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Middle East

Middle East
Middle East
The latest news, analysis and opinion on Middle East. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.
US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem in October. Photo: AFP
Benjamin Netanyahu

Iran and Gaza plan to top agenda for Netanyahu-Trump meeting

The Israeli prime minister is set to visit Washington to discuss the next phase of Trump’s Gaza plan with his key US ally.

Hong Kong stock market

Hong Kong world’s No 1 IPO venue as fundraising crosses US$35 billion: HKEX

Australia

Australian PM Albanese booed as Bondi Beach attack victims honoured

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Israel

Jews worldwide urged to ‘come home’ to Israel after Bondi massacre

Gideon Saar says ‘Jews are being hunted across the world’ following the December 14 Isis-inspired shooting at a Hanukkah event in Australia.

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A person with Israel’s flag and other people attend a ceremony to mark the National Day of Reflection for victims and survivors, at Bondi Beach in Sydney on Sunday. Photo: AP
France

Macron announces new aircraft carrier for France

Replacing the Charles de Gaulle by 2038, the nuclear-powered vessel will be far larger than the current flagship.

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India

Why India to Europe trade corridor is stalling even as talks continue

A key hurdle hampering the progress of the India–Middle East–Europe Economic Corridor is the lingering uncertainty over Gaza.

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Israel-Gaza war

A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices in Bethlehem as peace returns to Gaza

Palestinians are flocking again to Manger Square, bringing much-needed revenue to the city after two years of fighting.

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Women pose for a picture in Manger Square in the West Bank city of Bethlehem on Tuesday. Photo: AP
Israel-Iran conflict

Man executed in Iran for spying for Israel tortured to confess: rights group

The 27-year-old, arrested while taking pictures of a military headquarters, was accused of executing over 200 similar assignments for Mossad.

Syria

US strikes at Isis fighters in Syria after 3 Americans killed

At least five Isis members were killed in a ‘large-scale’ strike hitting 70 Isis targets across central Syria.

US-China relations

Rubio swaps hawk for diplomat in year-end pivot on China

Top US envoy eschews ‘pacing threat’ label, stressing cooperation and Western hemisphere priorities for 2026.

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US Secretary of State Marco Rubio during his end-of-year press conference at the State Department on Friday. Photo: Reuters
Israel-Gaza war

UN declares Gaza famine over, but ‘situation remains critical’

Meanwhile, Oxfam says hunger in Gaza remains ‘appalling and preventable’, accusing Israel of blocking aid from humanitarian agencies.

Displaced Palestinians gather to collect portions of cooked food at a charity distribution in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip in May. Photo: TNS
Tourism

See dreamlike dunes and meet modern nomads in world’s biggest sand desert

In the Omani part of Rub’ al Khali, tourists can explore a constantly changing landscape with all the comforts of the present.

War and conflict

War-torn Sudan tops global humanitarian crisis watch list for third year

International Rescue Committee highlights a stark concentration of human suffering in a small number of countries in latest rankings.

European Union

Opinion | As Doha Forum made clear, Europe is losing its seat at the table

Consumed by Ukraine, the EU has effectively retreated from global engagement. An urgent foreign policy recalibration is needed.

Qatar’s Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani speaks on the first day of the 23rd edition of the annual Doha Forum in Qatar on December 6. Photo: Reuters
Style Edit

Style Edit: Audemars Piguet’s innovation at Dubai Watch Week

The luxury Swiss horology brand has been creating coveted perpetual calendars since 1948 – and just launched a new technology.

Audemars Piguet’s showing at Dubai Watch Week. Photo: Handout
Australia

Isis-inspired Bondi gunmen visited Philippines before shooting: police

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Sajid Akram and his son Naveed had been radicalised by an ‘ideology of hate’.

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Tourism

How Saudi Arabia’s mountains offer authentic delights rarely found elsewhere

Far from Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 development projects, the hills of Asir province and its capital Abha offer a place to ‘clear the mind’.

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Iran

No contact with Iran Nobel winner laureate arrest, supporters say

Narges Mohammadi, the 2023 Peace Prize laureate, was detained on Friday alongside dozens of activists and may face national security charges.

Nobel Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi, who was arrested in Iran. Photo: Narges Mohammad Foundation via AFP
Australia

World leaders express horror at Bondi Beach attack as vigils held for victims

Israel’s Herzog condemned the ‘cruel attack on Jews’ by ‘terrorists’; Trump branded the shooting that killed 15 people ‘purely antisemitic’.

Benjamin Netanyahu

Netanyahu accuses Australia’s PM of inaction in tackling antisemitism

After the Bondi Beach shooting, the Israeli PM said he warned Albanese months ago that Australia’s policy was ‘encouraging antisemitism’.

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Israel-Gaza war

Israel says it killed Hamas weapons chief in Gaza

PM Netanyahu said arms production head Raad Saad was ‘one of the architects’ of the October 7 attack that sparked the war.

A car destroyed in an Israeli strike is seen on Saturday near the Nablusi junction in the Gaza City area. Photo: EPA
Syria

Trump vows retaliation after 2 US troops and a civilian killed in Syria ambush

This is the first attack on American service members to inflict casualties since the fall of Assad a year ago.

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US President Donald Trump talks to the press before boarding Marine One from the South Lawn of the White House on Saturday. Photo: AFP
Iran

Iran seizes foreign oil tanker suspected of smuggling fuel

Semi-official media cited few details but the news comes days after the US intercepted a tanker off Venezuela allegedly linked to Tehran.

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Donald Trump

Syria’s year of ‘epic’ transformation earns it Trump’s protection

Washington is lifting sanctions and has rebuked Israel for its attacks, as the US throws its weight behind Ahmed al-Sharaa’s administration.

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Israel-Gaza war

‘My future is paralysed’: Gaza amputees desperate to walk again

The World Health Organization estimates there are some 5,000 to 6,000 amputees from the Israel-Gaza war, 25 per cent of them children.

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Haneen al-Mabhouh, who lost her leg in an Israeli strike on her home, sits in a wheelchair in her family home in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip, on November 6. Photo: AP
Iran

Iran detains Nobel Prize winner Narges Mohammadi in ‘brutal’ arrest

The activist’s brother says she was beaten on the legs, held by her hair and ‘dragged down’ by security forces personnel.

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Narges Mohammadi has spent much of the past decade behind bars. Photo: Narges Mohammadi Foundation via AFP
SCMP Highlights

Japan, US defence chiefs discuss China; Mexico’s tariffs: SCMP daily highlights

From Trump and Modi’s phone call to scientists addressing implant rejection with a soft brain chip, here’s a round-up from today’s coverage.

War and conflict

As I see it | Would the world be safer if the military were in charge of the US?

Capricious political leaders like Donald Trump and his defence chief may be more dangerous than responsible and battle-tested generals.

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