MUST-READS

• Miscalculation Led to Escalation in Clash Between Israel and Iran

  Aides quickly alerted Jake Sullivan, President Biden’s national security adviser; Jon Finer, the deputy national security adviser; Brett McGurk, Mr. Biden’s Middle East coordinator; and others, who saw that the strike could have serious consequences, a U.S. official said. Publicly, U.S. officials voiced support for Israel, but privately, they expressed anger that it would take such aggressive action against Iran without consulting Washington.

• Iraq Moves to Tackle Climate Challenge

  Although Iraq is the second-largest oil producer in OPEC after Saudi Arabia, it is a net natural gas importer because lack of infrastructure investment has meant that until 2023 it was flaring roughly half of the estimated 3.12 billion cubic feet per day of gas produced in association with crude oil. According to the World Bank’s Global Gas Flaring Tracker, Iraq is the world’s second-largest emitter after Russia. Iraq’s West Qurna 2 oil field, operated by Russia’s Lukoil, is the biggest source of flaring in the world.

• Iran Attack on Israel: Implications and Oil Market Concerns

  Iran and Israel are now officially out of the shadow war, which was becoming more and more open, especially as the Houthis increased their ability to target Israeli territory with drones and missiles since February.[5] The long-standing threat of Hezbollah on the northern Israeli border has been somewhat contained in a pattern of retaliatory rocket strikes, but may be expanding.[6]  Hezbollah leadership and the US government are communicating indirectly and more frequently, such that the White House was successful in discouraging Israel to directly attack Hezbollah forces in Lebanon shortly after October 7.[7] The daylight between US and Israeli policy toward Lebanon is increasing. The Biden administration does not want to see an Israeli war in Lebanon, but Israel may calculate that now is the best time to both attack Iranian interests and settle its threat on the northern border.

• Saudi Arabia poised to become clean netting jurisdiction

  Saudi Arabia is set to become the final G20 country to implement close-out netting legislation, with the Gulf state’s central bank having recently finalised new rules. The draft regulation on netting agreements and collateral arrangements sets out that netting is permitted once bankruptcy procedures have commenced and is broadly aligned with the International Swaps and Derivatives Association’s model netting law.

• Flooded UAE counts cost of epic rainstorm, airport still facing disruptions
  Emergency workers tried to clear waterclogged roads and people assessed the damage to homes and businesses on Thursday after a rare and epic rainstorm swamped the United Arab Emirates.
  Dubai International Airport, a major travel hub, struggled to clear a backlog of flights and many roads were still flooded in the aftermath of Tuesday's deluge.
  The rains were the heaviest experienced by the Gulf state in the 75 years that records have been kept. They brought much of the country to a standstill and caused significant damage.

• Israel will defend itself, Netanyahu says, as West calls for restraint
  Israel will make its own decisions about how to defend itself, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday, as Western countries pleaded for restraint in responding to a volley of attacks from Iran.
  The United States, European Union and G7 group of industrialised nations all announced plans to consider tighter sanctions on Iran, seen as aimed at mollifying Israel and persuading it to rein in its retaliation for the first ever direct Iranian strikes after decades of confrontation by proxy.

• UAE cloud seeding did not take place during heavy rains, says NCM: Reports

  The UAE weather bureau has denied claims that its cloud seeding program was responsible for the recent heavy rainfall that caused widespread flooding in the country. The National Centre of Meteorology (NCM) confirmed on Wednesday that no cloud seeding missions were conducted during the torrential rain on Tuesday, according to local reports.

• Saudi Arabia ramps up regional diplomacy to avert Iran-Israel war

  “We are already in an unstable region, and the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza is already inflaming the region,” Prince Faisal told a press conference with his Pakistani counterpart in Islamabad. “We do not need more conflict in our region; we do not need more confrontation in our region, so it is our position that the de-escalation must be everybody’s priority.”  

• Humans and their livestock have sheltered in this Saudi Arabian cave for 10,000 years

  A first-of-its-kind study in northwestern Saudi Arabia suggests that humans and their livestock have been using a cave for shelter sporadically for up to 10,000 years. The finding¹ offers insight into the region’s history and ecology. In the past decade, satellite data and fossil finds have suggested that the Arabian Peninsula was not always an arid desert. Periods when the region contained lakes and lush greenery might have drawn people and animals there from Africa, according to the study’s authors.

• Grab the popcorn: Cinema Nights is back

  Film enthusiasts, you’ll be happy to know the star-studded Red Sea International Film Festival has partnered with the Diriyah Biennale Foundation to bring the popular cinematic event to our capital’s doorstep –yes we’re talking about Saudi Cinema Nights. Inching its way towards becoming a hotspot for the film industry, with stunning locations like the Red Sea and UNESCO World Heritage sites like Turaif and Al Balad, it’s an obvious pick.

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