North Africa

The Emirates Red Crescent, ERC, launched the sixth phase of a campaign to combat eye diseases in Morocco, following the directives of H.H. Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak, Chairwoman of the General Women’s Union, President of the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood, and Supreme Chairwoman of the Family Development Foundation. …

The Expo Centre Sharjah recently concluded its visit to Egypt and Jordan where it explored prospects of future cooperation and joint coordination in the sector of international exhibitions and conferences, to promote the interests of the Arab economy. The Expo delegation was headed by Saif Mohamed Al Midfa, Expo Centre …

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday vowed to try to ensure the Egyptian government is tried in international courts for the death of former president Mohamed Mursi, who suffered a fatal heart attack in a Cairo court earlier this week. “Muhammed Mursi flailed on the courtroom floor for 20 minutes …

The United Nations human rights office called on Tuesday for an independent investigation into the death of Egypt’s former President Mohamed Mursi, saying it should encompass all aspects of his treatment during nearly six years in custody. Egypt’s Islamist ex-president was buried in a small family ceremony early on Tuesday …

The UAE will participate in an annual festival in Morocco, which celebrates a vibrant Bedouin culture. The 15th Tan-Tan Moussem in Morocco, themed ‘Tan-Tan Moussem: Hosting the Global Nomadic Culture’, will be held from14th to 19th June, under the patronage of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, King of Morocco. For …

Algeria’s interim President Abdelkader Bensalah called on Thursday for all parties to launch an “inclusive dialogue” to prepare for presidential elections, following the constitutional council’s scrapping of a vote set for July 4. Bensalah, in a speech broadcast on state television, did not set a date for the new contest. …

Algeria’s constitutional council has concluded it will not be possible to hold presidential elections on July 4 as planned, state TV reported on Sunday, prolonging the country’s transition after President Abdelaziz Bouteflika resigned two months ago. The constitutional council cited a lack of valid candidates, saying it had received only …

By Firas Samuri*   While the offensive of the Libyan National Army (LNA) commanded by Field Marshal Halifa Haftar in Tripoli against the armed groups controlled by the Government of National Unity (PNU) is well underway, more and more international and regional players intervene in the Libyan crisis. Initially, the …

The Moroccan Agency for Sustainable Energy (MASEN) has announced that the consortium of EDF Renewables, Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company (Masdar) and Green of Africa has been awarded the tender for the design, financing, construction, operation and maintenance of the Noor Midelt Phase 1 multi-technologies solar power plant. The project, …

French President Emmanuel Macron will meet eastern Libyan commander Khalifa Haftar in the middle of next week to discuss how to resume peace talks in the country, a French presidential source said on Thursday. Macron last week called for a ceasefire in the month-long battle for Libya’s capital Tripoli after …

During a recent class at Cairo University, students laughed as they watched a skit acted out by their peers about a married couple. The husband came home from work and asked his wife, who was sweeping the floor, why dinner wasn’t ready. “I pick up the kids and I go …

Egypt’s government wants to start running the nation from a new capital in the desert from mid-2020, but the $58 billion project is struggling to raise funds and needs to overcome other challenges after investors pulled out. Workers are rushing to build core areas of the new city to replace …

Algerian police have arrested Said Bouteflika, the youngest brother of former president Abdelaziz Bouteflika, and two former intelligence chiefs, Generals Bachir Athmane Tartag and Mohamed Mediene, security sources said on Saturday. No more details were available, and there was no immediate comment from police. The sources were confirming an earlier …

Fighting raged in the battle for the Libyan capital Tripoli on Friday, with neither faction able to secure gains as an offensive by eastern commander Khalifa Haftar entered its fifth week, killing almost 400 people and displacing 50,000. Haftar’s Libyan National Army (LNA), which is allied to a parallel administration …

Tunisia ordered the army on Friday to transport fuel to petrol stations on Friday, a government source said, the second day of a strike by fuel distribution workers that has caused empty pumps and long queues across the country. The government is facing rising public demands for more pay with …

Hundreds of thousands of protesters rallied peacefully in Algiers after Friday prayers, chanting “We will not shut up!” and demanding the departure of Algeria’s ruling elite a month after the downfall of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika. Weeks of demonstrations forced Bouteflika out of office on April 2 after 20 years in …

Fuel distribution workers in Tunisia began a three-day strike on Thursday to demand higher wages, leading to long queues and empty pumps at petrol stations across the North African nation. The government is facing rising public demands for more pay as price rise, with inflation at about 7 percent. It …

About 5,000 Tunisians protested on Monday in central Sidi Bouzid city against marginalization and deteriorating conditions, two days after the deaths of 12 female rural workers in a traffic accident. Traffic stopped and schools, hospitals and public offices were closed under a regional strike called by unions in Sidi Bouzid, …

Heads and representatives of stock exchanges, including the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, Arab depository and clearing companies, as well as representatives of a group of brokerage firms and financial experts, attended a series of meetings of the Arab Federation of Exchanges, AFE, in Cairo, Egypt. Khalifa Salem Al Mansouri, Acting …

Thousands of protesters demanding the departure of Algeria’s ruling elite rallied in Algiers for a tenth Friday. President Abdelaziz Bouteflika stepped down after 20 years in power this month, bowing to pressure from the army and weeks of demonstrations mainly by young people seeking change. “The system must go” and …

His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, met President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt in Beijing, China. Sheikh Mohammed is leading the UAE delegation to the second ‘Belt and Road Conference for International Cooperation’ taking place in the Chinese capital. Sheikh …

Tunisian police stormed the offices of a private television station and cut it off the air on Thursday over accusations it had breached broadcasting rules, which the channel called an attempt to silence its voice criticizing the government. Dozens of members of the security forces stormed the headquarters of Nesna …

Eastern Libya commander Khalifa Haftar has thrown much of his military forces into attacking Tripoli, but the outcome of the offensive could be determined by a separate battle — to keep open the parallel finance system that funds his soldiers. Mobilizing Libya’s biggest military campaign since the 2011 overthrow of …

The UAE is chairing the 7th extraordinary meeting of the Arab Economic and Social Council, which began today at the headquarters of the General Secretariat of the Arab League. The three-day meeting of senior officials will discuss a range of issues, including rules of origin, which was also discussed during …

Five Algerian billionaires, some of them close to former president Abdelaziz Bouteflika who quit over mass protests, have been arrested as part of an anti-graft investigation, state TV said on Monday. They were later brought to court to face charges from the general prosecutor’s office, private Ennahar TV channel said, …

An Algerian court has summoned former Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia and current Finance Minister Mohamed Loukal, two close associates of former President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, in a probe into the wasting of public money, state TV said on Saturday. They are being investigated over “dissipation of public money” and “illegal privilege,” …

Libya has reopened Tripoli’s only functioning airport, according to a posting on the airport authorities’ Facebook page on Sunday. Mitiga airport was closed earlier in the day when residents reported an air strike on the Libyan capital. Source: Reuters

U.S. President Donald Trump’s Middle East peace plan will not involve giving land from Egypt’s Sinai peninsula to the Palestinians, an American envoy said on Friday. Jason Greenblatt, Trump’s Middle East envoy, apparently sought to deny reports on social media that the long-awaited plan to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict would …

The White House said on Friday that President Donald Trump spoke by phone earlier in the week and discussed “ongoing counterterrorism efforts” with Libyan commander Khalifa Haftar, leader of a military assault on the capital Tripoli in opposition to the internationally recognized government. In Libya on Friday, two children were …

The United States and Russia both said on Thursday they could not support a United Nations Security Council resolution calling for a ceasefire in Libya at this time, diplomats said, as mortar bombs crashed down on a suburb of the Libyan capital, Tripoli. Russia objects to the British-drafted resolution blaming …

By Emad El-Din Aysha, PhD   What can I say about Ammar Al-Masry’s Throne of Atlantis, the long awaited sequel to Shadows of Atlantis? It’s a mind-boggling treat! To remind those who have forgotten, myself included, here is a summary. In Shadows of Atlantis you have a near perfect world …

An armed group on Thursday attacked a major air base in southern Libya controlled by eastern military commander Khalifa Haftar who has moved much of his forces north to try take the capital Tripoli, officials said. Fighting was continuing at the Tamanhint base near Sabha, the main city in southern …

Qatar’s foreign minister has called for an effective arms embargo against eastern Libyan commander Khalifa Haftar and for his troops to withdraw from areas they have occupied, Italian daily La Repubblica said on Tuesday. Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani also told the newspaper in an interview he was …

Hundreds of thousands of protesters rallied in Algiers for an eighth successive Friday to demand the departure of the ruling elite, witnesses said, as Algeria prepares for a presidential election in July. President Abdelaziz Bouteflika stepped down from 20 years in power 10 days ago, bowing to pressure from the …

Algeria will hold a presidential election on July 4, the interim presidency said on Wednesday after weeks of mass protests led to the resignation of long-serving leader Abdelaziz Bouteflika. No further details were immediately given. On Tuesday, interim president Abdelkader Bensalah had said he would organize free elections within 90 …

Algeria’s parliament appointed on Tuesday its upper house chairman Abdelkader Bensalah as interim president following the resignation of ailing Abdelaziz Bouteflika after weeks of mass demonstrations against his rule. His appointment is in keeping with Algeria’s constitution but protesters, who want sweeping democratic reforms, oppose figures like Bensalah, a close …

Eastern Libyan forces carried out an air strike on the southern part of Tripoli on Sunday, escalating an operation to take the capital despite calls for a truce from the United Nations. The Libyan National Army (LNA) force of Khalifa Haftar, which backs a parallel administration in the east, last …

Protesters waving banners and calling for radical change marched through Algiers for a seventh successive Friday as Algeria’s spy chief was reported fired in a further sign of high-level turmoil following the resignation of the country’s veteran president. Thousands of demonstrators gathered in the capital to push for the removal …

The U.N. secretary-general appealed on Thursday for restraint from rival factions in Libya as forces from the east of the country moved to within 100 km (60 miles) of the capital Tripoli. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who arrived in Tripoli on Wednesday to promote peace talks, warned of the risk …

Algeria’s army chief of staff demanded on Tuesday immediate procedures to remove President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, saying enough time had already been wasted, state news agency APS said on Tuesday. On Monday, Bouteflika, who is 82, in poor health and facing weeks of mass demonstrations against his 20 year rule, had …

Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika will resign before his mandate ends on April 28, state news agency APS said on Monday, bowing to weeks of mass protests and army pressure seeking an end to his 20-year rule. There was no immediate reaction from leaders of the protest movement that has buffeted …

The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange-listed natural gas company Dana Gas has received a payment of $19 million (AED70 million) from its operations in Egypt. The payment was made up of a $10 million payment from the government in Egyptian pounds and $9 million from the sale of a shipment of …

Arab leaders papered over long-running regional rivalries on Sunday to condemn a U.S. move to recognise Israel’s sovereignty over the Syrian Golan Heights and said stability in the Middle East hinged on creating a Palestinian state. Arab leaders, attending a summit in the Tunisian capital, have been grappling with regional …

Leading Algerian businessman Ali Haddad, who was part of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika’s inner circle, has been arrested at the Tunisian border, a close associate said on Sunday, as pressure mounted on the long-standing leader to resign. During weeks of protests demanding an end to his 20-year rule, Bouteflika has been …