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Mohammed Hussein Al-Amoudi was born from an Ethiopian-Yemeni marriage in the early 1940s and moved to Saudi Arabia in the mid-1960s to join relatives. His route to wealth was not dissimilar to other foreigners who joined in the kingdom's boom periods and became associated with senior royals.

Iranian officials said they had conducted a successful test flight for the domestically-produced Simorgh aircraft. A modified version of the Ukrainian-produced Antonov An-140 cargo aircraft, it has been developed as a light military transport plane.

The leading article for issue 1170 explores the effects of regional election and federal budget disputes minimising the chances for reconciliation between the PUK and KDP in Iraqi Kurdistan. GSN looks into this in the context of the Iraqi supreme court’s intervention. This issue also looks into the ousting of Iran's National Security head Ali Shamkhani. The diplomatic brief section addresses Khalaf Abdel Rahman Hamid Al-Rumaithi’s extradition frorm Jordan to the UAE after being convicted of terrorism-related charges. Defence and security is headed by news of the Iranian IRGC’s new Khorramshahr ballistic missile, optimised to reach Israel. This section follows with the Qatari navy receiving its fourth Italian corvette from Fincantieri. Analysis of the soft power wielded by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman in the face of large new art and archeology projects serves as the head piece for Finance and business, the reportedly booming art scene in Al-Ula serving as a clear example of these recent efforts. The View is on Oman and Sultan Haitham’s efforts to re-establish the country as a mediating figure amongst its neighbours. A detailed map of Yemen features which includes energy infrastructure and information on disputed zones and borders. Risk management reports for this issue concern Yemen, OPEC as well as regional and international organisations.

Qatar’s Ministry of Labour is reportedly preparing to take legal action against a company accused of leaving hundreds of workers unpaid for months. Stark Security Services, which provided security at five of the Fifa World Cup stadiums, fired hundreds of workers after the tournament ended in late 2022 but before their contracts had expired.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani has launched an ambitious project to develop a $17bn transport network linking the north and south of Iraq. The Development Road Initiative will start at the under-construction Grand Faw port in the south and travel northwards via 1,200km of rail lines and roads.

The UAE and Malaysia are to start talks on a free trade deal, according to a statement issued during a visit to Kuala Lumpur by Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled Bin Mohammed Al-Nahyan in May.

The United Nations launched the operation to recover some 1m barrels of oil from the stricken FSO Safer tanker off the coast of Yemen, but it says it is still some $29m short of its funding target to complete the operation.

Revised June 2023, this map illustrates Yemen's oil and gas infrastructure and boundary between Yemen Arab Republic and People's Democratic Republic of Yemen.  The locations of exploration and production blocks, oil and gas fields and pipelines are marked alongside associated infrastructure including oil refineries, gas processing plants, tanker terminals and LNG facilities. The map is available as a PDF file using eps graphics, meaning that there is no loss of resolution as the file is enlarged.

A major sticking point to be resolved in debates over elections to Iraq's Kurdistan Parliament is whether to reform a system that sets aside 11 seats for ethnic and religious minorities in the 111-seat chamber. Five seats are reserved for Christians, five for Turkmens and one for an Armenian representative.

Russia is providing the bulk of Saudi diesel and fuel oil imports, as power generation and wider growth increase domestic demand according to recent industry reports. Saudi officials have argued this trade predates Russia's February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, but market data highlight the depth of bilateral relations.

Ali Akbar Ahmadian was appointed Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) secretary in Iran, replacing Ali Shamkhani who had held the influential post since September 2013. Since his resignation as SNSC secretary, Shamkhani has been appointed a political adviser to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

Iran appears to have test-fired an updated version of its Khorramshahr ballistic missile, called the Khorramshahr-4. Officials said the missile had a range of 2,000km with a warhead of 1,500kg, which suggests it has been optimised to target Israel.

Canada and Saudi Arabia announced that they had agreed to resume full diplomatic relations and appoint ambassadors to each other’s capitals. The move followed discussions between Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on the sidelines of last November’s Apec forum in Bangkok.

Bahrain said it would send an ambassador back to Lebanon, after a break of some 19 months. Manama had withdrawn its envoy in October 2021, in response to comments by Lebanese information minister George Kordahi in which he was highly critical of the Saudi-led war in Yemen.

Saudi Arabia's Al-Baha governor Prince Hussam Bin Saud Bin Abdelaziz is likely to be served with a bankruptcy petition from Kuwait's Mobile Telecommunications Company (Zain or MTC) through his legal representatives Millbank Solicitors, after the High Court in London ruled that the telco had "a good arguable case" that the Saudi prince had a place of residence in the UK during the relevant period.