The Blog
Eid al Adha Mubarak 1444/2023!
A Blessed and Accepted Eid to All the Ummah! May Allah Most High accept from us and you, heal our sick, bless our parents and families, gu...
Jordan
Conference reviews gov’t readiness to adopt AI | Jordan Times
AMMAN — The Artificial Intelligence Readiness Assessment Project (AIRA) conference on Monday took an in-depth look at public sector’s readiness to adopt AI.Organised by the Ministry of Digital Economy and Entrepreneurship, in cooperation with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the conference presented AIRA outputs, and introduced the “Artificial Intelligence Eco System Project” which encourages AI growth in Jordan.
The Muslim World
Israel OK's plans for thousands of new settlement homes, defying White House calls for restraint | AP News
Israeli media say the country's far-right government has approved plans to build over 5,000 of new homes in Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Israel seizes cryptocurrency said to be used to finance Hezbollah and Iran's Revolutionary Guard | AP News
The Israeli government says it has seized millions of dollars in cryptocurrency from accounts that had sent or received funds in alleged financing schemes for a powerful arm of the Iranian military and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon.
UN votes to establish independent body to clarify fate of over 130,000 Syrians missing in conflict | AP News
The U.N. General Assembly has approved a resolution that will establish an independent body to determine what happened to more than 130,000 people missing as a result of the conflict in Syria.
Recruitment of children by armed groups in Syria is on the rise, even as fighting subsides | AP News
A U.N. report says armed groups across Syria are recruiting children into their ranks in growing numbers, even as fighting is subsiding.
IMF says that without reforms, Lebanon faces ballooning inflation and public debt | AP News
An International Monetary Fund report on Lebanon’s economic situation released Thursday warns that without reforms, the small, crisis-ridden country will continue to see triple-digit inflation.
Pakistan, IMF reach $3 bln staff-level agreement | Reuters
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has reached a staff-level pact with Pakistan on a $3 billion stand-by arrangement, the lender said, a decision long awaited by the South Asian nation which is teetering on the brink of default.
Secular Winter
NATO chief convenes talks in a bid to persuade Turkey to let Sweden join the military alliance | AP News
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg says he's called a meeting of senior officials on July 6 to try to overcome Turkish objections to Sweden joining the military alliance.
General News
What does the Wagner Group do? Operations in Africa and the rest of the world explained | Reuters
The abortive mutiny by Russia's Wagner group last week calls into question the fate of the group's wide network of military and commercial operations across Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
Finance and Economy
Russia Set to Overtake Saudi Arabia in Battle for China’s Oil Market - WSJ
As Riyadh’s push to boost prices falls flat, Moscow keeps gaining ground with world’s biggest buyer.
Inflation is moving in different directions in Europe. It hit 6.8% in Germany and 1.6% in Spain | AP News
Inflation is pushing in different directions in Europe, rising in Germany and falling again in Spain.
OPEC Woos Guyana, Tiny Nation That Sits Atop Massive Oil Field - WSJ
South American country Guyana doesn’t want to join the cartel and aims to pump oil rapidly.