Middle East & North Africa

08 Dec 2022; MEMO: It has become almost certain that the new Israeli Minister of Defence will be retired General Yoav Gallant.

Gallant was elected to the Knesset in 2015, within the Kulanu Party led by former Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon, but he defected from it and joined the Likud Party led by former and future Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the eve of the 2019 Israeli elections.

08 Dec 2022; MEMO: The UAE has been ranked as the world's number one passport in terms of mobility and freedom from travel restrictions according to the recently published Passport Index by Canada-based financial advisory firm, Arton Capital.

09 Dec 2022; MEMO: Israel's incoming Finance Minister has said his economic strategy will be infused with religious beliefs laid out in the Torah, predicting that this would help the country prosper, Reuters reports.

08 Dec 2022; MEMO: CIA is warning NATO member, Turkiye, against a new military operation in Syria, after strikes in the country late last month endangered US troops, Reuters reports.

According to the report, CIA Director, Bill Burns, spoke by phone with his Turkish counterpart, conveying his "strong opposition" to a new Turkish military operation in Syria, according to a Pentagon readout on the call.

08 Dec 2022; MEMO: Fans at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar are on pace to spend record amounts at tournament venues, according to data from Visa, the event's official payment partner, Bloomberg reports.

According to the report, fans have already spent more money than they did when Brazil hosted the World Cup in 2014, and 89 per cent of the value they spent in Russia in 2018.

Visa's data includes spending on its cards at all official World Cup venues, from the start of tournament through to 2 December.

08 Dec 2022; MEMO: The Iraqi central government has started receiving applications for the new Border Guards Force to be established in the region between Turkiye and Iran, Anadolu News Agency reports.

Applications are submitted electronically, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.

09 Dec 2022; MEMO: The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Thursday condemned the killing of three Palestinians by Israeli forces in the Occupied West Bank city of Jenin, Anadolu News Agency reports.

In a written statement, the OIC asserted that the crimes and ongoing attacks committed against the Palestinian people should be investigated and that Israel should be held accountable.

08 Dec 2022; MEMO: Iran has executed a protestor for the first time since the nationwide protests began almost three months ago, as the threat of mass executions of other protestors increasingly looms.

09 Dec 2022; MEMO: The Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, has denounced Israel's prevention of 200 Christians from the besieged Gaza Strip from visiting holy sites in the cities of Jerusalem and Bethlehem to celebrate Christmas, Anadolu news agency reported.

"The Zionist ban is a flagrant violation of the Christians' rights to practice their religious rites, depriving them of their natural right to access places of worship" the Movement said in a statement.

08 Dec 2022; MEMO: Saudi Arabia is looking to boost investments in Egypt, while eyeing opportunities to deepen relations with Turkiye and Pakistan, according to a report by Bloomberg.

The Kingdom has recently taken several steps to offer financial support to countries in the region struggling with high inflation, as Riyadh looks to strengthen allies and forge new relations.