Free Republic

I really did try today to stay away from many things about the conflict going on in the Middle East. Since the heinous attack of Hamas crossing into Israel two weeks ago, I have been reading up and listening to foreign news sources to try to get away from the filter of the US press. As many of us here at RedState have written recently, the US press reporting might be a bit off on their coverage and point of view of what is happening there right now. So when I came across a headline that basically had as its...

Health authorities in Gaza said over 5,000 people were killed since the Oct. 7 start of the war between Palestinian militant group Hamas and Israel. More than 15,000 have been injured, the authorities said. It is over two weeks since the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched its assault on Israel, killing at least 1,400 people and taking over 200 hostage. CNBC could not independently verify these numbers. A full surrender of Hamas and the return of Israeli hostages could end Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip, Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Jonathan Conricus told ABC Radio Melbourne. “The aim here is...

JERUSALEM, ISRAEL – Everyone in Israel is waiting for the ground invasion of northern Gaza to begin. Why hasn’t it started already? Some in the media are speculating that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has just “blinked,” and isn’t serious about eradicating the Hamas terrorist organization. That’s not it. One obvious reason for the delay: Israel’s wants all Palestinian civilians in the northern half of Gaza to move south, out of the way of the coming IDF invasion. Another: Netanyahu has been welcoming major world leaders in recent days, including U.S. President Joe Biden, the German Chancellor, and the British Prime...

While the Arab states make a hue and cry about Israel’s wrongdoings in Gaza, they themselves are not doing anything to help Palestinians in distress US Presidential aspirant, Nikki Haley has put the cat amongst the pigeons by asking some straight questions. She stated, “You're going to hear all those Arab countries vilify Israel for what's about to happen. You're going to hear all of them say, how dare you not do more for the Palestinian people?” and then posed bluntly, “But where are the Arab countries? Where are they? Where is Qatar? Where is Lebanon? Where is Jordan? Where...

The U.S. Treasury Department has announced sanctions on two companies for allegedly violating a price cap on Russian oil agreed last year by Western countries. Vessels owned by companies based in the United Arab Emirates and Turkey were cited as having violated a price cap set in December by the countries in the Group of Seven leading economies... The coalition set the price cap at $60 per barrel for Russian crude to restrict income for Russian oil that could then be used to fund its invasion of Ukraine. A vessel owned by U.A.E.-based Lumber Marine was found to have violated...

The United States and Qatar have reached an understanding not to allow Iran to access the $6 billion funds reserved for humanitarian assistance. U.S. Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo told Democrats behind closed doors on Thursday that the U.S. and Qatar had reached a “quiet understanding” not to move the money, a person familiar with his comments told Semafor. The news comes as U.S. officials probe whether Iran was directly involved in the Hamas attack on Israel over the weekend. Adeyemo told the lawmakers the funds would not be moving anytime soon, the person said.

"After the Taliban shut universities for women, my only hope was to get a scholarship which would help me study abroad," says 20-year-old Afghan student Natkai. Natkai's name has been changed for her own safety. The Taliban have cracked down hard on women who oppose them. Natkai says she kept studying even though there was little chance of her ever attending university in her homeland. Then she was granted a scholarship to study at the University of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) from Emirati billionaire businessman Sheikh Khalaf Ahmad Al Habtoor. The scholarships for Afghan women were announced...

A British fashion entrepreneur has sold a coveted plot of sand on a luxury island in Dubai in a record-setting deal. The empty, 24,500-square-foot parcel of land, which lies on the man-made Jumeirah Bay Island and has no structures on it, sold for 125 million dirhams, or $34 million, on April 19, according to Knight Frank, the real estate firm that brokered the off-market deal. The sale is noteworthy because of the property's sparseness — previous headline-grabbing sales in Dubai have been of mega-mansions and ultra-luxurious apartments. "Only buys you the sand" A $34 million real estate deal in Dubai...

The founder and former CEO of collapsing crypto trader Sam Bankman-Fried is said to be holed up with members of his inner circle in the Bahamas while his empire collapses around him. Bankman-Fried, 30, resigned from FTX on Friday, as the crypto exchange filed for bankruptcy and reports emerged that up to $2 billion in client funds had vanished from the company's books in recent weeks. According to Coin Telegraph, the disgraced former CEO is holed up at the Albany Tower alongside FTX co-founder Gary Wang and the company's director of engineering Nishad Singh.

Where in the world is Will Smith? Sources say that days after the Oscar slap flap, Will was flown by his BFF, the Crown Prince of Dubai, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, aka “Fazza,” to the middle Eastern kingdom so he could cool out while his bad press burns like a California wildfire. The 39 year old Fazza, as he is known, is a good looking 39 year old entrepreneur, sports man, and businessman. He was married off to a cousin in 2019 and now has a set of twins. When the babies were born, Smith sent...

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The Middle East is the most water-scarce region in the world, but participants at an upcoming climate summit in Dubai will be ensconced in a resort with one of the world’s largest water parks, complete with artificial lagoons, encounters with dolphins and a mesmerizing aquarium with sharks, sting rays and schools of fish. It’s a striking backdrop for a climate summit aimed at tackling lack of water and other pressing issues facing the region due in part to warming global temperatures from the very fossil fuels produced by Gulf Arab states and others. The...

Sotheby’s Dubai has opened its exhibit of Sandro Botticelli’s The Man of Sorrows, a rare example of the artist’s later work. The painting is expected to sell at an estimated excess of $40 million at Sotheby’s Old Masters sale in New York in January, and it's on view in Dubai until Tuesday. The brooding portrait of the resurrected Christ was executed in the late 15th or early 16th centuries – the last decade of the artist’s life. For Christopher Apostle, head of Old Master Paintings at Sotheby’s New York, the work presents an unusual moment in the artist’s oeuvre. “Botticelli...

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani says he left Kabul to prevent bloodshed as he denied reports he took large sums of money with him as he departed the presidential palace. Ghani, who confirmed he was in the United Arab Emirates, said he was in 'consultation' to return to Afghanistan after he met a barrage of bitter criticism by former ministers for leaving the country suddenly as Taliban forces entered the capital on Sunday. But the United States - Ghani's most important ally - reiterated today that it did not see Ghani as a player in the region, after the ousted president...

Reps. James Comer (R-Ky.) and Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-Wis.) on Tuesday demanded answers from the Biden administration on whether ex-Afghan President Ashraf Ghani stole US aid before fleeing to the United Arab Emirates. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki on Wednesday indicated she's not aware of whether or not it's true that Ghani fled to Dubai with millions of dollars. https://twitter.com/stevennelson10/status/1430669793267494913

A young Chinese woman says she was held for eight days at a Chinese-run secret detention facility in Dubai, along with at least two Uyghurs, in what may be the first evidence that China is operating a “black site” beyond its borders.Wu Huan, 26, was on the run to avoid extradition to China because her fiancé was considered a Chinese dissident. Wu told The Associated Press she was abducted from a hotel in Dubai and detained by Chinese officials at a villa, converted into a jail, where she saw or heard two other prisoners, both Uyghurs.She said she was questioned...

We’ve all heard the stories about how China is making people disappear in their reeducation camps in the western reaches of their nation, particularly the Uyghurs. But are they engaged in similar tactics in other countries? That’s the claim being made by one Chinese woman who says that she was detained in a secret black site in Dubai for more than a week. The woman claims to have been held without access to legal counsel or the ability to contact her family. She also was reportedly forced to sign legal documents incriminating her own fiance’ who is still back in...

The founder of Dubai, Sheikh Rashid, was asked about the future of his country, and he replied, "My grandfather rode a camel, my father rode a camel, I ride a Mercedes, my son rides a Land Rover, and my grandson is going to ride a Land Rover…but my great-grandson is going to have to ride a camel again." Why is that, he was asked? And his reply was, “Hard times create strong men, strong men create easy times. Easy times create weak men, weak men create difficult times. Many will not understand it, but you have to raise warriors, not...

One of the Ukrainian models detained in Dubai for an X-rated photoshoot that made international headlines claims she was forced to take part in the stunt – and is still stuck in the United Arab Emirates. SNIP The curvaceous blonde slammed the alleged organizer of the event – Ukrainian-American Vitaliy Grechin, 41 – in messages to her boyfriend for allowing the raunchy images to be posted online and cause a furor, East2West News reported. SNIP Grechin — a businessman who has been seen pressing the flesh with Barack Obama, eating with George Clooney and posing with Hillary Clinton in photos...

An Israeli-owned cargo ship that suffered a mysterious explosion in the Gulf of Oman came to Dubai’s port for repairs Sunday, days after the blast that revived security concerns in Mideast waterways amid heightened tensions with Iran. Associated Press journalists saw the hulking Israeli-owned MV Helios Ray sitting at dry dock facilities at Dubai’s Port Rashid. Although the crew was unharmed in the blast, the vessel sustained two holes on its port side and two on its starboard side just above the waterline, according to American defense officials. From the shore, AP journalists could not immediately see damage to the...

GDRFA Dubai introduces latest biometric technology to ensure contactless journeyUtilising the latest biometric technology — a mix of facial and iris recognition — passengers can check in for their flight, complete immigration formalities, enter the Emirates lounge and board their flights, simply by strolling through the airport. The new project by the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA)-Dubai called the “Biometric Passenger Journey” will ease travel through Dubai Airports in cooperation with Emirates. The new project has now been launched at Dubai International Airports to create a contact-free travel journey and to cut down on queues in light...