One thing is for sure: as Benjamin Netanyahu said after the Hamas attacks on Oct. 7, Israel’s response “will change the Middle East”— perhaps the only words of wisdom the Israeli prime minister has uttered since this crisis began.

Arab News is launching a campaign to back the Saudi capital’s bid to host Expo 2030

“Better late than never” is what could be said about the much-anticipated digital makeover our London-based sister publication, Asharq Al-Awsat, has finally received.

Thursday’s meeting in Beijing between the Saudi and Iranian foreign ministers was a significant step on an unexpected path that may potentially lead to a level of regional stability not seen in over 40 years.

It was in the first week of March 2020, only a few days before the global coronavirus outbreak was declared a pandemic — with the consequent lockdown — that a handful of prominent Iranian singers performed in the first ever Persian Culture Night in the historic Saudi city of AlUla.

The Saudi-Iranian agreement achieved with Chinese mediation is a significant development in regional geopolitics, containing an unprecedented commitment from the Iranian side of respect for sovereignty, non-interference in internal affairs and restoring security cooperation.