Edward Finkelstein

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has appointed his military secretary, Maj. Gen. Roman Gofman, as the next director of the Mossad, Israel’s foreign intelligence agency.

Israel said Wednesday that its first direct discussions with Lebanon in more than four decades were held in a “positive atmosphere,” raising cautious hopes for progress between the two countries, which remain technically at war.

Saudi Arabia’s push to turn mining into a pillar of its post-oil economy got a major boost this week after a leading local operator reported the discovery of around 11 million tonnes of high-potential mineral resources in the kingdom’s southwest.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog hosted on Monday a delegation of Muslim religious leaders from Senegal, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Benin, and Togo in Jerusalem, marking a rare and symbolically powerful moment of interfaith, diplomatic, and strategic engagement.

Israel is about to flip the switch on a new era of warfare. On December 30, the country will fully deploy the Iron Beam, a high-powered laser system built to shoot down drones, rockets, missiles, and mortars—at the speed of light.

Turkey on Thursday strongly rejected the newly signed maritime demarcation agreement between Lebanon and Cyprus, arguing that the deal ignores the rights of Turkish Cypriots and therefore cannot be accepted.

Dubai has secured its place as the world’s second-largest gold trading hub, despite having no domestic production and limited historical ties to the industry. 

U.S. President Donald Trump announced that the United States is preparing to designate the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization, describing the move as something that will be carried out “in the strongest and most powerful terms.” 

Hezbollah’s acting chief of staff, Ali Tabatabai, was killed in a targeted strike on his safehouse in Beirut’s Dahiyeh district, according to security sources. 

Tbilisi is preparing to host the Global Investors Forum (GIF 2025), a major economic event aimed at boosting cooperation between GCC countries and Eurasia. 

The Sultanate of Oman celebrates its National Day on 20 November commemorating the Al Busaidi State Foundation, a moment that highlights both the country’s political continuity and its accelerated push for economic transformation under Sultan Haitham bin Tariq Al Said.

Taiwan and Israel have signed two agreements aimed at deepening cooperation on intellectual property protection and expediting patent examinations, as both economies seek to strengthen technological collaboration amid shifting global supply-chain dynamics.