Tag Archives: MENA

MENA countries are on the cusp of important regional integration initiatives that will provide much-needed efficiency gains, diversification, trust-building, and green growth. The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) is a region of abundant human and natural resources, shared culture and languages, and a well-established heritage of skill in trade. …

Egypt’s highest appeals court on Sunday upheld the sentencing of 10 leaders of Egypt’s outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, including the group’s head, to life imprisonment, the state-owned MENA news agency reported. In 2019, a Cairo criminal court found all 10, including the group’s Supreme Guide Mohamed Badie, guilty of charges related …

Polls opened in Algeria on Saturday for a parliamentary election that the ruling establishment hopes will turn a page on two years of political unrest, but which many voters are expected to ignore. President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has called for a high turnout, but there has been little public enthusiasm for …

Amnesty says arrests of Khaled Drareni, Ihsane El-Kadi, and Karim Tabbou are evidence of ‘chilling escalation’ in the clampdown on dissent. Authorities in Algeria have arrested two prominent journalists and a well-known opposition figure, just days before the country’s parliamentary election. Algeria is set to hold its first legislative election …

A blast struck a checkpoint in the southern Libyan city of Sebha on Sunday, killing at least two people including a senior police officer, local police, city officials and medics said. A security source in Sebha said the blast was caused by a suicide bomber who detonated a car bomb. …

Egypt will lift restrictions imposed to curb the spread of the coronavirus, including easing the early closure of shops and restaurants, from Tuesday, the cabinet said. Since May 6, stores, malls, and restaurants had to close by 9 p.m. after a rise in infections. Egypt imposed strict measures at the …

Crackdown intensifies on pro-democracy Hirak movement by authorities. Several hundred protesters were arrested in Algeria as authorities ramp up efforts to quell a years-long protest movement that has demanded root-and-branch political reform. Said Salhi, head of the Algerian League for Human Rights, said about 800 people were detained in Algiers …

Could Algeria soon send troops from its army, the pillar of the regime, to join peace-keeping missions led by the United Nations or African Union? President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has urged a constitutional change that would allow deployments abroad, signalling a departure from a military doctrine that has barred interventions outside …

Two main figures of Algeria’s “Hirak” protest movement will soon be freed at the president’s initiative, the leader of an opposition party said Tuesday. “President Abdelmadjid Tebboune assured me that he would use his constitutional prerogative to ensure that Karim Tabbou and Samir Benlarbi regain their freedom,” Sosiane Djilali said. …

Saudi Arabia has its eyes on claiming a greater slice of the English Premier League once its takeover of Newcastle United Football Club is approved. Riyadh is determined to get even more lucrative TV rights to air Premier League matches. All the paperwork for the takeover of Newcastle United is …

The Great Pyramids is lit up with blue light and projected with a laser message “Stay Home” on the Giza plateau outside the Egyptian capital of Cairo on the World Heritage Day, as the country fights against the spread of the COVID-19.

Egypt began deep cleaning the area around the Giza pyramids on Wednesday as authorities work to disinfect tourist spots closed down by the coronavirus outbreak. Workers wearing face masks and gloves swept and sprayed the walkways around the bases of the pyramids, as well as the ticket office and a …

A well known Moroccan YouTuber has been jailed for four years and fined about $4,000 (£3,000) after being found guilty of insulting the country’s king. Mohamed Sekkaki was arrested earlier this month after criticizing King Mohammed’s speeches and for calling Moroccans donkeys. He plans to appeal against the verdict. Separately, …

At least 23 people died and more than 130 were injured in Sudan after a fire triggered an explosion at a factory in northern Khartoum on Tuesday, according to state news agency SUNA. The incident happened while a tanker truck was offloading gas at a ceramics manufacturing company in an …

Tunisia has a new president. Kais Saied has been sworn in after winning a landslide victory in this month’s election. The low-profile law professor took the presidential oath of office before the parliament on Wednesday. Saied’s victory delivered a heavy blow to the established political elite, who have failed to …

Conservative political outsider Kais Saied has won Tunisia’s presidential election with 72.71 percent of votes, the North African country’s electoral commission said Monday. Saied garnered 2.7 million votes against one million received by his rival business tycoon Nabil Karoui in Sunday’s runoff, the commission said. Karoui conceded defeat earlier on …

Hundreds of Algerians protested in front of parliament on Sunday against a proposed energy law that they say the caretaker government has no right to pass. The new law is aimed at attracting foreign investors to help Algeria strengthen its energy output, but would maintain a 49% limit on foreign …

More than 1,100 people have been arrested in Egypt since the weekend when a series of massive protests erupted in several cities to demand the resignation of President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, human rights monitors say. Gamal Eid, head of the Arab Network for Human Rights Information, said on Wednesday that …

Egypt has seen the second night of clashes and dozens of arrests in rare demonstrations against President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi. Hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets in the port city of Suez demanding his resignation. Dozens were reportedly arrested and police responded with tear gas. The protests – which …

Algeria’s interim leader has announced December 12 as the date for the presidential election. The move is in line with the army chief’s demand to fill the vacancy left when longtime leader Abdelaziz Bouteflika was pushed from the office more than five months ago. During an address to the North …