First Independent Mena Newspaper
International donors have pledged $6.4 billion to Yemen to support the country’s socioeconomic development plan, political transition and efforts to rebuild after it was rocked by political unrest and Al-Qaeda attacks. At the end of their meeting in Riyadh, which brought together more than 280 participants from 27 countries, 36 regional development & international finance […]
The Dubai-based Emirates Airline and the Australian flag carrier Qantas have announced a global partnership that would align their ticket prices and flight schedules. The 10-year codeshare deal, which still needs the approval of antitrust authorities, will offer Emirates greater access to Australia’s growing air travel network and the possibility to make round-the-world service, using […]
During a news conference at the Turkish capital, the Chief Executive of Shell announced that oil exploration and production possibilities are being analyzed in the Black Sea by the TPAO, a state owned Turkish oil firm, and Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L). TPAO and Shell signed an agreement last year concerning the exploration and production of […]
One of the banks in Qatar has announced its intentions to raise its capital value in a released statement. The bank, Ahli bank, is ranked as the seventh-largest listed by market value. It is hoping to lift up its actual capital by 20 percent. It has therefore stated that it will be issuing rights during […]
A recently concluded meeting between Egypt’s president, some government officials and delegates from the British Petroleum on an extraction project of natural gas from a deep water deposit in the Mediterranean basin at a depth of 7,700 meters calls for an investment of billions of dollars. 11 billion dollars will be invested by BP in […]
Tensions between the governments in Baghdad and the semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan are jeopardizing the country’s effort to stand again on its feet. Iraq is now the second largest oil producing country within the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) but it is also loosing $200 each second because of the frequent blockage of […]
No tiny Arab country has ever gained more diplomatic leverage than Qatar in recent North African history. Since independence, only a few Arab regional powers had an overarching and successful influence in North Africa’s politics: Jamal Abdel Nasser’s Egypt and King Fahd’s Saudi Arabia were able to diplomatically twist – gently or otherwise – the […]
A year and a half after the start of popular protests in Tunisia, it may not be tedious to take some time out to assess what just happened. At present, events seem to slow down in the five North African countries which were significantly affected by the storm: Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Algeria and Morocco. In […]
Islamist groupings across North Africa – who had long faced severe repression from the recently deposed dictators and were commonly denounced by the West as security threats – now lead three of the four new democratically elected governments in the region. But the Islamist parties that have suddenly found themselves in power across North Africa […]
Revolutions are a risky business, not least for the revolutionaries themselves. Be they in 18th century France or in 21st century Tunisia, revolutions are sparked by ideals but they are only kept alive and fueled by promises, promises to deliver. In the early stages, ideals can be seized upon, turned into popular placards by the […]