Middle East & North Africa

ISTANBUL, April 25 (Xinhua) -- The Turkish government has taken steps worth 200 billion Turkish liras (28.7 billion U.S. dollars) to protect the economy from COVID-19 impacts since its outbreak, Treasury and Finance Minister Berat Albayrak said on Saturday.

The government's stimulus package included tax postponement, short-time working allowance, minimum wage support, and other measures to preserve the commercial life, Albayrak said on his Twitter account.

RIYADH, April 25 (Xinhua) -- Saudi Arabia announced on Saturday 1,197 new COVID-19 infections, bringing the total number to 16,299.

Meanwhile, 136 have died of the disease in the kingdom, after nine new deaths were reported, while the total recoveries have increased by 166 to 2,215, the health ministry tweeted.

A total of 115 are still in critical condition, the ministry's spokesman Mohammed Al-Abdulali told the daily press briefing. 

RAMALLAH, April 25 (Xinhua) -- Palestine on Saturday urged Israel to release a Palestinian prisoner diagnosed with COVID-19, three days after he was arrested by Israeli forces in the West Bank.

Saeb Erekat, secretary-general of the Palestine Liberation Organization, accused Israel of violating the international law by continuing the detention of the 21-year-old, demanding his immediate release.

SANAA, Yemen (AP) — Yemen’s southern separatists on Sunday broke a peace deal with the country’s internationally recognized government and claimed sole control of the regional capital of Aden, threatening to resume fighting between the two ostensible allies.

DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran should draw up economic plans based on a worst-case scenario of nearly a year of disruptions due to the coronavirus, President Hassan Rouhani said on Saturday, as the death toll from the disease rose by 76 to 5,650.

“Our first request is that we should plan production long-term based on a pessimistic view that we might face this virus ... for months,” Rouhani said in a meeting with heads of Iranian private companies carried live on state TV.

25 April 2020; MEMO: Israeli rights group B’Tselem has revealed the exploitation of Israeli settlers of the coronavirus to increase their violence against Palestinians, noting that this violence is protected by Israeli occupation forces.

25 April 2020; MEMO: On Thursday Spanish gas firm Naturgy have confirmed it would resume its efforts to obtain $2 billion from Egypt in compensation for the collapse of a gas project in the country, Rassd.com have reported.

25 April 2020; MEMO: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman is seeking to revive Saudi Arabia’s media image by launching a new TV news channel in the near future called Asharq, in cooperation with the US Bloomberg network, as well as launching a new look for Al Arabiya TV channel on Friday evenings.

25 April 2020; MEMO: On Friday leader of Israeli Blue and White Party Benny Gantz and Labour Chief Amir Peretz signed a coalition deal with Labour, Israeli media reported.

25 April 2020; MEMO: The official Saudi Press Agency quoted a spokesman for the Riyadh-led coalition confirming that the unilateral ceasefire in Yemen has been extended for a month.