UAE

DUBAI, Sept 18 (Reuters) - Protests persisted on Sunday and #MahsaAmini became one of the top hashtags ever on Persian-language Twitter as Iranians fumed over the death of a young woman in the custody of morality police enforcing strict hijab rules.

Amini, 22, died on Friday after falling into a coma following her arrest in Tehran earlier in the week. The case has put a spotlight on women's rights in Iran.

Police rejected suspicions aired on social media that she was beaten, saying she fell ill as she waited with other detained women.

DUBAI, Sept 15 (Reuters) - Iran has moved a step closer towards becoming a permanent member of a central Asian security body dominated by Russia and China, as Tehran seeks to overcome economic isolation imposed by U.S. sanctions.

Foreign minister Hossein Amirabdollahian on Thursday said Iran had signed a memorandum of obligations to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, which is holding a summit this week in Uzbekistan.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The story about high fuel prices was safe, editors agreed, even under the strict press laws of the United Arab Emirates.

Instead, it unleashed a firestorm at Al Roeya newspaper in Dubai. Within days, top editors were interrogated. Within weeks, dozens of employees were fired and the print paper declared dissolved.

12 Sep 2022; MEMO: The UAE is looking to construct a $5 billion (18 billion dirham) resort resembling the moon, according to a report last week by Arabian Business.

DUBAI, Sept 12 (Reuters) - Germany expressed regret on Monday that Tehran had not responded positively to European proposals to revive the 2015 nuclear agreement, underlining the dim prospects for a deal soon, as Israel urged action to stop Iran becoming a nuclear armed state.

Two days after European powers said they had "serious doubts" about Iran's intentions over the deal, Iran said it was ready to continue cooperating with U.N. nuclear watchdog the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Sri Lanka’s young cricket team put on an impressive all-round show to win the Asia Cup for a sixth time with a 23-run victory against Pakistan on Sunday.

Bhanuka Rajapaksa hit an unbeaten 71 off 45 balls and led Sri Lanka as it recovered to reach 170-6 in the final after Pakistan won the toss and elected to field.

Pakistan crashed to 147 all out off the last balls as its top order continued to struggle against pace with fast bowler Pramod Madushan claiming 4-34 in only his second T20 international.

DUBAI, Sept 10 (Reuters) - Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards have seized a foreign vessel in the Gulf for allegedly smuggling 757,000 litres of diesel out of the country, the Iranian state news agency IRNA reported on Saturday.

The unnamed vessel's seven crew members, who are foreign nationals, have been handed over to legal authorities, IRNA reported without elaborating on the nationalities of the ship or its crew.

SHARJAH, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Pakistan teenager Naseem Shah smashed back-to-back sixes in the last over against Afghanistan on Wednesday for a one-wicket victory that sets up the Asia Cup final against Sri Lanka.

Needing 11 off the last over and only one wicket in hand, the 19-year-old Shah clobbered consecutive sixes off fast bowler Fazalhaq Farooqi off the first two deliveries to take Pakistan to 131-9.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Gulf Arab countries on Tuesday asked Netflix to remove “offensive content” on the streaming service, apparently targeting programs that show gays and lesbians.

A joint statement issued on behalf of a committee of the Gulf Cooperation Council made the request, saying the unspecified programs “contradict Islamic and societal values ​​and principles.”

DUBAI, Sept 5 (Reuters) - Two women have been sentenced to death in Iran on charges of "corruption on earth" and human trafficking over the last few days, Iran's official IRNA news agency reported on Monday.

Advocates and rights group took to social media to share pictures of the two women, saying they are LGBT rights activists and are innocent. The pictures could not be verified by Reuters.