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The Majlis-e Shura-ye Eslami (parliament) approved the appointment of roads and urban development minister Mehrdad Bazrpash in a vote on 7 December. He was approved by 187 votes in favour to 64 against, with seven abstentions and five spoiled votes. Bazrpash had previously been senior president of the Supreme Audit Court. 

Attending the World Cup in Qatar and lending his backing to everything from major tourism schemes in isolated corners of the kingdom to mega-airports and yet more youth-focused entertainment, Saudi Arabia’s crown prince has made himself central to promoting a more dynamic image for Saudi Arabia, even as his regime frightens most of its critics into silence.

Prime Minister and Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS)’s Vision 2030 policies have increasingly sought to make the kingdom a hub for global sporting events, its soft power projection extending through the ownership of football and other sporting assets and, in the process, providing unprecedented entertainment for the Saudi population.

The UAE is preparing for its 51st National Day on 2 December with the usual talk of unity and joint endeavour. However, one consequence of the wide-ranging social and economic reforms introduced in recent years is that the idea of Emirati national identity may now be more contentious than it has been for decades.

Doha has struggled to deal with criticism from global media and former Fifa insiders as it prepares for the start of the 2022 World Cup. Its insistence that “everyone is welcome” will be tested in the coming weeks, but GSN’s research shows that one group has already done very well from the event, with Qatar’s big business families – including the ruling Al-Thanis – having secured major construction contracts.

Iraq’s newly-appointed Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa Al-Sudani is a veteran of the post-Saddam Hussein political scene. He was governor of Maysan province in 2009-10 and then served as human rights minister in Nouri Al-Maliki’s administration, from December 2010 to October 2014.

That the legendary late head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp’s Quds Force, Qassim Soleimani, has not been forgotten following his January 2020 assassination by the United States was underlined by a 2 November tweet on Iranian Rahbar (Supreme Leader) Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s Twitter account.

The superyacht of a once-prominent Saudi prince - Khalid Bin Sultan Bin Abdelaziz - is being sold for €150m ($149.7m), after a Maltese judge approved a creditor’s request for its sale. The sale seems to reflect a decline in the fortunes of the prince (who is also a former deputy defence minister) and several other relatives, who were members of the late Crown Prince Sultan Bin Abdelaziz’s branch of the ruling family.

Protestors have refused to stand down in the face of sometimes overwhelming state force in the seven weeks since Mahsa Amini died in custody. The movement’s support base has spread across the country and into parts of society not usually associated with political demonstrations, putting Ayatollah Ali Khamenei under unprecedented pressure. His regime is not yet facing the end, but the challenge to the clerical/military leadership will not fade easily or quickly.

The UAE president's younger brother Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed is furthering Abu Dhabi's media – and soft power – reach with investments in new digital outlets, adding to his extensive portfolio of business interests and public appointments.

Saudi Arabia’s new defence minister has steadily gathered influence as the Bin Salman clan has consolidated its power across the commanding heights of the kingdom’s politics and economy. GSN profiles Prince Khalid Bin Salman’s rise through a military career to become ambassador to Washington and then deputy defence minister – with an important role in the Yemen conflict – before replacing his brother, Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, in the top defence job

Following the 27 September announcement appointing Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS) as Saudi prime minister, lawyers acting for MBS have argued to a US federal court in the District of Columbia that their client's new position entitles him to "status-based immunity”. 

The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) awarded Saudi Arabia the rights to host the 2029 Asian Winter Games, at a 3-4 October meeting in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The event will be held at the planned resort of Trojena, which forms part of the city of Neom, which is under construction in the kingdom’s isolated north-west.

Gulf States Newsletter (GSN) provides profiles of the children of Saudi Arabia's King Salman Bin Abdelaziz, including Crown Prince and prime minister Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS), his brothers Khalid and Turki, his half-brothers Fahd, Sultan, Ahmed, Abdelaziz, Faisal and Saud and his half-sister Hessa.

Emirati Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan is facing claims that he may have helped wealthy Russians transfer their assets to the UAE in contravention of the United Kingdom’s sanctions on Moscow.