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On June 8 and 9, the German and Jordanian governments will host a major regional energy conference. This conference will bring together 700 participants, including ministers, officials, and representatives of international organizations, along the coast of the Dead Sea. The Jordanian Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Saleh Kharabsheh, announced on Wednesday that the conference, which is the result of a Jordanian-German partnership in the energy sector, will talk about a variety of topics, including hydrogen energy, energy efficiency, renewable energy, and electrical interconnection initiatives. During the MENA Europe Future Energy Dialogue, based on the perspectives of the various participants…

Egyptian, Iraqi, Jordanian, Kuwaiti, Lebanese, and Tunisian permanent representatives met Friday to discuss the water situation in the Arab region in advance of the UN’s 2023 Water Conference. Kuwait’s UN Representative, Mansour Al-Otaibi, said the meeting was organized in coordination with the UN’s Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) whose members are arranging the issues and cases related to water resources for the upcoming conference. The meeting was attended by the Under-Secretary General and Executive Secretary of ESCWA, the Special Envoy of the Netherlands for International Water Affairs, the Co-Chair of the International Steering Committee of the 2022…

A fire in a Senegalese hospital resulted in the tragic death of 11 babies, as mothers emerged in tears after the horrific incident. Ndeye Absa Gueye and Diali Kaba rushed to the hospital where Kaba’s two-week-old daughter was being cared for, and 11 babies lost their lives. Following other incidents at hospitals in Senegal, the tragedy in Tivaouane angered the nation. According to the report, she heard about the fire at the Mame Abdou Aziz Sy Dabakh hospital during the night. However, she didn’t realize it was inside the neonatal unit, which was in the neonatal ward. In the early…

For the first time ever, the United Nations said Monday that the number of forcibly displaced people in the world has surpassed 100 million for the first time in history, as a result of the conflict in Ukraine. In recent years, the number of people forced to flee conflict, violence, human rights violations and persecution has reached the astounding milestone of 100 million. For the first time, such a high number has been reached. According to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), this dramatic increase in refugee numbers has been caused by both the Ukraine crisis as well as other deadly…

Eleven civilians have been killed in attacks on two villages in northern Burkina Faso in recent days, according to a statement from the regional governor. The two communities in Seno province were attacked by unidentified armed assailants. Governor Rodolphe Sorgho, in a statement released on Monday, did not provide any further details about the attacks but called for people to remain vigilant. It has been reported that an additional 14 civilians have been found dead after being reported as missing in the wake of the raids. This is according to a local official speaking on condition of anonymity. Mali and…

US President Joe Biden signed a $40 billion aid package to Ukraine on Saturday after the bill was flown to Seoul, a White House official announced. Following his departure from Washington, the bill was approved by the Senate. The statement that Biden had signed the bill came as the President attended a state dinner with South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol. He also signed a bill to improve access to baby formula for low-income families off camera earlier Saturday. As part of the legislation, funds are available for military and humanitarian aid. These include funds to assist Ukrainian military and…

Due to Turkey’s reluctance to recognize Finland’s and Sweden’s entry into NATO, divisions have emerged within the otherwise unified alliance. Talks regarding the membership of Finland and Sweden were stymied by Turkey because the two countries’ policies toward the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and the Gulenist movement, two groups Turkey identifies as extremists, are too lenient. Turkey has alleged Stockholm and Helsinki of harboring militants affiliated to the two groups, but the two countries have disavowed their support for the Kurdish militants. The European Union also recognizes the PKK as a militant group, and it refuses to extradite suspects. It…

The newly sworn-in Sri Lankan prime minister, Ranil Wickremasinghe, has said in recent interviews that the country’s economic crisis, which has brought suffering and turmoil, will worsen before it gets better. Fuel scarcity and skyrocketing food prices have forced many Sri Lankans to skip meals. In response to anger over how the Rajapaksa government handled the crisis, violent protests have broken out. Ranil Wickremesinghe was appointed in an effort to defuse protests. The opposition MP is serving his sixth term as prime minister. The newly appointed PM described the economy as broken in his message to Sri Lankans, but vowed…

The official unemployment rate in Lebanon increased almost threefold to 29.6 percent at the start of the year, according to a UN-government survey. In January 2022, Lebanon’s unemployment rate increased from 11.4% in 2018-2019 to 29.6%, which means almost one third of the active labor force was unemployed, according to the report. Lebanese economy collapsed two years ago as a result of corrupt practices and financial mismanagement, with the national currency losing 95 percent of its value and poverty rates rising. The International Labor Organization, a UN agency, and Lebanon’s Central Administration of Statistics conducted a rare joint survey. They…

Antonio Guterres accepted on Sunday the resignation of a United Nations agency head with a history of questionable investments under investigation. Former Norwegian minister of justice and public safety, Grete Faremo, has served as UN Office for Project Services’ deputy undersecretary-general and executive director since August 2014. Located in Copenhagen, the office provides infrastructure, procurement, and project management services for a more sustainable future. In the midst of media reports suggesting the agency had made a series of bizarre financial decisions that led to $25 million in losses, Faremo resigned. This report follows a piece by Brussels-based writer Ilya Gridneff…