Top ten news stories of 2021 in the Middle East

A coup d'état in Sudan that put an end to the democratic transition, the six-day blockade of the Suez Canal, the pressing economic crisis in Lebanon and the first visit of a pope to Iraq are some of the most important news stories that have taken place in the Middle East in 2021.

EVER GIVEN BLOCKS THE SUEZ CANAL

The large Panamanian-flagged container ship "Ever Given" got stuck in the Suez Canal on 23 March, blocking maritime traffic for six days, causing delays in the transport of goods and millions of dollars in losses in this artificial waterway, through which around 10 % of world trade passes.

After undocking the ship, which cost the life of an operator, the Egyptian authorities held the vessel in the canal until 7 July, when an agreement was reached with the owner of the "Ever Given", the Japanese company Shoei Kisen, for some 550 million dollars.

END OF THREE-YEAR BOYCOTT AGAINST QATAR

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates fully resumed relations with Qatar on 5 January after three and a half years of rupture and blockade for accusing it of "sponsoring terrorism" because of its alleged rapprochement with Iran, an enemy of the region.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and the emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad al-Zani, staged the reconciliation by embracing, and since then the so-called Arab quartet has resumed relations with the small Persian Gulf country, although the details of the agreement are not yet known.

COUP D'ÉTAT IN SUDAN

The military staged a coup in Sudan on 25 October when it arrested a dozen government ministers, including Chief Executive Abdullah Hamdok, who was placed under house arrest for days and later released.

Although the military restored Hamdok to office, always under the conditions of the military leadership, the uprising put an end to the democratic transition in Sudan, which began after the overthrow of dictator Omar al-Bashir in 2019.

EMIRATES PROBE REACHES MARS ORBIT

The Emirati probe Hope successfully entered Mars' orbit on 9 February to study the climate and atmosphere, making the United Arab Emirates the fifth space power to reach the red planet.

Since then, the Arab space mission has been able to capture the first photographs of a discrete aurora in the atmosphere on the night side of Mars that will help understand the interactions between solar radiation and magnetic fields, and other snapshots of the high oxygen concentrations on the red planet.
 

THE WORST CRISIS IN LEBANON'S HISTORY

The economic crisis unleashed in Lebanon at the end of 2019 has worsened in 2021 to become one of the worst worldwide in more than a century and a half, marked also by the effects of the coronavirus pandemic and the explosion in the port of Beirut in August 2020.

This recession has caused the local currency to plummet against the dollar, triggered inflation and led to severe shortages of basic goods and services such as fuel, electricity, water and medicines. As a result, the poverty rate has reached 80 %.

OPENING OF EXPO2020 IN DUBAI

The Dubai 2020 World Expo opened its doors on 1 October, a year later than planned due to the coronavirus pandemic, and became the first event of its kind in the Arab world and in a Muslim country.

Dubai has invested billions of dollars to host the Expo in the middle of the desert, an event that is expected to attract some $33.4 billion and create nearly one million jobs.

FIRST VISIT BY A POPE TO IRAQ

Pope Francis made a historic three-day visit to Iraq on 5 March, the first by a pontiff to the country, where he brought a message of support for the Christian minority in the Arab country, which has suffered in recent years from the violence of the Islamic State terrorist group.

In addition to Baghdad, Francis visited the cities of Erbil, Mosul, Qaraqosh in the north of the country, and the plain of Ur, where tradition has it that Abraham, prophet of the three monotheistic religions, was born, and met with Iraq's highest Shiite Muslim authority, Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani.

ALGERIA LIFTS ITS FIRST ARAB CUP

Algeria's national football team lifted its first FIFA Arab Cup on 18 December after beating Tunisia 2-0 in extra time in the final at Qatar's Al Bait stadium, which hosted the event ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

HANDBALL WORLD CUP IN EGYPT

Cairo hosted the Egypt 2021 World Cup in January, where Denmark won their second world championship title and retained the gold medal they won two years ago on home soil with a 26-24 win over Sweden in the final.

Spain won bronze and Ferrán Solé was voted best right winger of the tournament, being the only representative of the Spanish team in the best team of the tournament, which was held under strict sanitary measures due to the covi-19 epidemic, including the absence of public in the stadiums.

AL SADD BIDS FAREWELL TO XAVI

Xavi Hernandez bid farewell on 5 November to the Qatar Al Sadd squad, a team he has managed since 2019 and with whom he won seven titles: a Sheikh Jassem Cup, two Qatar Crown Prince Cups, a Qatar Stars Cup, a Qatar League and two Emir's Cups.

Despite the Qataris' reluctance, the Catalan coach signed for FC Barcelona after the Catalan club paid the penalty clause to Al Sadd.