An internal Israeli military investigation concluded that “mistakes were made…at a relatively senior level” during the raid of the ‘Gaza flotilla’ in late May.

Nakheel, a property developer owned by Dubai World, met with creditors in an attempt to renegotiate its $10.5 bn in bank debt. Dubai World caused a scare on the financial markets last November after announcing a freeze on debt repayments.

Prime Minister Saad Hariri of Lebanon expressed his concerns over ‘escalating threats’ posed by Israel to the Middle-East. His comment came just days after aggressive exchanges of accusations between the foreign ministers of Syria and Israel, fueling media speculations over a next ‘imminent war’.

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.

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.

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.

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.

An impoverished country with a population of 23 million, Yemen was not bestowed with the resources as its neighbors and is the poorest country in the Middle-East. Its oil reserves (little though they were) are dwindling, and plummeting in 2009 and 2010 according to World Bank reports. The same source expects oil revenues to reach 0 in 2017. Most of these oil resources are found in (the once-separate) Southern Yemen, where unrest is growing as the population feels it is being marginalized and discriminated against.

A conflict in the North has intensified in the past few months, where Yemeni forces are battling a powerful clan (Houthi) which brands itself as mujahideen and whose followers belong to the Zaydi (Shia) sect. This civil war, which started in 2004 and has displaced over 250,000 people, has recently spilled over into the border region within Saudi Arabia, and raised concerns and speculation over a possible involvement of Iran with the Houthi’s.

President Saleh thus finds himself juggling with increasingly volatile situations: a Houthi rebellion in the north, a resurgence of Al-Qaeda in the east, and a brewing independence movement in the south. Saudi Arabian cooperation to stabilize the rebellion in the north, an end to the regional power struggles concerning this rebellion, a crackdown on Al-Qaeda (affiliated-) movements, and further economic diversification to cushion depleting oil revenues are all needed to prevent Yemen from slipping into becoming the world’s next failed state.

Fatah, the Palestinian group in power in the West Bank, says that the UN should recognize an independent state in the West Bank territory, in response to a stalemate in the search for a settlement with Israel.

The Dubai Government Economic Committee reported its economy is growing at a rate of 5%, less than in previous years but still higher than the most cautious forecasts.

In Lebanon, Hassan Nasrallah was re-elected as the head of Hezbollah following a congress which also adopted the newest party manifesto.

Total net profits of listed firms on the Stock Exchange of Kuwait dropped by over 70% in the first three quarters of 2009, according to a recent economic report. The global financial crisis is to blame.