Mpire Orbis (2024)

08/12/2023

Azerbaijan and Armenia have agreed to a prisoner exchange, and to work towards normalizing ties and a peace deal to a decades-long conflict — a move the United States and European Union have welcomed.

Azerbaijan will release 32 prisoners of war to Armenia in exchange for two, all members of the military, according to a joint statement published by Azerbaijan’s state news agency AZERTAC.

01/12/2023

The Middle East might be thousands of miles away from Europe and the United States. But social media and fast-paced sharing platforms have made identifying and living a conflict on a different continent easy. The battle didn’t spill over into neighboring countries but was exported to cities and streets that witnessed a direct connection. Cultures have disseminated everywhere, and they’re now becoming the main channel for change and action, defence, and sometimes going as far as affecting policies.

01/12/2023

“Henry Kissinger, the most powerful U.S. diplomat of the Cold War era, who helped Washington open up to China, forge arms control deals with the Soviet Union and end the Vietnam War, but who was reviled by critics over human rights, has died aged 100.”

20/11/2023

The world must “must act urgently” to stem the conflict in Gaza, China’s top diplomat said Monday during a meeting with officials from Arab and Muslim majority nations, as Beijing steps up its efforts to play a role in establishing ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi welcomed counterparts from Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, the Palestinian National Authority, and Indonesia, as well as the head of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation for a two-day visit to the Chinese capital, the start of the delegation’s expected tour of several world capitals.

“The international community must act urgently, taking effective measures to prevent this tragedy from spreading. China firmly stands with justice and fairness in this conflict,” Wang told the visiting leaders in opening remarks ahead of talks, where he reiterated China’s call for an immediate ceasefire.

11/11/2023

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has landed in the Saudi capital Riyadh for a major summit to discuss the conflict in Gaza.

The Iranian President was greeted by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, their first encounter since Saudi Arabia and Iran agreed to restore diplomatic relations earlier this year. It also marks the first visit by an Iranian president to the Kingdom in 11 years.

Saudi Arabia is hosting the Joint Arab Islamic Extraordinary Summit on Saturday in response to the "unprecedented circumstances in Gaza."

21/06/2023

“Israel plans 1,000 new homes for Eli settlement in the occupied West Bank, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said on Wednesday, calling this a response to a Palestinian gun attack there that killed four people.

Netanyahu and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich "agreed to move ahead immediately" with the planning.”

Meanwhile, “Israeli settlers rampaged through Palestinian towns in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday, torching buildings and cars in apparent retaliation for the killing by Hamas of four Israelis near a settlement the day before, residents and officials said.”

Original photo:

29/05/2023

“After years of dramatic political events and economic struggles, the Lebanese cultural scene is regaining its local footing, reopening museums and launching new ones“

Original photo: Internet

29/04/2023

As the fighting continues and ravages densely populated areas in Sudan, civilians pay the highest cost of futile strife: a shameless battle between two competing generals for power and dominance.

Full article on

27/04/2023

Japan has begun asserting itself more confidently on the global stage, a significant departure from its traditional post-WW2 approach. A key part of that shift has been engagement with the Middle East, with major implications for the whole region.

Read the full piece the

27/04/2023

A Netflix docudrama series portraying Queen Cleopatra VII as a black African resulted in a wide controversy in Egypt, leading to a lawsuit and calling for its ban. But the underlying read of it all is far more profound.

Read the full take on

13/03/2023

AI has a lot to offer to the world. But more so is its capability of providing adequate data in service of a more consorted international humanitarian response.

24/02/2023

China has reiterated its calls for a political settlement to the Ukraine conflict on the one-year anniversary of Russia's invasion, as Beijing comes under increasing pressure from the United States and its allies over its growing partnership with Moscow.

In a newly released position paper Friday, China's Foreign Ministry called for a resumption of peace talks, an end to unilateral sanctions, and stressed its opposition to the use of nuclear weapons.

"Conflict and war benefit no one. All parties must stay rational and exercise restraint, avoid fanning the flames and aggravating tensions, and prevent the crisis from deteriorating further or even spiraling out of control," the paper said.

The 12-point document is part of Beijing's latest efforts to present itself as a neutral peace broker, as it struggles to balance its "no-limits" friendship with Moscow and fraying relations with the West as the war drags on.

19/02/2023

A massive new proposed structure purporting to be “the largest inner city building in the world” is on tap for the Saudi capital of Riyadh, according to local news reports.

The so-called “Mukaab” will form the centerpiece of a new downtown core for the city called New Murabba, which is expected to add 104,000 residential units, 9,000 hotel rooms, 980,000 square meters of retail space, 1.4 million square meters of office space, an 80-venue entertainment and cultural program, another 1.8 million square meters of community facility space as well as a technology and design-focused university.

13/02/2023

Syrian President Bashar al Assad on Sunday met UAE foreign minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed in the first such high-level visit by an Arab official since the earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria, official media reported.

10/02/2023

The U.S. intelligence community has linked the Chinese spy balloon shot down on Saturday to a vast surveillance program run by the People’s Liberation Army, and U.S. officials have begun to brief allies and partners who have been similarly targeted.

The surveillance balloon effort, which has operated for several years partly out of Hainan province off China’s south coast, has collected information on military assets in countries and areas of emerging strategic interest to China including Japan, India, Vietnam, Taiwan and the Philippines, according to several U.S. officials.

08/02/2023

Members of the Syrian civil defence, known as the White Helmets, in Syria’s rebel-held northwestern Idlib province.

More than 298,000 people have been forced to leave their homes due to this week's deadly earthquake, Syrian state media reported, in an apparent reference to the parts of Syria under government control, not those held by other factions.

State news agency SANA quoted Hussein Makhlouf, minister of local administration and environment, as saying the state had also opened 180 shelters for displaced people.

07/02/2023

It might have started with the earthquakes and their immediate coverage, but now it's about rescuing and helping the people. Listen to them, focus on their pain, and let's help them survive.

In the midst of it all, if we can take away one thing from those children whose faces were broadcasted around the world, protecting each other under the rubble, smiling at rescuers, and telling them where their loved ones are, is that strength, humanity, and hope can truly bring the world together, and make it slightly better, even in the worst of situations.

06/02/2023

At least 195 people were killed in two countries after one of the strongest earthquakes to hit Turkey in more than 100 years sent tremors across the region, collapsing buildings and sending residents running into the streets.

The 7.8-magnitude quake struck 23 kilometers (14.2 miles) east of Nurdagi, Gaziantep province, at a depth of 24.1 kilometers (14.9 miles), the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said. Nurdagi is located along the Turkey-Syria border, and the quake was felt in several countries across the region, sending shockwaves across northern Syria, Cyprus, Lebanon, Greece, Iraq, and Jordan.

Original map:

03/02/2023

Pope Francis delivered a message of peace on Wednesday in the Democratic Republic of Congo as he met survivors and victims of the atrocities of the war in eastern DRC.

On Wednesday afternoon, the pontiff was confronted with a stark reality as he received emotional testimonies from victims of violence who have been fighting in North and South Kivu and Ituri since the late 1990s.

Around half of DR Congo's population is Catholic - the largest Catholic community in Africa.

It is more than 37 years since a pope has visited the mineral-rich but conflict-ridden country.

The pope addressed DR Congo's plight, as minerals have played a key role in more than three decades of armed conflict there: "Hands off the Democratic Republic of the Congo! Hands off Africa! Stop choking Africa, it is not a mine to be stripped or a terrain to be plundered."

02/02/2023

Artworks generated by artificial intelligence (AI) have become a source of controversy, but Nigerian filmmaker and artist Malik Afegbua is making a case that it can challenge us to create a better real world - and a more stylish one for older people.

At first glance, his images look like they were snapped on the edge of a fashion runway, but these models are not actually real people.
Instead, the pictures are the result of Afegbua's imagination working in conjunction with AI software, showing older-looking models in beautiful clothes.

Original picture: Malik Afegbuna

02/02/2023

The US has secured access to four additional military bases in the
Philippines - a key bit of real estate which would offer a front seat to monitor the Chinese in the South China Sea and around Taiwan.

With this deal, Washington has stitched the gap in the arc of US alliances stretching from South Korea and Japan in the north to Australia in the south.

The missing link had been the Philippines, which borders two of the biggest potential flashpoints, Taiwan and the South China Sea, or the West Philippine Sea as Manila insists on calling it.

The US already had limited access to five sites under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) - the new additions and expanded access, according to a statement from Washington, will "allow more rapid support for humanitarian and climate-related disasters in the Philippines, and respond to other shared challenges", likely a veiled reference to countering China in the region.

Original picture:

01/02/2023

France has spearheaded international efforts to rescue Lebanon, pushing for a power generation plan that includes Egypt, Jordan, & Syria. Announced in 2021, the plan's still on hold pending US assurances that sanctions under the Caesar Act will be waived.

In the meantime, Lebanon will adopt a new official exchange rate of 15,000 pounds per U.S. dollar on Feb. 1, central bank governor Riad Salameh said, marking a 90% devaluation from its current official rate that has remained unchanged for 25 years.

Facing a political deadlock and an economic collapse, the Lebanese presidency has been empty since Oct. 31. The caretaker government seems to have no political will to conduct the reforms needed to bring in the assistance promised by the IMF and the international community.

01/02/2023

“An Iranian court has handed jail sentences of over 10 years each to a young couple who danced in front of one of Tehran's main landmarks, activists said on Tuesday.

Astiyazh Haghighi and her fiance Amir Mohammad Ahmadi, both in their early 20s, had been arrested in early November after a video went viral of them dancing romantically in front of the capital's Azadi Tower.

Haghighi did not wear a headscarf in defiance of the Islamic republic's strict rules for women, while women are also not allowed to dance in public in Iran, let alone with a man.”

Original picture: from the couple’s video

01/02/2023

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken might be renewing US' call for a two-state solution during his visit to Israel and the West Bank but in an interview with , Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu doesn't seem too convinced of having the PA in full control of its territories fearing militant insurgency & citing potential Iranian control.

27/01/2023

Israeli police confirmed several people were killed and others injured in a shooting attack in the Neve Yaakov neighborhood in Jerusalem on Friday evening.

Palestinian militants fired two rockets from the Gaza Strip on southern Israel on Friday morning in response to the latest flare-up in the Jenin refugee camp in the West Bank.

This critical situation has been in the making for months, following escalating tensions and clashes in the West Bank between Palestinians and Israeli forces.

These developments cast a shadow on US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit to the region on Monday in a tour to Egypt, Israel and the West Bank, where discussions on the situation will be held.

Original picture: internet

26/01/2023

The latest charges made by Beirut port explosion Judge Tarek Bitar against Lebanon’s key political figures has angered many in the political elite who banned him from travel on Wednesday.

The latest charges made by Beirut port explosion Judge Tarek Bitar against Lebanon’s key political figures has angered many in the political elite who banned him from travel on Wednesday.

Bitar is the second judge to take the case following Judge Fadi Sawan, who led the initial investigation. He was forced out after complaints of bias by Cabinet ministers.

Both judges tried repeatedly to lift parliamentary immunity in order to legally prosecute former and sitting parliamentarians while charging parliament members, high-ranking military officers and politicians alike.

This is a highly sensitive politically charged case. Recent calls were also made to replace Bitar. If this were to happen, it could be the final blow to the investigation.

Original picture:

20/01/2023

Jacinda Ardern resigns as New Zealand’s Prime Minister ahead of this year’s election citing burn out.

She’s been fierce, gracious, and correct throughout her stay in office, change the face of global politics and redefining its standards. Never once has she done the mistake of not putting the nation’s interest first. A political force of nature, while facing some narrow-minded and uneducated commentaries against women, success, and family.

The amount of support she gained in and out of office, from both the local and international communities is practically unparalleled for a public leader nowadays. A pro-level politician, who has put her country on a map in challenging times and made sure to garner New Zealand’s communities as one nation above all.

In her resignation speech, she said “I had hoped that I would find what I needed to carry on over that period. But unfortunately, I haven’t, and I would be doing a disservice to New Zealand to continue.”

Hopefully, her legacy is an inspiration for leaders to aspire to put their country first, fight for the service of its people, and lead successfully and effectively until it’s time to leave the seat. Bowing out of politics, knowing when you’ve reached your limits is a much-needed political prerequisite, in a business that gets led by excessive greed, power-drunk minds, and financial personal interests.

05/01/2023

Pope Francis will preside at a funeral Mass in St. Peter's Square on Thursday for his predecessor former Pope Benedict, who died on Saturday at the age of 95.

30/12/2022

Pele (1940-2022).

Pelé, the Brazilian soccer legend who won three World Cups and became the sport’s first global icon, has died at the age of 82.

19/12/2022

Lionel Messi-inspired Argentina wins World Cup after beating France in sensational final.

Mpire Orbis

08/12/2023

01/12/2023

01/12/2023

20/11/2023

11/11/2023

21/06/2023

29/05/2023

29/04/2023

27/04/2023

27/04/2023

13/03/2023

24/02/2023

19/02/2023

13/02/2023

10/02/2023

08/02/2023

07/02/2023

06/02/2023

03/02/2023

02/02/2023

02/02/2023

01/02/2023

01/02/2023

01/02/2023

27/01/2023

26/01/2023

20/01/2023

05/01/2023

30/12/2022

19/12/2022

Address

Website

Alerts

Contact The Business

Shortcuts

Share