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Verity Ratcliffe
Merchant ships in the southern Red Sea. The resumption of attacks by Houthi militants could once again deter more owners and crews against going through the Red Sea.
WORLD
Jul 9, 2025
Two killed in Houthi attack on cargo ship in Red Sea
The return of Houthi attacks could once again deter more ship owners and crews against going through the Red Sea to cut shipping time.
Protesters, predominantly Houthi supporters, burn Israeli and U.S. flags as they demonstrate in solidarity with Palestinians and Iran, amid the Iran-Israel conflict, in Sanaa, Yemen, on Friday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 23, 2025
How a cornered Iran could wreak havoc on global oil trade
Iran has over the years threatened multiple times to shut the Strait of Hormuz — a narrow stretch of water through which a fifth of the world’s oil supply flows each day.
An ammonia tank at JERA's Hekinan thermal power station in Aichi Prefecture. JERA is looking to invest in hydrogen and ammonia projects in the Middle East.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 28, 2024
Japan’s JERA looks to invest in Middle East hydrogen projects
Some of the world’s biggest planned blue ammonia plants, which capture carbon dioxide emitted in the production process, are located in the Middle East.
The Barbados-flagged bulk carrier vessel True Confidence in Ravenna, Italy, in 2022
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Mar 28, 2024
Deaths on Houthi-ravaged vessel herald perilous era for Middle East shipping
The experience of the True Confidence shows the threat to the oil tankers, cargo carriers and seafarers who are still using this vital waterway for trade.
The Jumeirah Beach district of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. San Francisco-based Vesta wants to dump ground-up olivine on beaches and into seawater in an attempt to speed up the ocean’s natural ability to remove carbon dioxide.
ENVIRONMENT / Oceans
Sep 29, 2023
How seeding the oceans with minerals could help slow climate change
Techniques to remove carbon from the atmosphere run into the hundreds or even thousands of dollars per ton.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 12, 2022
Russia's war on Ukraine to bolster oil producers' influence at climate summits
There are also signs the next two COPs risk being co-opted by oil interests because of the close relationship between Saudi Arabia and the host countries.
Japan Times
WORLD
Dec 31, 2021
Dubai can’t shake off the stain of smuggled African gold
The U.N. has found a discrepancy of at least $4 billion between the United Arab Emirates' declared gold imports from Africa and what African countries say they exported to the UAE.

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