Turkey lifts veil on unemployment data, revealing bigger army of jobless A new, broader set of labor statistics has exposed a big gap between Turkey’s official unemployment rate and the actual joblessness in the crisis-hit country. Turkey
Rights group criticizes Jordan over debt imprisonment Human Rights Watch has highlighted the plight of poor Jordanians imprisoned for failing to pay back loans taken out to meet basic needs. Jordan
COVID accelerates evolution of Gulf economies The economic policy response to COVID-19 is an acceleration of specific trends already underway across the Gulf Cooperation Council members, variously affecting tax policy, labor market regulation and immigration policy. Saudi Arabia
Iran receives COVID-19 vaccine from Cuba Iran enjoys warm relations with the Latin American state and the two countries are also developing a coronavirus vaccine together. Iran
Why Iranian government’s debt problem isn’t going away Despite the Iranian government’s decision to repay billions of dollars owed to local banks, in the broader picture, it will remain saddled with problematic debt until it turns to bonds rather than loans for financing. Iran
Egypt turns to Japanese model to reform education Egypt, whose educational system is seen as widely lacking, is seeking to invigorate its school system by adopting aspects of the Japanese whole child educational model. Egypt
Erdogan presses for 1.5 million new jobs ahead of key vote Faced with a worsening economic downturn, Turkey’s president scrambles to achieve some improvement, even if transient, ahead of a critical referendum in April. Turkey
What can memorizing the Quran buy you in Gaza? Gazans who have memorized the Quran can have their weddings paid for through a new, controversial program in Gaza. Palestine
Can economic opportunity bring Turkey, Egypt closer? Turkey and Egypt are making investment overtures toward one another despite lingering political animosity that is unlikely to be resolved. Egypt
Resumption of Iranian oil shipping off to slow start While many are hailing Iran's first oil tanker reaching European shores as an important development, the country's energy sector must still overcome several more hurdles. Iran
Gaza barber plays with fire A Palestinian barber in Gaza is giving his clients a unique haircut by straightening and styling their hair with fire. Palestine
Do Iranian MPs want to send working women back home? The Iranian parliament’s approval of a law to allow women to apply for early retirement after only working for 20 years triggers heavy criticism of the economic and social consequences. Iran
Controversy surrounds hijab during Swedish visit to Iran Iranian hard-liners took the government to task for allowing an event where female Swedish diplomats did not wear the hijab, while the Swedish women faced blowback at home too. Iran
Syrian actors look for fresh start in Egypt Dozens of Syrian actors who were forced to leave Syria because of the conflict are trying to reassemble their lives and careers in Egypt. Egypt
Egypt's publishers hope book fair can boost slumping sales The high number of visitors to the Cairo Book Fair, the second largest of its kind in the world, came as a pleasant surprise. Egypt
How far is Egypt willing to go to have strong grip on media? Egypt's former armed forces spokesman is now the head of a media outlet, which is sparking much controversy and raising questions about the Egyptian state's tight grip on the media. Egypt