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Protesters blocked entry to Iraq’s main commodities port again on Monday while schools and government offices in many southern cities were shut in response to calls for a general strike. Protesters are demanding the overthrow of a political class seen as corrupt and beholden to foreign interests. Unsatisfied by government …

Lebanon is like a sinking ship that will go under unless action is taken, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri was quoted as saying on Monday, referring to the country’s deep economic and political crisis. Berri told visitors that efforts to form a new government were “completely frozen” and awaiting developments at …

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has thrown his weight behind a recent government decision to ration gasoline and increase its price. The government decided on Friday to cut gas subsidies to fund support for the poor. Gasoline in Iran still remains among the cheapest in the …

“The new draft electoral law sent by the government to the House of Representatives contains many advantages and meets the demands that call for the independence of the Commission and the amendment of the electoral system,” Prime Minister Dr. Asifa Moussa’s press office said Sunday. “The new law guarantees the …

The British government and military have been accused of covering up the killing of civilians by British forces in Afghanistan and Iraq. British investigators have found “credible” new evidence of war crimes committed by British soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to a BBC and Sunday Times investigation with 11 …

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani referred to events in the country over the past three days, saying: “The government’s goal in the livelihood support project is to deliver assistance to middle-income families with low income to society.” “We have only three ways: to raise popular taxes or to export more oil …

Lebanon has slipped into further political uncertainty as a candidate to fill the vacant post of the country’s premiership has decided to halt his bid. Lebanese broadcasters LBCI and al-Jadeed reported on Saturday that Mohammad Safadi had withdrawn his candidacy to be the head of the next Lebanese government. A …

A teenage boy who killed two classmates and wounded three others at a southern California high school on his birthday before shooting himself in the head died on Friday of his wounds in hospital, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s office said. “Nathaniel Tennosuke Berhow, 16, a Junior at Saugus High …

The phone call between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart at the center of Congress’ impeachment investigation was “inappropriate,” an aide to Vice President Mike Pence told lawmakers, according to a transcript released on Saturday. Jennifer Williams, a foreign policy aide to Pence who was listening to the …

President Donald Trump on Friday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to block a lower court ruling directing an accounting firm to hand over his financial records to a Democratic-led congressional panel, setting up a major clash between branches of government. Trump turned to the justices after the U.S. Court of …

Israel has carried out fresh air raids on the Gaza Strip in violation of a ceasefire that ended a flare-up marked by dozens of Palestinians killed in bombings and hundreds of rockets launched at Israeli cities. The Al Aqsa TV channel said Israeli warplanes hit an outpost belonging to Hamas …

French riot police have fired tear gas to disperse protesters in the country’s capital Paris on the first anniversary of anti-government “yellow vests” demonstrations. Violence erupted on Saturday when police intervened to prevent hundreds of protesters form preparing to march in northwestern Paris and block the city’s ring road. Paris …

Members of the Iranian parliament, known as Majlis, have protested a government decision to increase the price of gasoline at short notice, saying they will submit a bill to revise the controversial move. Mojtaba Zonnour, a member of Iranian parliament’s Committee on National Security and Foreign Policy, said on Saturday …

Sixty-six Iraqi security officers have been put on trial over the excessive use of force in dispersing protesters, government spokesman Saad Hadisi, said. On Thursday, the spokesman said that “1,600 demonstrators arrested for participating in protests have been released and 66 security officers faced trial”. Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul …

Google has gained access to a huge trove of US patient data – without the need to notify those patients – thanks to a deal with a major health firm. The scheme, dubbed Project Nightingale, was agreed with Ascension, which hopes to develop artificial intelligence tools for doctors. Google can …

Tunisia’s moderate Islamist Ennahda, which came first in last month’s parliamentary elections, has named Habib Jemli, a former junior agriculture minister, as its choice to become prime minister, party spokesman Imed Khemiri said on Friday. President Kais Saied is expected to officially ask him to form a new government later …

Former U.S. Ukraine Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch opened the second day of Trump impeachment hearings Friday declaring that her abrupt removal by President Donald Trump’s administration played into the hands of “shady interests the world over” with dangerous intentions toward the United States. Yovanovitch told the House Intelligence Committee of a …

Leader of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei says Tehran will keep helping the Palestinians with no reservation, and calls on other Muslim countries to follow suit. Speaking in a Friday meeting with the ambassadors of Muslim countries and participants of the 33rd Islamic Unity Conference in Tehran, Ayatollah …

During the early hours of Thursday, an Israeli airstrike hit a residential area in central Gaza Strip. The attack claimed the lives of members of the same family, including women and children, while they were sleeping in their home. Neighbors rushed to the scene following the attack to help save …

Oil prices fell on Friday fueled by concerns about rising supplies next year, although losses were checked by signs of progress toward ending the U.S.-Chinese trade row. White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said on Thursday a deal was “getting close”, citing what he described as very constructive discussions with …