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The UAE has published a new cyber crimes law, which deals with a range of internet crimes but also details jail terms and fines for anyone deemed to be acting against government, religious, national or social interests.

Singapore Technologies (ST) Marine has handed over the fourth Al-Ofouq class patrol vessel designed and built for the Royal Navy of Oman. The RNOV Khassab is the final part of an order awarded by the Ministry of Defence in April 2012, the largest defence export contract in the Singapore firm’s history. The boats replace the Sultanate’s four Seeb class patrol vessels, which were commissioned in the early 1980s. The Al-Ofouq is 75m in length, can accommodate 60 crew and is equipped with a flight deck for a medium lift-helicopter.

In the absence of official statements, it remains unclear how significant a government reshuffle might be. But several names have repeatedly surfaced: Ahmed Bin Abdullah Al-Mahmoud: There has been some suggestion that heir apparent Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani could be named prime minister, as well as emir, should Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jaber Al-Thani (HBJ) step down, though this would be an unusual step in Qatar. Current deputy prime minister and state minister for foreign affairs Ahmed Bin Abdullah Al-Mahmoud has also been mentioned in connection with the premiership.

Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum attended the launch of a ‘hyperloop’ joint venture on 20 April. Known as DP World Cargospeed, the project is a collaboration between ports operator DP World and Virgin Hyperloop One, which aims to develop a fast transport link for freight and, potentially, passengers.

BAE Systems, in partnership with the US’ Anniston Army Depot (ANAD), has won a contract worth more than $31m to refurbish 440 M113A2 armoured personnel carriers for Iraq.

One-time mayor of Tehran and former Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Air Force commander Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf (sometimes Ghalibaf) was elected speaker of the conservative-dominated Majlis-e Shura-ye Eslami (parliament) on 28 May, following the general election in February. Qalibaf replaces the speaker since 2008, Ali Larijani, who has been appointed Rahbar (Supreme Leader) Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s adviser and Expediency Council member.

Finance Minister Mustapha Al-Shamali and Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA) managing director Bader Al-Saad have reportedly been asked by Kuwaiti investment companies to set up a fund worth KD300m ($1.1bn) to help settle their debt in the wake of the global financial crisis.

Qatar's dominance as an LNG exporter is unlikely to be challenged in the foreseeable future, a leading gas sector project financier told GSN. There have been forecasts that the LNG

The Saudi-led coalition’s war in Yemen has been plagued with differences between Riyadh and its allies, from Pakistan’s early refusal to join in through to Abu Dhabi’s June 2016 proclamation (swiftly retracted) that its military involvement was over. Policy and strategic differences have contributed to chaos on the ground, and while President Abd-Rabbo Mansour Hadi still enjoys support from Saudi Arabia, his inability to unite opposition to the Houthis and their ally ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh is prompting renewed questions over Yemen’s unity.

In an effort to counter Yemen’s reputation as the world’s most heavily armed country on a per capita basis, the Ministry of Interior on 15 April said the authorities had confiscated more than 600,000 weapons since August 2008

As the man now charged with halting Iraq’s implosion, Iraq’s prime minister designate, Haider Al-Abadi, who was nominated to succeed Nouri Al-Maliki in mid-August,evidently has a tough job on his hands; in his own words, posted to his Twitter feed on 16 August, “the road ahead is not one paved with roses”. International opinion seems thus far to have fallen in support of Abadi, not least because he has the benefit of not being his predecessor Maliki, whose concentration of power during his two terms in office has been hugely damaging.

US Democratic congressman Brad Sherman has told the House Committee on Foreign Affairs that the UAE remains a “transhipment and diversion hub” and does “not effectively control exports to Iran and other countries of proliferation”.

Prime minister Marouf Bakhit was in Abu Dhabi on 17 April to seek financial support at a meeting with UAE deputy prime minister and presidential affairs minister Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan. Sheikh Mansour said the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) was looking at ways of giving Jordan a more central focus for economic and developmental support. The GCC is setting up a $20bn fund to assist development in the region, particularly in the poorer states of Bahrain and Oman (GSN 896/13).

Doha is to upgrade its air defences at an estimated cost of $197m. The United States Defense Security Co-operation Agency notified Congress of the deal on 7 March. It includes equipment and software to improve air defence planning at the Qatar Emiri Air Force air operation centre and will provide US-Qatari systems interoperability. The main supplier is Raytheon. The US State Department said the equipment will strengthen Qatar’s capability to counter current and future threats in the region and reduce its dependence on US forces.

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.