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Spyware Pegasus is just the tip of the iceberg, investigative journalist Antony Loewenstein tells scmp.com. His new book warns such hi-tech surveillance tools are being sold by Israel to autocracies and democracies alike, with profound implications for the privacy of citizens everywhere.
Fast-changing Saudi Arabia is eager for foreign capital, including from Hong Kong. The city should now reach out to its citizens in the Middle East who have the connections and know-how to build trust and spur investments.
- Elaheh Mohammadi, a reporter for the pro-reform Hammihan newspaper, is accused of ‘colluding with hostile powers’, which potentially carries the death penalty
- She covered the funeral of 22-year-old Amini, who died while in the custody of the morality police, unleashing a wave of mass protests across Iran for months
Hong Kong businesses reap the benefits of city leader John Lee’s visit to Saudi Arabia and UAE in February.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan appealed for national unity after winning a historic runoff election that extended his transformative but divisive rule until 2028.
In a joint statement early Sunday, the US and Saudi Arabia called for an extension of the current truce which expires at 9:45pm local time on Monday.
The group of 10 were detained in March and accused of having links to Lebanon’s Shiite movement Hezbollah, which Abu Dhabi classifies as a terrorist organisation. One of the prisoners died in custody on May 4.
The Development Road aims to tie the Grand Faw Port in Iraq’s oil-rich south to Turkey, turning the country into a transit hub in a bid to rival the Suez Canal.
The suspension comes after the Philippines stopped the first-time deployment of domestic workers to Kuwait after the body of a Filipino domestic worker was found in the Kuwaiti desert.
State TV aired footage said to show the launch of an upgraded version of the Khoramshahr 4, which is able to carry a 1,500kg warhead.
A man convicted of the capital crime of ‘corruption on earth’ was executed in front of large crowds, which rights groups have denounced as a ‘medieval’ practice.
The Middle Eastern countries are eyeing Chinese drones, fighter jets and air defence systems as they seek to diversify weapons supply amid Ukraine war and tensions with Washington, according to Beirut-based intelligence service.
Science suggests all European wines are based on a cross of Israeli and Turkish grapes, while a growing tourism industry is emerging around ‘northern Israel’s Napa Valley’ – is this the destination for your next tasting tour?
Assad’s return to Arab League and Zelensky’s appearance mark efforts by Arab states to remain diplomatically neutral in the West’s tensions with Russia and China.
The US Air Force on May 2 released rare images of the weapon, the GBU-57, known as the ‘Massive Ordnance Penetrator’. Then it took the photos down.
This could bolster Erdogan’s already comfortable lead and boost his chances of victory in the May 28 run-off, and extend his 20-year rule.
Ali Shamkhani will be replaced by Ali Akbar Ahmadian, who sits on the country’s Expediency Council that advises the supreme leader.
SpaceX launched the ticket-holding crew, led by a retired Nasa astronaut, on a chartered multimillion-dollar flight to the International Space Station on Sunday.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir’s visit to Temple Mount comes days after Israelis marked Jerusalem Day, which celebrates Israel’s capturing of east Jerusalem in 1967.
The new agreement calls for a seven-day ceasefire to begin 48 hours after signing. Numerous previous ceasefire agreements were violated. The fighting has displaced more than a million people.
Iran’s judiciary said Shahrooz Sokhanvari, a man known as ‘Alex’, was the leader of an ‘escort and trafficking network of Iranian women and girls’ to countries in the region.
‘Take an honest look …’ President Volodymyr Zelensky urged in a speech at the Arab League summit in Jedda.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman greeted Bashar al-Assad with a hug, and the Syrian President rubbed shoulders with leaders who had shunned him for years.
The number of ultra-rich in Hong Kong is, however, forecast to rebound from 5,686 last year to 7,280 by 2027, while mainland China’s hyper-wealthy population is expected to jump by 49.8 per cent by the same year.
Last year’s 883 recorded executions were the most since 2017, activists said. The death penalty is also used extensively in North Korea and Vietnam but as with China, figures there remain ‘shrouded in secrecy’.
Iranians are concerned about online safety and privacy when using approved local apps such as Bale, Neshan, Snapp! and Soroush .
With their ancient cultural and historical sites – plus ‘very good shopping’ – the Gulf monarchies such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE have their sights set on enticing a new wave of luxury travellers from China.
Dubai is known as the Las Vegas of the Middle East for a reason, so does 2023’s biggest hotel opening really deliver the level of luxury it promises? Style checked in to find out
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan held his last election rallies in Istanbul on Saturday. ‘Biden gave the order to topple Erdogan, I know this. All my people know this,’ said Erdogan.
