Who is Handala, the hacktivist group US ties to Iranian intelligence? Handala Hack Team portrays itself as a pro-Palestinian group but is widely believed to be linked to Iranian intelligence. Iran
Iran names US tech, finance firms in new Middle East threat list Firms listed as potential targets included Oracle, Microsoft, Apple, Google, Meta, IBM, Palantir and Nvidia, while banking giant JPMorgan and UAE-based AI firm G42 were also listed. Iran
Gulf AI deals continues to lure investors despite US-Iran war Blackstone committed $250 million to a payment infrastructure platform in Abu Dhabi as the US investment firm's president lauded the UAE's strong investment credentials despite the conflict. Saudi Arabia
Analysis Iran’s longest-ever internet blackout leaves 99% offline: What to know Facing a historic internet blackout, Iranians are locked in a struggle with authorities to find loopholes to get around this communications crackdown, leading to "shutdowns within a shutdown." By Samuel Wendel In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech
Analysis India's Modi arrives in Israel as fears grow of US-Iran conflict By Rina Bassist In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs
Amnesty loses battle against Israeli spy-technology company The Tel Aviv court ruled that Amnesty International failed to present sufficient evidence in its claim against spy-technology company NSO. Israel
Amnesty blasts Bahrain, Kuwait for 'highly invasive' COVID-19 tracing apps Amnesty International has warned apps used to trace the movements of possible COVID-19 cases in Bahrain, Kuwait and Norway put the privacy of citizens at risk. Bahrain
China apparently left out of Israel's 5G network tender The first phase of the tender for building the 5G wireless network in Israel has passed its deadline, with Chinese bidders apparently left out. Israel
Services emerge to help Middle Eastern men beat high costs of marriage In Gaza and Egypt, men are seeking help from religious authorities and matchmaking services to persuade their prospective brides' families to lower financial demands. Palestine
Artists reflect on age of anxiety in Sharjah A group of contemporary artists explore the ways everyday technologies have altered our collective consciousness and created the age of anxiety, but the exhibit in Sharjah has been postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak. United Arab Emirates
Egyptian program aims to send first Egyptian into space Egypt's young but ambitious space agency is accepting applications from cititzens who would receive training to go into space as the first Egyptian by 2026. Egypt
3,000-year-old talking mummy creates dispute in Egypt Egyptians are arguing among themselves on a new study that has recreated the voice of a 3,000-year-old mummified Egyptian priest. Egypt
Death on the Nile takes a digital turn Two online platforms help families organize funerals in Egypt. Egypt
What, no connection? Internet outage further darkens life in Yemen Yemenis have long suffered a humanitarian crisis, but a severed wire makes it even worse when they can no longer connect. Yemen
Can Egypt's newest search engine root out extremism? Egypt's Islamic authority Dar al-Ifta has launched a search engine to track extremist content in the fight against terrorism and Islamophobia, but critics believe much more is needed. Egypt
Is US redesigning southern flank? Amid Turkey’s rapprochement with Russia, the United States has stepped up military cooperation with Greece, Turkey’s traditional regional rival, heralding shifts in geostrategic balances in the Balkans, the Aegean and the eastern Mediterranean. Syria
Interview UAE minister draws on the past to seize possibilities of AI future In an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, Omar Al Olama, the UAE’s minister of artificial intelligence, laid out his country's approach to AI, stating, “We do not believe that we need to wait and be followers in the AI revolution. We need to take the lead.”
