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Governments across the region have sought to manage potentially negative impacts of the Gaza conflict, as consumers have latched on to a boycott of US franchises to express their anger over Israel’s actions. While Omanis and Kuwaitis are notably enthusiastic, their Saudi and UAE peers seem less engaged in the protest but, whatever the public response, the boycotts highlight the potential for a dangerous divide to emerge between leaders and their subjects on the emotive Palestinian issue, which most regimes had come largely to ignore until Hamas launched its October attack.

The Qatari ruler was reportedly the first Arab leader to visit Nepal when he landed in Kathmandu on 23 April, following trips to the Philippines and Bangladesh – all of which are an important source of migrant labour and are looking to more economic support from one of their wealthiest partners.

Baghdad and Ankara signed more than 24 agreements and memoranda of understanding during President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan visit to the Iraqi capital. Defence, water and energy issues were to the fore, but there are still some policy mismatches, not least over attitudes to the Kurdish PKK militia group.

Dubai’s transport sector was badly affected as more than one year’s worth of rain fell in a day across the UAE, leaving a clean-up operation that is likely to be expensive, although the authorities are trying to shield locals from much of the initial cost.

Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund ADQ has revealed details about its finances for the first time, in a prospectus for a $2.5bn bond issuance on the London Stock Exchange.

Shia leader Moqtada Al-Sadr has indicated he plans to end his political retirement in a return to public life that comes as the federal parliament continues to grapple with the election of a new speaker. The political arena in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq is just as turbulent, with local parliamentary elections planned for June now delayed.

Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Nahyan has reportedly struck a multi-billion dollar deal with the under-pressure South Sudanese government, although questions remain about the ultimate source of funds accessed by the Abu Dhabi junior royal who previously raised his profile, in the wake of the Abraham Accords, by taking a stake in controversial Israeli football club Beitar Jerusalem, which soon collapsed.