Middle East & North Africa

29 Sep 2022; MEMO: The inflation rate in Algeria increased to 9.6 per cent at the end of August, amid the rise in the prices of basic commodities globally and its impact on local markets, Anadolu reported.

Deputy Director-General of the Algerian National Office of Statistics, Hamid Zaydouni, revealed the rate during a hearing at the Finance Committee of the People's National Assembly.

The Algerian market recorded an inflation rate of 7.23 per cent during 2021, the highest in nearly three years.

29 Sep 2022; MEMO: The opening of the Karameh crossing between Jordan and Israel for operation 24 hours a day, seven days a week, has been postponed, US Ambassador to Israel Tom Nides said during a press conference held in Jerusalem yesterday.

The opening of the Karameh crossing (The Allenby/King Hussein Bridge) was postponed from the end of this month to the end of next month, Nides noted, adding that he was informed that the crossing will open around the clock for a trial period starting 24 October.

29 Sep 2022; MEMO: Meeting in the capital, Beirut, Lebanon's Parliament on Thursday failed to elect a new president, threatening to deepen the country's continuing crises, Anadolu News Agency reports.

Candidate, Michel Mouawad, backed by the Lebanese Forces Party, failed to get the necessary votes to win the post, and pushed to hold another voting session, according to local media.

Current President Michel Aoun's six-year term ends on 31 October.

29 Sep 2022; MEMO: An International Economic Summit featuring experts from across the world began in the Turkish metropolis, Istanbul, on Thursday to discuss the major shifts that have hit the global economy in recent years, Anadolu News Agency reports.

29 Sep 2022; MEMO: A high-level Turkish security delegation arrived in the Qatari capital, Doha, on Tuesday to discuss cooperation in securing the 2022 World Cup due to begin in November.

"Within the framework of security cooperation between Turkey and Qatar, the first high-level delegation of General Directorate of Security from Turkey arrived in Doha," the Turkish embassy in Doha said on Twitter.

According to the embassy, Turkey's Ambassador in Doha, Dr. Mustafa Goksu, and embassy officials received the team.

29 Sep 2022; MEMO: Palestinian fishermen in Gaza have started to send fish to the occupied West Bank, after Israel lifted the fishing ban recently.The ban on fishing and selling fish had been in place for about one and a half months, since Israel's last attack on Gaza on 5 August. Although the ban was lifted, the amount of fish being exported was limited to 13 tonnes, from 100 tonnes before the Israeli aggression. While exports can now only take place once a week, down from two previously.

29 Sep 2022; MEMO: Palestinians have launched a full-day general strike in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin in an act of mourning for the four Palestinians killed by Israeli occupation forces yesterday, Wafa news agency has reported. Shops and schools have shut down across the city since the Israeli military raid on Jenin refugee camp which began with dozens of military vehicles entering the camp on Wednesday morning.

ADEN, Sept 28 (NNN-YPA) – At least three soldiers of Yemen’s joint pro-government forces were killed, and 10 others injured, in clashes with Houthi fighters in the country’s Red Sea port city of Hodeidah, yesterday, a military official said.

The Houthis launched an attack, in an attempt to achieve a ground breakthrough, into the government-controlled areas, in the Hays District, sparking intense fighting in the area, the local military source said, on condition of anonymity.

RIYADH, Sept 28 (NNN-SPA) – Saudi Arabian King, Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, yesterday, appointed Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, as the kingdom’s prime minister.

The king, meanwhile, issued a decree, ordering a cabinet reshuffle, appointing Saudi Prince, Khalid bin Salman, as the minister of defence.

Heads of ministries that were kept unchanged include the minister of energy, the minister of foreign affairs, the minister of investment, the minister of interior, and the minister of finance.

CAIRO, Sept 28 (NNN-MENA) – Egypt aims at increasing the number of foreign tourists by 25 to 30 percent annually, and boosting its revenues, Egyptian Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, Ahmed Issa said, yesterday.

Issa’s remarks came, during an evening ceremony held at the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir Square, to mark the annual World Tourism Day on Sept 27, which coincides this year with the 200th anniversary of the creation of the field of Egyptology and the decoding of ancient hieroglyphs.