Dubai announced on Sunday that work had begun on a new terminal at Al Maktoum International Airport, which the Gulf emirate's ruler said will become "the world's largest" at a cost of almost $35 billion. "We approved the designs for the new passenger terminal at Al Maktoum International Airport, and (are) commencing construction of the building at a cost of AED 128 billion ($34.85 billion)," Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai and prime minister of the United Arab Emirates, said on X. Once fully operational, the airport will "handle a passenger capacity of 260 million an ..read more

A senior Hamas official told AFP on Sunday that the Palestinian militant group had "no major issues" with the latest proposal from Israel and Egypt for a Gaza ceasefire. "The atmosphere is positive unless there are new Israeli obstacles. There are no major issues in the observations and inquiries submitted by Hamas regarding the contents" of the proposal, said a Hamas official who spoke on condition of anonymity. A Hamas delegation led by the movement's senior leader, Khalil al-Hayya, would deliver the group's response to the truce proposal during a meeting with Egyptian and Qatari mediators i ..read more

Displaced Palestinians in war-torn Gaza have expressed their thanks to students protesting in support of the devastating territory at US university campuses in recent days. One Palestinian man, Abu Youssef Hamad, who has fled to Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah, painted phrases on the city's tents showcasing his appreciation for the students, who have demonstrated and set-up encampments in a bid to protest against their universities’ links with Israel. Among the phrases are "Thank you students in solidarity with Gaza, you messaged has reached", "Thank you students for [sic] Columbia ..read more

The White House said Sunday that a US-made pier meant to boost aid to Gaza will become operational in a few weeks but cannot replace land routes with trucks as the best way to feed people in the territory. Israel's nearly seventh-month war on Gaza has triggered a humanitarian crisis, and it faces growing pressure to enable more aid deliveries as the UN warns famine is imminent. The Pentagon said last week that the US military had begun building a pier meant to speed up aid deliveries. "It will take probably two to three weeks before we can really see an operation," White House national securit ..read more

Saudi Arabia on Sunday said the international community has failed Gaza and reiterated its call for a Palestinian state at a global economic summit attended by a host of mediators. "The situation in Gaza obviously is a catastrophe by every measure - humanitarian, but also a complete failing of the existing political system to deal with that crisis," Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said during the first day of a Saudi-hosted World Economic Forum special meeting. Only "a credible, irreversible path to a Palestinian state" will prevent the world from confronting "this same situation two ..read more

35 people have been hospitalized in the Saudi capital Riyadh, with 28 of them in intensive care, following a food poisoning outbreak on Thursday. The Saudi newspaper Arab News reported that the food poisoning cases were caused by the Clostridium botulinum bacteria and started at the local Hamburgini fast-food restaurant chain. “Six cases have fully recovered after receiving appropriate health care, and two have been safely discharged. However, 35 individuals remain hospitalized, with 28 of them in intensive care,” Health Ministry spokesperson Mohammed Abdalali said. The Colstridium botulinum b ..read more

Police detained nearly 200 people at three US universities on Saturday as they cleared pro-Palestinian encampments, in the latest raids on students protesting against Israel's war on Gaza. Dozens of students remained encamped Saturday at the University of Pennsylvania, despite the college president ordering disbandment after what he said were "credible reports of harassing and intimidating conduct." Meanwhile, Columbia University in New York, where the protests originated, was relatively calm. Officials there announced Friday that they would not be calling police back to campus after more ..read more

Diplomatic efforts intensified on Sunday to reach a long sought-after truce and hostage-release deal in Gaza, as Hamas said it would travel to mediator Egypt to deliver its response to Israel's latest proposal. A Hamas delegation will arrive in Egypt on Monday to deliver the group's response to Israel's new hostage and truce counter-proposal, a senior official of the Palestinian group told AFP. Hamas has previously insisted on a permanent ceasefire - a condition that Israel has rejected. However the Axios news website, citing two Israeli officials, reported that Israel's latest proposal includ ..read more

Over 600 Israeli extremists stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem early on Sunday. the Islamic Endowment Department which runs the holy site said. The storming coincided with the sixth day of the week-long Jewish holiday of Passover, The extremists performed Talmudic rituals in the mosque's courtyards under the protection of Israeli forces, the department said. Video clips shared online showed the extremists entering the site, considered the third holiest in Islam. Many prominent extremist Israeli figures participated in the incursion, including former Knesset member and Ortho ..read more

Iranian authorities have banned an Egyptian TV series depicting a medieval Persian figure over historical "distortions" and "a biased approach", state media reported Sunday. "The Assassins", or "El-Hashashin" in Arabic, recounts the story of Hassan-i Sabbah, the controversial founder of an offshoot Shia Muslim sect known for bloody political assassinations during the 11 century. The 30-episode series about Sabbah and his band of Assassins, who operated out of mountain bases in northern and western Iran, was first broadcast during the holy Muslim month of Ramadan which ended earlier this month ..read more