Saudi Arabia

Boukhari Confirms Saudi Arabia's Continued Support for Lebanese Army

The Saudi Ambassador to Lebanon, Walid Boukhari, confirmed “the Kingdom's continued support for the military institution,” following a meeting on Wednesday with the Commander-in-Chief of the Lebanese Army, General Joseph Aoun, in Yarzeh. Discussions focused on the general situation in the country amid the ongoing Israeli aggression against ...

Saudi Aramco's Profits Drop Over Low Oil Prices

Energy giant Saudi Aramco reported a 15 percent year-on-year drop in third quarter profit on Tuesday, citing low oil prices. The fall in net income to $27.56 billion this year from $32.58 billion in 2023 "was mainly due to the impact of lower crude oil prices and weakening refining margins", the firm said in a statement posted to the Saudi stock ...

Trump May Reassess US Military Aid to Israel

A potential Donald Trump presidency in 2024 would likely represent a sharp departure from the current Biden administration’s foreign policy approach. Reviving the “America First” slogan, this strategy would prioritize US national interests, scale back military involvement abroad, and rely on assertive nationalism and unilateral action. The ...

Qatar’s Diplomacy: Strengths and Limitations

For over a year now, Qatar has been acting as the principal mediator, alongside the United States and Egypt, in negotiations for a ceasefire in Gaza. The ongoing war between Israel and Hamas began on October 7, 2023. However, this is not the first time this oil-rich Gulf emirate has emerged on the international stage. Qatar has established itself ...

Equitable Distribution of Humanitarian Aid: A Strategy for Lebanon?

Since the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah intensified on September 23, Lebanon has been facing an unprecedented humanitarian crisis. Massive destruction of neighborhoods and residential areas, with more than 1.2 million people internally displaced…  According to the latest human toll, dated October 30, 2024, 2,792 people have been killed ...

Saudi Arabia Hopes for Swift Non-Military Agreements with US

Saudi Arabia's foreign minister said on Thursday that Riyadh could potentially move "quite quickly" on some bilateral agreements with Washington even if a mega-deal involving recognizing Israel remains out of reach. Since last year Saudi Arabia has been bargaining hard for a defence pact with the United States as well as assistance with a ...

Saudi Arabia Open Meeting of New Alliance for Palestinian Statehood

Saudi Arabia is on Wednesday expected to open the first meeting of a new "international alliance" to press for the establishment of a Palestinian state, state media said. The "International Alliance to Implement the Two-State Solution" was unveiled last month on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, Saudi state media reported at the time, ...

Saudi ‘Davos in the Desert’ Opens With Region on War Footing

Global business leaders gathered in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday for a glitzy investor forum as conflict shakes the region and scepticism mounts over the Gulf kingdom's most ambitious development projects. The Future Investment Initiative (FII) debuted in 2017 as a showcase for de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's dream of diversifying ...

Saudi and Pakistani Relief Flights Arrive in Lebanon

In a continuing show of international support, Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport received Saudi and Pakistani relief planes loaded with essential humanitarian supplies on Sunday. The fourteenth Saudi aid plane carried food, shelter, and medical supplies operated by the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center, thus reinforcing ...

Gebran: Give Back the Missile!

In challenging times, men are put to the test. Gebran Bassil didn’t even wait for the customary forty days after Hassan Nasrallah’s death to turn against him. He abandoned the man who was instrumental in General Michel Aoun’s rise to the presidency—the one who supported him significantly after the July war, sacrificing greatly for the Free ...

Blinken Heads to Qatar, a Key Mediator, to Push for Gaza Truce

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken headed to key Hamas mediator Qatar on Thursday, seeking momentum to end the Gaza war following Israel's killing of the group's leader. Two days after meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem, Blinken flew from Saudi Arabia to the Qatari capital, Doha, to assess Hamas's position on a ...