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Lebanon years away from gas riches despite Israel deal: analysts
Lebanon years away from gas riches despite Israel deal: analysts

Lebanon is nearing agreement with Israel over a maritime dispute involving offshore gas fields, but the cash-strapped country still faces an uphill struggle towards unlocking potential hydrocarbon riches, analysts say. After being partly claimed by Israel, the Qana field is expected to fall entirely to Lebanon as part of the maritime border agreement, according to Lebanese officials.

In Spain, the long fight to find Franco era's 'stolen babies'
In Spain, the long fight to find Franco era's 'stolen babies'

When the bones of her twin sister who died at birth were exhumed, Maria Jose Robles's worst fears were confirmed: their DNA didn't match, suggesting she was one of the newborns snatched during the Franco dictatorship. "My twin sister was just two days old when she died, that's what they told my mother in hospital," she told AFP, referring to events that happened in 1962, her voice breaking.

Inflation puts squeeze on Spain's legendary lunch menu
Inflation puts squeeze on Spain's legendary lunch menu

Dreamt up in the 1960s to attract tourists, Spain's three-course "menu del dia", or set lunch menu, has long been seen as the best deal in town. "It's not only the price of the menu del dia that is going up but the price of life in general but what can we do?"

Month before COP27, host Egypt faces heat over rights, climate action
Month before COP27, host Egypt faces heat over rights, climate action

A month before Egypt hosts the UN climate change conference, Cairo is finalising the list of world leaders coming as it weathers criticism over its human rights and environmental records. Egypt will from November 6 host the 27th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, in the Red Sea resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh.

For Saudi fan, road to World Cup is a desert trek
For Saudi fan, road to World Cup is a desert trek

The idea hit Abdullah Alsulmi earlier this year, while he was watching a television show in which a senior Qatari official promised an "exceptional" experience at the upcoming World Cup. Wearing a wide-brim hat and a backpack to which he'd affixed Saudi and Qatari flags, he said: "I consider myself like a Qatari who is very interested in this World Cup and its success."