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In the Middle East and Northern Africa (MENA), dry eye disease (DED) is often misdiagnosed or overlooked. This review summarizes a series of conversations with ophthalmologists in the region around a variety of climatic, lifestyle, and iatrogenic factors that contribute to specific features of DED in the MENA region. These considerations are further classified by patient lifestyle and surgical choices. All statements are based on discussions and formal voting to achieve consensus over three meetings. Overall, a deeper understanding of the disease characteristics of DED specific to MENA can better guide local eyecare practitioners on appropriate management and follow-up care. Additionally, population-based studies and patient and physician education on ocular surface diseases, together with the use of culturally appropriate and language-specific questionnaires can help ease the public health burden of DED in this region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Some universal accessibility practitioners have voiced that they experience a mismatch in the research focus and the need for knowledge within specialized problem domains. This study thus set out to identify the balance of research into the main areas of accessibility, the impact of this research, and how the research profile varies over time and across geographical regions. Method: All UAIS papers indexed in Scopus were analysed using bibliometric methods. The WCAG taxonomy of accessibility was used for the analysis, namely perceivable, operable, and understandable. Results: The results confirm the expectation that research into visual impairment has received more attention than papers addressing operable and understandable. Although papers focussing on understandable made up the smallest group, papers in this group attracted more citations. Funded research attracted fewer citations than research without funding. The breakdown of research efforts appears consistent over time and across different geographical regions. Researchers in Europe and North America have been active throughout the last two decades, while Southeast Asia, Latin America, and Middle East became active in during the last five years. There is also seemingly a growing trend of out-of-scope papers. Conclusions: Based on the findings, several recommendations are proposed to the UAIS editorial board. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The First 1000 Days (the period from conception to a child's second birthday) is an important developmental period. However, little is known about experiences of parents with refugee and migrant backgrounds during this period. A systematic review was conducted according to PRISMA guidelines. Publications were identified through searches of the Embase, PsycINFO, PubMed, and Scopus databases, critically appraised, and synthesised using thematic analysis. A total of 35 papers met inclusion criteria. Depressive symptomatology was consistently higher than global averages, however maternal depression conceptualisations differed across studies. Several papers reported changes in relationship dynamics as a result of having a baby post-migration. Consistent relationships were found between social and health support and wellbeing. Conceptualisations of wellbeing may differ among migrant families. Limited understanding of health services and relationships with health providers may impede help-seeking. Several research gaps were identified, particularly in relation to the wellbeing of fathers, and of parents of children over 12 months old. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The release of millions of financial documents, which has been known as the 'WikiLeaks' of the financial world (a.k.a. 'Panama Papers'), has dragged global attention in how highly structured means applied by some of the elite to conceal their financial assets. Consequently, significant financial corruption allegations were raised. We concentrate on a somewhat overlooked region, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. This study aims to use social network analytics to study the information contained in these documents. We are checking the major players in the MENA's trends and patterns to determine if it matches the known economic powers. The analysis reveals that while the constructed network enjoys some typical characteristics, many interesting observations and properties are worth discussing. Specifically, using the extracted network consisting of 62 987 nodes and 84 692 edges, our social network analysis finding shows that, perhaps surprisingly, the nodes or the social network are not necessarily directly correlated with perceived economic influence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article considers the problem of finite-time command-filtered control for switched nonlinear systems with input quantization and output constraints. The unmeasurable state is estimated by designing a switched state observer. During the design process, to overcome the chattering problem effectively, the hysteresis quantization is designed as two bounded nonlinear functions. Furthermore, in order to restrict the output to an expected range, the barrier Lyapunov function approach is introduced. The "explosion of complexity" and the error compensation problems in the backstepping design are solved by using a finite-time command-filtered approach. A first-order Levant differentiator is used instead of the general command filter in this paper, which can not only filter the intermediate signals accurately to get the differential signals, but also ensure the finite-time stability of the filter. Stability of the closed-loop system in the sense of semi-global practical finite-time stability (SGPFS) is proved by exploring a multiple Lyapunov functions approach. Finally, a simulation example is provided to verify the validity of the presented control method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper systematically reviews 314 empirical studies that examine the relationship between board leadership structure and firm performance. The results show that the mixed research findings are due to different firm performance measurements, research designs, sampling practices and approaches of dealing with endogeneity issues. Studies utilizing multiple‐country data, multinational companies, small firms or regions covering Africa, the Middle East, Eastern Europe and South America are under‐represented. It critiques the methodological weaknesses of some empirical studies and proposes that future researchers should use multiple firm performance measurements, a longitudinal research design and an integrative framework to better control the direct and moderating factors. Future researchers may advance the robustness of research by using multiple theoretical lenses to consider how various governance factors moderate the relationship between board leadership structure and firm performance, particularly the different ownership structures, managerial discretion contexts and national institutional factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This paper uses Iraq as a case study to answer the research question, how do consociational settlements impact the state? Firstly, the paper argues that consociationalism, at best, has an under-theorized conception of the state, implicitly defaulting to an unexamined neoWeberian model. The paper then surveys state theory and finds that key works on the state in the Middle East are vulnerable to the postcolonial critique of Eurocentrism. To overcome this, the paper deploys the works of Mann, Jessop, and Bourdieu to develop a universal model of the state, disaggregating the state, conceiving of it as a series of competitive fields, bureaucratic, political, coercive, and economic. The paper then uses this model to assess how a consociational political settlement impacts upon the state. Deploying a disaggregated model of the state, the paper argues that Iraq’s consociational settlement shifted the balance of power in the bureaucratic field away from any autonomous power or centralized coherence that the institutions and the civil service possessed toward the political parties empowered by the consociational system. After being empowered by the informal consociational settlement, it is the political parties who now dominate the system for their own ends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This editorial discusses the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and the ethical and practical challenges they present for social welfare. It explores the question of how to apply ethics and values in situations of ideological, religious, and political differences that can lead to oppression and violence. The journal also examines the extent to which social professions' values reflect a Western perspective and may neglect the values and interests of under-resourced areas and indigenous peoples. The issue includes papers on trauma-informed social work, the inclusion of diverse religious communities in youth work training, negative attitudes towards LGBTQ individuals in healthcare, and post-traumatic growth among survivors of mass violence. The journal also features two papers in the Ethics in Practice section, one reflecting on the experience of asking for help as a mental health patient and the other discussing ethical issues in researching migrant street children in Delhi. [Extracted from the article]

The field of human–computer interaction (HCI) is a growing area of research. However, its ascendancy and evolution is not understood in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, which is knocking on the doors of innovation and technological advancements. In our analysis, we present a bibliometric and socioeconomic overview of the progress of HCI research in the MENA region. Using a pool of 10 premier venues in the discipline, we extracted 549 papers. We show that authors from high-income MENA countries are the most prolific in terms of both research output and first authorship and that authors from upper-middle-income countries are more likely to publish their work in journals. The topical focus of conducted research was also observed to vary as per the socioeconomic category to which a country belonged to. The USA emerged as the standout collaborative partner of the MENA region, and there was an observed lack of intra-MENA associations. We conclude with the assertion that additional efforts are warranted to promote collaborations amongst the region. Our work is one of the first attempts to quantitatively chart the development of HCI in the MENA region using the socioeconomic level of a country as an important predictor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bats have gained cumulative attention as potential reservoirs for viruses, being crucial to increase our ability to predict viral prevalence and transmissions, as well as support the possible management of future zoonotic episodes. Following the PRISMA standard systematic review protocols, we conducted a comprehensive search worldwide for scientific papers dealing with bat-hosted viruses of the Adenoviridae and Herpesviridae families. The search was completed using the Scopus, CABI, and SciELO, databases of bat-associated viruses of these two families as well as the Google Scholar search engine. Our search comprised a total of 2656 scientific papers. After a thorough review and screening of the papers, we selected for our study a total of 90 papers published between 1996 and 2022. We found marked taxonomic and spatial biases, the most studied bats being predominantly vespertilionids, rhinolophids, phyllostomids, and pteropodids, whereas other families (e.g., Natalidae, Noctilionidae, and Furipteridae) are still lacking information. The most studied areas are southern and east Asia, although there are large areas (north Africa, the Middle East, and all the way to central or northern Asia) still overlooked. Out of the total number of papers, as many as 55 identified bat-hosted Adenovirus (AdV) and 54 papers identified Herpesvirus (HSV). Our revision reveals the presence of AdVs in a total of 97 bat species from 42 genera and 11 families. The presence of HSVs is reported also in 109 bat species from 45 genera and 10 families. Although both AdVs and HSVs in general show a clear host specificity and parallel evolution with their hosts, these results also point to the potential of these viruses to cross, in some cases, species barriers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The world is facing an incredibly complex set of global risks, from conflict in Europe and the Middle East, to climate change and food and energy insecurity. As we progress into 2024, we are seeing an intensification of recent trends: geopolitical instability is accelerating the use of economic statecraft and asymmetric tools of financial conflict. These tools are used as both alternatives and additions to hard power. This paper argues that risks to global financial institutions are increasingly characterised by this nexus. Against a backdrop of multiplying wars, the geopolitical activities of treasury departments are becoming more pronounced. This paper addresses how some of these financial and economic tools are deployed and the nature of the risks that have emerged as a result, particularly as the targets of economic statecraft seek to counter them. The paper also considers how financial institutions can build resilience in their organisations by situating geopolitics effectively within financial crime compliance frameworks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The changing factors of supply chain management include the evolution of technology in market conditions, the transformation of business practices, new expectations of partners in the supply chain, and demand for more valueadded from the end-user consumer. Manufacturing organizations require more flexibility to maintain a competitive advantage as well as to operate in a dynamic environment. As the complexity increases, uncertainty and levels also increase in the supply chain. Hence, risk management has become a major issue in the supply chain and plays a significant role in the supply chain performance and the continuity of the organization's dynamics. In the paper, the process of supply chain risk management has been gone through and a risk mitigation model has been presented. The goal of the paper is to expand the proposed model of Kirilmaz & Erol in which the number of commodities increases. In the first step of the suggested method, a procurement plan is provided by a linear planning model, taking into account cost constraints. In the second step, the plan is revised by considering risk criteria for planning. The transition of orders is made to reduce the risk from high risky suppliers to less risky suppliers. The process of supply chain risk management has been performed by an electromotor company in the Middle East. We use the Kirilmaz & Erol model to validate the proposed model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper in hands attempts to explore the effectiveness of International Laws and policies as well as the roles of the United Nations in regulating the conflicts in the Middle East and their benefits for the people. The question the paper attempts to answer is whether such rules, resolutions, and policies are as objective as they are assumed to be. It does so by reviewing the interventions of the world superpowers on the one hand, and the UN on the other, in the conflicts prevailing in the Middle East. Such interventions, the paper postulates, were not as effective and objective as supposed to be. Instead, they were part of the problems and fueled the chaos in the Middle East. The resolutions made for the sake of peace, the attitudes towards the conflicts, the support lent to particular sides, the labels attributed to the events and groups and the efforts made to control the crises are motivated and politically, regionally and economically interested. Examples are taken from the Western attitudes towards the conflicting parties in Yemen, Syria, Libya, Tunisia, Egypt, The Gulf, Palestine, and Iraq. The Yemeni crisis is essential in this argument as it includes a broader circle of conflicting interests. The intervention of two of the wealthiest countries in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, from one side and Iran and Qatar from the other, has laid bare the real United Nations' loyalties. In between, the common peoples' hopes and aspirations of a good and peaceful life are crushed. The paper concludes that the laws and policies that are assumed to be meant for the welfare of the people regardless of their region, race or any other affiliations other than being humans, are compromised on several grounds. They, the examples have revealed, are rather tailored to serve some nations and political leaders than to maintain the well-being and dignity of the masses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, scholars have embraced sustainability as a crucial concept deeply ingrained in architectural designs, particularly Islamic geometric patterns (IGP). These patterns hold significance in reflecting Islamic history, identity, and culture. This systematic review explores how scholars have integrated IGPs into modern design, considering the sustainability aspect. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews (PRISMA) reporting checklist was used due to its organized structure as a guide to conduct this review (2012–2022). Data was collected through recognized databases (i.e., Scopus and ProQuest) that house a wide array of journals and publications. Selected journals were categorized based on sustainability pillars—environmental, economic, social, and cultural. In addition, case studies from the region are discussed, as studies didn't explicitly explore the connection between sustainability and the use of Islamic geometric patterns in modern design. Findings indicate that papers predominantly discuss the positive effects on environmental and economic sustainability through IGP implementation. Conversely, social sustainability received comparatively less attention from scholars. Case studies showed that most building designs in the Middle East use IGP to conserve Islamic history and identity, especially in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). This review sheds light on the potential of geometric patterns as a vehicle for sustainable design and contributes to the broader discourse on sustainable architecture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies of the Bronze Age in the ancient world traditionally have focused on mainstream populations, together with their social organization, and the economic subsistence strategies implemented by them. As a result, those people who lived on the edges of society, whether defined geographically, socially, demographically, or economically, have received correspondingly less attention. Yet, peoples on the margins of mainstream populations fulfilled roles integral to the primary economic and social systems in Bronze Age cultures in the ancient Near Eastern and North African world. This concept of marginal and/or liminal groups in the ancient world, the importance of examining them, and different methods of addressing them, are presented here, as the introduction to the collected papers on marginality and liminality in the Bronze Age world of the ancient Near East and North Africa in this special issue of the Journal of Ancient Near Eastern History. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The handaxe is an iconic stone tool form used to define and symbolise both the Acheulean and the wider Palaeolithic. There has long been debate around the extent of its morphological variability between sites, and the role that extrinsic factors (especially raw material, blank type, and the extent of resharpening) have played in driving this variability, but there has been a lack of high-resolution examinations of these factors in the same study. In this paper, we present a 2D geometric morphometric analysis of 1097 handaxes from across Africa, the Levant, and western Europe to examine the patterning of this variability and what it can tell us about hominin behaviour. We replicate the findings of previous studies, that handaxe shape varies significantly between sites and entire continental regions, but we find no evidence for raw material, blank type, or resharpening in determining this pattern. What we do find, however, is that markers of reduction trajectory vary substantially between sites, suggesting that handaxes were deployed differently according to hominin need at a given site. We argue this is reflective of a continuum of reduction strategies, from those focused on the maintenance of a sharp cutting edge (i.e. direct use in cutting activities), to those focused on maintaining tip shapes, and perhaps a corresponding production of flakes. Implications for hominin behavioural flexibility are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Artificial intelligence's threats to human rights can offset its significant benefits for human welfare. This makes it essential to analyse the current status and existing practices in developing the regulatory framework for artificial intelligence (AI). This paper aims to conduct a comparative legal analysis of the role of AI in ensuring human rights in Europe (in the example of the European Union) and the Middle East (in the example of Israel). The article uses comparative legal, formal legal and descriptive methods. The analysis shows that AI may harm the enjoyment of several human rights. Existing legislative initiatives (in particular, The EU Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act), the Council of Europe's AI Convention) do not fully protect human rights from the impact of artificial intelligence due to existing gaps in the regulation of the private sector and national security, as well as the effect on the transparency of decisions in criminal law. The main problem is the inadequate regulation of the development and use of AI in national security and the private sector. This creates loopholes through which AI can cause significant harm to human rights and lead to violations. Further research can determine how the shortcomings identified in this paper may affect human rights and what safeguards can be put in place. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water scarcity poses significant challenges in arid regions like the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) due to constant population growth, considering the effects of climate change and water management aspects. The desalination technologies face problems like high energy consumption, high investment costs, and significant environmental impacts by brine discharge. This paper researches the relationships among water scarcity, energy-intensive desalination, and the development of renewable energy in MENA, with a particular focus on the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. It examines innovations in solar-powered desalination, considering both solar photovoltaic (PV) and solar thermal technologies, in combination with traditional thermal desalination methods such as multi-effect distillation (MED) and multi-stage flash (MSF). The environmental impacts associated with desalination by brine discharge are also discussed, analyzing innovative technological solutions and avoidance strategies. Utilizing bibliometrics, this report provides a comprehensive analysis of scientific literature for the assessment of the research landscape in order to recognize trends in desalination technologies in the MENA region, providing valuable insights into emerging technologies and research priorities. Despite challenges such as high initial investment costs, technical complexities, and limited funding for research and development, the convergence of water scarcity and renewable energy presents significant opportunities for integrated desalination systems in GCC countries. Summarizing, this paper emphasizes the importance of interdisciplinary approaches and international collaboration by addressing the complex challenges of water scarcity and energy sustainability in the MENA region. By leveraging renewable energy sources and advancing desalination technologies, the region can achieve water security while mitigating environmental impacts and promoting economic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Surveys in Europe show that immigration is more of a challenge than an opportunity for a significant number of people. However, little attention is given to attitudes toward immigration in the Middle East. This paper examines the effects of personal values and religiosity on the anti-immigration attitudes of citizens in the Middle East and North African countries. Design/methodology/approach: Utilizing data from the World Values Survey, we analyze how personal values and religiosity affect anti-immigration attitudes in nine Middle Eastern countries. The data covers individual-level data of 9 MENA countries from the WVS Round 7 (2017–2022). Factor analysis is applied as a data reduction method. Afterward, an OLS regression analysis is conducted on the pooled data. Findings: Anti-immigration attitudes increase with age, education, and religiosity. Personal values such as national pride, support for nationals, and belongingness to one's country significantly affect anti-immigration attitudes. Furthermore, the importance of religion as a measure of religiosity was found to be positively associated with anti-immigration attitudes. Originality/value: This paper contributes to underexplored literature by investigating how individual-level determinants, such as demographic indicators, personal values, and religious factors, shape anti-immigration attitudes in the MENA context, distinct from European dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wasta is a concept that is widespread across the Middle East, and practiced as a common and acceptable culture in most Middle East based business organizations. While the wasta practice is common and is followed as part of the usual organizational culture in the Middle East, yet, its implications are not all positive for the overall employee and organizational performance, which will be highlighted in the current paper in detail. It encourages interpersonal connections and networking of individuals to be used in order to obtain jobs, based on personnel connection rather than merit, which has huge negative impacts on the business. This paper, therefore, presents a detailed discussion on wasta and its implications considering business organizations across the Middle East. The tourism sector will be the area of the focus for the present work. The impacts of such activities on the tourism sector are significant on recruitment, teamwork, training, reward system, and overall HRM practices, which raise questions on whether this concept should indeed be as common in practice as it is currently. This paper studied the phenomena of wasta in the Middle East in details and proposed framework for Wasta-free Management. Also, recommendation for practice for tourism sector in the middle East along with suggestions for further research are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hemoglobin (Hb) disorders are among the most common monogenic diseases affecting nearly 7% of the world population. Among various Hb disorders, approximately 1.5% of the world population carries β-thalassemia (β-Thal), affecting 40,000 newborns every year. Early screening and a timely diagnosis are essential for β-thalassemia patients for the prevention and management of later clinical complications. However, in Africa, Southern Europe, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia, where β-thalassemia is most prevalent, the diagnosis and screening for β-thalassemia are still challenging due to the cost and logistical burden of laboratory diagnostic tests. Here, we present Gazelle, which is a paper-based microchip electrophoresis platform that enables the first point-of-care diagnostic test for β-thalassemia. We evaluated the accuracy of Gazelle for the β-Thal screening across 372 subjects in the age range of 4–63 years at Apple Diagnostics lab in Mumbai, India. Additionally, 30 blood samples were prepared to mimic β-Thal intermediate and β-Thal major samples. Gazelle-detected levels of Hb A, Hb F, and Hb A2 demonstrated high levels of correlation with the results reported through laboratory gold standard high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), yielding a Pearson correlation coefficient = 0.99. This ability to obtain rapid and accurate results suggests that Gazelle may be suitable for the large-scale screening and diagnosis of β-Thal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This Special Issue expands on the ongoing dialogue on the decolonial project by bringing together thought-provoking papers that examine the communication of female political leaders in the Global South. It draws on data from West Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean and the Middle East to elucidate how female politicians deploy language (including multimodal forms) to position themselves in the political arena and utilize linguistic resources to navigate the discursive practices associated with their political roles and responsibilities. The issue offers a critical discursive perspective on the complex interplay of gender, culture and political leadership, and holds implications for how key issues such as voice, agency, solidarity and empowerment are conceptualized and enacted in specific sociocultural contexts. It also contributes to overcoming epistemicide by decentring knowledge production and underscoring the importance of valuing and engaging with different knowledge systems, especially non-Western epistemologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to describe a new method for constructing the FintTech Index that measures the development of FinTech in the conventional and Islamic banking sectors in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). It also tests the effect of this new proxy on the performance of conventional and Islamic banks in MENA countries. Design/methodology/approach: Using data from Islamic and conventional banks in the MENA region between 2010 and 2020, the authors rely on Text Mining Technology with the help of AntConc, principal component and factor analysis. The study also uses the simultaneous equation model to test the interdependent relationship between FinTech and bank performance. Findings: The study argues that the proposed measure effectively represents the FinTech industry in the MENA financial markets. The results provide micro evidence on the application of FinTech innovation in Islamic and conventional banks to improve their performance, profitability, stability and efficiency. Furthermore, the findings can provide insights for practitioners and researchers interested in implementing FinTech collaboration to enhance the performance of Islamic and conventional banks in the MENA region. Practical implications: Investors can leverage this FinTech Index in portfolio investments, trading strategy and hedging in MENA countries. In addition, policymakers can benefit from the challenges outlined in this work to support the development and incubation of FinTech in conventional and Islamic banks. Thus, they can better recognize the new generation of banking services with which they need to deal and collaborate. Originality/value: This paper makes a methodological contribution to the literature on FinTech search patterns by combining factor analysis with corpus processing software. This is the most comprehensive global FinTech index. In addition, to the best of the authors' knowledge, this study is the first to examine the simultaneous relationship between the FinTech index and the performance of Islamic and conventional banks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The past 20 years have seen an expansion of walking trails across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, including the Abraham Path, Palestine Heritage Trail, Jordan Trail, Israel National Trail, Lebanon Mountain Trail, and Sinai Trail. Many of those who walk these trails do so primarily for leisure, yet to relegate these trails to being merely cultural or leisure sites is to miss the less visible but equally important entanglements of space, mobility, and colonialism. The growth of these trails coincides with a context of (post)colonial and settler‐colonial mobility restrictions and the associated material and imagined infrastructures that control that movement. By attending to the im/material and state/embodied tensions of walking trails, this paper demonstrates how an innocuous‐looking site can enrich understanding of infrastructures and work exploring the mobilities and temporalities of colonialism. To understand the relationships between infrastructure and colonialism through walking trails, I employ a mixed‐method approach combining participant observation, interviews, and discourse analysis of official material pertaining to trails. Such an approach enables the productive tension between official narratives and experiences to emerge. In doing so, this paper makes three arguments surrounding the geographies of colonial infrastructures. First, how nationalism is embedded in the mobilities of trails. Second, how exploring the intimacies of infrastructure can highlight ongoing connections of capitalism and colonialism. Third, how infrastructure might be refused and imagined otherwise. In these mobilities, intimacies, and refusals an expanded geography of colonial infrastructure emerges that makes two broader contributions to geographical scholarship. First, the need to centre attention on the MENA region beyond dominant foci that orientate more readily around state or geo/political practices. Second, how a focus on walking trails centres a site in which the discursive and representative is in constant relationship and tension with the experiential and embodied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article investigates the contribution of Islamic banks to enhancing access to financial services by looking at their unique method of offering Shariacompliant goods and services. Islamic banking principles, the study claims, encourage profit-and-loss sharing and forbid riba (interest), which increases access to financial services, particularly for devout Muslims. In particular, this paper looks at how Islamic banks affect financial inclusion in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa. This is accomplished by assessing academic literature, industry reports, and statistical data. It looks at potential substitutes, including mobile banking and microfinance, to reach those who need access to traditional banking services and delves into the difficulties Islamic banks have, such as a lack of knowledge about money and location. Data indicate that Islamic banks support economic development and stability by establishing trust via Sharia governance structures. In its last part, the report offers some suggestions on how governments may utilize Islamic banking to increase public access to financial services and promote social change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate internal governance mechanisms factors, focusing on Shari'ah-based governance mechanisms that affect the price synchronicity of Islamic banks (IBs). Design/methodology/approach: This study analyzes and compares the effect of Shari'ah and regular governance mechanisms on stock price synchronicity over 2013–2022 using a sample of 51 listed IBs in 13 countries in the Middle East and South Asia region. Using generalized least square method, this paper tests nine hypotheses addressing Shari'ah and regular governance mechanisms. Findings: The findings generally reveal that Shari'ah-based governance mechanisms have a significant impact on the stock price synchronicity of IBs. The main determinants of stock price synchronicity among IBs are SSB size, SSB diversity, SSB members' qualifications in finance Islamic jurisprudence and SSB interlocks. Shari'ah governance plays a detrimental role in improving the association between bank stock price synchronicity and transparency. Research limitations/implications: This paper includes three main limitations that may affect the accuracy of the findings. First, this paper relied on publicly available financial statements of IBs online. Hence, the data in this study is from few IBs in each country, which limits the analysis given the reliance is on the best-performing IBs in the country. Second, the results are restricted to the Middle East and South Asia and may not be generalized to other regions. Third, the sample is dominated by Middle East countries (i.e. 37 IBs out of 51). Practical implications: Both Shari'ah governance and regular governance have an impact on the transparency of IBs. Policymakers or regulators could encourage IBs to embed SSBs into their internal governance structure for the positive impact the SSBs attributes have on stock price synchronicity and transparency. Originality/value: This research studies IBs, unlike most other works that focus on firms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the diversity of theoretical studies, natural resources' moderating role between governance indicators and environmental quality remains a controversial issue. The purpose of this paper is therefore to clarify the nature of this role in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries from 1996 to 2017 relying on the generalized method of moments system estimators. The empirical results reveal that corruption control, political stability, rule of law, voice and accountability, and government effectiveness increase CO2 emissions, while regulation quality does not affect CO2 emissions. Our findings also show that FDI and GDP increase CO2 emissions. However, natural resources moderate the governance indicators to reduce CO2 emissions. Therefore, policy-makers should increase public awareness of the best use of natural resources. Thus, improving governments' institutional framework will generally contribute to reducing the greenhouse gas emission levels in the MENA countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reconsiders Ezekiel's alleged anti-imperial attitude toward the Babylonian empire. It nuances the alleged attitude with Frantz Fanon's theory of colonized subjects' desire to be like their colonizer. Looking at Ezekiel's privileged social location, I argue that the book exhibits a desire to be like the Babylonian empire. Ezekiel intertwines Babylonian's "anti-Egyptian" propaganda with Yahweh's interest in maintaining loyalty toward the empire. To support this argument, the paper first surveys the Babylonian and Egyptian conflict over the Levant. It then reconsiders the situation of Ezekiel and his community in exile. Further, it discusses Fanon's theory of colonized subjects' desires and how Ezekiel operates within it. It concludes by looking at what Ezekiel might gain through this maneuver. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this paper is to investigate the nonlinear relationship between ICT and CO2 emissions by controlling for economic growth, foreign direct investment, energy consumption, and trade openness. Using data from 16 Middle East and North African (MENA) countries over the period 1990–2019, we apply the Panel Smooth Transition Regression (PSTR) model, as introduced by (González A, Teräsvirta T, vanDijk D (2005) Panel smooth transition regression models. SEE/EFI Working Paper Series in Economics and Finance, No. 604), to study the potential regime-switching behavior of the relationship between the variables. The results reveal the existence of a strong regime-switching effect between ICT and CO2 emissions. It was found that after reaching a certain threshold, ICT use and penetration starts to significantly mitigate environmental degradation. Our results show that high levels of ICT not only improve environmental quality but can also be part of the solution to combat the environmental challenges that the MENA region has faced over the past decades. In addition, to account for the potential endogeneity bias, we also develop and estimate a PSTR model with instrumental variables (IV-PSTR) using the approach of (Fouquau et al., Econ Model 25:284–299, 2008). The results obtained confirm those initially found by the PSTR model. The study concludes with policy implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to investigate how and when visual referents in brand visual aesthetics (i.e. colours, shapes, patterns and materials) serve as design applications that enable consumer diasporic identity. Design/methodology/approach: This paper uses an innovative methodology that triangulates 58 in-depth interviews with diasporic consumers, 9 interviews with brand managers and designers and a visual analysis of brands (food retailer, spices and nuts, skincare, hair and cosmetics, ice cream and wine) to provide a view of the phenomenon from multiple perspectives. Findings: This study illustrates how and when particular applications and compositions of product and design referents support diasporic identity for Middle Eastern consumers living outside the Middle East. Specifically, it illustrates how the design applications of harmonising (applying separate ancestral homeland and culture of living product and design referents simultaneously), homaging (departing from the culture of living product and design referents with a subtle tribute to ancestral homeland culture) and heritaging (departing from the ancestral homeland culture product and design referents with slight updates to a culture of living style) can enable diasporic identity in particular social situations. Research limitations/implications: Although applied to the Middle Eastern diaspora, this research opens up interesting avenues for future research that assesses diasporic consumers' responses to brands seeking to use visual design to engage with this market. Moreover, future research should explore these design applications in relation to issues of cultural appreciation and appropriation. Practical implications: The hybrid design compositions identified in this study can provide brand managers with practical tools for navigating the design process when targeting a diasporic segment. The design applications and their consequences are discussed while visually demonstrating how they can be crafted. Originality/value: While previous research mainly focused on how consumption from the ancestral homeland occurred, to the best of the authors' knowledge, this study is the first to examine how hybrid design compositions that combine a diaspora's ancestral homeland culture and their culture of living simultaneously and to varying degrees resonate with diasporic consumers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Arab Spring was a period of intense activism demanding democracy and freedom that swept across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. While previous research has focused on the role of diaspora communities in the uprisings and the strategies employed by regimes to suppress them, it has primarily centered on countries that experienced large-scale revolutions and endured severe consequences. Consequently, the current literature has failed to explore the situation of Arab Gulf dissidents living in exile, instead focusing on a few isolated incidents. This paper examines the transnational repression (TR) campaign of the Arab Gulf states (AGSs). Drawing on the literature about the long arm of authoritarianism and TR, this paper explores the various TR methods employed by the AGSs to silence activists living abroad. The paper finds that the nature of TR in the Arab Gulf region is unique when compared with other MENA countries. The TR campaign of AGSs is alarmingly expanding, using various mechanisms and resources, making the region one of the world's leading perpetrators. The methods employed by the AGSs include travel bans as part of their coercion by proxy, digital transnational repression, and the use of multilateral organizations as tools of repression. Additionally, this paper highlights the AGSs' support of other countries' TR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to apply the regulatory dialectic to describe the evolution of trade-based money laundering (TBML) schemes, to describe three recent TBML innovations uncovered by a large bank in the important global trade jurisdiction of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and to provide recommendations for an effective regulatory response. Design/methodology/approach: The methodology used is a caselet approach with three examples of TBML schemes recently foiled in the UAE as well as an application of the regulatory dialectic literature to TBML. Findings: The implications of the regulatory dialectic for research regarding TBML and associated regulation and compliance will enable regulators, the financial services sector and academics to understand TBML and the ever-evolving steps criminals are taking to circumvent the changing landscape of regulation and controls implemented by the financial services sector and customs tasked with mitigating such behaviour. This paper will bring awareness of the evolution of TBML, the controls and frameworks that may be used to prevent, detect and investigate some of the complex schemes of TBML. Research limitations/implications: The regulatory dialectic theory provides insights into the evolution of TBML schemes as well as why compliance activities tend to be reactive, rather than proactive. The cases covered in this paper provide insights into the nature of this circular process between financial crime and regulation, which is useful for anti-financial crime professionals and regulators focusing on deterrence. Practical implications: The UAE is a small, rapidly developing trade and finance center in the Middle East, surrounded by nations that are sanctioned, in active conflicts, politically unstable and/or highly corrupt. TBLM undermines the security of the UAE; the authors provide insights into criminal innovations and regulatory responses. Social implications: To promote the safety and stability of the ten million residents of the UAE, and others in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, it is important to understand the process of innovation in TBML schemes and regulatory response. Originality/value: To the best of the authors' knowledge, this paper is the first to apply the regulatory dialectic theory to TBML to describe innovation in TBML schemes and to provide cases describing contemporary TBML innovations in the MENA region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Online ride-hailing platforms match drivers with passengers by receiving ride requests from passengers and forwarding them to the nearest driver. In this context, the low acceptance rate of offers by drivers leads to friction in the process of driver and passenger matching. What policies by the platform may increase the acceptance rate and by how much? What factors influence drivers' decisions to accept or reject offers and how much? Are drivers more likely to turn down a ride offer because they know that by rejecting it, they can quickly receive another offer, or do they reject offers due to the availability of outside options? This paper aims to answer such questions using a novel dataset from Tapsi, a ride-hailing platform located in Iran. Design/methodology/approach: The authors specify a structural discrete dynamic programming model to evaluate how drivers decide whether to accept or reject a ride offer. Using this model, the authors quantitatively measure the effect of different policies that increase the acceptance rate. In this model, drivers compare the value of each ride offer with the value of outside options and the value of waiting for better offers before making a decision. The authors use the simulated method of moments (SMM) method to match the dynamic model with the data from Tapsi and estimate the model's parameters. Findings: The authors find that the low driver acceptance rate is mainly due to the availability of a variety of outside options. Therefore, even hiding information from or imposing fines on drivers who reject ride offers cannot motivate drivers to accept more offers and does not affect drivers' welfare by a large amount. The results show that by hiding the information, the average acceptance rate increases by about 1.81 percentage point; while, it is 4.5 percentage points if there were no outside options. Moreover, results show that the imposition of a 10-min delay penalty increases acceptance rate by only 0.07 percentage points. Originality/value: To answer the questions of the paper, the authors use a novel and new dataset from a ride-hailing company, Tapsi, located in a Middle East country, Iran and specify a structural discrete dynamic programming model to evaluate how drivers decide whether to accept or reject a ride offer. Using this model, the authors quantitatively measure the effect of different policies that could potentially increase the acceptance rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), established in 1955, after witnessing the days of glory has declined to the highest loss-making enterprise in Pakistan. Its global footprint and reputation are at a loss with every passing day. PIA faces challenges not only on international fronts but also with local airlines on various routes to the Middle East. The current state of affairs cannot be attributed to one factor but rather a multitude of factors primarily from operational mismanagement and lack of accountability to the adverse impact of policies. This paper highlights the commercial aviation environment and trends, factors of success to present times of downfall, emphasizing the contributing factors. This paper also focuses on strategies and efforts that can be made to ensure the resolution of present PIA issues and reconstruct the breakages that made the successful airline go to the verge of doom. The qualitative paper in nature is primarily based on unstructured interviews of different management tiers of PIA, Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA), Aviation Division, professionals from the aviation industry and union representatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Generic accounts of pervasive cases of exploitation and abuse against migrant domestic workers in the Middle East exist in the extant literature. However, very little is known about the breadth, depth and gendered nature of abuses experienced by female migrants from especially the sub‐Saharan African region. Abuses of the rights of sub‐Saharan Africans are under‐represented and under‐theorised. This paper interrogates the question what is the nature, extent and severity of exploitation and abuse against female Ghanaian domestic workers in the Middle East? Using data from mixed‐methods research, this paper adopts the framework of structural, symbolic and interpersonal violence to examine the range of abuses against domestic workers and the context within which these abuses take place. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues for a wider range of critical perspectives to be brought to bear on the phenomenon of internationalization. We argue that the role of internationalization research should be to promote reciprocity and respect between academics and students from different systems. This paper was developed as a discussion piece for the Re-Knox Conference in Cairo (August 2022). It is based on a process of independence and co-reflexivity regarding three of the authors' research projects. It conveys and illustrates three principles regarding theory and method that we found valuable for understanding how research that builds a more sustainable, equitable, and cooperative form of higher education could be developed. The goal is to unpick and transform the destructive, exploitative, and negative relationships that are embedded in internationalization and affect all parties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This paper draws from both empirical research on an EU-funded project in Palestine and from the lived experiences of Palestinian HE educators. The geopolitical situation is precarious at the best of times in Palestine, where Israel monitors and controls the Palestinians' right to travel, live and work—even more so if they wish to accomplish these activities abroad—and their access to the internet is never free from surveillance. In these circumstances and under these conditions, distance education has played a crucial role in supporting Palestinian students to develop a global voice. This paper captures some of the educational challenges encountered by Palestinian students and teachers generally in their daily contexts and, more specifically, in their experiences of learning and teaching, and the methods used to overcome these barriers. It draws on multiple sources and on studies recently carried out in the field by Palestinian colleagues and will discuss the challenging aspects of learning online from a range of perspectives in each of these studies before offering conclusions and recommendations/implications for other areas of study in situations of oppression. Initial findings indicate that distance education enables a form of continuity in regions exposed and accustomed to extreme and regular disruption. We were also inspired to see throughout responses the values attributed to pursuing education by Palestinian educators and their students. The persistence and perseverance reflect a determination that underlines the importance of education as a fundamental human right, national identity and sovereignty, personal source of hope and strength, and opportunity to open one's world. In our conclusions, we argue for the importance of digital literacy among educators to facilitate the continuity of distance education and finish with some recommendations as to how technologies can ease disruption to ordinary educational service. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The conflict in Gaza presents distinct difficulties that significantly impact the psychological well-being of healthcare workers (HCWs) making it imperative to understand and address their mental health needs in this specific context. This article highlights the unique challenges of the ongoing Gaza conflict and its critical impact on the mental health of HCWs. Observations in the paper revealed that HCWs in Gaza face extraordinary challenges, including the targeting of medical facilities, severe shortages of medical supplies, and the ethical dilemmas of providing care in such constrained conditions. These factors contribute to heightened stress, anxiety, and a pervasive sense of helplessness among HCWs. The paper also notes the compounded emotional burden due to the loss of colleagues and the need to navigate complex interactions with patients' families under extreme conditions. Furthermore, the lack of basic needs like adequate nutrition and safe drinking water for HCWs themselves further compromises their ability to provide care effectively, contributing further to worsened mental health. The paper also notes the lack of sufficient media coverage and support for these workers, contributing to a sense of isolation and neglect. HCWs in Gaza find themselves in a uniquely challenging situation, one that is marked not only by the immediate stresses of the ongoing conflict but also by the deep-seated psychological scars from past wars. The circumstances in Gaza are clinically relevant as they directly affect the HCWs' ability to provide care and maintain their well-being. These findings highlight the need for targeted mental health interventions and support tailored to the specific challenges faced by HCWs in Gaza. Addressing these issues is crucial for their well-being and ability to provide effective healthcare under such demanding and traumatic circumstances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contemporary conflicts are becoming increasingly transnational in nature. In particular, individuals are leaving their homelands to participate in foreign conflicts at an unprecedented rate. This paper analyzes the foreign fighter phenomenon in the context of the Islamic State. Using primary source data on individual ISIS members from the Middle East, this paper contributes to the literature with two key findings. The first affirms previous work on terrorist participants and finds that those who join the Islamic State are more educated and younger than others from the same country. Second, other characteristics that are thought to correlate with joining a terrorist organization, such as prior occupation and marital status, have an inconsistent association and vary by country. Specifically, individuals with a university education and who also hold an unskilled job have the highest likelihood of joining ISIS. Overall, the results suggest that relative deprivation drives participation in foreign fighting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the debate on how harmful online content translates into violent offline actions continues in the Global North, this debate should be enriched by data from the Global South. In Libya, the kidnapping of a female politician (Seham Sergiwa) in 2019 was arguably foreshadowed on social media, with some analysts warning of an imminent danger to her life when tracking social media discourse in June/July 2019. Following her abduction, the outcry was loud and reverberated outside of Libya. However, this was short lived and similar occurrences happen in Libya still. This paper contributes a systematic analysis of Facebook content in the months leading up to and after Sergiwa's disappearance. Using thematic content analysis to explore 259 posts and 4,367 comments – between January and December 2019 – this paper outlines three dominant themes: Contempt, ridicule and indifference. This study presents a refocus on the dangers of online speech while acknowledging complexities around categorising the former. The study adds nuanced understandings on online discussions in Libya and gendered dynamics in a violent, post-revolutionary environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to investigate whether integrating environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices mediates the relationship between executive incentive compensation and the financial performance of Islamic and conventional banks in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Design/methodology/approach: This study used multiple regression models to analyze the effectiveness of ESG practices as a mediating variable in explaining the relationship between executive incentive compensation and banks' financial performance between 2015 and 2021. The sample consisted of 57 Islamic and conventional banks operating in the MENA region, and the data were collected from the Thomson Reuters database (Data Stream). Findings: This research paper showed the positive and significant mediating effect of the ESG practice on Banks' financial performance. Thus, banks' financial and stock market profitability is influenced by ESG information disclosure. This finding shows that taking ESG into account improves the relationship between executive incentive compensation and banks' financial performance. Practical implications: The results may interest academic researchers, regulators and policymakers and would support stakeholders and decision-makers who wish to discover how executive incentive compensation affects financial performance in banks. Originality/value: This study contributes to previous literature by studying the mediating effect of ESG practices on the relationship between executive incentive compensation and banks' financial performance. Indeed, the originality of this research paper is justified by the scarcity of studies and, to the best of the authors' knowledge, constitutes one of the first attempts to examine this relationship via a mediating variable, i.e. ESG. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: The old-world sand fly, Phlebotomus papatasi (Scopoli 1786), is a major vector of Leishmania major, the predominant pathogen responsible for zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis in the Middle East, North Africa, Southern Europe, and Central Asia. DEET and other synthetic insect repellents have been used for personal protection against sand fly bites. However, the frequent use of DEET repellent raised concerns in regards to skin sensitivity, toxicity, and unpleasant odor. There are increasing efforts to evaluate natural products for use in developing more effective organic sand fly repellents. This paper reports the results of a laboratory study on several plant essential oils and saturated fatty acids concerning their repellency against female sand flies. A static air repellency assay was used to measure the responses of sand flies to test materials. The sand fly repellency of each test material was compared with those achieved by commercial repellent DEET and IR35353 at the same test concentration. The study identified two of the tested essential oils as effective spatial repellents at reduced concentrations compared to those of DEET, and two saturated fatty acids were found to produce significant sand fly mortality. The results from this study establish the foundation for developing more effective natural sand fly repellent products. The sand fly, Phlebotomus papatasi (Scopoli, 1786), is a major vector for Leishmania major in the Middle East, which has impacted human health and US military operations in the area, demonstrating the need to develop effective sand fly control and repellent options. Here, we report the results of spatial repellency and avoidance experiments in a static air olfactometer using the female P. papatasi testing essential oils of Lippia graveolens (Mexican oregano), Pimenta dioica (allspice), Amyris balsamifera (amyris), Nepeta cataria (catnip), Mentha piperita (peppermint), and Melaleuca alternifolia (tea tree); the 9–12 carbon saturated fatty acids (nonanoic acid, decanoic acid, undecanoic acid, and dodecanoic acid); and the synthetic repellents DEET and IR3535. The materials applied at 1% exhibited varying activity levels but were not significantly different in mean repellency and avoidance from DEET and IR3535, except in regards to nonanoic acid. Some materials, particularly nonanoic and undecanoic acids, produced sand fly mortality. The observed trends in mean repellency over exposure time included the following: (1) P. dioica oil, M. alternifolia oil, decanoic acid, undecanoic acid, DEET, and IR3535 exhibited increasing mean repellency over time; (2) oils of N. cataria, A. balsamifera, M. piperita, and dodecanoic acid exhibited relatively constant mean repellency over time; and (3) L. graveolens oil and nonanoic acid exhibited a general decrease in mean repellent activity over time. These studies identified the essential oils of N. cataria and A. balsamifera as effective spatial repellents at reduced concentrations compared to those of DEET. Additional research is required to elucidate the modes of action and potential synergism of repellents and essential oil components for enhanced repellency activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In light of ongoing debates about racially motivated police violence, this paper examines two separate but interrelated phenomena: instances of police discrimination and mistrust in police and the judicial system among ethnic minorities in Germany. Analyses are carried out based on waves 1, 3, and 5 of the CILS4EU-DE data collected among 14 to 20 year-old respondents in Germany. The focus of the paper lies on young men from the Middle East, as well as Northern and Sub-Saharan Africa, who--as our study demonstrates--tend to disproportionally more often report discrimination experiences and particularly low levels of trust in police and courts compared to other ethnic minorities and the majority populations in Germany, and partially also in comparison to their female counterparts. We also show that more frequent experiences of police discrimination are associated with greater distrust of the police and partially also with courts among young men from the Middle East, North and Sub-Saharan Africa. Female adolescents from similar backgrounds are also more distrustful of the police, but this is not explained by their own experiences of police discrimination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]