Fuel costs, driven by the boom in oil prices, have risen in some parts of the Middle East by over 70% almost overnight, causing sharp jumps in prices where local currencies are pegged to the weakening dollar. Middle class families are among those feeling the pinch. Inflation in Saudi Arabia - running at zero percent for most of the last decade - is now at 6.5%. Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates are currently posting inflation rates in the double digits. Social unrest and rioting has sprung up in some Middle Eastern countries. See the article from today’s New York Times below.
BBC Middle East- January 6th 2009
Gaza clashes spark 'major crisis'
The Gaza Strip faces a "full-blown humanitarian crisis", the Red Cross says, after 10 days of clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinian militants. - January 5th 2009
New US embassy opens in Baghdad
The new US embassy in Baghdad - one of the largest and most expensive ever built - is officially opened in Iraq's capital. - January 4th 2009
Baghdad bomb kills Shia pilgrims
A female suicide bomber kills at least 35 Shia pilgrims including Iranians near a shrine in Baghdad, Iraqi police say. - January 2nd 2009
European flight lands in Baghdad
The first commercial flight between Western Europe and Baghdad in at least 17 years lands in the Iraqi capital. - January 2nd 2009
Suicide bomb kills many in Iraq
A suicide bombing kills at least 23 people at a Sunni gathering in a town south of Baghdad, Iraqi police say. - January 1st 2009
Iraq takes control of Green Zone
Iraq takes control of the Green Zone in Baghdad and assumes more powers over foreign troops based in the country. - December 31st 2008
Britain hands suspects to Iraqis
Two Iraqis accused of murdering UK soldiers are handed over to Iraq despite a bar by the European Court of Human Rights. - January 5th 2009
Tehran offers to 'protect' Ebadi
Iran says it will provide security for Nobel Peace Prize-winning lawyer Shirin Ebadi, amid global concern for her safety. - January 6th 2009
Israel 'expands' Gaza offensive
Israeli forces reportedly widen their ground assault in the Gaza Strip to include Khan Younis in the south, after fierce clashes around Gaza City. - January 5th 2009
Obama's strategic silence on Gaza
The BBC's Richard Lister reports on President-elect Barack Obama's unwillingness to comment on Israel's invasion of Gaza.
- January 6th 2009
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