Category: General

Caretaker Prime Minister, Najib Mikati, on Tuesday welcomed at the Grand Serail head of the Lebanese-Algerian Business Council, Wissam Aris, and his deputy, Raphael Debbane. During the meeting, the Prime Minister expressed his utmost “appreciation for the efforts exerted by the Lebanese-Algerian Business Council to help develop bilateral relations between both countries.”

Source: National News Agency – Lebanon

A power cut at the Beirut Justice Palace pushed Acting First Investigative Judge Charbel Abu Samra to postpone hearing sessions scheduled for the brother of the central bank chief, Raja Salameh, and his assistant Marianne Hoayek, until Wednesday, August 2, our correspondent reported on Tuesday.

Source: National News Agency – Lebanon

Saudi researcher Abeer bint Matar Al-Harthi ranked second at the Korea International Women’s Invention Exposition (KIWIE) 2023, held from July 22 to 25, 2023 in Seoul, Republic of Korea.

KIWIE 2023 is organized by the Korea Women Inventors Association (KWIA) and is held under the patronage of the International Federation of Inventors’ Associations (IFIA), World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO). The exposition aims to discover and promote women’s inventions, nurture the culture of invention and facilitate exchange of ideas among female inventors.

Al-Harthi’s innovation is augmented reality (AR) glasses equipped with smart lenses using eye print for identity protection. The glasses automatically change from transparent to dark mode. They can also help the blind sense objects in front of them.

Al-Harthi said that her AR glasses are equipped with sensors on the temple arms that send commands to connect the glasses to a mobile phone and GPS. There is a small storage unit at the end of the arms containing miniature headphones that provide simultaneous translation and send voice commands, she said, adding that this can be useful as the sound volume may be increased for the hearing impaired and mobile calls may be answered.

Source: Saudi Press Agency

Syria’s permanent representative to the UN, Ambassador Bassam Sabbagh, said that promoting the humanitarian situation in Syria requires providing sustainable solutions to support the Syrian people and the immediate removal of economic sanctions imposed on the country.

“Promoting the humanitarian situation in the country should lessen dependence on the humanitarian aid, provide conditions for the return of refugees and the displaced through Early Recovery projects,” Sabbagh said at UN Security council session on the situation in Syria.

He added that Syria has given license to the UN and its agencies to use Bab al-Hawa corridor in order to deliver humanitarian aid for 6 months, based on its keenness to ensure delivery of the aid to people in need in the north-western part of the country.

“The unity of work through the three main border points Syria has given license to, and other corridors available from inside the country are enough to meet the humanitarian need, but this requires pressure on the terrorist organizations and their operators in the north-western part of the country to get allowance for the humanitarian delivery,” Ambassador Sabbagh said.

In a relevant context, Sabbagh described the infiltration of a French Foreign Ministry delegation illegitimately into Syrian territory as irresponsible act and a new indication to the destructive role of France and its support to the terrorist groups and the separatist militias in Syria.

Source: Syrian Arab News Agency

3 have been killed and 7 have been injured in 9 road accidents reported during the past 24 hours, the Traffic Management Center said on Monday.

Source: National News Agency – Lebanon

Northern Governor Ali bin Al Shaikh Abdulhussain Al Asfoor visited a number of Maatams (Community Centres) in the governorate to inspect their preparations for the Ashura Commemoration and monitor the needs and requirements in cooperation with the competent service authorities.

On this occasion, he hailed the care of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. He commended the support of the government, led by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, to ensure the success of the season and promote religious freedom in accordance with the royal vision.

The Northern Governor stressed the importance of the role of the heads of community centres as part of the efforts to make the season successful and maintain security and public order in cooperation with all concerned parties.

Source: Bahrain News Agency

The Directorate of Monitoring, Detention, and Correctional Facilities at the Office of the Ombudsman visited Jau Reformation and Rehabilitation Centre to inspect the coordination procedures and arrangements made by the Centre’s administration to enable inmates to perform religious rituals related to Ashura Commemoration, as guaranteed by law and executive regulations.

The Ombudsman’s team collected information by examining arrangements and spaces allocated for Ashura rituals, and meeting the relevant officials from the Centre’s management, and reviewing the recordings of surveillance cameras installed in the buildings.

The team found that the inmates were allowed to practice the rituals of Ashura for this year, a daily programme was set, starting from Wednesday, July 19 corresponding to the first of the month of Muharram, to enable them to collectively perform religious rituals daily.

Inmates also revealed that banners and written slogans are placed and that they are allowed to read the books of supplications and make necessary preparations for chanters and food distribution, while complying with security and safety measures.

While reviewing the surveillance camera recordings located in the center’s buildings, the Ombudsman’s team found that the inmates were allowed to practice religious rituals in a normal and regular manner and that they are able to participate in them according to the regulations in the place.

The center’s management stated that there are continuous facilities to enable inmates to practice their religious rituals comfortably in all buildings and that they are allowed to gather in large halls and at specific times as stipulated by Law (18) of 2014 with respect to the issuance of the Reform and Rehabilitation Institutions Law in article (27) as well as the executive regulations of the law issued by Resolution (131) of 2015 in Article (51), which gave the inmates the right to perform their religious rituals on time.

The Ombudsman’s team concluded that the administration of the Jau Reformation and Rehabilitation Centre deals with the issue of freedom of religious rituals for inmates in line with the provisions of the Reform and Rehabilitation Institutions Law to enable inmates to perform rituals in a balanced manner, by ensuring the security of the facility, on one hand, and the safety and comfort of other inmates, on the other.

Source: Bahrain News Agency

The second meeting of the high-level working group of the Asian Cooperation Dialogue Forum was held today, chaired by Ambassador Fatima Abdullah Al Dhaen, Chief of Asian and Pacific Affairs, in the presence of Dr. Poornchai Danvivathana, the Secretary-General of the Asian Cooperation Dialogue and representatives of member states.

The ambassador stressed that the cooperative principles supported by the Asian Cooperation Dialogue are the key to development in order to achieve an Asian society based on knowledge, and to transform the Asian continent into a driving force for global growth, stressing that the Kingdom of Bahrain will continue to contribute effectively to achieving the goals, wishing the meeting success in promoting cooperation among the countries of the Asian Cooperation Dialogue.

The meeting is a follow up on the first meeting held on May 24, 2023 to discuss the “Bahrain Declaration” document to be issued at the eighteenth ministerial meeting of the Asian Cooperation Dialogue, chaired by the Kingdom of Bahrain for the years 2022-2023, under the slogan “Sustainable Post-pandemic Recovery”.

Source: Bahrain News Agency

A number of Basra residents organized a protest to demand that Turkey change its water policy towards Iraq.

The protesters, in their stand in front of the Turkish consulate in Basra, demanded the full delivery of the water share to Iraq.

Source: National Iraqi News Agency

The Turkish Ministry of Defense announced that one of its soldiers was killed in a clash with militants of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in northern Iraq.

The Turkish Defense Ministry stated in a statement today, Monday, that the soldier / Muhammad Jan / was part of a group of reconnaissance and surveillance operations within the operations sector / Claw Lock / in northern Iraq, and a clash took place with militants from the Kurdistan Workers Party who were present in the area, which led to the killing of the Turkish soldier.

Source: National Iraqi News Agency

The Prime Minister, Muhammad Shiaa Al-Sudani, received today, Monday, the Jordanian Prime Minister, Bishr Al-Khasawneh, who arrived this afternoon in the capital, Baghdad.

The Prime Minister held an official reception ceremony for the guest, during which the two national anthems were played, and the guard of honor was reviewed.

Immediately after the end of the reception ceremony, Al-Sudani held a bilateral meeting with Al-Khasawneh, after which the official talks between the two sides will begin, as part of the expanded meetings of the joint Iraqi-Jordanian committee, which will deal with a number of economic files, cooperation and issues of common interest between the two brotherly countries.

Source: National Iraqi News Agency

The President of the Supreme Judicial Council, Judge Faeq Zaidan, affirmed today, Monday, the independence of the judicial authority.

The judiciary media stated in a statement that, “Zaidan gave a lecture today at the Defense University for Military Studies / National Defense College, in the presence of Minister of Defense Thabet Al-Abbasi, Chief of Staff of the Army, Lieutenant General Abdul Amir Yarallah, and a number of military leaders and students of the National Defense College.”

He added, “the lecture that Zaidan delivered was entitled (the judicial authority and its role in managing the state), during which he emphasized the independence of the judiciary under the constitution, referring to the role that the judiciary played in building the new Iraq after 2003.”

Source: National Iraqi News Agency