US Welcomes Formation of New Palestinian Cabinet

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa. WAFA
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa. WAFA
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US Welcomes Formation of New Palestinian Cabinet

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa. WAFA
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa. WAFA

The US welcomes the nomination of a new Palestinian Authority (PA) cabinet to serve the Palestinian people, the US State Department said on Friday.

"A revitalized PA is essential to delivering results for the Palestinian people in both the West Bank and Gaza and establishing the conditions for stability in the broader region," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement.

“The United States looks forward to working with the new cabinet to promote peace, security, and prosperity and will be engaging this new government to deliver on credible reforms,” he said.

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa formed a new cabinet on Thursday in which he will also serve as foreign minister, making an immediate ceasefire and Israeli withdrawal from Gaza a top priority.

Mustafa, an ally to President Mahmoud Abbas and a leading business figure, was appointed premier this month with a mandate to help reform the PA, which exercises limited self-rule in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

He was also assigned to lead the relief and rebuilding of Gaza, which has been shattered by more than five months of war, while he performs double-duty as foreign minister, replacing Riyad al-Maliki who had served in the position since 2009.



Iraq Sends Delegation to Damascus to Study Restoring Oil Pipeline Via Syria

A worker walks at the Rumaila oil field in Basra, Iraq (Reuters file photo)
A worker walks at the Rumaila oil field in Basra, Iraq (Reuters file photo)
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Iraq Sends Delegation to Damascus to Study Restoring Oil Pipeline Via Syria

A worker walks at the Rumaila oil field in Basra, Iraq (Reuters file photo)
A worker walks at the Rumaila oil field in Basra, Iraq (Reuters file photo)

Iraq sent a delegation to Damascus on Friday to study the possibility of restoring an Iraqi oil pipeline that transports oil through Syria to Mediterranean ports, the prime minister's office said. The Iraqi delegation, led by the head of the National Intelligence Service, is also set to discuss counter-terrorism cooperation, border security and ways to expand trade between the two countries, the office added. Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani held talks with Syria’s President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Qatar this month, marking their first meeting since the ousting of former President Bashar al-Assad in December after more than 13 years of civil war, Reuters said. Syria is facing a severe energy crisis after the collapse of its oil industry during civil war and is now turning to local intermediaries for oil imports. Its efforts to secure oil through public tenders have been largely unsuccessful owing to international sanctions and financial risks.