DUBAI: The Middle East and North Africa region is experiencing a “youth bulge,” which occurs when young people make up a disproportionately large percentage of the population.

Although the crest of the demographic wave is believed to have passed in most Arab countries, the population of young people in the region as a whole is expected to reach 65 million by the end of 2030. Whether the countries concerned will be able to harness what remains of this phenomenon, however, is an open question.

WAD MADANI, Sudan: Attacks by Sudanese paramilitaries on Sunday sent hundreds of civilians fleeing a major city in Darfur, residents said as battles against the regular army intensify in the restive western region.

Darfur as well as Sudan’s capital Khartoum have borne the brunt of nearly four months of fighting between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces or RSF, led by rival generals vying for power.

HAIFA: Members of Israel’s Arab minority fear they will bear the brunt of the hard-right government’s judicial overhaul, but have remained largely on the margins of a raging debate over the sweeping changes.

Israelis have rallied weekly since the controversial reform package was announced in January by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ruling coalition, dubbed “the worst ever” by Samira Kanaan Khalaylah, 57, who lives in the northern Arab town of Majd Al-Krum.

AMMAN: A drone carrying crystal meth that was flying into Jordan from Syria on Sunday was shot down by the Jordanian military, Petra news agency reported.

The state agency said in a statement the drone was “taken control of and downed,” citing a source within the Jordanian armed forces.

The source added that the seized items were transferred to the “competent authorities.”

War-torn Syria has become a hub for a multi-billion-dollar drugs trade, with Jordan a main transit route for a Syrian-made amphetamine known as Captagon.

AL-MUKALLA: Yemeni teachers have gone on strike in Houthi-controlled areas as outrage grows over the militia’s failure to pay public employees.

In a rare public protest, teachers in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, and other major cities skipped classes to pressure the Houthis to pay their salaries, which they have not received for seven years.