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Abu Dhabi government-owned investment group ADQ has handed the master developer contract for the Ras El-Hekma megaproject on Egypt’s Mediterranean coast to Modon Holding – a company which ADQ already owns a substantial stake in.

The 1,000-metre Jeddah Tower project ground to a halt in 2018, after about a third of its 157 floors had been completed, amid a crisis at construction giant Binladin Group and shortly after Kingdom Holding’s Prince Alwaleed found himself caught up in the crown prince’s anti-graft campaign. Work is now restarting, with Binladin Group once again signed up for the task.

A Kuwait Air Force F-18 fighter jet crashed during a training mission on 9 October, with Flight Lieutenant Mohammed Mahmoud Abdulrasoul dying in the incident. It is the first fatal crash suffered by the force in more than two decades.

The barrage of up to 200 ballistic missiles Tehran fired at Israel on 1 October was the latest in a series of escalatory steps taken by Israel and Iran, as a conflict that began in Gaza a year ago threatens to spread across the region. Arab Gulf states have largely been bystanders to the events, but could yet fulfil important roles – by providing mediation, influencing allies and helping to stabilise energy markets.

An eight-bedroom mansion bought for Prince Khalid Bin Salman in 2017 for $12m has been sold after five years on the market. Over that time the asking price for the Washington-area property has been cut from $14m to $11.8m.

President Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan (MBZ)’s visit to the White House on 23 September was the first by a sitting UAE head of state. Against a backdrop of rising violence in Gaza, Lebanon and Sudan, the main breakthroughs were promises of greater co-operation in defence and artificial intelligence.

The clampdown on alleged citizenship fraud began in May, with three waves of cancellations since late August. At the same time, the government is making it harder for foreigners to acquire Kuwaiti citizenship.

Saudi Arabia is said to be considering dropping its unofficial price target of $100/bbl in favour of chasing market share. Concerns around the wars involving Israel and Iran and its proxies could help to sustain oil prices, although there is a risk of a disorderly break-up of the Opec+ agreement between oil cartel Opec and other major producers including Russia.

The consequences of the UAE’s involvement in Sudan’s civil war – where Abu Dhabi has been identified as a key supporter of Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti)’s Rapid Support Forces militia – appears to be increasing, with four of its servicemen alleged to have been killed in South Darfur and the Emirati ambassador’s residence in Khartoum coming under attack.

Some 100 political detainees are thought to be among the 340 inmates released from Jau Prison on 23 September, in what is the third major wave of prisoner releases this year.

Oman was lifted out of junk status by Standard & Poor’s (S&P) on 27 September, when the credit ratings agency upgraded the country’s sovereign debt from BBB- to BB+.

Dubai Crown Prince and federal defence minister Sheikh Hamdan witnessed the signing of several agreements during his two-day trip to Tashkent.

Qatar is to become the first Arab country in the US Visa Waiver Programme from December, while the UAE has signed up to the US Global Entry Programme.

The General Company for Ports of Iraq and the Ministry of Transport launched an appeal in a US court in mid-September, in the latest attempt to frustrate a $120m arbitral award owed to Cyprus-based Archirodon Construction.

The Abu Dhabi-based developer has bought a 745MW portfolio of wind and solar assets in Spain and Portugal, and reached financial close on a 154MW wind farm in Serbia, continuing what has been an active year of deal-making in Europe by the company.