Beyond the Headlines

Afghanistan has become a byword for conflict. But the past weeks saw extraordinary scenes of Taliban fighters and their usual foe  —government security forces — embracing in the streets in a historic, if short, ceasefire. Could it herald something bigger, such as an end to the war? Or will ISIS make that impossible? This week we spoke to Ruchi Kumar, The National's correspondent in Kabul, and aske...

Last week, The National spoke to Dr Anwar Gargash, the UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs. We bring you the second part of that interview in this edition of Beyond the Headlines. Listen to part 1 for his take on the Qatar crisis. Dr Gargash discusses the wider Arab world and the ever-shifting dynamics of the region, from the war in Yemen, Iran’s influence in the region, and Donald Trump's r...

This week, The National spoke to Dr Anwar Gargash, the UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs. He talked about how the Arab world has changed significantly a year since the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Egypt cut all diplomatic and travel links with Qatar. The worst diplomatic crisis to ever hit the GCC has changed regional dynamics in the region.  The four nations insist that to normalize rel...

Yemen's military is within striking distance of one of their biggest victories since civil war began in 2015. The forces, backed by the Arab coalition, was last reported to be within 10km of Yemen’s third largest city, Hodeidah. We analyse what this could mean for the future of the four-year civil war in Yemen with Fatima Alasrar, a senior analyst at Washington-based Arabia Foundation.  The city o...

Shia cleric Moqtada Al Sadr wants a government that is inclusive of all Iraqis. His coalition won the largest number of seats in Iraq’s latest parliamentary elections. But Mr Al Sadr didn’t win enough to form a majority. This prompts weeks, if not months, of negotiations with different factions to form a government. His victory comes as a surprise to many. Prime Minister Haidar Al Abadi, whose blo...

As Israeli and American officials celebrated the controversial move of the United States' embassy to Jerusalem, Israeli soldiers were murdering peaceful Palestinian protestors. This week, host Naser Al Wasmi looks at the latest atrocities carried about by a newly empowered Israel against their Palestinian neighbours. Jack Moore and Willy Lowry, who have each spent time in Gaza and the West Bank, g...

For the first time since 2009, Lebanon voted to elect 128 members to parliament. Saad Hariri, the current Prime Minister of Lebanon and his Sunni-dominated party fared better than expected. But he lost seats to Hezbollah, the Shiite-movement that now has more seats and pull in the parliament than ever before. As in almost any election in the Arab World, this one was marred in controversy. Voter tu...

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday claimed Iran was developing a "secret" nuclear weapons programme in breach of the 2015 deal agreed with world powers. Iran responded by saying an alleged archive of tens of thousands of records was merely part of a "ridiculous propaganda" machine. We analyse the situation between Israel and Iran and how it pertains to the Iranian nuclear deal in...

Syrian President Bashar Al Assad has always held a tight grip on media in his country. After seven years of a vicious war, the strongman maintains strict control over all news coming out of his side of the country. The National was given a glimpse into what President Bashar wants the world to interpret about his regime. Our correspondent, Gareth Browne saw right through it. We spoke to Gareth as h...

The US launched airstrikes on Syria this week, sparking a wide range of reactions from the international community. The US-led airstrikes targeted a factory believed to be the source of a Syrian-regime chemical weapons attack last week, which killed dozens. Chemical weapons experts have been blocked from the Syrian attack site by regime forces, reinforcing claims that longstanding President Bashar...

Extremist groups in Syria are planting landmines and booby traps all over the country with the intention of killing civilians. Even children aren't safe from bombs that are often disguised as toys. In this week's Beyond the Headlines, we look at the situation in Syria and the growing civilian deaths from the perspective of humanitarian efforts aimed at helping those affected by these attacks. Imad...

In 2002, a 12-metre statue of Saddam Hussein was erected in Baghdad's Firdos Square, right in the middle of one of the Iraqi capital’s many roundabouts. It depicted the Iraqi dictator standing heels together with his right arm outstretched in an open palm. It was a symbol of Saddam’s confidence and his ruthless grip on the country. A year later, Operation Iraqi Freedom was just a few weeks underwa...

This week, Saudi Arabia witnessed the most aggressive attack on its own soil since their intervention in the Yemen civil war three years ago. The Houthis launched seven missiles at Riyadh. Saudi’s ministry of interior claimed to intercept all of them, but debris from one fell on a man’s house, killing him and injuring two others. This comes as all parties were engaged, indirectly, in talks that we...

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman arrived in the United States on an official visit this week. The already strong relationship between the two countries is being reinforced during meetings with President Donald Trump and senior officials. He will then look to engage other aspects of his Vision 2030 in trips to Silicon Valley and other parts of he US. We talked to Joyce Karam, our Washington c...

This week, we discuss Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's international outreach. The 32-year-old heir to the Kingdom made stops in Cairo and London and is next heading to Washington for a two-week tour of the US. This will be more than a political trip. After Washington, the Crown Prince is set to visit New York, Boston, Houston, San Francisco and Seattle to discuss economic co-operation, in...

The Syrian conflict is now entering its eighth year. Hundreds of thousands have been killed, clashes are fierce in rebel-held areas and the regime of President Bashar Al Assad has again been accused in recent weeks of using chemical weapons in his push to reclaim territory. Eastern Ghouta's 400,000 residents have lived under government siege since 2013, facing severe shortages of food and medicine...

It has been six months since Myanmar military operations sparked a mass exodus of the country's Rohingya Muslim minority to neighbouring Bangladesh. But although the crisis has now fallen out of the headlines, on the ground it is only growing by the day. Rohingya refugees are continuing to arrive at the already overcrowded camps in the Bangladeshi district of Cox's Bazar and, as the rainy season a...

On this special edition of Beyond the Headlines, host Naser Al Wasmi is joined by the Emirati Ambassadors to three very important countries in the UAE’s global diplomatic network: Ali Al Ahmed, UAE Ambassador to Germany; Dr Ahmed Al Banna, Ambassador to India; and Dr Ali Al Dhaheri, UAE Ambassador to China. The diplomats are in Abu Dhabi this week for the Annual Ambassador’s Forum held at the UAE...

Iran and Israel were on the brink of war. Tensions arose when Israel shot down an Iranian drone on February 10, after it entered the country from Syria. Then one of the Israel’s F-16 fighters was shot down, the first Israeli plane downed in decades and a huge blow to their air force’s aura of invincibility. Damien McElroy, The National’s London bureau chief, covered a speech by Israeli Prime Minis...

An international donor conference opened in Kuwait on Monday with hopes of rebuilding Iraq following its devastating war against ISIL. We discuss Iraq's reconstruction efforts in this week's edition of Beyond the Headlines. The conference brings together 70 countries, aid groups, UN agencies and corporations aimed at investing in Iraq's crippled economy, infrastructure and humanitarian crisis. Hos...

All six Arabian Gulf countries import between 80 to 97 per cent of their food. Due to water scarcity and poor soil, it typically costs less to import food than to grow it here. According to the ministry of climate change and environment, the demand for food will increase by 300 per cent, putting a huge strain on our economies. We tackle the food-scarcity issue on this week's Beyond the Headlines....

Clashes broke out in Aden over the weekend when the Southern Transitional Council called to its constituents to demonstrate. The Yemen government banned protests on the streets and prompted the semi-autonomous group to confront the presidential guard. Dozens were killed and hundreds injured. Both are blaming the violence on the other side, but are now adhering to a ceasefire organized by the Arab...

Turkey launched this week a military offensive into Afrin, a heavily Kurdish enclave of Syria. Ankara is calling it an 'anti-terror campaign,' targeting the US-backed Kurdish group, the People’s Protection Units. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is justifying the offensive as a pre-emptive strike, or Turkey’s right to self-defence. The war is likely an attempt for the country to hide behind anti-ter...

Reporting from The World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi, taking place during Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week, host Naser Al Wasmi talks to two Paraguayan girls who have been honoured for their conservation efforts in their rainforest home. If not for young students Pamela Armoa and Analia Velazquez, the distinct, bell-like sound of the Bare-throated Bellbird risks fading away. We also spoke to H...

This week, Israel banned twenty activist organisations over their support for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement against Israel or BDS for short. The movement, whose co-founder we speak to in the show, is built upon three founding ideas: To put an end to Israeli occupation of all Arab lands and dismantling the wall as per international law; second, to recognize the fundamental rights o...