reveals some fascinating links between different tongues. Using the research …

By Eliza Brooke for Vox Some readers may still be reeling from Pete Davidson and Ariana Grande’s broken engagement, but today we close the week on a somewhat happier celebrity wedding note: Josh Kushner and Karlie Kloss got married. Kushner, a 33-year-old venture capitalist and founder of the health care …

by Marwa Rashad – RIYADH (Reuters) – As Saudi Arabia faced intensifying international scepticism over its story about the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a senior government official laid out a new version of the death inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul that in key respects contradicts previous explanations. The …

by Jeff Mason, David Dolan – ISTANBUL (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump joined European leaders on Saturday in pushing Saudi Arabia for more answers about Jamal Khashoggi after Riyadh changed its story and acknowledged that the journalist died more than two weeks ago at its consulate in Istanbul. Saudi …

(CNN)US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has arrived in Riyadh for hastily arranged talks with top Saudi leaders, as sources told CNN that the Kingdom is preparing to acknowledge that missing journalist Jamal Khashoggi died at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey. Pompeo had a short discussion with King Salman …

ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkish police will search the Saudi consul’s residence in Istanbul, Turkish broadcaster NTV said on Tuesday, as part of the probe into the disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. NTV also said that investigators are expected to search the consulate again on Tuesday. Khashoggi was last seen …

By Arthur Blok — The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE) is inviting public and private sector entities in the UAE to showcase their innovative solutions on Globally Great (www.globallygreat.com), the leading digital video platform focused on sustainability, innovation and happiness in the Middle East. His Excellency Dr Thani …

One of Tunisia’s biggest challenges is how to handle migrants illegally leaving its borders. Tunisia’s location at the tip of Africa makes it a springboard for migrants looking to set off towards the European Union (EU). By Arthur Blok* — This year’s worst migrant disaster in the country occurred in …

The Levant News – Here is a special interview with Dr. Haytham Mouzahem, director of Beirut Center For Middle East Studies regarding the ongoing battles of Syria’s South: Q-What do you think this means for the overall status of the Syrian conflict? The battle of the Syrian south comes to …