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Among non-GCC economies, the International Monetary Fund expects Iran to sink further into recession in 2019; the IMF predicts a 6% contraction this year, as US sanctions bite. Previously, the IMF had predicted the Islamic Republic’s economy would shrink by 3.6%. The forecast for Iraq’s GDP growth rate has been cut from 6.5% to 2.8%, which – alongside the UAE – would still make it the best-performing this year of the economies in the GSN region.

The Ministry of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources launched its first requests for qualifications for the National Renewable Energy Programme on 20 February. It marks the start of an ambitious plan to develop 3.45GW of renewable energy by 2020 and 9.5GW by 2023. First round projects include the installation of 300MW of solar photovoltaic energy at Sakaka, in Al-Jouf province, and a 400MW wind project at Midyan, Tabuk province. The projects will be backed by a 25-year power purchase agreement for the solar scheme and a 20-year PPA for the wind project.

An explosion in Bahrain on 9 December killed a policeman in the village of Damistan, south-west of Manama. The Interior Ministry named him as Jordanian national Ali Mohammed Ali, who was working in Bahrain as part of a security and training exchange agreement between Bahrain and Jordan. The ministry said it was a terrorist bombing, using a homemade device that was detonated remotely. The next day, there was another explosion in the village of Karzakan, which killed a Bahraini citizen and wounded an expatriate man.

Former justice minister Najeeb Al-Nuami has been unable to leave Qatar since 8 January, when he received an SMS alerting him about the ban. Lawyer Al-Nuaimi complained the ban was “politically motivated”, the Doha News website reported on 9 February.

Kuwait, like many Gulf states, has been grappling with how best to deal with sociAl networking sites such as Twitter, which have given wings to dissent that in the past would not have left the realms of private conversation.

Bahrain’s destruction of the iconic Pearl monument in Manama on 18 March, and the ripping up of grass at the roundabout, symbolises one of the state’s most aggressive acts against its people. The circular monument became the base for the opposition movement, acting as a public space where people could meet and share ideas, much like Tunisians did in Tunis’ 7 November Square (newly named Mohammed Bouazizi Square), and Egyptians in Cairo’s Tahrir Square.

The US State Department on 15 September confirmed the role of the Omani government in securing the release of imprisoned hiker Sarah Shourd, who was arrested with two other Americans by Iran 13 months ago when walking in the mountainous Iranian/Iraqi border region

Two days after the UAE Armed Forces suffered two separate fatal aircraft crashes, minister of state for foreign affairs Anwar Gargash unilaterally declared that the UAE had completed its mission in Yemen and that its involvement in the Saudi-led coalition had changed focus – from a military campaign to civil development. Details of the military withdrawal had yet to be revealed as GSN went to press, but UAE forces are expected to be repatriated in phases over the next few months. There was no immediate comment from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Co-operation Council allies.

Sharjah Ruler Sheikh Sultan Bin Muhammad Al-Qassimi has been awarded an honorary doctorate in drama by the University of Sudan, in recognition of his support for theatres and the arts in the region. The award was presented to Sheikh Sultan on 5 March by the university’s chancellor Dr Awad Saad Hasan during a visit to the emirate. Sultan is, among other things, president of the Sharjah Performing Arts Academy.

Rhode Island-based Textron is in early-stage talks with Saudi Arabia over a possible deal for its Textron AirLand Scorpion light attack aircraft. No further details have been revealed at this stage, with chief executive Scott Donnelly telling analysts following half-year results that the discussion was “still in its formative stages”. The potential sale is the latest sign of movement following the much-hyped $110bn worth of defence deals announced by Saudi Arabia and United States President Donald Trump during the latter’s visit to Riyadh in May.

The Ajman leadership have been receiving condolences following the death of Sheikha Fatima Bint Ali Bin Huwaidin Al-Ketbi, wife of Ajman deputy ruler Sheikh Nasser Bin Rashid Al-Nuaimi. The Al-Ketbi family married into several of the Emirati ruling families – Ajman ruler Sheikh Humaid Bin Rashid’s first wife was an Al-Ketbi and the late Emirati president Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al-Nahyan’s most prominent wife was Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak Al-Ketbi.

The little-known Al-Mal Bank, based in Doha, has had its licence revoked by the Qatar Financial Centre Regulatory Authority (QFCRA) for breach of regulations.

The US Department of State has approved a five-year deal worth $181m for logistics, spare parts and other support services for the Iraqi Air Force’s fleet of eight AC-208 light attack and reconnaissance aircraft. An existing contract was due to come to a close at end-June. The principal contractors are US firms Orbital ATK and Flight Safety International.

On the domestic front, Sheikh Tamim attended the 21st anniversary of Al Jazeera Media Network, held under the slogan Al Jazeera Cannot Be Shut Down He also appointed 28 new members to the Advisory Council, including four women (13 members kept their positions). Opening the 46th council session on 14 November, the emir said in a speech “the indicators we receive reveal that the siege countries are unwilling to reach a solution.”

While US President Donald Trump’s administration and his supporters in Riyadh, Abu Dhabi and Manama like to portray Iran as a devious, destabilising actor in the region, Iranian observers insist the Islamic Republic is merely looking after its interests in the same way that any other country would. “Iran is a rational and accountable actor in the region,” Allameh Tabatabai University (ATU – Tehran) professor Seyed Jalal Dehghani Firoozabadi told the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) think-tank in London on 30 October.