Indian passport has visa-free access to 57 countriesAccording to a report published on Tuesday, Singapore has dethroned Japan from its five-year reign at the top spot on the Henley Passport Index. The Henley Passport Index rankings are based on the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa, largely based on data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA). Afghanistan remains at the bottom of the Index, with a visa-free access of just 27, followed by Iraq (29), and Syria (30) ” the three weakest passports in the world. At the bottom of the Henley Openness Index, four countries score zero, permitting no visa-free access for any passport — Afghanistan, North Korea, Papua New Guinea, and Turkmenistan. They are followed by five countries that provide visa-free access to fewer than five other nationalities — Libya, Bhutan, Eritrea, Equatorial Guinea, and India, the report said.

ArrowRight The suit alleges that Wagner fighters stationed in Libya killed three members of a local family in 2019 after detaining them without explanation. The lawsuit also names Khalifa Hifter, the Libyan warlord who brought the mercenary group to Libya in 2018. A request for comment, sent to an email account associated with Wagner and Prigozhin, did not receive a response. Advertisement“No member of the Wagner Group in Libya should feel safe or exempt from facing justice,” said Omar Tabuni, the advocacy director for the Libyan American Alliance. correction A previous version of this article misspelled the last name of Wagner Group founder Yevgeniy Prigozhin in the story and the headline.

OTTAWA — A former high-ranking security expert says Canada may loosen its arms-export restrictions against Turkey as that country moves to strengthen ties with its Western peers. OTTAWA — A former high-ranking security expert says Canada may loosen its arms-export restrictions against Turkey as that country moves to strengthen ties with its Western peers. During the summit, media reports quoting unnamed Turkish officials claimed Canada reopened talks on the arms embargo in response. So we have to be really, really sensitive," said Kilford, who is a fellow with the Centre for International and Defence Policy at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont. "It's very tempting, if you were a Canadian arms manufacturer, to want to have a piece of the action," he said.

LCO +0.36% Add to/Remove from WatchlistChinese growth underwhelmsLibya resumes production after brief outageKey technical support levels still belowprices pulled back from last week’s highs today, weighed down by the weaker Chinese figures and reports of some Libyan outages being restored. The numbers from the world’s second-largest economy are almost certainly the bigger factor here especially against the backdrop of sluggish growth around the globe. It also falls around the 100-day SMA which could be viewed as a bullish signal, despite the early week setback. Brent Crude DailyBrent Crude Daily ChartSource – OANDA on Trading ViewIf it can hold above this level, even a little lower, say $77, it could be viewed as a breakout confirmation move which in theory is a bullish signal. That’s not to say a move below here would be a bearish move; it could prove to be of course but there are other potential support levels below.

Sixteen Libyan companies registered in the Libyan Export Promotion Centre’s (LEPC) Exporters Register are participating in the Libyan-Serbian Friendship Exhibition which runs from 18 to 23 July in the Serbian capital Belgrade. The event will highlight Libyan food products, mainly olive oil, honey, dates and fish. It is organized by the LEPC in cooperation with Space Company, sponsored by the Libyan Ministry of Economy and Trade and the General Authority for Exhibitions and supervised by the Libyan Embassy in Serbia.

Chairman of the Libyan High Council of State, Khaled al-Mishri, held talks on Tuesday with the Italian ambassador in Tripoli, Gianluca Alberini. During the talks, the two discussed bilateral relations and ways to strengthen economic cooperation, to the benefit of common interests, according to a statement by the council. Furthermore, the statement continues, Al-Mishri and Alberini spoke of “support for the intra-Libyan path for the holding of elections as soon as possible, as well as the external interference of countries whose agenda does not include the stability of Libya”.

Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”) Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge Thomas Acocella. We continue to have ongoing investigations into stolen Libyan artifacts and look forward to more repatriation ceremonies in the future,” said District Attorney Bragg. During District Attorney Bragg’s tenure, the ATU has recovered nearly 850 antiquities stolen from 27 countries and valued at over $165 million. Since its creation, the ATU has recovered over 4,500 antiquities stolen from 30 countries and valued at nearly $390 million. Under District Attorney Bragg, the ATU has also repatriated more than 950 antiquities stolen from 19 countries and valued at more than $165 million.

Via WikipediaManhattan District Attorney decided to restitute two artifacts to Libya, which the British art dealer Robin Symes previously smuggled. Manhattan District Attorney Looks Forward More Repatriation CeremoniesThe Temple of Zeus, Cyrene. Via WikipediaAfter the theft, art dealer Symes acquired the antiquities in his individual acquisition. Via WikipediaSpeaking of art dealer Robin Symes, this is not the first case of theft in which he was involved. The district attorney’s office returned a Mesopotamian limestone elephant to Iraq in May.

CAIRO – 18 July 2023: Special Representative of the President of Russia for the Middle East Mikhail Bogdanov welcomed the outcomes of the Sudan Neighboring States Summit that was held in Cairo on July 13. Bogdanov commended the Egyptian efforts pertaining to the Sudanese crisis, expressing hope that Sudan would restore its peace and stability. In a similar context, the meeting included talks on preparations for the Russia-Africa Summit taking place in St. Petersburg on July 27-28. The Egyptian ambassador and the Special Representative of the President of Russia for the Middle East also tackled updates on Palestine and Libya among other regional affairs. Ambassador Nagary participated in June in a meeting with Ambassador Bogdanov, as well as the ambassadors of Jordan and Palestine, to confer over the situation in Palestinian territories.

Crude Oil, WTI, China GDP, Libya Production, RBOB Crack Spread, OVX – Talking PointsCrude oil is on the back foot going into Tuesday’s trading sessionChina’s growth prospects remain mired but hopes for stimulus persistLibya is set to add to oil production. The RBOB crack spread is the gauge of gasoline prices relative to crude oil prices and reflects the profit margin of refiners. The price action saw WTI crude fall back into the broad range of US$ 66.80 – US$ 77.33 that it has been in for 11 weeks. The OVX index measures volatility in the WTI oil price in a similar way that the VIX index gauges volatility on the S&P 500. Updated crude oil prices can be found here.

Oil prices moved lower on Monday, with WTI off 1.7% or $1.27/bbl to settle at $74.15/bbl. That took the price of WTI back to where it was a week ago. Also, crude prices were under downward pressure due to the restart of two oil fields in Libya that had been shut down last week by local protests. RBN’s early estimate for this week’s EIA storage report is an injection of +46 Bcf for the week ended 7/14. That compares to last year’s injection of +32 Bcf and the 5-year average is an injection of +36 Bcf for the same week.

Its aim was to boost sustainable development and foster environmental cooperation between the two countries, and the Palestinians. Israel and Jordan have also in recent years signed a declaration of intent for a joint water-for-energy project. She said the recent Abraham Accords agreements that normalized relations between Israel and several Arab states have helped with Israeli engagement and integration efforts in the Arab World. But she pointed out that Palestinians have not been represented in many of the regional environmental discussions. Israeli ambassador Gideon Behar, Israel’s special envoy for climate change and sustainability, highlighted during the session some examples of Israeli and Arab cooperation on issues relating to the environment and water.

The Manhattan District Attorney’s office announced Friday it had returned two antiquities worth $1.26 million to Libya that had previoulsy been smuggled and held by the British art dealer Robin Symes. Female Bust would have been part of an important funerary relief that decorated Cyrene’s ancient cemetery, known as a necropolis. Recently, archaeologists in Libya believe they have found what appears to be the torso of Female Bust still intact in its original tomb. “It is shameful that these beautiful pieces were stored away for decades by a convicted trafficker,” District Attorney Alvin Bragg said in a statement. In February, the DA’s office returned a marble head of the emperor Hadrian dating back to 200 CE.

Chinese growth underwhelmsLibya resumes production after brief outageKey technical support levels still belowOil prices pulled back from last week’s highs today, weighed down by the weaker Chinese figures and reports of some Libyan outages being restored. It also falls around the 100-day SMA which could be viewed as a bullish signal, despite the early week setback. That’s not to say a move below here would be a bearish move; it could prove to be of course but there are other potential support levels below. Opinions are the authors; not necessarily that of OANDA Business Information & Services, Inc. or any of its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers or directors. © 2023 OANDA Business Information & Services Inc.

From Kebili in Tunisia to Ethiopia’s Dallol, here are the 13 hottest places on the planet. Although some scientists debate the reliability of historic readings, Death Valley reportedly also topped 54.4°C in the summer of 2020, so there's little doubt that it's one of the hottest places on Earth. Dallol, EthiopiaThis town in northern Ethiopia has some of the world's highest average readings for an inhabited place. And at Wadi Halfa, a trade outpost along the Nile River, the hottest temperature ever registered was 53°C. Getty ImagesUninhabited and one of the hottest places on the planet, the Dasht-e Lut salt desert in Iran had a sweltering 70.7°C recording back in 2005.