Gulf in the News – January 27, 2014

Widespread support for Sheikh Khalifa who is recovering from stroke

Source: The National (Read full story)

The international and local communities have expressed their support for the President, Sheikh Khalifa, in his recovery from a stroke.   …  Sheikh Mohammed assured [well-wishers that] Sheikh Khalifa was in a stable condition and thanked them for their concerns.

Khorafi files to grill Ibrahim – MP alleges mismanagement, squandering of public funds

Source: Kuwait Times (Read full story)

Less than three weeks after the formation of the new cabinet, MP Adel Al-Khorafi yesterday filed to grill minister of Public Works and Electricity and Water Abdulaziz Al-Ibrahim over alleged mismanagement, squandering of public funds, non-cooperation with the National Assembly and technical and administrative violations.

Gulf states have resources to tackle sustainability challenges

Source: Saudi Gazette (Read full story)

Moderated by Frank Wouters, Deputy Director General of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), the final day’s final conference session [of the 7th World Future Energy Summit (WFES) and 2nd International Water Summit (IWS) in Abu Dhabi] invited a panel of industry experts to forecast future efforts to manage world energy and water demand sustainably.  “Neither our water nor our energy can be considered cheap anymore,” said Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi, Director of Energy and Climate Change at the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the First Permanent Representative of the UAE to IRENA.

Egypt’s army chief promoted, expected to run for president

Source: Arab News (Read full story)

Egypt’s army chief Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, who led the ouster of Islamist president Muhammad Mursi, has been promoted to the rank of field marshal, the highest in the military, the presidency said Monday.  “Interim president Adly Mansour issued a presidential decree promoting General Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, minister of defense, to the rank of field marshal,” the presidency said.  Egypt’s military rarely promotes senior officers to the rank of a field marshal.

Yemeni gunmen kill top security officer

Source: Gulf Today (Read full story)

Gunmen shot dead a senior Yemeni security officer on Sunday, a security official said, the latest in a series of attacks on the police and army in a country battling insurgents.  Lieutenant Colonel Ahmed Amir Al Mahthouthi, a senior officer in the investigative branch of state security, was shot outside his home in Hadramout, eastern Yemen, by gunmen who then fled on a motorbike.  The authorities have blamed Al Qaeda and its local ally Ansar Al Sharia for carrying out hundreds of similar killings of police and army officers over the past two years.