Afghanistan has scarcely been out of the news recently. What will happen with Taliban rule and how long will it last? Although some groups in some countries welcome Taliban rule- the Salafi groups in Turkey are perhaps some and Pakistan is said to be more pro-Taliban- others are concerned as to what Taliban rule might mean for them – the Uighurs wh...
New Zealand PM bows out
Here's an article from The Economist which, while talking about John Key's resignation, states that NZ is "one of the most successful countries in the world. While this is debatable, there is no doubt that Key has had successes- namely international recognition- along with failures, housing, immigration and the environment. We have yet to see whether the new Prime Minister, John English, will have the same success.
Will the Gulf States change their stance on the Taliban after it took control of Afghanistan? Ahmad Abdel -Rahman explains. Bahrain, in its capacity as the current chair of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), announced that it would start consultations with other Gulf States on the situation in Afghanistan. The Council of Ministers assigned the Min...
Ahmad Abdul-Rahman talks about about the transportation of Egyptian gas to Lebanon and what it means for the region. Lebanon is preparing to implement its agreement with Iraq to obtain fuel oil to secure electricity generation and save the Lebanese from the problem of power outage that they suffer daily. Meanwhile, the Executive Director of the Int...
The photos that came out of Afghanistan showing thousands of people trying to flee Kabul before the US's self-imposed deadline of 31 August are truly horrific. But that is just the start. The West is looking at its refugee burden, yet it is small compared to that of some developing countries. According to data prepared by the Norwegian Refugee Coun...
In this article Ahmad Abdul-Rahman explains the geopolitical roots of the Iranian economic crisis. The Covid-19 pandemic has caused the further deterioration of the Iranian economy. But the country's economic crisis is rooted in factors beyond the repercussions of the pandemic. Since the US withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action in 20...
The UAE and Turkey have had a tetchy relationship over the years. Might this be changing? The US's rapid withdrawal from Afghanistan in recent weeks and the rise of the Taliban have changed the dynamics between the two countries.. It is no longer such a good policy to be so closely aligned to the US. Is it a reliable long-term partner? This must be...
What does the Taliban's victory mean for America's Arab allies and extremist organisations? Ahmad Abdul-Rahman explains. The Taliban's control of Afghanistan raises questions about its impact on the policies of Arab countries allied to the West and on extremist terrorist organisations in the world in general and Arab countries in particular. The vi...
The Covid-19 pandemic has swept the world. Some people are against governments' reactions. This letter to the UK government explains this. Subject: Letter to the Government Mr Boris Johnson, Prime Minister Ms Nicola Sturgeon, First Minister for Scotland Mr Mark Drakeford, First Minister for Wales Mr Paul Givan, First Minister for Northern Ireland M...
August 15, 2021 Source: Wamda Mahmoud Hamouda is a strategy and operations consultant at Dell Technologies. He is also the head of Dell for Entrepreneurs in Egypt. In his first oped for Wamda, Hamouda examines the life cycle journey of the Middle East's fintech industry and what lies next for the sector. This article was sent to me from Fintech Gal...
Abdul-Rahman discusses how global energy markets in the Arab world could impact other countries. Workers in the oil industry are holding their breath for fear there will an interruption in oil supplies. The reason for this fear is the paramount importance of the countries in the Middle East and North Africa in supplying the world with energy. But i...
Watching the news about Afghanistan and horrific images the of thousands of people scrambling to get on rescue flights so that they can flee the Taliban, brings me to tears. The situation also reminds me of the documentary I made in 2014/15 when the Hazara Afghans (Shiites) fled the country 15 years ago, some of them arriving in Christchurch, New Z...
Will the protests and the Corona pandemic precipitate fundamental economic reforms in Oman? This is the question Ahmad Abdul-Rahman asks. In the last week of May 2021, a number of provinces of the Sultanate of Oman witnessed mass gatherings and protests, most of which were peaceful. The main demand was for job opportunities. These protests resulted...
The Yemeni Civil War rages on. Initially, it was anticipated that it would end after a few days but countries such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE, which have entered Yemen, have learnt that assessment was wide of the mark. Now, has been raging for four years. The US has recently announced that it will donate USD165 million in aid to Yemen. The human t...
Energy strategist, Mohamad Kharkan, discusses the issues that effect the Middle East energy market. This is the final article in the series. Syria is involved and is directly linked to the religious wars and conflicts between Shiites and Sunnis, primarily with the Nabucco and South Stream schemes mentioned in the previous article. In 2011, a projec...
Energy strategist, Mohamad Kharkan, discusses the issues that effect the Middle East energy market. This is the third part of the energy series. One more article will follow. As the war in Syria continues, the mainstream media, which has relentlessly suppressed the Syrian government, continues to forget the fundamental aspect of the war, the energy...
The Old Quarter in Amman, Jordan (Adobe) The Egypt, Jordan, Iraq alliance seeks to deal with shifts in the strategic balance of power in the Middle East, writes Ahmad Abdul-Rahman. The Iraqi capital, Baghdad, witnessed the fourth tripartite summit between the leaders of Egypt, Iraq and Jordan on June 27. This was part of the tripartite cooperation ...
In this article Ahmad Abdul-Rahman looks at the rise of Ebraham Raisi to the Iranian presidency and Iran's expected role in Iraq. The victory of the conservative candidate in the recent Iranian presidential elections, Ebrahim Raisi, sparked mixed reactions about the nature of the expected Iranian role in Iraq. The two countries have always been clo...
In this article, energy strategist, Mohamed Kharkan, looks at the relationship Iran and Central Asia has to oil. This follows the previous article he penned. There will be more articles to follow. The legal issue of the Caspian Sea had to be resolved so that Russia, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan could exploit its oil and gas resources. Europe r...
In this article Mohammed Al Kharkan, an energy strategist, looks at how oil and gas supplies has shaped the geopolitics of South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. This is the first part of four articles on the subject. The former Soviet Union occupied Afghanistan to transport its gas resources from Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Chechnya and Russi...
A high level of youth unemployment, mounting government debt, corruption and the impact of COVID- 19 have combined to spur unrest in Tunisia- the birthplace of the Arab Spring in December 2010. Like many countries in the Middle East, economic reforms did not materialize, even though it cast off its authoritarian president, c North Africa and the Mi...