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No official statistics have been released, but media reports in Iran pointed to voter turnout of just 8% in the capital Tehran in run-off election held in May for the final 45 seats in the Majlis-e Shura.

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.

Iranian officials have been engaged in a flurry of meetings and phone calls with GCC member states, in a sign that Tehran may be trying to leverage regional anger over the Gaza conflict to improve relations with its Arab neighbours.

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.

Born to Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al-Nahyan’s prominent wife Sheikha Mozah Bint Suhail Bin Awaidha Al-Khaili in 1969, Sheikh Ahmed Bin Zayed died when a microlight aircraft he was learning to fly crashed in Morocco on 26 March 2010.

Born in 1968 to Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al-Nahyan’s wife Sheikha Aisha Bint Ali Al-Darmarki (of the Dhawahir tribe), Sheikh Nahyan Bin Zayed has chaired the Zayed Bin Sultan Al-Nahyan Charitable and Humanitarian Foundation since June 2010 and the Abu Dhabi Sports Council since December 2012.

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.

Born to Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al-Nahyan’s wife Amina Bint Saleh Al-Darmaki in 1967, Sheikh Nasser Bin Zayed died in June 2008 when travelling in a helicopter which crashed into the Gulf.

Born in 1973 to President Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al-Nahyan’s wife Sheikha Mozah Bint Suhail Bin Awaidha Al-Khaili, Sheikh Omar Bin Zayed is one of the lower-profile members of the Bin Zayed brothers.

Sheikh Theyab Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan was born in 1971 to Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al-Nahyan’s wife Sheikha Aisha Bint Ali Al-Darmarki (of the Dhawahir tribe).

Sheikh Khalid Bin Zayed is the youngest son of President Zayed Bin Sultan Al-Nahyan with his wife Sheikha Mozah Bint Suhail Bin Awaidha Al-Khaili.

Sheikh Falah Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan was born in 1970, a son of Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al-Nahyan (who became the UAE’s founding president a year later) and his wife Sheikha Aisha Bint Ali Al-Darmarki (of the Dhawahir tribe).

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.

Sheikh Saeed Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan was born in 1965 to Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al-Nahyan’s wife Sheikha Aisha Bint Ali Al-Darmarki (of the Dhawahir tribe); six years later, Sheikh Zayed would become the founding president of the UAE.