Middle East & North Africa

02 Feb 2021; MEMO: Israel has vaccinated more than three million citizens against the coronavirus pandemic. However, the numbers of new infections are still on the rise, Anadolu Agency reports.

"The surge of COVID-19 infections is a complicated question," Ian Miskin, head of the coronavirus care and vaccination for the Clalit healthcare provider in Jerusalem, told Anadolu Agency on Monday.

02 Feb 2021; MEMO: Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh announced on Monday the resumption of contacts with Washington, Al-Quds Al-Araby has reported. He made the announcement during his weekly cabinet meeting.

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Last week, Israel’s Labor party appeared headed for extinction, with polls indicating it wouldn’t win enough votes in upcoming elections to enter parliament. But following the election of progressive lawmaker Merav Michaeli as its new leader, the party is showing signs of life.

Labor, home of the country’s founding leaders and for decades its ruling party, has begun to climb in opinion polls, and Michaeli is determined to once again make it a major force in Israeli politics.

Tehran, Feb 1, IRNA – Iranian negotiations with Taliban were held on prior knowledge of Afghan Government, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said on Monday.  

Khatibzadeh made the remarks speaking during his weekly press conference.

Noting that Taliban is part of Afghanistan’s reality, the spokesman said that Taliban political offices are officially working in Doha and Pakistan and the group is currently involved in official negotiations with the Afghan government as well.  

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Lebanon’s Hezbollah said on Monday it brought down an Israeli drone that had entered Lebanese airspace, while the Israeli military said one of its drones had fallen inside Lebanon.

Hezbollah said in a statement carried by al-Manar television that it was now in control of the drone.

The Israeli military said the drone had fallen in Lebanese territory during an operation near the border demarcation known as the Blue Line and that there was, “no breach of information.”

01 Feb 2021; AA: Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu will pay a two-day visit to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) on Feb. 1-2.

“During his visit, Minister Cavusoglu will meet with the TRNC authorities to discuss the issues on our common agenda, particularly the Cyprus issue,” the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Sunday.

01 Feb 2021; MEMO: Gaza's Interior Ministry yesterday said it would reopen the enclave's local markets this week after over five months of closures.

"Local markets will reopen on 7 February all week, except Fridays and Saturdays, during which a Strip-wide curfew is imposed," the head of the ministry's COVID-19 Managment Cell, Fayeq Al-Mabhouh, told local media.

01 Feb 2021; MEMO: The net profits of Saudi Arabia's Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) fell by 99.2 per cent last year compared with 2019, the company's data on the local stock exchange website has revealed.

01 Feb 2021; MEMO: Iran refuses to conduct any further negotiations or involve any new partners in the 2015 nuclear deal, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh said on Saturday.

"The nuclear agreement is a multilateral international agreement ratified by UN Security Council Resolution 2231 and it is non-negotiable, and the parties to it are clear and not subject to change," local media quoted Khatibzadeh as saying.

01 Feb 2021; MEMO: Thousands of Iraqis gathered in front of the prime minister's office in central Baghdad yesterday to protest against the government's employment policy for 2021, Anadolu reported.

The agency said the protesters rejected the government's decision to halt employment in the public sector for 2021, and demanded it amends its policy.