Middle East & North Africa

07 July 2021; MEMO: The Israeli army decided to punish colleagues of Hadar Goldin, the soldier who's being held as a prisoner of war in Gaza, after they discussed his case with the media, Channel 12 revealed yesterday evening.

The reservists spoke to the channel about the circumstances that led to Goldin's capture.

According to Channel 12, the soldiers, who were part of Givati Reconnaissance Battalion during the offensive, criticised the Israeli government and army for not rescuing Goldin over the past seven years.

DUBAI, July 7 (Reuters) - Iran on Wednesday told Taliban and Afghan government representatives it stood ready to help end the crisis in Afghanistan, urging the country's people and politicians to make "difficult decisions" about its future.

Hosting a meeting of Afghan government representatives and a high-level Taliban political committee, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said "committing to political solutions is the best choice".

07 July 2021; MEMO: Israel yesterday renewed its condition that the reconstruction of Gaza will only take place following the release of four Israeli prisoners of war it believes are being held there, Anadolu reported.

"Rebuilding the Gaza Strip is conditioned on the release of four Israelis lost or detained in Gaza," Haim Regev, an official at the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told the UN Ad Hoc Liaison Committee (AHLC).

07 July 2021; MEMO: Qatar will provide the Lebanese armed forces with 70 tonnes of food a month, the Qatari state news agency QNA reported, as Lebanon seeks assistance amid its worst economic and political crisis since a 1975-1990 civil war, Reuters reported.

Lebanon's army chief Joseph Aoun had appealed to world powers at a meeting in France last month for assistance for soldiers, whose wages have plunged in value as the Lebanese pound has crashed and inflation has soared.

BAGHDAD, July 7 (Reuters) - At least 14 rockets hit western Iraq's Ain al-Asad air base, host to U.S. and other international forces, on Wednesday, slightly wounding three people, a coalition spokesman said.

U.S. Army Colonel Wayne Marotto, spokesman for the U.S.-led international military coalition, tweeted that the rockets landed on the base and its perimeter.

The United States accuses Iranian-backed militia groups of launching regular rocket attacks against its troops in Iraq. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for Wednesday's attack.

07 July 2021; MEMO: Diplomatic sources at the UN said on Tuesday that the Arab group within the Security Council is seeking to issue a resolution on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, Anadolu has reported. The draft resolution calls on the three countries involved in the Renaissance Dam crisis — Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan — to continue negotiations for a period of six months to reach an agreement on the rules for filling the reservoir and operating the dam.

07 July 2021; MEMO: Saudi Arabia said it supports Egypt and Sudan in "preserving their legitimate water rights," Reuters reported the state news agency (SPA) saying yesterday.

"The kingdom supports the efforts of Egypt and Sudan to contain this crisis and their demands to solve it in accordance with the rules of international law. It also supports international moves aimed at finding a binding solution to end it," SPA added.

07 July 2021; MEMO: Some $485 million are urgently needed for the immediate and short-term recovery of Gaza, a World Bank report revealed yesterday.

BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister warned Tuesday that the country is hurtling toward a “social explosion” and appealed to the international community for assistance to prevent the demise of the nation facing multiple crises.

MARIB CITY, Yemen (AP) — The two fighters stand shoulder-to-shoulder on a mountain overlook, with a clear view below of the enemy’s position. They are part of the last lines of defense between the government’s last stronghold in Yemen’s north, and the Houthi rebels trying to take it.

Hassan Saleh and his younger brother Saeed, both in their early 20s, have been fighting alongside other government fighters and tribesman outside the oil-rich city of Marib, against the months-long offensive by the Iranian-backed rebels. They say they need more weapons to push the attackers back.