Middle East & North Africa

17 Apr 2023; MEMO: A suspected cyberattack disrupted border control systems at Israel's Ben Gurion International Airport yesterday, local media reported.

Thousands of passengers who were travelling from or returning to Israel were unable to leave the airport as they could not have their passports processed.

Israeli authorities reported that the issue resulted in computers being unable to read the passports.

17 Apr 2023; MEMO: Paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) Commander, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, on Monday accused Sudanese Army Chief, Gen. Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan of bombing civilians, Anadolu News Agency reports.

17 Apr 2023; MEMO: Israel's Deputy Minister of Health and Interior is set to replace his former superior, after the Supreme Court ruled against his position in the new Israeli government.

Moshe Arbel, a Knesset member and the Deputy Minister of Health and Interior, will replace former Interior and Health Minister, Arye Dery, in both ministries until the Knesset is able to re-authorise Dery's reappointment.

17 Apr 2023; MEMO: Israel's security service, the Shin Bet, has accused two Palestinians from the West Bank of working for Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Iran-backed Lebanese militia, Hezbollah.

According to an announcement today by the Shin Bet, indictments were filed against Yusuf Mansour and Marsil Mansour – two Palestinians from the West Bank – who had allegedly agreed to smuggle military equipment in Israel for Hezbollah and IRGC operatives.

17 Apr 2023; MEMO: Iran has officially invited Saudi Arabia's King to visit the country, an Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Monday, after the two regional rivals agreed to end years of hostility following a China-brokered agreement in March, Reuters reports.

17 Apr 2023; MEMO: Ukraine's Foreign Minister visited Iraq on Monday for the first time since Russia's invasion, seeking diplomatic support from the Middle East where Moscow has been cultivating friends, Reuters reports.

"We definitely see Iraq as a country that is capable of building bridges," Dmitro Kuleba said at a press conference alongside Iraq's Foreign Minister, Fuad Hussein.

17 Apr 2023; MEMO: Sudan's Army chief branded a powerful paramilitary force battling the Army as a rebel group on Monday, in a deadly power struggle that has derailed a shift to civilian rule, led to UN calls to stop fighting and raised fears of a wider conflict, Reuters reports.

17 Apr 2023; MEMO: Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said on Monday that normalising relations with Saudi Arabia would be a "giant leap" towards ending the Arab-Israeli conflict, Reuters reports.

"We want normalisation and peace with Saudi Arabia. We view that as, perhaps, a giant leap towards ending the Arab-Israeli conflict," Netanyahu said, speaking during a meeting in Jerusalem with US Republican Senator, Lindsey Graham.

17 Apr 2023; MEMO: Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, arrived in Saudi Arabia on Monday for talks with Saudi officials, Anadolu News Agency reports.

The Palestinian leader was welcomed upon his arrival in Jeddah by the governor of Mecca, Prince Badr bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud.

According to state news agency, Wafa, Abbas will meet with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Tuesday to discuss Palestinian and regional developments.

17 Apr 2023; MEMO: Tunisian security forces late Monday arrested Ennahda Party leader Rached Ghannouchi and took him in for interrogation at a National Guard building in the capital Tunis.

In a statement on Facebook, senior Ennahda Party official and former Foreign Minister Rafik Abdessalem said that security forces raided Ghannouchi's home and took him to the El-Aouina National Guard base, in northern Tunis.

Tunisian authorities have yet to comment on the arrest.