Newspapers Review: Gaza protests against deepening electricity crisis focus of dailies WAFA RAMALLAH, January 14, 2017 (WAFA) – Protests against weeks of deepening electricity crisis which left many of besieged Gaza’s two million population with less than three hours of electricity a day hit the front page headlines in Palestinian dailies on Saturday. Al-Ayyam said […]

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Jan. 14, 2017 GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — The deputy president of Gaza’s power authority said Saturday that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has offered to ship fuel to the Gaza Strip to run the besieged coastal enclave’s sole power plant, in order to help lighten the crippling electricity crisis that has sparked widespread protests in […]

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Syria: Deal reached to repair Wadi Barada water supply AL JAZEERA Deal reached after damaged water infrastructure in Wadi Barada left 5.5 million in Damascus area enduring shortages. Syrian government workers have entered a formerly rebel-held area near Damascus to begin restoring water to the capital after weeks of shortages, state media reported. The engineers […]

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The United Nations has warned of an oil spill south of the Iraqi city of Mosul, near the town of Qayara that was retaken from Islamic State militants some four months ago. The warnings came in a report released this week on environmental damages caused by oil fires intentionally started by retreating IS militants. U.N. […]

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27 October 2016 – Environmental pollution is adding “complexity and danger” to the humanitarian crisis sparked by the military offensive in Mosul, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) said today, warning that fumes from burning stockpiles of sulphur dioxide, and oil wells that have been set ablaze, have led to further suffering for civilians in […]

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Inside the Economic War against ISIS Joby Warrick January 4, 2017, 9:33 am Washington- ISIS starts the new year with a drastically depleted bank account, counterterrorism officials say, following months of intensified efforts to deprive the jihadists of oil profits and other revenue used to finance military operations and terrorist attacks abroad. Coalition aircraft in […]

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Following the latest warnings that flights in and out of Lebanon’s Beirut airport are at risk because of the large number of birds flying over a nearby garbage dump, reports said Saturday that hunters are shooting down the seagulls which angered environmentalist movements in Lebanon. A Lebanese environmental movement condemned in a statement on Saturday […]

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By Hana Namrouqa – Jan 12,2017 AMMAN — A newly endorsed plan on green economic growth is aimed at leading Jordan into a sustainable economy that creates more jobs and achieves social inclusion while leaving the least negative impact on the environment, green economists said on Thursday. The National Green Growth Plan lists 24 projects […]

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By Hana Namrouqa AMMAN — Plans are under way to announce Burqu in the eastern desert as a nature reserve to protect species endemic to the ancient and historical site, according to the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature (RSCN). Sustainable development projects and income generating ventures are being implemented in Burqu in Mafraq […]

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By Laila Azzeh – Jan 10,2017 PETRA — In what has been called a “benchmark” decision, the rose-red city of Petra on Tuesday joined the National Protected Areas Network, a step which could eventually transform the area into a nature reserve. With its rich flora and fauna — studies estimate that Petra, 235km south of […]

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New solar tower project in the Negev is set to supply 5 percent of Israelis with power; while Israel has abundant sunshine, government bureaucracy has hampered solar energy progress. Associated Press|Published: 05.01.17 In sunny Israel, solar energy supplies only a small percentage of the nation’s power needs, leaving it far behind countries with cloudier and […]

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By Sharon Udasin 05 January 2017 “They don’t have the same language, so they can’t communicate,” urban farming consultant Lavi Kushelevich told The Jerusalem Post on Wednesday. “But they can communicate through food.” Kushelevich, 29, is the entrepreneur behind the Rooftop Gardens project, a venture that is bringing together an unlikely set of neighbors to […]

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Jan. 10, 2017 TUBAS (Ma’an) — Israeli forces destroyed a pipeline supplying water to four Bedouin communities in the northern Jordan Valley, a Palestinian official said on Tuesday morning. Muataz Bisharat, who monitors settlement-related activities in the Jordan Valley, told Ma’an that bulldozers under Israeli military protection destroyed part of an 11-kilometer water pipeline supplying […]

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By Sharon Udasin 10 January 2017 01:11 ‘Atid’ to launch a home-based service to compete with the only other operator in the country. Rather than relying on foreign firms to extract precious resources from the region’s underground, an Israeli company called Atid – “future” in Hebrew – will soon be providing drilling services for water, […]

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The Cabinet approved Wednesday the long-awaited oil and gas decrees and appointed two successors to Abdul Menhem Youssef — the controversial director general of the OGERO telecom authority who was also serving as director general of investment and maintenance at the telecom ministry. Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil, who had served as energy minister in the […]

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By Hana Namrouqa – Jan 09,2017 Conservationists say allowing hunters to target endangered animals in Jordan violates local laws and harms the Kingdom’s reputation internationally (Photo courtesy of Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature) AMMAN — Gulf nationals are hunting endangered animals and birds in Jordan in locations off limits to nature inspectors and […]

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Sunday, 8 January 2017 Pollution in Tehran has hit a dangerous level on the Air Quality Index, with airborne particles considered “unhealthy” for the general public. Kindergartens and primary schools in the Iranian capital were ordered to stay closed Sunday, according the state run television. Every year, Tehran suffers some of the worst pollution in […]

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More than 1,500 organisations are expected to take part in this year’s Dubai Municipality Car Free Day on February 5, a 40 per cent increase from last year. Dubai Municipality Director General Hussain Lootah said 580 organisations have signed up for the initiative so far, which aims to raise awareness on the environmental impact of […]

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EcoPeace, KAS and INSS – Water Conference In cooperation with the German foundation ‘Konrad Adenauer Stiftung – Israel’ (KAS), and the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS), EcoPeace Tel Aviv held a roundtable event entitled “Can Water Bring the Political Process to A Safe Shore? Water Issues; from Source of Conflict to Vehicle for Regional […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 01/02/2017 On December 25, a fire overtook a 12,000-cubic meter benzene storage container at an Israel Oil Refineries – Bazan (ORL) facility. The blaze that engulfed a Haifa Bay factory nearly all of last Sunday may have been the result of foul play, a special investigative team has concluded. On December 25, […]

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