RIYADH (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia’s 84-year-old ruler, King Salman bin Abdulaziz, has been admitted to hospital in the capital Riyadh, suffering from inflammation of the gall bladder, state news agency SPA said on Monday. The king, who has ruled the world’s larg... More »
DUBAI (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia’s central bank governor said it was encouraging commercial banks to lend more to sustain businesses during the coronavirus crisis. Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA) Governor Ahmed al-Kholifey was speaking at a virtual econo... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – McLaren’s Formula One future was never in doubt despite a cash crisis brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and now resolved by a fresh injection of funds, team principal Andreas Seidl said on Tuesday. The National Bank of Bahrain announced on... More »
DUBAI (Reuters) – Japan’s Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc (MUFG) (8306.T) expects countries in the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) to be in deep recession this year with overall real GDP contracting 3.7% from a previous growth forecast of 2.9%. Th... More »
DUBAI (Reuters) – Kuwait’s Health Ministry announced 10 new cases of coronavirus in the country on Monday bringing the total number to 56, a ministry official said. The official, who was speaking during a news conference broadcast on state television, urged ci... More »
BEIJING/SEOUL (Reuters) – Fears of a coronavirus pandemic grew on Monday after sharp rises in new cases reported in Iran, Italy and South Korea but China relaxed restrictions on movements in several places including Beijing as its rates of new infections eased... More »
DUBAI (Reuters) – Kuwait and Bahrain on Monday recorded their first new coronavirus cases, all involving people who had visited Iran, which has reported 43 cases of the disease, state media said. Kuwait detected the virus in three people among 700 who had been... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – When Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko met entrepreneur Viktor Prokopenya in March 2017, their discussion was scheduled to last for an hour but went on for three times that long. The meeting, Prokopenya said, ended with Lukashenko as... More »
RIYADH/AMMAN/CAIRO (Reuters) – Arab politicians and commentators greeted U.S. President Donald Trump’s $50 billion Middle East economic vision with a mixture of derision and exasperation, although some in the Gulf called for it to be given a chance. In Israel,... More »
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – More than two years after U.S. President Donald Trump first proposed a plan to revive the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, its first phase will be formally unveiled on Tuesday at an economic workshop in Bahrain. The ‘Peace to Prosperity... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The White House will not invite Israeli government officials to a Bahrain conference devoted to gaining support for a Palestinian economic plan in order to keep the event apolitical, a senior administration official said on Monday. The o... More »
DUBAI (Reuters) – Bahrain, a U.S. ally that hosts the Navy’s Fifth Fleet, has warned citizens and residents that following anti-government social media accounts could result in legal action, hardening a government campaign against critical online voices. The i... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The White House will unveil the first part of President Donald Trump’s long-awaited Israeli-Palestinian peace plan when it holds an international conference in Bahrain in late June to encourage investment in the West Bank and Gaza Strip,... More »
RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) – The Palestinians have not been consulted about a U.S.-led conference in Bahrain next month designed to encourage international investment in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh said on Mond... More »
MANAMA (Reuters) – As the weekend kicks off in Bahrain, Saudi Arabian and Kuwaiti cars jam the capital’s roads and hotel lobbies fill with visitors looking for bars, restaurants and other night-time entertainment. A new sales tax introduced this year means gov... More »
ABU DHABI (Reuters) – White House adviser Jared Kushner is visiting U.S.-allied Gulf Arab states to seek support for a long-awaited peace proposal for the Middle East that he said would require concessions from both Israelis and Palestinians. Kushner, who is U... More »
SYDNEY (Reuters) – Former Australia soccer captain Craig Foster will lobby officials at world governing body FIFA later on Monday for them to intervene on behalf of a Bahraini refugee player being detained in Thailand and facing deportation to his country. Fos... More »
DUBAI (Reuters) – The head of the Australian soccer players union wants the sport’s regional governing body to help secure the release of a Bahraini refugee footballer arrested in Thailand in November over a prison sentence in his homeland. Hakeem Al Araibi, w... More »
DOHA (Reuters) – Qatar said it will quit OPEC to focus on gas in a swipe at Saudi Arabia, the de facto leader of the oil exporting group which is trying to show unity in tackling an oil price slide. Doha, one of OPEC’s smallest oil producers but the world’s bi... More »
SHANGHAI (Reuters) – Ferrari have reviewed their pitstop procedures after an incident at the Bahrain Grand Prix left a mechanic with a broken leg, team principal Maurizio Arrivabene said on Friday. Francesco Cigarini suffered a fractured shinbone and fibula on... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – For the second race in a row, Sebastian Vettel celebrated on Sunday while Formula One world champions Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton rued the one that got away. By winning in Bahrain, after his season-opening success in Australia, the German be... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Formula One world champions Mercedes have found the computer bug that cost Lewis Hamilton victory at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix and taken steps to ensure it does not happen again. Trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin s... More »
An employee shows the logo of ride-hailing company Careem on his mobile in his office in the West Bank city of Ramallah July 17, 2017. Picture taken July 17, 2017. REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman DUBAI (Reuters) – Careem, a Middle East competitor to Uber Technologies... More »
FILE PHOTO – Buildings are seen on a coast line in Doha, Qatar, June 15, 2017. REUTERS/Naseem Zeitoon DUBAI (Reuters) – Qatar has filed a complaint to the United Nations about an alleged violation of its airspace in December by an Emirati military aircraft, st... More »
French President Emmanuel Macron speaks during a news conference in Doha, Qatar December 7, 2017. REUTERS/Naseem Zeitoon PARIS (Reuters) – French President Emmanuel Macron called on all foreign powers to stop interfering in Lebanese politics and urged all Leba... More »
DUBAI (Reuters) – Some Arab states are trying to destabilize Qatar’s riyal but efforts to drive down its value could backfire by hurting other dollar-linked currencies in the region, a Qatari central banker said. Khalid Alkhater, currently in Britain on leave ... More »
China will continue to host a Formula One Grand Prix in Shanghai for at least three more years, F1 said on Friday. More »
Qatar's third-largest lender, Commercial Bank of Qatar (CBQ), is considering borrowing money on the Taiwanese bond market, its group chief executive told Reuters, as a crisis in the region makes it harder to raise funds. More »
Oil prices edged lower on Monday on concerns that Hurricane Irma's pounding of heavily populated areas of Florida could dent oil demand in the world's top oil consuming nation. More »
Oil prices edged up on Monday after the Saudi oil minister discussed possibly extending a pact to cut global oil supplies beyond March 2018 with his Venezuelan and Kazakh counterparts. More »
U.S. President Donald Trump said he would discuss trade and military issues with the emir of Kuwait at the White House on Thursday, as well as tensions over Qatar. More »
Saudi Arabia's state carrier said on Sunday it had been unable to send planes to transport Qatari pilgrims to the kingdom because it had been unable to get permission to land at Doha airport amid a diplomatic dispute between the two countries. More »
Qatar will build a stadium shaped like an Arabian skull cap for the 2022 World Cup, organizers said on Sunday, as the Gulf state moves ahead with preparations for the tournament despite a diplomatic rift with its neighbors. More »
Four Arab countries that imposed sanctions on Qatar have told the United States that U.S. companies doing business with them would not be punished for also working with Doha, four sources with knowledge of the matter said. More »
Qatar held joint military exercises with Turkish troops on Monday, Qatari media reported, showcasing their strategic alliance two months into a boycott by Arab neighbors which accuse Doha of supporting terrorism. More »
Minister of State for Foreign Affairs for the United Arab Emirates, Anwar Gargash, speaks at an event at Chatham House in London, Britain July 17, 2017. The United Arab Emirates was not responsible for an alleged hack of Qatari websites which helped spark a mo... More »
The logo of Doha Festival City mall is seen in Doha, Qatar, July 13, 2017. Qatari shopping mall operator Doha Festival City said it remained in discussions with banks to amend a $1 billion loan after bankers said a refinancing of the facility had been put on h... More »
Vodafone Qatar, an affiliate of Vodafone Group, said on Monday that access to its network was being affected by technical issues. More »
FILE PHOTO: The logo of Qatar Petroleum is seen at its headquartes in Doha, Qatar, July 8, 2017. Picture taken July 8, 2017. Qatar’s tensions with its neighbors are making world markets edgy about any hint of financial instability among the Gulf economies, who... More »
Turkey has sent 197 cargo planes, 16 trucks and one ship to Qatar to meet its daily needs since a dispute broke out last month between Qatar and other Gulf states, Turkish Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci said on Wednesday. More »
The logo of Qatar Petroleum is seen at its headquartes in Doha, Qatar, July 8, 2017. REUTERS/Stringer Total is well placed to take a lead role in helping Qatar expand output from the world’s largest gas field, largely thanks to its involvement in the Iranian s... More »
FILE PHOTO: A man walks on the corniche in Doha, Qatar, June 15, 2017. REUTERS/Naseem Zeitoon/File Photo Qatar on Friday dismissed as “baseless” accusations that it was financing terrorism, in its first public response to a statement from four Arab states whic... More »
Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir, UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan and Bahraini Foreign Minister Khalid bin Ahmed al-Khalifa attend a press conference after their meeting that discussed the diplomatic situation with Qatar, in Cairo, Egypt... More »
U.S. President Donald Trump waves at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland as he returns back from Bedminster, New Jersey to participate in the Celebrate Freedom Rally in Washington, July 1, 2017. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas U.S. President Donald Trump spoke separately to the ... More »
A mosque is seen alone a coastline in Doha, Qatar, June 15, 2017. REUTERS/Naseem Zeitoon Four Arab states boycotting Qatar over alleged support for terrorism have sent Doha a list of 13 demands including closing Al Jazeera television and reducing ties to their... More »
Buildings are seen on a coast line in Doha, Qatar, June 15, 2017. REUTERS/Naseem Zeitoon Turkish exports to Qatar have tripled from their normal levels to $32.5 million since four Arab countries began boycotting the Gulf state on June 5, Turkey’s Customs and T... More »
Qatar’s Finance minister Ali Sherif al-Emadi speaks during a briefing on the financial outlook for Qatar, in Doha, Qatar, February 7, 2017. REUTERS/Naseem Zeitoon Qatar can easily defend its economy and currency against sanctions by other Arab states, Qatari f... More »
An Eikon ship-tracking screen shows tanker traffic around Qatar over the last seven days in this June 6, 2017 illustration photo. REUTERS/Thomas White/Illustration Abu Dhabi petroleum port authorities have eased restrictions on oil tankers going to and from Qa... More »
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan addresses members of parliament from his ruling AK Party (AKP) during a meeting at the Turkish parliament in Ankara, Turkey, May 30, 2017. REUTERS/Umit Bektas Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has spoken by phone with the leader... More »
Some Sri Lankan banks stopped buying Qatar Riyal on Tuesday, saying their counterpart banks in Singapore advised them not to accept the currency a day after the Arab world’s biggest powers cut ties with Qatar. More »
Women holding parasols walk past an electronic board showing Japan’s Nikkei average rate outside a brokerage in Tokyo, Japan June 2, 2017. REUTERS/Toru Hanai Escalating tensions in the Middle East, the impending testimony of the former FBI director, British el... More »
People wait with their luggage at Heathrow Terminal 5 in London, Britain May 27, 2017. REUTERS/Neil Hall British Airways canceled all its flights from London’s two biggest airports on Saturday after a global computer system failure caused confusion and chaos, ... More »
A logo of Emaar is seen near the Dubai Mall March 16, 2014. REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah Emaar Malls will buy a 51 percent stake in e-commerce fashion website Namshi from Global Fashion Group, a firm backed by Rocket Internet, for $151 million, a sign of growing dem... More »
FIFA’s former chief ethics investigator, Cornel Borbely speaks to media during a press conference ahead of the 67th FIFA Congress in Manama Bahrain, May 10, 2017. REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed Ousted FIFA Ethics investigator Cornel Borbely said on Wednesday his com... More »
Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei takes a selfie with women at the Islamic Art Museum in Doha, Qatar, April 11, 2017. Picture taken April 11, 2017. REUTERS/Tom Finn Chinese artist Ai Weiwei called on wealthy Gulf Arab states to take in more Syrians displaced ... More »
Highlights of the day for U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration on Wednesday: More »
FILE PHOTO: A U.S. Lockheed Martin F-16 flies during an air display at the Farnborough International Air Show, Hampshire, July 19, 2004. REUTERS/Toby Melville TM/MD/DL President Donald Trump’s administration has informed Congress of its plan to pursue the $5 b... More »
FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump faces a news conference at the White House in Washington, U.S., February 16, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque The Trump administration is preparing new executive orders to re-examine all 14 U.S. free trade agreements and rev... More »
Spain Formula One – F1 – 2017 Haas VF-17 Formula One Car Launch – Barcelona-Catalunya racetrack in Montmelo – 27/2/17. Haas’s drivers Romain Grosjean (R) and Kevin Magnussen pose during the presentation of the new VF-17 racing car. REUTERS/Albert Gea While For... More »
The Formula One season starts in Australia on March 26, the first of 20 races. Race times are 1200 GMT unless stated. More »
Journalists use their mobile phones to photograph McLaren’s new MCL32 Formula One car at its launch in Woking, Britain, February 24, 2017. REUTER/Alan Baldwin Fernando Alonso said on Friday that Mercedes contacted him after Formula One world champion Nico Rosb... More »
FILE PHOTO: Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani attends a meeting during the Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) summit at the Foreign Ministry in Bangkok, Thailand, October 10, 2016. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha/File Photo Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said his cou... More »
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani presides over a meeting of the Supreme Council of Cultural Revolution, in Tehran, Iran February 7, 2017. President.ir/Handout via REUTERS Iranian President Hassan Rouhani will visit Oman and Kuwait on Wednesday, state media repo... More »
Formula One – F1 – Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates – 26/11/2016 – Mercedes’ Formula One driver Nico Rosberg of Germany is seen at the pit lane during the third practice session. REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah Factbox on Formu... More »
Formula One F1 – U.S. Grand Prix – Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas, U.S., 22/10/16. Bernie Ecclestone, Chief Executive of the Formula One Group, speaks to the media following the qualifying session. REUTERS/Adrees Latif Formula One’s commercial supremo ... More »
A person touches the south reflecting pool at the National September 11 Memorial and Museum on the 15th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks in Manhattan, New York, U.S., September 11, 2016. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly The Saudi-dominated Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) on... More »
By Nick Mulvenney | RIO DE JANEIRO RIO DE JANEIRO South Africa’s Wayde van Niekerk ran the fastest single lap in history to win the Olympic 400 meters gold medal in 43.03 seconds and break Michael Johnson’s 17-year-old world record on Sunday. Running an extrao... More »
By Nick Mulvenney | RIO DE JANEIRO RIO DE JANEIRO Win or lose, Usain Bolt was always going to dominate the Olympic headlines on Sunday but Wayde van Niekerk offered his embattled sport some hope for the future beyond the Jamaican’s retirement with a stunning w... More »
DUBAI The International Monetary Fund said it was encouraged by the efforts of Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab oil exporters to repair damage to their state finances as low crude prices slash export revenues. “I do see in a number of countries action to addre... More »
MANAMA Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton says he has no concerns about Mercedes team mate Nico Rosberg’s five-race winning streak or his own poor starts this season. The Briton, who has not won a race since clinching his third title in Texas last Octob... More »
ZURICH British Member of Parliament Damian Collins used parliamentary privilege on Tuesday to accuse FIFA presidential candidate Sheikh Salman Bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa of taking development project funds to finance an election bid. The claims, made in a speech i... More »
MOSCOWRussia and Iran have signed a contract for Moscow to supply Tehran with S-300 surface-to-air missile systems, Sergei Chemezov, the chief executive of Russian state-owned defense conglomerate Rostec, was quoted by the RIA news agency as saying on Monday. ... More »
The president of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), Sheikh Salman Bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa of Bahrain, has formally entered the race to become FIFA president, the Bahrain News Agency reported on Sunday. The agency said Sheikh Salman had submitted his paperw... More »
VIENNA/MUNICH Austria said on Sunday it planned to end emergency measures that have allowed thousands of refugees stranded in Hungary into Austria and Germany since Saturday and move step by step “towards normality”. Austria had suspended its random border che... More »
KUALA LUMPUR As the candidates hoping to succeed FIFA’s outgoing president Sepp Blatter continue to lobby for support, the political kingmaker who could have a big influence on who gets the job says world soccer has more to worry about than picking its next bo... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Nico Rosberg may not have lost the plot, as some suggested in the wake of his outburst against Mercedes team mate Lewis Hamilton at Sunday’s Chinese Grand Prix, but he is feeling the heat. The German’s accusation that the world champion had ... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama said he would have a “tough conversation” with America’s Gulf Arab allies in which he would promise strong U.S. support against external enemies but tell them they must address internal political challenges. In an ... More »
(Reuters) – Russian teenager Sergey Sirotkin needed bigger shoes as he stepped up for a Formula One test with Sauber in Bahrain on Tuesday that gave him enough mileage to qualify for a super license. The 18-year-old reserve, being prepared by Sauber for a poss... More »
SEPANG, Malaysia (Reuters) – With two wins from two races under their belt in the new Formula One season, Mercedes are powering confidently toward another speedster’s paradise in Bahrain this week, albeit with a watchful eye on fast improving rivals Red Bull. ... More »
DUBAI (Reuters) – Bahraini authorities have shut and dismantled an exhibition on anti-government protests staged by the main Shi’ite opposition group al-Wefaq, saying it violates the law and incites hatred. Unrest has gripped Bahrain, a Western ally which host... More »
