The world, in perspective.

Baghdad is committed to protecting the security of Gulf states and remaining neutral should the war between the US and Iran resume, Iraq's national security adviser has told The National . Qasim Al Abudi stressed that there was broad national consensus in Iraq that the country must not intervene or become part of the conflict. Tehran-backed armed factions in

Israeli strikes on Gaza killed eight people, including a boy. Qatar's national gas company reported that one of its vessels was struck in the Persian Gulf. The U.N. is calling for an investigation into the death of a staffer who was being held by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels.

A fire broke out at a hotel in Dingboche, Nepal along the popular trekking route to Mount Everest Base Camp.

Qatar Gas Transport Company says no injuries or environmental damage.

Oman is in a unique position to mediate talks on a security arrangement that could stabilise the region.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty has warned that any threat to Gulf security would reverberate across the wider Middle East, and called for a shift from crisis management to building a regional order capable of preventing conflict. Mr Abdelatty was speaking at the IISS Manama Dialogue annual security forum in Bahrain, where he stressed that instabili

<p>IISS study questions overreliance on American support and ‘overdependence on expensive, high-end systems’</p><p>Gulf states are going to have to reconfigure their trillion-dollar defences given the damage inflicted on their economies and the questionable continued value of US bases in the face of Iranian attack, according to a study by the International I

​The near-daily missions to protect ships have allowed the U.S. to hold the line in a conflict that has dragged on since February and threatened access to the world’s oil supplies.

Darren Woods was scheduled to speak at the Adipec conference in Abu Dhabi on Monday

Letter to Iran's security chief reportedly pushes for swift return to peace talks, with Vance leading US delegation.

Stubbornly high prices at the pump offered little hope for drivers looking for some relief.

Oman's Foreign Minister Badr Al Busaidi has called for a peace agreement between the Arab Gulf states and Iran, which would see the countries collaborating on security and the regional economy. The agreement would take the form of a security pact that includes Iran, as well as Iraq and Yemen , where Tehran has active armed proxies, he said during a visit to

The deadly Houthi attacks on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport earlier this month are just the latest reminder of how the war with Iran continues to destabilise the Middle East. The conflict has driven Gulf countries to accelerate efforts to diversify trade routes and deepen regional integration. However, amid the focus on immediate security threats

<p>Talks are aimed at reopening strait of Hormuz and lifting sanctions on Iran, and for Houthis to withdraw in Yemen</p><p>A multipronged peace deal to reopen the strait of Hormuz within four days of sanctions being lifted and for the Houthis to withdraw substantial forces inside Yemen are at the heart of Gulf states’ plans to avert what they regard as a dis

Blackstone has committed more capital to the Gulf region in the past 12 months than at any point in its history, and it plans to invest more despite geopolitical headwinds, its chief executive has said. Despite the months-long war , the investment appeal of the Gulf remains intact, Steve Schwarzman, who is also chairman and co-founder of the world's largest

There are new signs that the American and Israeli militaries are preparing a potential wave of strikes to muscle Tehran to the negotiating table.

Officials from Riyadh, Islamabad, Ankara and Tehran met in Iran.

A fire has torn through Guryong Village, Seoul’s last shanty-town, forcing more than 100 people to evacuate.

Global Briefing: There is a growing realisation in the Middle East that the US has become an obstacle to peace there

After three decades in the region and 12 years leading The British School Al Khubairat, Abu Dhabi head teacher Mark Leppard will leave the UAE next August. He will take up a new role as chief executive of Singapore’s Tanglin Trust School, founded in 1925. Mr Leppard, 57, will be succeeded at BSAK by Robin Macpherson, currently head of college at Robert Gordo

UN Chief Antonio Guterres has warned of devastating consequences from any military escalation in the Gulf region.

Karim Badawi, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, said the expanded use of advanced seismic survey technology was key to improving exploration activities and maximising the development of Egypt’s oil and gas resources. He noted that the deployment of Ocean Bottom Node (OBN) technology in the Gulf of Suez had helped raise drilling success rates […]

From tariff turmoil and stock shocks to market meltdowns, the global financial system has never been in such flux. Manus Cranny, The National's geo-economics editor, cuts through the noise and presents insights from the stories making headlines around the world.

US Central Command says more than 3,000 commercial vessels have transited the Strait of Hormuz with its support.

British lender HSBC is not worried about its exposure to the slowing property sector or the health of its corporate loan book in the Gulf region despite the war-driven economic contraction this year, its group chief executive has said. The provisions, just shy of $400 million for potential loan losses, taken so far by Europe’s second-largest lender for its M

The Gulf states find themselves at the centre of a regional war that is not of their making . A confrontation that began with US and Israeli strikes on Iran has spread into a web of proxy conflicts, reaching from the Strait of Hormuz to the Red Sea and Bab Al Mandeb, through Iraq and Yemen. The members of the GCC now face a question they can no longer put of

Advocates say there is no future for sustainable fisheries without ending destructive fishing practices.

<p>ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s trade deficit with Gulf partner countries narrowed 26.35 per cent to $2.85bn in the first quarter of 2026-27 against $3.87bn a year earlier, largely due to lower imports and moderately higher exports.</p> <p>The steepest declines were 97.46pc and 72.51pc in import payments to Kuwait and Qatar. These two countries accounted for $947.9

A new memorial honors veterans of the Gulf War who liberated Kuwait from Saddam Hussein. Eleanor Watson has the story.

Police in the southern German state of Bavaria have detained a 33-year-old German man following the fire.

No injuries were reported at the building, while police said a ‘suspicious person’ had been taken into custody.

<p>Leading restaurateur says Gulf countries actively help businesses set up, while east Asia has a better work ethic</p><p>Some of London’s top restaurants are opening branches in Dubai because of a “tax tsunami” in the UK and better work ethic abroad, according to a leading restaurateur.</p><p>James Robson, a co-owner of Fallow in St James’s Market, regarde

<img align='right' src='https://images.jpost.com/image/upload/f_auto,fl_lossy/q_auto/c_fill,g_faces:center,h_1334,w_2000/743342' alt='Smoke and fire rise following a fire incident at the Kehlsteinhaus, the Eagle's Nest, in Berchtesgaden, Bavaria, Germany, in this handout image released October 24, 2026. (photo credit: Markus Leitner/Bavarian Red Cross/Handou

Their comments followed warnings by Iranian officials that undersea cables in the region could become targets in any renewed conflict if diplomacy with Washington collapses.

Iran top general says US military vessels will not be allowed to enter the Gulf "under any circumstances."

Iran has prepared detailed plans to strike undersea communications cables in the Gulf in retaliation for any renewed U.S. or Israeli military attack, two senior Iranian security of...

<img align='right' src='https://images.jpost.com/image/upload/f_auto,fl_lossy/q_auto/c_fill,g_faces:center,h_3333,w_5000/743314' alt='A person wades in the water as ships are seen anchored in the Strait of Hormuz on August 10, 2026 off the coast of Bandar Abbas, Iran. (photo credit: Ali Saeedi/Getty Images)' title='A person wades in the water as ships are se

The wars of recent months have exposed a troubling reality: despite a substantial American military presence and decades of close defence co-operation between the US and Arab countries, the security partnerships have neither deterred Iran nor fully shielded the region from its attacks. Two shortcomings stand out. The first is technical: traditional air defen

<p>Developments in the Gulf region amid the US-Israeli war on Iran came under discussion as the R4 foreign ministers — Pakistan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye — met with their counterparts from France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom.</p> <p>The R4 group, comprising Pakistan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye, emerged in March and has been focusing on

<p>The signing of the <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2038774">Badr Memorandum of Understanding </a>by Pakistan, Türkiye, Qatar and Indonesia in Doha on Wednesday is the latest manifestation of Middle Eastern states accelerated efforts for diversifying their defense partnerships amid growing doubts about the reliability of existing security arrangements o

Gulf economies are set to shrink 4.8 per cent this year as the Iran war disrupts energy exports and weighs on non-oil activity, before rebounding 9.1 per cent in 2027 , the International Monetary Fund said on Thursday. The forecast marks a sharp reversal for the six-member Gulf bloc, with the IMF cutting its 2026 growth projection by 6.8 percentage points fr

A noticeable shift in mood was apparent during French President Emmanuel Macron's three-day tour of five Gulf states, from his sombre demeanour on arrival in the UAE to an upbeat, combative tone in Doha. Walking past the Emirati national guard at Abu Dhabi airport on Monday with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed, Mr Macron looked stern, his brow furrowed and his

The US has ordered non-essential government employees and their families out of Saudi Arabia after a surge in Houthi attacks, including two on Wednesday in which four people were killed. State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott announced the order in a post on X. It covers “non-emergency US government employees and their family members in Saudi Arabia only”,

Biotech billionaire faces backlash over video featuring opponent’s estranged mother

France's deal to buy diesel from Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain will not make the fuel “cheap overnight” for the European country although it will also not make it more expensive, according to experts. The three Gulf states are to sell France the equivalent of 10 per cent of its usual diesel consumption in the coming weeks, French government sources said

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Wednesday that he had secured gas supply guarantees from Qatar during his Gulf tour, as he seeks to stabilise energy prices in his country after violent protests sparked by the rising cost of living. "We secured during the winter period the equivalent of two terawatt-hours per month of LNG, which was important for us

Many of the Gulf countries’ greatest achievements have been built on ambition and an ability to look beyond the limits of geography. During the past half-century, the region and its people have undergone a profound transformation. Small trading ports and pearl-diving communities have become cutting-edge, cosmopolitan cities that serve as global centres for c

Experience and big paydays have created a more resilient tanker fleet. Oil traders worry it isn’t sustainable.

Tom Barrack’s message comes as countries in the Middle East worry the U.S. will leave them to clean up after the Iran war.

More than 16 years after the BP oil spill off the Gulf Coast, new research reveals lasting damage to marine life.

Iseq in the green as London and European markets retreat

Sunday marks the first game the club has played since accusations of improper conduct of a sexual nature by three women.