DJEBBA, Tunisia: High in the hills of northwestern Tunisia, farmers are tending thousands of fig trees with a unique system of terracing they hope will protect them from ever-harsher droughts.

But the “hanging gardens” of Djebba El-Olia have been put to the test this year as the North African country sweltered through its hottest July since the 1950s.

That has exacerbated a long drought that has left Tunisia’s reservoirs at just a third of their capacity.

The gardens are supplied with water from two springs high in the mountains.

RIYADH: The Houthis’ intransigence in the recent Amman talks on a Yemen peace had thwarted efforts to release all prisoners of war, according to the Coalition to Support Legitimacy in Yemen spokesman, Brigadier-General Turki Al-Maliki.

Al-Maliki stated that the Houthis give priority to issues of fuel shortage over the issue of humane treatment of prisoners of war, according to Saudi Press Agency.

Al-Maliki added that the coalition offered the chance for Houthis to visit their prisoners, but did not find them to show any seriousness or determination to do so.

DUBAI: The ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid met with King Charles III at Buckingham Palace in London on Sunday to offer his condolences on the death of Queen Elizabeth II.

He was accompanied by UAE Minister of State for International Cooperation Reem Al-Hashimy.

Sheikh Mohammed highlighted the significant role played by the queen in supporting and consolidating the deep bonds between the UAE and the UK in various fields, Dubai Media Office said.

DOHA: Ambassador Jassim bin Yousef Al-Jamal, Qatar’s first permanent representative to the UN, has given an overview of Qatar’s international role over the past five decades in an interview with Qatar News Agency.

Al-Jamal was appointed soon after Qatar’s independence in 1971 and served for 12 years. 

In his interview, Al-Jamal emphasized that despite its recent independence, Qatar had played a strong and active role in the UN, and its permanent delegation was in harmony with the Arab group.

ADEN: In 1954, large crowds turned out for a historic visit by Queen Elizabeth II to Aden. At the time, this city on the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula was a colony of the British Empire and was one of the busiest and most important ports in the world.
Now the queen’s death after a 70-year reign has prompted some Yemenis to remember a part of history not often evoked.
Her death has brought waves of grief and sympathy from around the globe.