Middle East & North Africa

26 June 2022; MEMO: Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune discussed the bilateral relations and issues of common importance Saturday with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, according to the Qatari news agency, Anadolu Agency reports.

The meeting was at the presidential residence in Oran, it said.

26 June 2022; MEMO: Iran and Turkiye have agreed to enhance tourism cooperation following a meeting yesterday between officials of both countries.

The Director-General of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts of Tehran province, Parham Janfshan announced yesterday the holding of a meeting to develop tourism ties with Turkiye's Batman province.

27 June 2022; MEMO: The Tunisian Ministry of Energy launched on Saturday the first floating photovoltaic station in the Middle East and North Africa region, with a production capacity of about 200 kilowatts.

The ministry said in a statement that the floating photovoltaic station extends over an area of 2,500 square metres, Russia Today reported.

26 June 2022; MEMO: Saudi authorities have released Murtaja Qureiris, who was once considered to be the kingdom's youngest political prisoner.

Qureiris who is from the country's Shia minority was arrested at the age of 13 in 2014 for allegedly taking part in demonstrations, aged 10 during the Arab Spring in 2011. His release was confirmed by a human rights group on Friday.

"Murtaja Qureiris, detained since 2014 when he was only 13, has been released following the expiry of his sentence," ALQST for Human Rights said on Twitter.

ADEN, Jun 26 (NNN-YPA) – Unidentified gunmen, shot dead a senior leader of Yemen’s newly-formed pro-government forces, in the country’s oil-rich province of Marib, a security official said.

The military commander, identified as Abdul-Razzaq Baqama, belonged to the newly-formed pro-government “Happy Yemen Brigades,” backed by Saudi Arabia, the source said, on condition of anonymity.

“Brigadier Baqama was found dead in his car, late on Friday night. He was shot by unknown gunmen’s automatic assault rifles,” said the security official.

JERUSALEM, June 26 (Reuters) - Israel's cabinet approved issuing 3,500 additional permits for Palestinian workers in Israel's manufacturing and services sectors, increasing the number to 12,000 to help relieve a shortage of skilled staff, the Economy Ministry said on Sunday.

Workers from the West Bank and Gaza Strip, territories which Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East War, require permits to cross checkpoints and enter Israel where wages are higher.

CAIRO, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi met on Sunday with visiting Foreign Minister of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan to discuss bilateral ties and regional security.

The Egyptian president expressed appreciation of the UAE support for Egypt on several critical occasions, highlighting the unique ties and "close coordination" between the two countries, said Egyptian Presidential Spokesman Bassam Rady in a statement.

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iranian state television said Sunday that Tehran had launched a solid-fueled rocket into space, drawing a rebuke from Washington ahead of the expected resumption of stalled talks over Tehran’s tattered nuclear deal with world powers.

It’s unclear when or where the rocket was launched, but the announcement came after satellite photos showed preparations at Imam Khomeini Spaceport in Iran’s rural Semnan province, the site of Iran’s frequent failed attempts to put a satellite into orbit.

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett convened what is likely his last Cabinet meeting as premier on Sunday, with parliament expected to dissolve itself this week, triggering new elections in the fall.

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iraq’s caretaker prime minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi arrived in Iran on Sunday, state TV reported, on a visit aimed at reactivating Baghdad-mediated talks between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi officially received Al-Kadhimi, who was slated to also meet with other officials in Tehran, according to the report. He was the first foreign leader to visit Iran after Raisi took power in August.