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Saudi Crown Prince, Brazilian President Hold Talks, Witness Signing of Bilateral MoU

Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, received President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of the Federative Republic of Brazil at the Royal Court at Al-Yamamah palace. (SPA)
Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, received President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of the Federative Republic of Brazil at the Royal Court at Al-Yamamah palace. (SPA)
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Saudi Crown Prince, Brazilian President Hold Talks, Witness Signing of Bilateral MoU

Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, received President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of the Federative Republic of Brazil at the Royal Court at Al-Yamamah palace. (SPA)
Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, received President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of the Federative Republic of Brazil at the Royal Court at Al-Yamamah palace. (SPA)

Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, received President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of the Federative Republic of Brazil at the Royal Court at Al-Yamamah palace, SPA said on Tuesday.
An official welcome ceremony was held for the Brazilian president.
The Crown Prince extended a warm welcome to the Brazilian President at the beginning of their meeting and wished him and his accompanying delegation a pleasant stay.
The Brazilian president expressed his gratitude and appreciation for the warm hospitality and gracious reception received.
The two men reviewed aspects of relations between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Federative Republic of Brazil and discussed joint coordination to enhance cooperation in various fields.
They explored promising investment opportunities in both nations to serve mutual interests. They also addressed the regional and international developments, as well as issues of common interest and the efforts directed towards them.
Attending the talks were Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Energy; Prince Turki bin Mohammed bin Fahd bin Abdulaziz, Minister of State and Cabinet Member; Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki bin Faisal bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Sports; Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Naif bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Interior; Prince Abdullah bin Bandar bin Abdulaziz, Minister of the National Guard; and Prince Khalid bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Defense.
The meeting was also attended by the Saudi Minister of State, Cabinet's Member and National Security Advisor, Musaed bin Mohammed Al-Aiban; Minister of Commerce, Majid bin Abdullah Al-Qasabi; Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture, Abdulrahman bin Abdulmohsen Al-Fadhli; Minister of Investment, Khalid bin Abdulaziz Al-Falih; Minister of Finance, Mohammed bin Abdullah Al-Jadaan; and the Saudi Ambassador to Brazil, Faisal bin Ibrahim Ghulam.
From the Brazilian side, the attendees included President of the National Congress Rodrigo Otavio Soares Pacheco; Chief of Staff of the Presidential Office Rui Costa; Minister of Finance Fernando Haddad; Minister of Ports and Airports Silvio Costa Filho; Minister of Agriculture Carlos Favaro; Minister of Mines and Energy Alexandre Silveira; and various other senior Brazilian officials.
Afterwards, the Crown Prince and the Brazilian President witnessed the signing ceremony of a bilateral memorandum of understanding (MoU) in the field of energy between the Saudi Ministry of Energy and the Brazilian Ministry of Mines and Energy.
Prince Abdulaziz signed the MoU from the Saudi side while Silveira signed from the Brazilian side.

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Gulf

Iraq Vows No Leniency with Parties Harming Ties with Saudi Arabia

Iraqi government spokesman Bassem al-Awadi. (INA)
Iraqi government spokesman Bassem al-Awadi. (INA)
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Iraq Vows No Leniency with Parties Harming Ties with Saudi Arabia

Iraqi government spokesman Bassem al-Awadi. (INA)
Iraqi government spokesman Bassem al-Awadi. (INA)

Iraq said it was ready to cooperate fully in verifying any information about an attack on Saudi Arabia that was launched from its territory, renewing its condemnation of the incident and vowing measures to prevent any breach of Iraqi sovereignty.

The Iraqi government’s latest condemnation came a day after the Foreign Ministry denounced the attacks on the Kingdom, in what observers said signaled Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi’s new government was keen to protect ties with Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states.

Saudi Arabia’s Defense Ministry said on Sunday it had intercepted and destroyed three drones after they entered the Kingdom’s airspace from Iraq.

Iraqi government spokesman Bassem al-Awadi renewed Baghdad’s condemnation on Tuesday, saying Iraq “reaffirms its firm and historic position in support of distinguished and lasting relations with brotherly and friendly countries of the region, its commitment to the security of Arab states, the importance of supporting stability, all efforts to ease tensions, and preventing attacks, whatever their source.”

“The Iraqi government condemns the recent drone attacks that targeted Saudi Arabia and affirms its continued joint efforts to strengthen regional security and safeguard the security and sovereignty of countries in the region,” he said.

Awadi repeated that the military authorities did not detect or record any activity from the country’s airspace, stressing, however, that Iraqi institutions were fully ready “to cooperate in verifying any information related to the circumstances of the attack that targeted the Kingdom.”

He stressed Iraq’s “categorical rejection of the use of its territory, airspace or territorial waters to launch any attack on neighboring countries.”

Awadi said Iraqi security forces had taken “all necessary steps and measures to thwart and uncover any attempt in this context,” adding that there would be “no leniency toward anyone who tries to violate the sovereignty of the Iraqi state or damage relations with the Kingdom, neighboring countries or brotherly states.”

Observers are now raising questions over how Zaidi will deal with pro-Iran armed factions and confront their activities at home and abroad, particularly under continued US pressure.

In recent months, after the outbreak of the US-Israeli war against Iran, factions launched hundreds of attacks on targets inside Iraq, most of them in the northern Kurdistan region.

They also carried out attacks on more than one country in Iraq’s regional neighborhood. Those attacks stopped during the ceasefire, before resuming with three drones over Saudi territory.

Many believe the factions’ latest attacks pose a serious challenge to Zaidi’s authority. The prime minister, whose government was approved by parliament last week, has received clear US, domestic and Arab backing, a development that was not welcomed by the factions, which are seeking to embarrass him at the start of his tenure in Iraq’s top executive post.

Gulf

Bahrain Suspends Entry of Foreign Travelers Arriving from Three Countries Amid Ebola Fears

A view of Bahrain's capital Manama. (Getty Images file)
A view of Bahrain's capital Manama. (Getty Images file)
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Bahrain Suspends Entry of Foreign Travelers Arriving from Three Countries Amid Ebola Fears

A view of Bahrain's capital Manama. (Getty Images file)
A view of Bahrain's capital Manama. (Getty Images file)

Bahrain said on Tuesday it was suspending the entry of foreign travelers arriving from South Sudan, ‌the Democratic ‌Republic of ‌Congo ⁠and Uganda due ⁠to the Ebola virus outbreak.

The suspension will be effective for ⁠30 days ‌starting Tuesday, ‌according to ‌the country's ‌state news agency.

The World Health Organization expressed deep ‌concern on Tuesday at the speed ⁠and ⁠scale of the Ebola outbreak, as the number of cases rises.

Gulf

UAE Says Drones Targeting Nuclear Plant Came from Iraq

The United Arab Emirates flag flutters against the backdrop of the Abu Dhabi Skyline following a reported Iranian strike, March 1, 2026. (AFP)
The United Arab Emirates flag flutters against the backdrop of the Abu Dhabi Skyline following a reported Iranian strike, March 1, 2026. (AFP)
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UAE Says Drones Targeting Nuclear Plant Came from Iraq

The United Arab Emirates flag flutters against the backdrop of the Abu Dhabi Skyline following a reported Iranian strike, March 1, 2026. (AFP)
The United Arab Emirates flag flutters against the backdrop of the Abu Dhabi Skyline following a reported Iranian strike, March 1, 2026. (AFP)

The United Arab Emirates on Tuesday said drones that targeted its nuclear plant last week came from Iraq, from where Iranian-backed groups have launched several attacks since the Middle East war began.

On Sunday, an unclaimed drone struck an electrical generator near the Arab world's only nuclear power plant in Barakah in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, triggering a fire but causing no injuries or radiation leak. Two other drones had been intercepted.

"As part of the ongoing investigation into the blatant attack on the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant on May 17, 2026, technical tracking and monitoring confirmed that the three drones... all originated from Iraqi territory," the Emirati defense ministry said.

Authorities intercepted six drones that also came from Iraq and "attempted to target civilian and vital areas" in the past 48 hours, the ministry added.

Iraqi authorities had already condemned the attack on Barakah before Abu Dhabi announced where the drones came from.

Iran has attacked the UAE and other Gulf nations since the US and Israel launched strikes on the country on February 28, targeting US assets but also energy and civilian infrastructure.

Iran-backed groups in Iraq have not claimed any strikes since the truce came into place, though Gulf countries have reported attacks from Iraq.

On Sunday, Saudi Arabia had reported intercepting drones that came from Iraq, while Baghdad said its defense systems had not detected any drones launched from its territory toward the Kingdom.