Middle East & North Africa

12 Nov 2020; MEMO: Turkey yesterday extended the gas exploration mission of Oruç Reis seismic research vessel and two other ships in the Eastern Mediterranean until 23 November.

The Turkish navy said in a message on the international maritime alert system NAVTEX that Oruç Reis' mission along with two other vessels, the Ataman and Cengiz Han, in the Eastern Mediterranean region has been extended from 14 to 23 November.

12 Nov 2020; MEMO: Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad yesterday blamed US sanctions and pressure on the United Nations and the country's neighbours for the reluctance of more than five million refugees to return to Syria.

12 Nov 2020; MEMO: A delegation of Israeli settlers from illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank have met with UAE businessmen in Dubai to discuss trade and cooperation opportunities, Israeli media revealed on Wednesday.

The settlers' delegation arrived in the UAE on Sunday for a five-day visit. Yossi Dagan, the head of the settlement council which represents settlements in the northern occupied West Bank, led the delegation.

12 Nov 2020; MEMO: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is working to drive a wedge between the four parties that make up the Joint List in a bid to divide them and decrease their seats in the Knesset, Haaretz newspaper reported.

12 Nov 2020; MEMO: Denmark has charged a Danish company over its alleged violation of the European Union's sanctions on the Syrian regime and its ally Russia, after it was found to have conducted numerous deals with them over the past few years.

12 Nov 2020; MEMO: A member of the Libyan government's delegation of the 5+5 Joint Military Commission (JMC) announced on Wednesday that the city of Sirte has been cleared of military forces, as part of the comprehensive ceasefire agreement between the parties to the conflict in the country.

In statements broadcast by the local private channel Libya Al Ahrar, Brigadier General Al-Fitouri Gharibel confirmed: "The city of Sirte is currently emptied of troops and there are only security forces there."

12 Nov 2020; MEMO: The Palestinian Authority said on Wednesday that it is ready to resume peace talks with Israel based on international law and United Nations resolutions, Wafa news agency has reported.

"The Palestinian leadership is ready to return to negotiations [with Israel], based on international legitimacy, or from the point where they stopped, or based on Israel's commitment to all signed agreements," explained Presidential Spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh.

Dubai, Nov 12 (AP/PTI) Saudi Arabia's King Salman slammed rival Iran and hailed his country's efforts at combating the coronavirus and stabilizing oil supplies in an annual speech delivered early Thursday.

The speech, which outlined the country's policy priorities and achievements, was delivered virtually by the 82-year-old monarch to the advisory Shura Council in the presence of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

BEIRUT (AP) — On Nov. 13, 1970, a young air force officer from the coastal hills of Syria launched a bloodless coup. It was the latest in a succession of military takeovers since independence from France in 1946, and there was no reason to think it would be the last.

Yet 50 years later, Hafez Assad’s family still rules Syria.

11 Nov 2020; MEMO: Turkey is interested in producing Russia's first coronavirus vaccine, Sputnik V, at domestic facilities, Russia's health ministry said on Wednesday after a phone call between the countries' health ministers.

Russia is already testing two vaccines against the virus and is on the cusp of registering a third. It is rolling out its Sputnik V vaccine for domestic use despite the fact that late-stage trials have not yet finished.