Oil prices rise as COVID-19 lock-downs start to ease

Joe Biden is set to travel to Israel on July 13 before heading to the occupied West Bank and Saudi Arabia. The trip's announcement comes despite pledges to side-line the "pariah" Saudi state.

The move is the latest attempt by the Saudi government to censor what it sees as LGBTQ references in the conservative country. State-run Al-Ekhbariya television said rainbow-colored materials send a "poisoned message."

Ukraine's heavyweight world champion Oleksandr Usyk to face Briton Anthony Joshua in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Aug. 20 in a rematch of their London bout last year.

The leaders of Saudi Arabia and Turkey are turning the page on years of strained relations, exacerbated by the 2018 assassination of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the kingdom's consulate in Istanbul. Face-to-face dialogue is the order of the day between Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The US president has penned a defense of his planned visit to Saudi Arabia for The Washington Post. His trip comes after pledging to make the country a "pariah" on the campaign trail.

The US president has penned a defense of his planned visit to Saudi Arabia for The Washington Post. His trip comes after pledging to make the country a "pariah" on the campaign trail.

During his campaign for the US presidency, Joe Biden described Saudi Arabia as a 'pariah state' in the aftermath of the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. But since taking office, Biden's language has changed. This week, he is making his first trip to the oil-rich kingdom as president, as global energy prices soar in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. To discuss the trip (which also includes Jordan and Israel), we talk to Middle East expert and former CIA officer Douglas London, who is adjunct associate professor at the Center for Security Studies at Georgetown University.

The US president has used harsh words to describe Mohammed bin Salman's (MBS) human rights record. But that was before Russia invaded Ukraine and sent oil prices soaring.

In an interview with FRANCE 24 on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, Iraq's Foreign inister Fuad Hussein said he was hoping to host a meeting in Baghdad between the foreign ministers of Iran and Saudi Arabia. Hussein said that after five meetings between intelligence officials of the two rival powers in recent months, it was time to upgrade and have the two top diplomats meet in person.

Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz has named his son and heir Prince Mohammed bin Salman as the kingdom's prime minister and his second son Prince Khalid as defense minister in a Cabinet reshuffle.

Saudi Arabia have become one of the most prominent investors in global sport in recent years. Now the oil rich state with a questionable human rights record is all over the T20 cricket World Cup. But why?

A weekly news show produced with photos, videos and personal accounts from France 24 Observers around the world - all checked by our staff here in Paris.