This post is in partnership with Worldcrunch, a new global-news site that translates stories of note in foreign languages into English. The article below was originally published in Le Monde. Pride is visible in the windows at the Souk Al Waqif. The shop fronts in this touristy area are covered with posters of the Emir of Qatar and his son raising the World Cup in triumph. Plaster replicas of the golden sculpture can be bought at the souvenir ...

Afghanistan has been something of a forgotten war in recent months because of the world's preoccupation with Libya and Egypt and the wave of antigovernment protests spreading throughout the Middle East. That will soon change, now that the Obama Administration is stepping up talks with the Taliban in an effort to come up with some peaceable endgame to the half-trillion-dollar war. Part of the plan is to involve nations like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in the talks ...

Dubai's financial crisis may have calmed a bit now that the central bank of the United Arab Emirates has promised to stand behind the city state's banks with fresh liquidity. After all, the UAE, to which Dubai belongs, has perhaps $700 billion accumulated from petroleum riches — a resource that Dubai, which is apparently stuck with tens of billions of dollars in debt, does not enjoy. But the question remains, if the central bank in Abu Dhabi decides ...

There's more to wearing the "niqab" -- the austere, all-covering veil favored by ultra-religious Muslim women -- than meets the eye. A recent declaration by a leading Egyptian cleric that women will not be allowed to wear the niqab in university areas frequented only by women has sparked demonstrations by female students in Cairo determined to wear the all-encompassing veil wherever they go. Egypt's Al-Azhar university, the highest seat of Sunni Islam, recently convened an all-male committee to rule on ...

With all the pomp and money befitting its status as the world's richest city, Abu Dhabi will soon unveil its new Formula One track on Yas Island, a spectacular entertainment destination emerging from the turquoise waters off the coast of the Emirati capital. In true Gulf style, the new Yas Marina Circuit is iconic -- its roof is huge, ringed with thousands of lights, and modeled on the classic double curve of a Ferrari racing chassis. The new flagship Yas ...

The United Arab Emirates has seized a ship believed to be carrying North Korean weapons to Iran in what is believed to be first case of disguised cargo confiscated under tightened U.N. sanctions against Pyongyang, diplomats said Friday.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has called the decision by European football's governing body UEFA to charge striker Eduardo with diving against Celtic a "complete disgrace" and accused them of staging a "witch-hunt" against the player. Wenger, speaking in his press conference on the eve of his side's English Premier League clash with Manchester United, also warned that UEFA have "opened a very dangerous door" after they began disciplinary proceedings against the 26-year-old Croatia international. "I find it a complete disgrace ...

Almost half a year after they were arrested, two Australian businessmen have been formally charged with fraud by authorities in the United Arab Emirates.

A triumphant Alex Ferguson had words of consolation for his old rival Arsene Wenger after his all-conquering Manchester United side left the Frenchman to reflect on another trophy-less season for Arsenal. "It is the most disappointing of nights," Wenger told Press Association as his side slipped to a 3-1 second leg defeat at the Emirates, losing the Champions League semifinal 4-1 on aggregate. "I felt the fans were really up for a big night and to disappoint the people who ...

Holders Manchester United remain on course to become the first side to retain the Champions League, as two goals in the first 11 minutes saw them defeat Arsenal 3-1 for a 4-1 aggregate victory and a place in the final against either Chelsea or Barcelona in Rome. A carnival atmosphere at the Emirates Stadium saw the home fans optimistic that last week's 1-0 defeat at Old Trafford could be overturned, but those hopes were cruelly dashed as two individual mistakes ...