Lebanon is nearing agreement with Israel over a maritime dispute involving offshore gas fields, but the cash-strapped country still faces an uphill struggle towards unlocking potential hydrocarbon riches, analysts say.
"A deal would mark one step forward but it does not mean that Lebanon has become a gas- or oil-producing country," said Marc Ayoub, an associate fellow at the American University of Beirut's Issam Fares Institute.
A month before Egypt hosts the UN climate change conference, Cairo is finalising the list of world leaders coming as it weathers criticism over its human rights and environmental records.
Cairo voiced disappointment that King Charles III, a long-time champion of the environment, cancelled a plan to attend and speak at COP27 after Britain's Prime Minister Liss Truss reportedly objected.
The idea hit Abdullah Alsulmi earlier this year, while he was watching a television show in which a senior Qatari official promised an "exceptional" experience at the upcoming World Cup.
His excitement building, the 33-year-old Saudi recalls thinking: "I will go to Doha no matter what, even if I have to walk!"
It was an unlikely beginning to what has become an audacious adventure dismissed by some of Alsulmi's own relatives as "crazy": a two-month, 1,600-kilometre (1,000-mile) solo trek from his native Jeddah to the Qatari capital.
As protests flare across Iran over the death of young Iranian Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini, the Kurdistan region of neighbouring Iraq has paid a price, coming under bombardment from the Islamic republic's forces.
Their target is the long-exiled Iranian Kurdish opposition, installed in Iraq under Saddam Hussein during his war with Iran in the 1980s.
Tehran regards these armed factions as "terrorists" and accuses them of attacking its territory.
The vast majority of Americans support diplomacy with Iran to constrain its nuclear program, a survey found Wednesday, amid a stalemate in negotiations to restore a 2015 deal.
A wide-ranging annual survey by the Eurasia Group Foundation found that nearly 79 percent of US voters believe the United States "should continue to pursue negotiations to prevent Iran from obtaining or developing a nuclear weapon in the near future."
Former Republican president Donald Trump pulled out of the accord in 2018, calling it the "worst deal ever," and reimposed sweeping sanctions.
The decision to award the 2029 Asian Winter Games to Saudi Arabia may have been greeted with amazement but it follows a double logic.
For the biggest events, hosts are becoming harder to find than snowstorms in the Arabian desert. For those willing to undertake the task, the appeal of major sports competitions is as national showcases.
Saudi Arabia, Russia and other top oil producers agreed on a major cut in production on Wednesday to boost crude prices -- a move denounced by the United States as a concession to Moscow that will further hurt the global economy.
The 13-nation OPEC cartel headed by Riyadh and its 10 allies led by Moscow agreed to reduce output by two million barrels per day from November at a meeting in Vienna, the group said in a statement.
Environmental campaign group Greenpeace on Wednesday denounced as "dangerous" a massive ski resort under construction in northwest Saudi Arabia that this week was named host of the 2029 Asian Winter Games.
News that the 47-event competition would be held in the desert kingdom has raised eyebrows in the sports world while bringing fresh scrutiny to NEOM, a $500-billion futuristic megacity that is a pet project of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Yemen's government wants to renew a ceasefire with Huthi rebels and will not escalate the conflict, its foreign minister said Wednesday, as a US envoy voiced guarded hope despite the lapse in the six-month truce.
"We are determined to renew the ceasefire and address all problems through dialogue," Foreign Minister Ahmed bin Mubarak said during a visit to Morocco.
Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young on Wednesday promised to dazzle Gulf fans as the NBA debuts in the oil-rich region with two pre-season games in Abu Dhabi this week.
The Hawks will take on the Milwaukee Bucks in the United Arab Emirates capital on Thursday and Saturday, the latest top-level sport to appear in the Gulf.
Qatar will host football's World Cup from November and four Formula One races will take place in the region next year, as well as golf, tennis and other sports.
