Middle East

A building project planned for eastern Jerusalem was approved Wednesday, paving the way for the massive expansion of a Jewish neighborhood once in danger of being bought out by a wealthy Arab businessman. The Jerusalem housing committee approved an additional 176 homes for the Nof Tzion neighborhood, located next to the Arab neighborhood of Jabel

Manal boils water on the stove in the besieged Syrian town of Hamouria, hoping to convince her four children that she is cooking, but she has no food. She puts the pot on the flame as a ruse, waiting for the children to fall asleep in the dilapidated house before they realise there is nothing

Saudi Arabia on Tuesday announced the launch of an independent economic zone on the Red Sea, three times the size of Cyprus and with a half a trillion dollars in projected investments. The zone, dubbed NEOM, covers an uninterrupted coastline of nearly 470 kilometres (290 miles) in northwestern Saudi Arabia and will extend into territories

Powerful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman pledged a “moderate, open” Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, breaking with ultra-conservative clerics in favour of an image catering to foreign investors and Saudi youth. The Saudi strongman, 32, did not mince words in declaring a new reality for the kingdom, hours after announcing the launch of an independent $500

By Raoul Wootliff Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit on Monday harshly criticized a controversial bill that would grant serving prime ministers immunity from criminal prosecution as “absurd,” “wrong and inappropriate.” At a Justice Ministry conference held at Tel Aviv University, Mandelblit raised concerns that such a law could significantly obstruct police investigations into a prime minister