Egypt, Qatar Agree to Supply Fuel, Building Materials to Gaza

 A father in the Gaza Strip transports his children on his motorcycle back from school. (Reuters)
A father in the Gaza Strip transports his children on his motorcycle back from school. (Reuters)
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Egypt, Qatar Agree to Supply Fuel, Building Materials to Gaza

 A father in the Gaza Strip transports his children on his motorcycle back from school. (Reuters)
A father in the Gaza Strip transports his children on his motorcycle back from school. (Reuters)

Qatar and Egypt have signed agreements to supply fuel and basic building materials to the Gaza Strip.

Palestinian sources familiar with the matter told Asharq Al-Awsat that the agreement will help address the salary crisis for Hamas government employees.

The announcement was made in Oslo by Soltan bin Saad Al-Muraikhi,Qatar's minister of state for foreign affairs, during a ministerial meeting of the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee (AHLC), the international donor group for Palestinians.

Muraikhi affirmed that the joint collaborative efforts will contribute to improving living conditions in Gaza.

Muraikhi underlined the importance of the current understandings for facilitating the movement of travelers through Rafah border crossing and communication among all parties to calm the situation in the region.

The State of Qatar is working with various international community parties to reach a just solution that achieves peace and security in the sisterly State of Palestine, he added.

Qatar has been keen to provide many financial grants, humanitarian support projects and urgent relief interventions to improve the humanitarian, economic and development situation of the Palestinian people, Muraikhi noted.

“This constituted a key factor in improving living conditions, especially in the Gaza Strip, where the total amount provided has amounted to more than $1.5 billion, allocated for health education, housing, industry and agriculture sectors, as well as infrastructure projects, roads, and buildings.”

In August, Israel agreed with Qatar and the United Nations on a mechanism to transfer aid from the Gulf State to Gaza, boosting prospects for relief in the Palestinian enclave after it was devastated in an Israel-Hamas conflict.



Macron Arrives in Syria as First Major Western Leader to Visit Country Under New Leadership

France's President Emmanuel Macron (L) is welcomed by Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani (R) as he arrives fo a state visit at the Damascus International Airport in Damascus on July 6, 2026. (AFP)
France's President Emmanuel Macron (L) is welcomed by Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani (R) as he arrives fo a state visit at the Damascus International Airport in Damascus on July 6, 2026. (AFP)
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Macron Arrives in Syria as First Major Western Leader to Visit Country Under New Leadership

France's President Emmanuel Macron (L) is welcomed by Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani (R) as he arrives fo a state visit at the Damascus International Airport in Damascus on July 6, 2026. (AFP)
France's President Emmanuel Macron (L) is welcomed by Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani (R) as he arrives fo a state visit at the Damascus International Airport in Damascus on July 6, 2026. (AFP)

French President Emmanuel Macron arrived Monday in Syria, making him the first major western leader to visit the war-torn country since the ouster of Bashar al-Assad in 2024. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited April, but Macron is the first leader from western Europe or North America to do so. 

The French president’s visit comes during a period of relative calm in the Middle East after the monthlong war in Iran and Lebanon.  

He will travel next to Ankara, Türkiye, for the NATO summit, where Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa is also expected to attend and hold a high-profile meeting with US President Donald Trump. 

Syria’s state-run SANA news agency said Macron would visit with a business delegation to discuss regional security as well as business and investment opportunities. 

Macron was greeted at Damascus airport by Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani. 

Macron hosted al-Sharaa in Paris in May 2025, where he urged European and US leaders to lift longstanding sanctions on Damascus. Most of those sanctions had since been lifted. 


Sudan Gold Mine Collapse Kills 15 Miners

Workers break rocks at a gold mine near Abu Delelq in Gadarif State, Sudan. (Reuters)
Workers break rocks at a gold mine near Abu Delelq in Gadarif State, Sudan. (Reuters)
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Sudan Gold Mine Collapse Kills 15 Miners

Workers break rocks at a gold mine near Abu Delelq in Gadarif State, Sudan. (Reuters)
Workers break rocks at a gold mine near Abu Delelq in Gadarif State, Sudan. (Reuters)

A partial collapse in a decommissioned gold mine in northern Sudan has killed 15 miners, a state company said on Monday.

The miners had snuck into the shut-down Mohamed Tawfiq mine, in Wadi Halfa near the Egyptian border, when "parts of the mine collapsed... killing 15 miners and injuring one," the Sudanese Mineral Resources Company said.

Since war erupted in April 2023 between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, both sides' war efforts have been largely funded by Sudan's gold industry, in addition to foreign backers.

The war has devastated Sudan's already fragile economy and left much of the country out of work, pushing many into a dangerous gold rush.

Artisanal and small-scale gold mining, which takes place in unofficial zones or decommissioned mines, accounts for the majority of gold extracted.

These mines lack proper safety measures and use hazardous chemicals that often cause widespread illness in nearby areas.

Even before the war pushed 25 million Sudanese into acute food insecurity, artisanal mining employed more than two million people, according to industry figures.

Africa's third-largest country is one of the continent's top gold producers, and this year SMRC reported a "five-year high" in production of 70 tons in 2025.

But officials say much of the gold is smuggled across Sudan's borders.

Of last year's 70 tons, only "20 tons were exported through official channels", army-aligned Finance Minister Gibril Ibrahim told AFP.


Israel’s Detention of Prominent Gazan Doctor Is Arbitrary, UN Body Says

A woman holds a sign that reads "Free Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, Free Gaza" during a protest in front of the Shin Bet offices, calling for his release, in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Jan. 1, 2025. (AP)
A woman holds a sign that reads "Free Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, Free Gaza" during a protest in front of the Shin Bet offices, calling for his release, in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Jan. 1, 2025. (AP)
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Israel’s Detention of Prominent Gazan Doctor Is Arbitrary, UN Body Says

A woman holds a sign that reads "Free Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, Free Gaza" during a protest in front of the Shin Bet offices, calling for his release, in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Jan. 1, 2025. (AP)
A woman holds a sign that reads "Free Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, Free Gaza" during a protest in front of the Shin Bet offices, calling for his release, in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Jan. 1, 2025. (AP)

A UN human rights body on Monday called Israel's detention of Gazan doctor Hussam Abu Safiya arbitrary and sought his immediate release as rights groups and his lawyer warned that his life was in imminent danger.

In its finding, the ‌UN Working ‌Group on Arbitrary Detention said ‌that ⁠Israel's actions contravened multiple articles ⁠of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as well as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

"The appropriate remedy would be to release Mr. Abu Safiya immediately and accord him an enforceable ⁠right to compensation and other reparations, ‌in accordance with ‌international law," it said.

It also voiced broader concerns ‌that the case, one of several ‌it has received, "may indicate a widespread or systematic practice of arbitrary detention in the country."

Earlier on Monday, the doctor's lawyer alleged that his health was ‌in grave danger and that he had been subjected to brutal ⁠abuse ⁠on a daily basis, prompting calls for his release from rights groups.

The Israel Prison Service did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Previously, it has rejected allegations that Abu Safiya and other doctors have been mistreated in prison.

The Israeli Supreme Court has in the past declined to comment on appeals for his release.