Year: 2018

The ‘new’ Tunisia: in search of Carthage and lesser known Roman ruins

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After the attacks of 2015 Tunisia is back in business — but forsake the beach for its heritage, says Nick Redmayne. “Carthago delenda est” — or “Carthage must be destroyed” — was a favourite phrase of Roman orator Cato the Elder. It took until 146BC and an emphatic victory in the Third Punic War for his punchline to be delivered. Rome’s vengeful legions levelled the city and sold its population into slavery. Today, Tunisia is again reeling in the wake of violence, namely 2015’s two terrorist outrages, at the Bardo National…

Saudi Arabia deposits $2 billion in Central Bank of Yemen to support currency

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King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud of Saudi Arabia ordered a deposit of $2 billion to be paid into Central Bank of Yemen to strengthen the weak Yemeni currency, the Saudi government said. King Salman issued the order to help support the rial, which has plummeted amid a lingering conflict between the government and the houthis. The $2 billion is a deposit, the legitimate Yemeni government will not have to pay it back. Yemen’s currency, the rial, has lost more than half its value against  U.S. dollar and soaring prices have…

Emel Mathlouthi and some music without frontiers

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A DIVERSE double bill concert celebrating music without frontiers brought a Sydney Festival audience to its feet in the formal setting of the City Recital Hall Angel Place. Top of the bill was Tunisian star Emel Mathlouthi, whose song Kelmti Horra (My Word Is Free) became an anthem for the Arab Spring activists seven years ago, while the opening half featured two respected musicians, both with strong ties to Iraq but from different cultural traditions in oud master Rahim Alhaj and Egyptian born cellist and former conductor of the Iraqi…

5+5 Dialogue: 14th Conference of Foreign Ministers opens in Algiers

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The 14th Foreign Ministers’ Conference of the 5 + 5 Dialogue began Sunday in Algiers, TAP reports. The meeting is co-chaired by Algerian Foreign Minister Abdelkader Messahel and his French counterpart, Jean-Yves Le Drian. Tunisia is represented by Minister of Foreign Affairs, Khemaies Jhinaoui. The Conference held under the theme: ” Western Mediterranean: consolidation of overall, shared and sustainable socio-economic development to meet the region’s common challenges” will focus on economic and social development and strengthening co-operation in the security field in management of regional crises, particularly in Libya and…

The Middle East is still building towards the right start-up culture

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Entrepreneurs face the same key issues they did a decade ago Almost eight years ago, I was involved in the development of Wamda, a website commissioned by Abraaj Capital to inspire and connect the region’s burgeoning start-up scene, which was taking root among enthusiastic youngsters in places like Lebanon, Jordan, Tunisia and the UAE. Packed with case studies, profiles and video interviews, it was celebratory in tone and perhaps painted a picture of entrepreneurship as a career in itself; a way of working – laptops, coffee shops, hoodies, pizza –…

Flights resume in Mitiga airport in Libya capital after five days of closure

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Flights of the state-owned Libyan Airlines have been resumed in Mitiga Airport in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, on Saturday morning as the first flights flew to Tunisia’s Carthage Airport, Libyan Express reports. According to local media citing the airliner, the flights will continue to take off from Mitiga airport as per Saturday schedule, which will include evening flights to Alexandria in Egypt and Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. Flights were suspended last Monday flowing deadly clashes between two armed groups loyal to Tripoli-based Government of National Accord, leading to the killing…

Chinese, Russians shore up Middle East tourism

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Chinese and Russian visitors boosted Middle Eastern tourism last year following a 2016 slump as Europeans gave the area a wide berth on security fears, according to the World Tourism Organization (WTO). The Mideast region as a whole drew 58 million foreign tourists in 2017 — a 4.8 percent rise on the previous year — the Madrid-based WTO said in its latest figures released midweek. Jihadist attacks on tourist sites in Egypt, Tunisia and Turkey in recent years particularly hit the industry. But “over time, people forget and return,” said…

French police clash with prison guards in protest over jail conditions

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French riot police clashed on Friday with striking prison guards who accuse the government of doing little to counter spiralling violence and Islamist activism inside the country’s overcrowded jails. The scuffles outside Fleury Merogis prison, one of Europe’s largest with 3,800 inmates, coincided with news from a jail in Corsica that two security guards were attacked and injured by inmates. It is the latest in a series of assaults that have overshadowed France’s prison system in the past week. “We’re fed up. We’re taking a thumping inside and now we’re…

Tunisair direct flights to Cameroon soon

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Tunisia’s flagship carrier, Tunisair has resolved to introduce direct flights to Cameroon’s economic capital, Douala. The Cameroonian National Aeronautics Authority (CCAA) said in a statement that the route would “meet the strong demand in Cameroon and strengthen the economic partnership between the two countries”. A delegation of Tunisair officials recently visited Cameroon to discuss and learn about the procedure for obtaining an air service operating permit for the establishment of this air link. The goal is to operate direct flights, connecting two cities without changing flight numbers. CCAA Managing Director,…

The seven-year itch : Tunisia needs help if it is to remain a model for the Arab world

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Many Tunisians appear to be losing faith in democracy “BREAD, freedom, dignity.” These were the demands of Tunisian protesters who threw off autocracy and sparked the Arab spring seven years ago this month. Tunisians now have more freedom and some dignity. But bread is scarcer than ever. GDP per person has barely budged since the revolution. That is why Tunisia has once again been mired in protests, this time over higher taxes, lower subsidies and the lack of jobs. Nine governments in seven years have failed to revive the economy…