Middle East & North Africa

BEIRUT, Oct 2 (NNN-NNA) – The European Investment Bank, announced that, it will fund the public transport project, for Lebanon’s northern city of Tripoli.

“The bank is ready to finance the project, as a basic need to solve the traffic crisis in Tripoli, in addition to finalising the railway studies, for building a railway from Beirut to Tripoli,” the bank’s delegation said, during its meeting with Lebanese Public Works and Transport Minister, Youssef Fenianos.

BEIRUT, Oct 2 (NNN-XINHUA) – Britain’s Trade Envoy to Lebanon, Lord Richard Risby, assured that, his country will facilitate the entry of Lebanese products to the UK.

“We will work on importing Lebanese products even after our country’s exit from the European Union,” Risby was quoted as saying, during his meeting with Lebanese private sector representatives, at Beirut’s Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture.

Risby emphasised the need to increase cooperation between the two countries, in technology and knowledge economy.

RAMALLAH, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday chaired a meeting of his Fatah party's central committee to discuss preparing for holding elections in the Palestinian territories.

"We will discuss the elections, preparing for holding it and measures that will be taken to achieve this goal," Abbas was quoted by the official WAFA news agency as saying during the meeting.

ANKARA, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan revealed on Tuesday for the first time the plans for resettling 2 million people in the safe zone to be built in northern Syria.

The zone, to be established between the Euphrates River and the Iraqi border, was agreed by Turkey and the U.S. in August.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the new legislative year of the Turkish parliament, Erdogan vowed to take unilateral military steps to set up the zone, adding that Turkey plans to hold a donor conference for the reconstruction of northern Syria.

KUWAIT CITY, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Kuwait attaches great importance to protecting human rights in adherence to its constitution, Kuwait's Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Al-Jarallah said Tuesday.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of a seminar themed "Kuwait's Efforts in Relieving the Elderly," Al-Jarallah said that Kuwait's keenness on human rights comes from its belief.

He pointed out that Kuwait contributed to supporting the elderly through various governmental bodies and spreading the awareness on the problems that faces the elderly.

30 Sep 2019; MEMO: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman has vowed to recognise and normalise trade with Israel if the United States helps him “defeat Iran and take control of the Middle East.”

These statements, which were revealed by a documentary presented by PBS network, on Saturday, in the TV programme Frontline, were made by Bin Salman in a meeting with US President Donald Trump during his famous visit to Riyadh in May 2017.

1 Oct 2019; MEMO: Egypt’s General Intelligence Undersecretary Mahmoud Al-Sisi, who is the president’s son, has banned intelligence officials from leaving the country in anticipation of an internal revolt, sources have told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.

An anonymous source told the website: “Al-Sisi’s son commissioned a committee of security leaders to start an extensive investigation on intelligence officers which will include a detailed report on their bank transactions and communications.”

1 Oct 2019; MEMO: The Saudi-led coalition fighting against Yemen’s Houthis has dismissed claims made by the movement that it captured thousands of troops fighting on behalf of Saudi Arabia during a cross border raid in the Najran province which allegedly took place in August – although news outlets reported the incident as having taken place last week.

1 Oct 2019; MEMO: Saudi Arabia’s economic prospect has been hit with more bad news after the kingdom was downgrading by Fitch Ratings. The agency, considered one of the largest ratings firms in the world, lowered Riyad’s rating from A+ to A citing vulnerabilities in the kingdom’s economic infrastructure, diminishing financial reserves, deteriorating balance sheets and rising government debt.

1 Oct 2019; MEMO: Daesh has conducted manoeuvres to make a resurgence in Syria today by besieging Russian and regime forces, attacking a prominent Kurdish militia and capturing a town in the east of the country, fulfilling recent predictions of the extremist group’s recuperation in the conflict.