Overview
- GCC heads of state at a consultative summit in Jeddah issued a unified rejection of what they called Iran’s unlawful steps to close or impede the Strait of Hormuz and urged a return to conditions before February 28, 2026.
- UAE foreign minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed joined the summit, condemned Iranian missile attacks that hit civilian sites, affirmed the right of targeted states to respond, and later met Canada’s senior adviser Scott Gilmore, who voiced Ottawa’s solidarity with the UAE.
- The UAE told the UN Security Council it will help carry out Resolution 2803’s Gaza plan, noting about $3 billion in aid already delivered and a pledge of $1.2 billion more to support the framework for transferring governance to a reformed Palestinian Authority.
- To shore up confidence at home, the Ministry of Finance listed 1.1 billion dirhams in additional dirham sukuk on Nasdaq Dubai to build a local yield curve, and Sheikha Latifa launched a Creative Sector Resilience portfolio backed by a 1 billion dirham facilitation package to support talent, venues, and grants.
- More than 600 Google employees urged CEO Sundar Pichai to reject a proposed Pentagon deal that would let Gemini support classified military work, warning secrecy blocks oversight as the Pentagon pushed for “all lawful uses” and staff said Google’s guardrails would be unenforceable; in Iraq, analysts split on whether prime‑minister designate Ali Al‑Zaydi marks independent decision‑making or time‑buying under outside pressure.