Middle East & North Africa

16 Mar 2021; MEMO: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called to put an end to the human tragedy in Syria.

16 Mar 2021; MEMO: The volume of global food waste reached 931 million tonnes in 2019, 40 million of which originated in the Arab world, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) announced in a report earlier this month.

16 Mar 2021; MEMO: Ethiopian refugees continue to flee to Sudan as the conflict in the northernmost region of Tigray continues to escalate.

Sudan's official SUNA news agency reported that the influx had continued "despite the tightened closure of crossing points on borders between the two countries."

16 Mar 2021; MEMO: Remittances from Egyptians working abroad increased by 10.5 per cent in 2020, despite the challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic, the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) said yesterday.

Transfers rose from $26.8 billion in 2019 to $29.6 billion in 2020, the central bank said in a statement. The fourth quarter of 2020 saw an increase of 7.6 per cent compared to the same period a year earlier, it added.

16 Mar 2021; MEMO: Saudi Arabian authorities have arrested at least 241 employees of several ministries as part of an anti-corruption campaign, Anadolu reported.

In a statement issued on Sunday, the Oversight and Anti-Corruption Authority (Nazaha) said that the employees were arrested over their involvement in corruption, fraud, bribery, forgery and abuse of power.

The Present, a film by Palestinian Director Farah Nabulsi, has been nominated for an Academy Award in the Best Live Action Short Film category.

Taking to Twitter after the announcement was made, Nabulsi wrote: "Literally standing on tables! Amazing news – The Present has been nominated for an Oscar! Thank you to The Academy!" Adding a picture of her on her table with a large smile on her face.

15 Mar 2021; MEMO: Iranian authorities have charged French tourist Benjamin Briere, arrested 10 months ago, with espionage and "propaganda against the system", one of his lawyers told Reuters on Monday.

The news comes as the United States and European parties to Iran's 2015 nuclear deal, including France, are trying to restore the pact that was abandoned in 2018 by then-U.S. president Donald Trump.

CAIRO, March 15 (Xinhua) -- Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit said on Monday that the Syrian situation is "tragic" 10 years after the outbreak of the crisis.

In a statement, Aboul-Gheit said the dimensions of the Syrian humanitarian, strategic and security crisis cast a shadow over the entire Arab region, with half of the Syrians becoming refugees and displaced.

ALGIERS, Mar 15 (NNN-APS) – Algerian President, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, reiterated his country’s readiness to help Mali overcome crisis and restore peace and reconciliation.

“We are at the disposal of our brothers in Mali, to help them in what they assume is suitable to maintain serenity, ahead of the forthcoming elections, according to the plan they have already set,” Tebboune told a joint press conference, following talks with visiting Malian President, Bah N’Daw.

CAIRO, Mar 15 (NNN-MENA) – Egyptian and French naval forces, held joint military training in the Red Sea, Egypt’s armed forces said, in a statement yesterday.

The Egyptian frigate, al-Fateh, and the combat group accompanying the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, participated in the exercise, according to the statement.

During the training, the forces implemented many joint combat activities, including forming close and remote guard of formations.