Gulf

Saudi Arabia to raise VAT threefold amid “painful” austerity measures

Saudi Arabia is suspending the cost of living allowance and raising the value added tax threefold, as part of measures aimed at shoring up state finances, battered by low oil…

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5.1 earthquake shakes Iran

At least one person was reported killed and seven others were injured, when a magnitude 5.1 earthquake hit northern Iran early on Friday (20:18 GMT on Thursday), according to the country's health…

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Dubai developer Nakheel slashes salaries by as much as 50%

Dubai property developer Nakheel has slashed salaries by as much as 50 per cent as it tries to weather the coronavirus crisis, according to an internal email seen by Reuters,…

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Saudi Arabia to cut salaries by 40%

A Saudi ministerial decision issued this week allows companies in the private sector to reduce salaries by 40 per cent and allows termination of contracts owing to the economic hardships resulting from…

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Photo Story: Fire at a high-rise in Sharjah, UAE

Civil defence forces extinguish a fire that broke out at a high-rise building in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, 06 May 2020. The Abbco Tower has 48 floors, out of which…

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Qatar Airways planning significant job cuts

Qatar Airways is planning to cut a significant amount of jobs due to the travel disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic, and told cabin crew to prepare for redundancies, according…

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Egyptians stranded in Kuwait riot

Police in Kuwait dispersed what they described as a riot by stranded Egyptians unable to return home amid the coronavirus pandemic, authorities said on Monday. The development was the first…

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Wizz Air’s Abu Dhabi joint venture to start flights this year

Wizz Air’s planned Abu Dhabi-based joint venture carrier is expected to start flying this year, the European budget airline said in a statement on Sunday. The joint venture with…

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Afghanistan probes report Iranian border guards threw migrants into river with many drowning

Afghan officials on Sunday launched a hunt to retrieve bodies of Afghan migrants from a river in a western province after reports that Iranian border guards tortured and threw…

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Saudi Arabia set to take ‘painful’ measures

Saudi Arabia will need to take “painful” measures and look for deep spending cuts as the kingdom faces a double crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic and the meltdown in…

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More than 700 Iranians die after drinking toxic alcohol to cure coronavirus

728 Iranians have died in Iran after ingesting toxic methanol, misled into the believe that it can cure the novel coronavirus. The local health authority said that these deaths happened…

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Saudi Arabia ends death penalty for crimes committed by minors

Saudi Arabia has ended the death penalty for crimes committed by minors after effectively abolishing floggings, as the kingdom seeks to blunt criticism over its human rights record. The…

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Saudi Arabia to end flogging as form of punishment

Saudi Arabia is ending flogging as a form of punishment, according to a document from the kingdom’s top court seen by Reuters. The decision by the General Commission for the…

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Iran reports lowest new daily infections for a month

Iran has reported its lowest daily number of new coronavirus cases since 21 March, with 1,030 detected in the past 24 hours, according to its health ministry spokesman. Ninety more…

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Warning U.S. warships will be destroyed if they threaten Iran in Gulf

Iran will destroy U.S. warships if its security is threatened in the Gulf, the head of Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards told state TV on Thursday, a day after U.S. President…

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Saudi Arabia urges Muslims worldwide to pray at home during Ramadan

Saudi Arabia’s highest religious body, the Council of Senior Scholars, urged Muslims worldwide to pray at home during Ramadan if their countries require social distancing to combat coronavirus, the state…

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Dubai curbs movement permits

The Dubai emirate restricted curfew movement permits on Thursday as the number of reported infections in the Gulf region rose with increased testing. Gulf Arab states have registered an increase…

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The UAE warns it would review labour ties with countries refusing to take back citizens

The UAE warned it would review labour ties with countries refusing to take back citizens, including those who lost their jobs or were put on leave, and said it was…

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Photo Story: Iran’s death toll rises to 4,585 – up by 111

Iran’s death toll from the new coronavirus has risen to 4,585, with 111 deaths overnight, a health ministry official said, adding the total number of infected cases had reached 73,303…

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Coronavirus tally soars in several Arab nations

Six Arab nations recorded additional coronavirus cases and deaths in the past 24 hours. Saudi Arabia’s confirmed 364 new cases, bringing its total to 3,651, including 685 who have recovered.…

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Yemen ‘faces nightmare’ as first coronavirus case confirmed

Aid agencies have expressed alarm after the first virus case was confirmed in Yemen, where years of civil war have devastated health systems. Oxfam said it was a “devastating blow”,…

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Virus fears prompt halt to Saudi military operations in Yemen

Concerns about a potential outbreak in Yemen, where no cases have been reported so far, are partly behind a decision to call a halt to the military action there that…

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Iran passes 4,000 fatalities from the coronavirus

Iran's new coronavirus death toll has climbed to 4,003 with 121 more deaths in the past 24 hours, a Health Ministry spokesman told state TV on Wednesday, adding that the…

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Photo Story: Massive sanitization campaign in Kuwait

Municipality workers spray disinfectant as a precaution against the spread of coronavirus at the Kuwait Salmiya market, following the outbreak of coronavirus, in Kuwait, 04 April 2020. (issued 05 April).…

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Gulf states step up coronavirus fight, first death in Kuwait

Dubai imposed a two-week lockdown Saturday night and Saudi Arabia sealed off parts of the Red Sea city of Jeddah as Gulf states tightened measures in big cities to contain…

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UAE requests postponement of EXPO 2020

The United Arab Emirates has officially requested to postpone the start of the Expo 2020 Dubai until October next year due to the coronavirus pandemic, the body that oversees the…

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Qatar Airways to ask for state finance as its running out of cash

The Middle East Eye reports that Qatar Airways to ask for state finance as its running out of cash. "We have received many requests from governments all over the world,…

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Iran reports 139 new coronavirus deaths

Iran reports 139 new coronavirus deaths in the past 24 hours, bringing the Islamic republic’s total death toll to 2,517. Health Ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour said on state TV that…

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Number of deaths in Iran reach 2,378

Iran’s death toll from the coronavirus pandemic rose to 2,378 on Friday, with 144 people dying in the past 24 hours, Health Ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour said. The total number…

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UAE closes all shopping malls and food markets for two weeks

The United Arab Emirates is closing all commercial centers and shopping malls along with fish, meat and vegetable markets. The new rule will come into force in 48 hours, and…

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Iran reports its biggest jump in coronavirus deaths

Iran on Wednesday reported its single biggest jump in fatalities from the coronavirus as another 147 people died, raising the country’s overall death toll to 1,135. The nearly 15% spike…

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UAE suspends entry of valid residence visa holders abroad over coronavirus concerns

United Arab Emirates will suspend entry of valid residence visa holders who are still abroad starting at noon on Thursday for two weeks and pausing issuance of new work…

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CoVid 19 knows no old, young, poor or rich, it has no country, no religion too…

Iran's Ambassador in France Bahram Qasemi said on Monday that coronavirus does not know people and country, old and young and poor and rich, and nobody should be left alone…

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Iran security forces take to the streets to fight coronavirus as cases continue to surge

Security forces will empty the streets of cities across Iran in the next 24 hours in a drive to fight the spread of the new coronavirus, state television reported on…

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Saudi Arabia suspends international flights for two weeks

Saudi Arabia has suspended all international flights for two weeks, starting Sunday, to prevent the spread of coronavirus, state news agency SPA said on Saturday, citing an official source at…

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U.S. wages retaliatory strikes against Iran-backed militia in Iraq

The United States waged a series of precision air strikes late Thursday against an Iran-backed militia in Iraq that it blamed for a major rocket attack a day earlier that…

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Two U.S., one British personnel killed in Iraq rocket attack

One British and two American personnel were killed and about a dozen people were wounded when 18 small rockets hit Iraq’s Taji military camp north of Baghdad on Wednesday, U.S.…

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Saudi Arabia suspends travel, flights to EU over coronavirus

Saudi Arabia has temporarily suspended travel of citizens and residents and halted flights with several states due to coronavirus fears, state news agency SPA said on Thursday citing an official…

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Saudi to fine people who do not declare accurate health details on entry

Saudi Arabia announced on Monday that it would impose a fine of up to 500,000 riyals ($133,000) on those who do not declare correct health-related information at entry points. Saudi…

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Iran releases about 70,000 prisoners because of coronavirus outbreak

Iran has released approximately 70,000 prisoners because of the coronavirus outbreak in the country, Iranian judiciary chief Ebrahim Raisi said on Monday, according to Mizan, the news site of the…

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Saudi Arabia detains King’s brother and Nephew in crackdown

Saudi Arabia has detained two senior members of the Saudi royal family - Prince Ahmed bin Abdulaziz, the younger brother of King Salman, and Mohammed bin Nayef, the king's nephew,…

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Dubai’s ruler ordered abduction of his two daughters

Dubai's ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum ordered the abduction of two of his daughters and orchestrated a campaign of intimidation against his former wife, a British judge has ruled,…

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Iranian film about executions wins top prize at Berlin Film Festival

A film by an Iranian director about capital punishment has won the top prize at the Berlin International Film Festival. Mohammad Rasoulof was banned from directing in 2017. He produced…

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Trump announces travel restrictions and warnings for US citizens including Italy, Iran and South Korea

In a rare televised news conference from the White House on Saturday, President Donald Trump said the risk to Americans from coronavirus remains low and that he would meet with…

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Qatar reports its first coronavirus case

Qatar’s health ministry reported on Saturday the first case of coronavirus infection in the country. The patient is a 36 year-old Qatari who returned recently from Iran, the ministry said…

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Saudi Arabia halts travel to Islam’s holiest site over virus

Saudi Arabia on Thursday halted travel to the holiest sites in Islam over fears about a new viral epidemic just months ahead of the annual hajj pilgrimage, a move coming…

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Kuwait bans cruise ships from coronavirus-infected countries

Kuwait has barred foreign ships, except those carrying oil, from departing to or arriving from several countries to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, according to a notice seen by…

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Iran’s deputy health minister says he contracted the Coronavirus

Iran’s deputy health minister said he has contracted the coronavirus and placed himself in isolation, a day after appearing feverish at a press conference in which he downplayed its spread…

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EPA’s Eye in the Sky: The Saudi Arabia desert

A view of a camel enclosure between Haradh and Shubaytah, in Saudi Arabia. Camels, also called ships of the desert, are part of a long cultural tradition in the Arab…

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Iraq confirms first case of coronavirus

Iraq has confirmed its first novel coronavirus case in an elderly Iranian national living in the southern city of Najaf, according to health officials. Iraq had blocked travel to and…

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Earthquake of magnitude 5.7 strikes Turkey-Iran border region, nine deaths reported in Turkey

An earthquake of magnitude 5.7 struck the Turkey-Iran border region early on Sunday, the European Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) said. Nine people, including three children, have died following the earthquake…

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Iran’s hard-liners take early lead in Tehran after vote

Iranian state TV announced the first partial results from the country’s parliamentary elections, indicating a strong showing by hard-liners in the capital Tehran, although authorities have not released full results…

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Ten new cases of coronavirus in Iran, two dead

Authorities in Iran announced the detection of at least 10 new cases of coronavirus and two more deaths, deepening a sense of public unease over the handling of the spread…

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Polls close in Iran’s elections

Polls closed in Iran at midnight local time after multiple extensions, the news agencies Tasnim and Fars reported. There was no official announcement on voter turnout. The key vote on…

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Iran placed on ‘global dirty money watchdog’ FATF black list

The Financial Action TaskForce (FATF) which is considered to be the global dirty money watchdog placed Iran on its blacklist on Friday after it failed to comply with international anti-terrorism…

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Iran parliamentary election underway

The 11th parliamentary election and the mid-term election for the Assembly of Experts began in Iran on Friday morning. Anyone who is interested in national interests should take part in…

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Iran reports first two cases of coronavirus

State-run ISNA news agency is reporting that Iranian health officials have confirmed two coronavirus cases within the country. The first brush with the virus the country has faced since the…

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