MUST-READS

• Saudi Prince Turki al Faisal al Saud talks Gaza, Israel, and foreign policy in SPIA address

  The discussion, led by Founding Director of the Liechtenstein Institute on Self-Determination Wolfgang Danspeckgruber, highlighted al Faisal’s involvement in founding the King Faisal Foundation, a nonprofit that promotes the legacy of his father, and his influence on the global stage. Al Faisal claimed that the world is in a state of anarchy, which led him to his central idea of “quo vadimus” Latin for “where are we going?” He encouraged strong global leadership, stating, “New cold wars are not the cures to our world’s illnesses.”

• Israeli airstrikes pound Beirut suburb, no sign of ceasefire
  The Israeli military pounded Beirut's southern suburbs with airstrikes on Tuesday, mounting one of its heaviest daytime attacks yet on the Hezbollah-controlled area after the defence minister ruled out a ceasefire until Israeli goals were met. Smoke billowed over Beirut as at least 10 blasts were heard across the city. The strikes followed an Israeli army warning identifying 12 sites in the southern suburbs and saying it would take action against them soon. The warning, posted on social media, told residents they were near Hezbollah facilities.

• Israel fails to meet US aid demands to ease Gaza catastrophe, aid groups say
  International aid groups said that Israel had failed to meet a series of U.S. demands intended to improve the humanitarian crisis in Gaza by a Tuesday deadline. The United States told its ally Israel in a letter on Oct. 13 that it must take steps to improve the aid situation in war-ravaged Gaza within 30 days. If not, it could face potential restrictions on U.S. military aid.
  "Israel not only failed to meet the U.S. criteria

• COP29 Azerbaijan: ‘The world must pay up’, UN’s Guterres says

  U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said on Monday he will appoint Republican former Congressman Lee Zeldin to head the Environmental Protection Agency. Zeldin often voted against legislation on green issues including a measure to stop oil companies from price gouging, "He will ensure fair and swift deregulatory decisions that will be enacted in a way to unleash the power of American businesses, while at the same time maintaining the highest environmental standards, including the cleanest air and water on the planet," Trump said in a post on his social media platform Truth Social.

• What a Donald Trump Victory Means for the Middle East

  Expectations that Trump’s second term will see him renewing pressure on Iran over its nuclear program, push for an end to regional conflicts and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will be welcomed in Gulf capitals. Trump's already indicated that one of his priorities would be to expand the Abraham Accords to include normalization of relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia. His transactional approach to foreign policy, the return of familiar faces from his previous administration, and expectations that pressure over human rights will come to an end will also be well received. But in other areas, the new administration's goals may clash with the interests of Gulf rulers. Plans for American 'energy dominance' could weigh on oil prices at a time when OPEC members are already constraining supply and losing market share.

• Saudi Arabia Needs to Build 115,000 Homes A Year to Hit Demand

  Saudi Arabia will need to build 115,000 homes each year for the next six years to fulfill demand from a young population and hit ownership targets set by the oil-rich nation’s government, according to Knight Frank LLP. The kingdom’s government wants homeownership to reach 70% by 2030 from 63.7% at the end of 2023. The Saudi government’s target along with new household formation are helping drive much of the demand in a country where 45% of citizens are below 20 years old, according to the report. The kingdom’s Sakani program, which includes social housing, has 883,562 applications from people looking to buy homes with financing help through guarantees on mortgages below 520,000 riyals ($138,448). The kingdom’s population grew in Saudi at 1.8% annually compared with a global rate of 1.1% between 2010 and 2002, according to the World Bank.

• Arab, Muslim leaders meet in Saudi Arabia for talks on Gaza, Lebanon wars

  The summit builds on the earlier Arab-Islamic summit held in Riyadh on Nov. 11, 2023, following the directives of King Salman and complementing the efforts of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to address the dangerous and unprecedented developments in Gaza and the rest of Palestine. The foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Qatar, Turkiye, Indonesia, Nigeria, and Palestine, along with the secretaries-general of the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, aim to initiate immediate international action to halt the war on Gaza and achieve a lasting, comprehensive peace.

• US charges Iranian man in plot to kill Donald Trump
  The United States charged an Iranian man on Friday in connection with an alleged plot ordered by Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards Corps to assassinate President-elect Donald Trump, the Department of Justice said. Farhad Shakeri informed law enforcement "that he was tasked on October 7, 2024, with providing a plan to kill" Trump, the department said in a statement. It said Shakeri told law enforcement he did not intend to formulate such a plan within the time frame directed by the IRGC.

• ‘Change the Game’: Saudi Arabia Takes a Stride Into Women’s Tennis

  Moving into tennis, Saudi Arabia recently hosted the Six Kings Slam, an exhibition showcasing the top men’s players. And it struck a three-year deal with the financially struggling WTA to bring its finals to Riyadh in part with the promise of awarding some $15 million in prize money this year. Those are the highest winnings in the history of women’s tennis, satisfying players’ demands for prize parity with men. “The Western world can keep reporting that our country is sportswashing, or whatever, but what matters is that my sisters and I can watch our favorite sports stars right here at home,” said Maryam al-Shammeri, who was in the crowd for the WTA final on Saturday night with her brother and two sisters.

• Preserving the Past, Building the Future: Saudi Arabia’s cultural heritage and business synergy

  In the Quality of Life Program 2023 annual report, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said that the Kingdom is striving to cultivate a deep sense of pride in the nation and actively contribute to global development and progress, across economic, environmental, cultural, and intellectual dimensions. The report further revealed that in 2023, the Ministry of Culture targeted 108,010 employees in the Saudi cultural sector, but recorded 216,878 workers during the year, reflecting an achievement rate of 201 percent.

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