07 Feb 10
Iraq’s electoral commission reversed a ban on the participation of 500 candidates with Baath party ties in the next elections. Sunni politicians welcomed the reversal of the ban. Suicide bombs in Baghdad and Karbala meanwhile killed more than 60 Shia pilgrims.
Yemeni government forces reported to have killed 16 Houthi rebels in Saada. An agreement on a truce between the Houthi rebels and the Yemeni government earlier broke over an extra condition that Houthi’s stop attacking Saudi forces across the border.
The Mossad (Israel’s secret service) was suspected of the recent assassination in Dubai of Mahmoud al-Mabhouh, a senior military commander of the Hamas.
30 Jan 10
Baghdad was hit by big bombs targeting three of its best-known hotels. 41 casualties were reported.
Ali Hassan Al-Majid, a.k.a. “Chemical Ali” was executed by hanging after he was found guilty by an Iraqi special tribunal of ordering poison-gas attacks against Kurds in 1988. Al-Majid was a couson and confidant of Saddam Hussain.
23 Jan 10
Muhammad Badeea was elected as the ’supreme guide’ of the Muslim Brotherhood at its HQ in Egypt, replacing the older Mehdi Akef. The Muslim Brotherhood is one of the Arab world’s most influential Islamist movements.
An parliamentary panel in Iraq recommended that some 500 candidates should not be allowed to participate in a general election due in March, due to alleged past ties to the Baath party. Sectarian tensions resulted.
It was leaked that Abu Dhabi’s bailout of (Dubai) state-backed Dubai World was only half of the USD 10bn which was previously reported, as USD 5bn was a prior credit commitment. The announcement fueled fears about Dubai’s rescue.
16 Jan 10
President Barack Obama stated he has no intention of sending ground troops to Yemen in order to combat local militant groups on the ground. Meanwhile the Yemeni government reported a successful strike against an Al-Qaeda cell in the north killing at least six militants. Among the militants is believed to be Qassem Al-Rimi, a prominent Al-Qaeda figure in Yemen. The Saudi government also said its forces inflicted losses on rebels loyal to the Houthi clan in the north.
A Dutch committee investigating the Netherland’s entry into the Iraq war concluded it was illegal in international law. The conclusion led to a brief crisis in Dutch parliament as the prime minister seemed reluctant to accept the results of the investigation.
08 Jan 10
Yemen government forces stepped up a campaign against local Al-Qaeda cells which claimed to have planned the failed airliner terror attack and trained the Nigerian jihadist who carried it out on Christmas day. Security forces report several Al-Qaeda people were killed and at least three others were arrested. Intelligence sources previously warned of an imminent attack on foreign interests in Yemen, leading to the embassies of the USA, France and UK being closed temporarily.
A suicide bomber from Jordan operating as a CIA double-agent killed seven American CIA men and a Jordanian intelligence officer at a base in Khost (Afghanistan). The bomber was a trusted double-agent whose task it was to track down Ayman Al-Zawahiri, Al-Qaeda’s number two.
The Burj Khalifa Tower was officially opened in Dubai. Standing at 828 meters, the tower is the world’s tallest building and cost USD 1.5 billion to build. The ceremony came at a time of financial difficulty for Dubai, only having received a USD 10bn bailout from (neighbouring emirate) Abu Dhabi a few weeks ago for state-backed Dubai World.
30 Dec 09
Al-Qaeda in Yemen has claimed responsibility for a attempted terror attack on an airplane from Amsterdam to Detroit on Christmas day. Nigerian Umar Farouk Abdulmutalleb attempted to detonate explosives but was overpowered by fellow passengers. The incident has sparked debates about airline security, as well as the (already fragile) situation in Yemen, where Abdulmutalleb was reportedly trained by Al-Qaeda.
A South Korean consortium was awarded a $40bn contract to build and run four nuclear power reactors in the United Arab Emirates. The project is to be the first civilian nuclear-energy initiative in the Arab World.
British hostage Peter Moore was released alive after two-and-a-half years in captivity in Iraq. The IT consultant was captured in Baghdad in May 2007.
19 Dec 09
A ship carrying a cargo of livestock sank off the coast of Lebanon. The vessel, headed from Uruguay to the Syrian port of Tartous, sank due to bad weather. At least 9 bodies have been recovered, with an estimated 35 still missing.
The defence ministry of Yemen reports it has foiled an Al-Qaeda attack, killing 34 suspected militants and arresting 17. The operations were carried out in the Abyan and Arhab regions. The Al-Qaeda group was planning a number of attacks against local and foreign targets, according to Yemeni officials.
The term of Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestine Authority, has been extended indefinitely as has the mandate of the parliament. Elections were due in January but have been postponed due to differences between rival factions Fatah and Hamas.
13 Dec 09
Worries over the Emirates’ financial health were fueled when Moody’s cut its rating for state-owned companies in Dubai.
A series of bombings targeting government buildings in Baghdad killed at least 120 people. An Al-Qaeda or Baathist group is believed to be behind the attacks, in an attempt to destabilise Iraq in the run-up to a general election in early March. An election law had been ratified two days prior to the bombings. The December attacks follow November’s lowest violent-death toll (88) since the American invasion in 2003.
06 Dec 09
Heavy rainfall in Saudi Arabia has led to floods resulting in around 100 deaths, according to local officials. Dozen are still said to be missing, raising fears the death will rise further. The heaviest flooding was reported in Jeddah and Mecca. Heavy rainstorms on Wednesday already hampered the start of the annual Hajj pilgrimage, however no casualties were reported in Mecca.
Three people have died in an explosion at a petrol station in Damascus, capital of Syria. The Syrian interior minister ruled out a terrorist attack, and said the tyre of the bus exploded as it was being pumped. The bus was carrying Iranian pilgrims visiting the Sayyida Zeinab shrine for Shia Muslims.
Dubai World outlined its plans to restructure $26bn in debt, following last week’s request for a six-month delay on debt payments. The issue raised fears in the Gulf region and hit global stockmarkets. Abu Dhabi, Dubai’s Emirate neighbour, was reluctant to intervene immediately with a bail-out, and said to review situations on per-case basis.
28 Nov 09
Fears over the financial health of Dubai hit global stockmarkets, following a request by Dubai World for a 6-month delay of repaying its debts. The government-owned investment company has been hit hard by the credit crunch and is said to have debts of USD 60bn.
In order to revive peace negotiations with the Palestinians, Benjamin Netanjahu, prime minister of Israel, offered to put a hold on building settlements in the West Bank for a period of ten months. To the dismay of the Palestinians, the offers excluded East Jerusalem, existing settlements and settlements already under construction.
The parliament of Jordan was dissolved halfway its 4-year term by King Abdullah, following tensions between the government and Islamist opposition.
A row erupted between supporters of the Egyptian and Algerian football teams, following a victory by Algeria. Both sides accuse each other of violent attacks. Dozens were hurt in Egypt, Algeria and Sudan. The Arab League has asked President Ghaddafi of Libya to mediate in the conflict.