Middle East & North Africa

ANKARA, Nov. 24 (Xinhua) -- The United Arab Emirates has allocated a fund of 10 billion U.S. dollars to invest in Turkey, Mohamed Hassan Al Suwaidi, chairman of Abu Dhabi Development Holding, said on Wednesday.

The announcement came after a meeting between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Ankara on Wednesday, as the two sides have stepped up to restore ties after years of strain.

ISTANBUL (AP) — Interpol on Thursday elected a contentious official from the United Arab Emirates as its new president during the international law enforcement body’s annual General Assembly held in Istanbul.

Maj. Gen. Ahmed Naser al-Raisi, inspector general at the United Arab Emirates’ interior ministry and a member of Interpol’s executive committee, was elected for one four-year term, the global policing body announced. He has been accused by human rights groups of involvement in torture and arbitrary detentions in the UAE.

25 Nov 2021; MEMO: Sudanese army chief, Lieutenant-General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, said yesterday that he plans to leave politics and retire from the armed forces after the 2023 elections are held.

"We are definitely committed to holding elections in 2023. After that, I'll leave and mind my own business. I will also leave the armed forces," Al-Burhan told the Financial Times.

Under the 2019 transitional deal, Al-Burhan is forbidden from running in the elections.

The Palestinian Authority (PA) yesterday called on the international community to blacklist Israeli settlements and declare armed settlers terrorist organisation.

In a statement, the Foreign Ministry condemned the "crime" carried out by the "terrorist Jewish settlers" in which three Palestinians were wounded, including one who suffered serious injuries.

Jewish settlers threw stones at a Palestinian vehicle yesterday, causing it to crash injuring three passengers.

25 Nov 2021; MEMO: The United Arab Emirates has offered to operate Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Reuters reported yesterday.

This, the news agency said, was a means through which the UAE was trying to outdo its Gulf rival Qatar in a diplomatic tussle for influence in Afghanistan.

Reuters cited foreign diplomats based in the Gulf saying that the UAE officials have held a series of talks with the Taliban in recent weeks to discuss operating the airport.

25 Nov 2021; MEMO: Israel's Jerusalem Municipality advanced plans to build 9,000 settlement units on the site of the deserted Kalandiya Airport in the occupied Palestinian West Bank, local media revealed yesterday.

The proposal is now set to be considered by the District Committee for Planning and Building, under the auspices of the Finance Ministry, on 6 December, the Times of Israel said.

25 Nov 2021; MEMO: Jordan has witnessed popular and political anger at a deal with Israel to exchange electricity generated in the kingdom with water from the occupation state, Safa reported on Wednesday. The means that Jordanian-produced electricity will be used to supply illegal Israeli settlements.

25 Nov 2021; MEMO: The UAE's Ahmed Nasser Al Raisi has been appointed president of the international policing agency Interpol for the next four years.

The organisation announced the news in a post on Twitter earlier today.

A major general by rank, Al Raisi currently serves as inspector general of the UAE's Ministry of Interior. He was elected by representatives of the 140 nations that are members of Interpol. He is the first person from the Middle East to assume the position.

BENGHAZI, Libya (AP) — Libya’s top electoral body on Wednesday disqualified the son and onetime heir apparent of the late dictator Moammar Gadhafi from running for president in elections to be held next month, citing his previous convictions.

The name of Seif al-Islam Gadhafi appeared on a list of ineligible candidates issued by the country’s High National Elections Committee. He can appeal the decision in court in the coming days.

KUWAIT CITY, Nov 24 (NNN-KUNA) – Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, was appointed yesterday, as Kuwait’s new prime minister.

Kuwaiti Crown Prince, Sheikh Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, issued an order on behalf of the emir, appointing Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, to form a new government and provide a list of names for approval.

On Nov 8, the Kuwaiti government submitted resignation to the emir. On Nov 14, the emir accepted the resignation.