Latest news with #Israel-Palestine
Middle East Eye
10 hours ago
- Business
- Middle East Eye
Construction projects awarded by Gulf states plunge, as Saudi Arabia pulls back spending
The Gulf region commissioned its lowest number of construction contracts in more than three years according to data analysed by a regional asset manager, with Saudi Arabia falling the most as it curbs spending on megaprojects. The Gulf region awarded $28.4bn in contracts in the second quarter of 2025, according to a July brief by KAMCO Investment, a Kuwait-based asset manager. The overall value of all construction contracts awarded nosedived 58 percent compared to the same quarter last year. Saudi Arabia led the plunge with contract awards falling 72.5 percent, and the UAE followed at 47 percent. The UAE overtook Saudi Arabia as the most active country in the Gulf region sealing new construction contracts. "This downturn was primarily driven by a sharp contraction in project awards in Saudi Arabia, accompanied by a similarly weak performance in the UAE, which experienced a significant y-o-y [year-over-year] decline in contract awards during the period," the report said. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters The slump in commissioned projects comes amid a bevy of reports that suggest Saudi Arabia is curbing its ambitions on grand megaprojects designed to wean the country of its reliance on energy and diversify its economy. Why Saudi Arabia can spend more money than it makes, even as oil prices drop Read More » The kingdom has already had to scale back Neom, originally billed as a $1.5 trillion megacity project, which organisers claim will eventually be 33 times the size of New York City and include a 170km straight-line city known as "The Line". Instead of 1.5 million people living in the city by 2030, Saudi officials now anticipate fewer than 300,000 residents. Meanwhile, only 2.4km of the city will be completed by 2030. The Line is one part of Saudi Arabia's broader Neom project situated on its northwestern Red Sea coast that includes Red Sea resorts, industrial parks and a ski resort. Last week, Semafor reported Neom is considering laying off up to 1,000 employees - an estimated 20 percent of its full-time staff. The website reported that Neom was weighing the layoffs as part of a broader overhaul that could also see more than 1,000 employees leave Neom's construction site on the kingdom's northwestern Red Sea coast, and relocate to Riyadh. The wider Gulf region has been hit by falling oil prices. Brent, the international benchmark, was trading down about one percent on Tuesday at $68.53 per barrel. Oil prices have come down substantaily from their 2022 highs of around $100 per barrel.
Middle East Eye
11 hours ago
- Politics
- Middle East Eye
US to pull out of Unesco over inclusion of Palestine and alleged anti-Israel bias
The US has announced that it will leave the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) on 31 December 2026 over its inclusion of Palestine as a member state. The State Department announced on Tuesday that Washington viewed Palestine's inclusion as "highly problematic", and a decision which had in turn led to the "proliferation of anti-Israel rhetoric". The US was angered in 2011 when Unesco members granted Palestine full membership in the body, despite opposition from its ally Israel. Washington opposes any move by UN bodies to recognise Palestine as a state, believing that this must wait until a negotiated Middle East peace deal. "Unesco works to advance divisive social and cultural causes and maintains an outsized focus on the UN's sustainable development goals, a globalist, ideological agenda for international development at odds with our America First foreign policy," the State Department's spokesperson, Tammy Bruce, said. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters "Unesco's decision to admit the 'State of Palestine' as a member state is highly problematic, contrary to US policy and contributed to the proliferation of anti-Israel rhetoric within the organisation," she added. On Monday, the New York Post reported that US President Donald Trump had ordered a 90-day review of the US's membership in February, focusing on any "anti-Semitism or anti-Israel sentiment within the organisation". Officials within his administration concluded that Unesco had a pro-Palestine and pro-China bias and was overly concerned with diversity, equity and inclusion policies, a White House official was quoted as telling The Post. Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar welcomed Tuesday's announcement, claiming that Israel had been singled out by the agency. However, Audrey Azoulay, Unesco's director-general, rejected the accusations and said that the claims "contradict the reality of Unesco's efforts, particularly in the field of Holocaust education and the fight against antisemitism". Trump 2.0 will strip away the illusions of the 'rules-based order' Read More » Azoulay also said that Unesco's work had been hailed by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC, the World Jewish Congress and its American Section, and the American Jewish Committee. "I deeply regret President Donald Trump's decision to once again withdraw the United States of America from Unesco," she said. "This decision contradicts the fundamental principles of multilateralism, and may affect first and foremost our many partners in the United States of America - communities seeking site inscription on the World Heritage List, Creative City status and University Chairs." The US was a founding member of Unesco in 1945, but this latest departure marks the third time it has quit. The US first withdrew in 1983 under Ronald Reagan, whose administration said the organisation had anti-western bias and "has extraneously politicised virtually every subject it deals with". It rejoined in 2003 under George W. Bush, with the White House saying it was happy with Unesco's reforms. The Trump administration then withdrew from Unesco in 2017, shortly after the body designated Hebron's Old City and the Tomb of the Patriarchs in the West Bank as a Palestinian World Heritage site. His administration cited what it called "mounting arrears, the need for fundamental reform in the organisation and continuing anti-Israel bias". It returned in 2023 under US President Joe Biden whose administration said it was crucial to rejoin in order to counter "Chinese influence". As a condition of readmission, the US agreed to pay about $619m in unpaid dues.
Middle East Eye
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Middle East Eye
Students at Netanyahu's former high school campaign for his removal from hall of fame
More than 200 students from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's former high school in Pennsylvania have petitioned to oust him from their hall of fame. The students submitted a petition to the Cheltenham High Alumni Association last month to have a photo of the alumnus removed from the school's hall of fame, the New York Times reported on Friday. The campaigning students cited Netanyahu's arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC), which accuses him of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip, as well his indictment on corruption charges in Israel. The New York Times reported that students sent an email to the alumni association that read: "When students see these alumni on the wall of fame as we walk past every day, we understand that these are people we should look up to, and we strive to be like them one day. "As such, we feel it is not right for him [Netanyahu] to continue to be recognised in our school." New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Netanyahu attended the high school for four years and graduated in 1967 while his family lived in Cheltenham Township. He was elected to the hall of fame in 1999, when he was serving his first term as prime minister. A decision is expected to be made in a closed-door meeting between officers from the alumni association and school district officials on 25 July. Middle East Eye reached out to the school for comment but did not receive a response by time of publication.
Middle East Eye
14 hours ago
- Politics
- Middle East Eye
Trump warns US will attack Iran's nuclear sites again 'if necessary'
US President Donald Trump touted the possibility of attacking Iran again after the Islamic Republic's foreign minister said three nuclear facilities had been badly damaged in strikes in June. Trump issued the warning in a social media post on Monday after Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told Fox News that Tehran could not give up its nuclear enrichment programme, even though it was damaged by US strikes. "It is stopped because, yes, damages are serious and severe. But obviously, we cannot give up on enrichment because it is an achievement of our own scientists. And now, more than that, it is a question of national pride," Araghchi said. On his Truth Social platform, Trump referenced Araghchi's comments about the nuclear sites being severely damaged and said: "Of course they are, just like I said, and we will do it again, if necessary!" The US carried out strikes on Iran's Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan nuclear facilities on 22 June, assisting Israel, which had already been trading missile fire with Tehran since 13 July. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Iran responded to the strikes by firing ballistic missiles at the US's al-Udeid military base in Qatar. Washington and Doha were informed at least one day earlier about the choreographed strikes. Shortly after, the US announced a ceasefire between Israel and Iran, capping 12 days of unprecedented fighting. Since then, several news sites have questioned the extent of the damage on the Iranian nuclear sites. CNN cited an early US intelligence assessment which suggested that the strikes set back Iran's nuclear programme only by months, rather than destroying it. And on Thursday, NBC News reported that one of Iran's nuclear sites was severely damaged, but two other facilities were only degraded to the point that the Islamic Republic could restart uranium enrichment at them within months. Trump has said that the US and Iran will meet to restart negotiations. However, on Wednesday, he told reporters that he was "in no rush to talk because we obliterated their site". For its part, Iran is scheduled to meet Britain, France and Germany in Istanbul on Friday, to discuss its nuclear programme, with Tehran accusing European powers of scuppering a landmark 2015 nuclear deal. The 2015 agreement, reached between Iran and UN Security Council permanent members Britain, China, France, Russia and the US, plus Germany, imposed curbs on Iran's nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief. However, it unravelled in 2018 when the United States, during Trump's first term, unilaterally withdrew and reimposed sweeping sanctions. Though Europe pledged continued support, a mechanism intended to offset US sanctions never effectively materialised, forcing many western firms to exit Iran and deepening its economic crisis. "Iran holds the European parties responsible for negligence in implementing the agreement," said foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei ahead of Friday's talks in Istanbul on the deal's future. Western powers, led by the United States and backed by Israel, have long accused Tehran of secretly seeking nuclear weapons. Iran has repeatedly denied this, insisting its nuclear programme is solely for civilian purposes such as energy production. Tehran and Washington held five rounds of nuclear talks starting in April, but a planned meeting on 15 June was cancelled after Israel launched strikes on Iran, triggering a 12-day conflict. "At this stage, we have no intention of speaking with America," Baqaei said Monday.
Middle East Eye
15 hours ago
- Business
- Middle East Eye
Why Turkey abruptly cancelled an Iraqi oil pipeline agreement
Turkey's decision on Monday to cancel its 50-year-old crude oil pipeline agreement with Iraq raised eyebrows across energy markets. In a decree published in the Turkish Official Gazette, Ankara announced that the agreement, originally signed in the 1970s along with all subsequent protocols, will be terminated effective July 2026. The 1.6 million barrel per day Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline has been offline since 2023 when an international arbitration panel ordered that Ankara pay $1.5bn in damages for allegedly facilitating unauthorised Iraqi oil exports between 2014 and 2018. Before the suspension, the pipeline was a key energy conduit between northern Iraq and the Mediterranean port of Ceyhan in southern Turkey. While Turkey appeals the decision, the pipeline has remained shut with that closure now set to become permanent unless a new agreement can be reached. Sources familiar with Ankara's strategy told Middle East Eye that Turkey is eager to negotiate a new agreement with Baghdad, which reflects the changes in the geopolitical and economic landscape since the 1970s. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters On Monday, Iraqi news agencies reported that Turkey had already submitted a draft proposal to Baghdad, seeking to renew and expand energy cooperation in areas including oil, gas, petrochemicals and electricity. Turkish sources explained that one key motivation for the shift is the current nature of the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline agreement. The old agreement treats the infrastructure as a single entity spanning both countries, making any modifications dependent on agreement from both states. That means negotiating changes to the entire pipeline even when only the Turkish side needs modification. 'Since Ankara's discovery of oil reserves in Turkey's Gabar region in 2023, there have been plans to explore whether this new production could be connected to the Ceyhan pipeline,' one source told MEE. "Ankara wants to take care of its own pipeline under the new deal," rhe source added. Gabar oil reserves In 2023, Turkish Petroleum announced a billion barrel oil deposit in the Gabar region, which has already become functional. The Turkish energy ministry reported production had reached 81,000 barrels per day as of May this year. Ankara is optimistic that continued drilling in the region will uncover additional reserves and daily production is expected to reach 100,000 barrels per day in the near future. The Turkish public asks: After Israel's attack on Iran, are we next? Read More » A Turkey-based energy expert, speaking anonymously due to the sensitivity of the matter, said Ankara has for years monitored so-called 'tie-ins' on the Iraqi side of the border. 'Iraq has faced serious challenges, including armed extremist groups tapping into the pipeline via side valves to siphon oil,' the expert noted. 'There are also concerns about the integrity of certain sections of the infrastructure.' The expert added that transporting Gabar oil by truck is only a temporary solution; if production increases, a pipeline connection will become essential. Prioritising Turkish interests need not come at the expense of ties with Iraq, another source explained. 'Turkey could support Iraq by investing in and sharing expertise on renewables, such as solar and wind power,' the source said. Possible areas of cooperation could extend deep into Iraq's south, with a new pipeline from Basra to Turkey on the cards as part of Iraq's Development Road initiative. Such a line would bypass Iraq's Kurdish region entirely. Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar told S&P Global Commodity Insights in April that Ankara has proposed building new pipelines to transport oil and natural gas from southern Iraq to Ceyhan, augmenting Turkey's ambition to become an energy hub. 'From Basra, goods, gas, and crude would travel north to Haditha before reaching Silopi in southern Turkey, largely bypassing Iraq's semiautonomous Kurdistan region,' the report said. Bayraktar said that a 'principal agreement' has been reached between Turkey and Iraq for the new pipelines and an additional electricity transmission line. The official expressed confidence that studies will be completed 'soon' and an overarching energy framework agreement will be signed 'in the upcoming months'.
