Middle East & North Africa

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — For a brief moment after Saudi Arabia’s Salem Aldawsari fired a ball from just inside the penalty box into the back of the net to seal a World Cup win against Argentina, Arabs across the divided Middle East found something to celebrate.

Such Arab unity is hard to come by and fleeting when it arrives. But Qatar’s hosting of the World Cup has provided a moment where many in the Arab world have rallied by Doha and the Saudi team’s win.

ISTANBUL (Turkiye), Nov 25 (APP): Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif arrived in Turkiye on Friday on a two-day official visit at the invitation of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

At the Istanbul International Airport, the prime minister and his high-level delegation were received by the Deputy Governor of Istanbul and senior officials of the government of Turkiye.

In a tweet soon after arrival, the prime minister said the bilateral ties between Pakistan and Turkiye had entered a new era of strategic partnership under the leadership of President Erdogan.

CAIRO, Nov 25 (NNN-MENA) – The Egyptian archaeological mission, working at a temple in the delta province of Menoufia, found several mummies with golden tongues, the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities announced, yesterday.

The tombs, which date back to different eras, including the Late Period of ancient Egypt and the Greco-Roman civilisation, contained several mummies that had golden tongues nestled in their jawbones, the statement said.

The mummies were in bad preservation condition, which meant the tombs had been subject to looting, it noted.

ADEN, Nov 25 (NNN-YPA) – Three Yemeni government soldiers were killed, in the southern province of Dhalea yesterday, in a drone attack launched by the Houthis, a military official, said.

“An explosive-laden drone of the Houthi rebels, struck the government’s military sites in the north-western part of Dhalea, leaving three soldiers killed and six others critically injured,” the official said, on condition of anonymity.

The Houthis intensified their drone and missile attacks against the government forces, in several southern regions in the past few days, he added.

WEST BANK, Nov 25 (NNN-MEMO) – The Israeli Civil Administration, issued permission on Wednesday, for 80 acres of Palestinian land, in the central occupied West Bank, seized in 1984, to be annexed to the illegal Tal Shahrit settlement outpost, the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission revealed. The administration has declared the area to be “state land,” in a move which effectively grants legal recognition to the outpost by the occupation state.

According to the Commission, the land belonged to Palestinians in the villages of Bidya and Kafr Al-Dik, in the Salfit Governorate.

DOHA, Nov 25 (Reuters) - England fans will be barred from Friday' match in Qatar against the United States and future World Cup games if they wear crusader replica costumes which are considered culturally insensitive in a Muslim country, FIFA has said.

England supporters have used imitation chain-mail armour, plastic helmets and toy weapons as a fancy dress for games for years.

ANKARA, Nov. 25 (Xinhua) -- Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar on Friday refuted allegations that a Turkish airstrike, launched as part of the country's offensive against the mainly-Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militia, hit a position of U.S. coalition forces in northern Syria.

"It is out of the question for us to harm coalition forces or civilians," semi-official Anadolu Agency quoted Akar as saying.

"Where the terrorist is, that's our target. Our most important principle is not to harm civilians and the environment," he added.

ISTANBUL, Nov. 24 (Xinhua) -- Eleven days after the bloody explosion that rocked the busiest pedestrian avenue in Istanbul, additional security measures have been taken with a heavy presence of police patrolling the area.

The Istiklal Avenue, lined with stores of famous brands, cafes, and bars, is flooded with people as usual.

"Many additional security measures have been taken since the bomb explosion," Haydar Ali Yildiz, mayor of Beyoglu district, told reporters on Tuesday.

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Kenya faces the prospect of being banned from international athletics because of doping problems that have now reached “crisis” levels, according to authorities in the country.

The threat of an imminent ban by track and field governing body World Athletics, which would likely have repercussions for a number of medal contenders at next year’s world championships and the 2024 Paris Olympics was conceded by the country’s sports ministry in a statement issued on Thursday.

AL RAYYAN, Qatar (AP) — Iran’s political turmoil cast a shadow also over Iran’s second match at the World Cup on Friday, with pro-government fans harassing anti-government fans outside the stadium in Qatar.

Unlike in their first match against England, the Iran players sang along to their national anthem before the match against Wales as some fans in the stadium wept.