First Independent Mena Newspaper
Following reports of Iranian concessions on its controversial nuclear program, a member of Iranian delegation has refuted such claims as “mere hallucinations” by some foreign media houses with hidden agendas. Iran is involved in negotiations with the permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany regarding its nuclear ambitions. Seyyed Abbas Araqchi, a senior […]
Two of the World Cup’s Round of 16 teams received the homecoming reserved for champions, even though they exited with the final week of the tournament remaining be played. Algeria’s Desert Foxes and Team USA shook the international soccer landscape with their unexpected performances before leaving, though. American team leader Tim Howard tweeted: “We’re playing […]
The long awaited opening of Es Sider and Ras Lanuf is finally over after the announcement by the rebels that the government could use it to “resume operations.” The two oil ports have a combined capacity of 560,000 barrels per day. The government has welcomed the move which is seen as a supporting gesture to […]
One of the first economic reforms under President Al-Sisi has been announced. Henceforth, a 10% tax will be levied on capital gains and stock dividends but the percentage could be lowered to 5% in some cases. The taxes are expected to generate between 3,5 and 4,5million Egyptian pounds. The new law was approved by the […]
Hopeful presidential candidates have started preparing their dossiers with more than 10 candidates expected to vie for the post. Current interim President, Moncef Marzouki, will be among them. He could be facing a stiff competition from Mustapha Ben Jaafar, a leading member of Tunisia’s former Troika government and the leader of the Democratic Forum for […]
The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) sees new opportunities in the mayhem prevailing in Iraq. The fall of Mosul on June 10 to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) propelled a humiliating retreat of the US-equipped Iraqi army from several key cities north of Baghdad including Baiji, home to the Iraq’s largest oil refinery […]
The Barqa rebels, found in eastern Libya, that are in charge of Libya’s largest oil-export terminal are willing to hand it over to the government if the new parliament takes office. Legislative elections were held last week and results are expected to be announced in a fortnight. The rebel group controlled four oil ports but […]
Tunisia is reviewing its drug laws which have easily put many people behind bars especially during the Ben Ali era. Tunisia’s population is around 11 million but tens of thousands have easily been convicted of these laws which do not distinguish between hard and soft laws. The reform of the law is part of efforts […]
Members of the Tunisian parliament have finally agreed on the days to be set aside for the parliamentary and presidential elections. The country’s transition towards democracy after the departure of President Ben Ali has been challenging. A caretaker government has been overseeing the process after the Ennahda led coalition government was forced to step down. […]
The much criticized presidential election by the opposition has come to an end and President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz has triumphed. In a victory speech address to all the Mauritanians, the president assured his countrymen that he will serve without favor. Most of the opposition parties boycotted the elections claiming that it was a forgone […]