JEDDAH: Many breathed a sigh of relief when 2022 drew to a close, marking the conclusion of 12 months of post-pandemic fatigue, geopolitical tension and global economic instability, to name but a few of the past year’s challenges.

One result of the year’s volatility and upsets is the pervading sense of anger coursing through societies, fed up with the litany of back-to-back crises — solutions for which appear to evade governments and global institutions.

GAZA CITY: A Saudi aid convoy carrying tons of meat on Saturday arrived in Gaza via the Rafah commercial crossing with Egypt.

The Kingdom has donated 12,000 sacrificial animals under the terms of an agreement signed with the Palestinian Ambassador to Egypt Diab Al-Louh during a recent ceremony held at the Saudi Embassy in Cairo.

As part of the deal, Egypt will also receive the same quantity of meat from Saudi Arabia.

BAGHDAD: Defence systems at Iraq’s Ain Al-Asad airbase, which hosts US forces, shot down a drone near the base on Sunday, with Iraqi military sources and the US-led international military coalition offering confliciting accounts of the incident.

The US-led international military coalition said in a statement that it had conducted “an operational exercise…that involved engaging an Unmanned Aerial System” at Ain Al-Asad base as part of a training exercise.

RIYADH: The Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council Nayef Falah Al-Hajraf met with Bahrain’s Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al-Zayani in Manama on Sunday.

The meeting came as the GCC chief approaches the end of his tenure at the council.

Al-Zayani praised Al-Hajraf’s great efforts to support joint GCC action, its unity and solidarity, and his service to its causes.

The foreign minister also hailed the endeavours of the secretary general to cement the progress of the council in order to meet the aspirations and ambitions of member states.

RIYADH: The Organization of Islamic Cooperation will hold an extraordinary open-ended meeting of its Executive Committee in Jeddah on Tuesday to discuss Israeli attacks on the Al-Aqsa Mosque in East Jerusalem, Saudi Press Agency reported.

The meeting follows escalating Israeli activity in occupied Jerusalem, most notably a “provocative” visit by Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir to the mosque compound on Tuesday. It also comes in light of Israel’s attempts to alter the legal and historical status of the holy site.