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
Israel’s Cynical Concern For Palestinian Workers Israel is claiming that boycotting settlement products harms the Palestinian economy, while the Israeli administration disregards Palestinian workers' rights. Palestine
Iraqi Activists Seek to End Pensions for Parliament Post-retirement pensions for members of Iraq's Council of Representatives has provoked a heated debate among Iraqi civil activists. Iraq
Baghdad Nightlife Cloaked in Fear Amid curfews and an unstable security environment, Iraqis in the nightlife business live in constant fear of militia attacks, security raids and customer brawls. Iraq
Lapid: The Political Novice Who Never Makes Mistakes The reaction of Finance Minister Yair Lapid to the fiasco surrounding the appointment of a new governor of the Bank of Israel appears to show his inability to accept criticism. Israel
Turkish Media Drifting Toward an Abyss The crisis at Sabah and Milliyet, two of Turkey’s flagship newpapers, has deepened under persistent political pressure, sounding the alarm for the country’s media. Turkey
An Anatolian Tiger Gives Fair Warning to Erdogan A leader of the conservative business community in Turkey criticizes the government’s latest move against the country’s largest industrial group Turkey
Lebanon's Economy Shrinks Under Burden of Syrian Crisis Traditionally bolstered by its larger and more economically diverse neighbor, Lebanon’s economy has felt the sting of the war raging in Syria. Lebanon
Environmental Crisis Looms in Turkey The Turkish media is ignoring possible ecological disasters for fear of angering Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Turkey
Erdogan’s Top Economic Adviser Takes Heat from Business A controversial tax probe at Turkey’s largest business conglomerate adds to the woes of economy chief Ali Babacan. Turkey
OPEC Again Excludes Iraq from Oil Quotas Decades of war and international sanctions have greatly hindered Iraq’s oil production potential, an issue the current government is struggling to address. Iraq
Is Audit of Koc Companies Erdogan’s Revenge for Gezi Park? Police-accompanied tax audit raids against three companies of Turkey's largest industrial group, Koc, is putting into deeds Erdogan’s threats against capital owners he holds responsible for the Gezi Park events. Turkey
