Middle East

As if life was not bad enough for Adnan Kadhim – he lives in a slum where municipal authorities dump Baghdad’s rubbish – now someone is setting the waste on fire, making his children sick. As the United Nations marks World Environment Day on Wednesday, Iraq is suffering a pollution …

  France’s weapons sales to Saudi Arabia rose 50 pct in 2018 despite the government calling for an end to the “dirty war” in Yemen, figures released on Tuesday showed. An annual government report showed that total arms sales rose 30 percent to 9.1 billion euros in 2018, driven by …

At least four people, including one civilian, have been killed in militant attacks on a number of security checkpoints in Egypt’s northern Sinai, medics and security sources say. Egypt’s Extra News television said on Wednesday that Egyptian forces were exchanging gunfire with the attackers, without providing any initial details on …

An Iraqi court has sentenced to death the last two French nationals on trial for joining the terrorist Daesh group and involvement in acts of terror. The men, identified as Bilel Kabaoui, 32, and Mourad Delhomme, 41, were convicted of joining Daesh and carrying out criminal operations by a criminal …

  Syria’s air defense systems have confronted Israeli attacks in the country’s southwest, state media say, adding that three soldiers were killed in the raids. Syria’s official SANA news agency anonymously quoted a military source as saying that the air defenses had “confronted” and “downed the hostile missiles” that were …

Protest marches in Iran, Iraq, Syria, Pakistan, India, occupied West Bank, disputed Kashmir, and several other places show solidarity for Palestinians. Pakistani demonstrators hold posters displaying the word ‘Quds’ as they take part in a rally against Israel and the United States to mark the Al Quds (Jerusalem Day), in …

Iraq’s president told an emergency Arab summit in Saudi Arabia on Thursday that regional and international tensions with Iran could spark a war if not managed well and voiced hope that Iran’s security would not be targeted. President Barham Salih also called on neighbours and allies to support his country’s …

For more than a year now, Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip are marching along the border with Israel every week, titled “Return to Home” Before 1948, the number of Palestinians lived in Palestine was 2050000. While the number of Jews Migrated to Palestine with the help of Britain was …

Iran sees no prospect of negotiations with the United States, a foreign ministry spokesman said on Tuesday, a day after U.S. President Donald Trump said a deal with Tehran on its nuclear program was possible. Washington withdrew last year from a 2015 international nuclear deal with Tehran and is ratcheting …

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan warned against the risk of conflict in the region, following a visit to Islamabad by Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif as tensions between Washington and Tehran e Strains have increased between Iran and the United States, which is a firm backer of Tehran’s regional rival …

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Saturday that the U.S. decision to deploy more troops to the Middle East in response to the perceived threat from Iran was “extremely dangerous” for peace. The United States said it was sending 1,500 troops to region in what it called an …

Oman is trying “with other parties” to reduce tensions between the United States and Iran, the Omani Foreign Ministry tweeted on Friday. The tweet cited Yousuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah, the sultanate’s minister responsible for foreign affairs, who met on Monday in Tehran with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. …

Nearly a dozen people have been killed when Saudi-led military aircraft carried out a string of airstrikes against an area in Yemen’s southwestern province of Ta’izz. Local source said that the warplanes struck a petroleum derivatives plant in the Mawiyah district of the province on Friday afternoon, leaving nine people …

Iran will not surrender to U.S. pressure and will not abandon its goals even if it is bombed, President Hassan Rouhani said on Thursday, stepping up the war of words between the Islamic Republic and the United States. Earlier in the day, Iran’s top military chief said the standoff between …

The US envoy to Baghdad says Washington has exempted Baghdad from some of its unilateral anti-Iran sanctions, allowing Iraq to continue importing energy from Iran. US charged affaires Joey Hood told reporters on Wednesday Baghdad can now buy energy from Iran,   The waiver will allow Iraq to continue buying gas …

Yemeni army forces, supported by allied fighters from Popular Committees, have reportedly launched an airstrike against a MIM-104 Patriot surface-to-air missile system stationed at an airport in Saudi Arabia’s southwestern border region of Najran. A Yemeni military source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the local Arabic-language al-Masirah television network …

Camped on the Turkish border to escape bombardment by Russian and Syrian government forces, many displaced Syrians are angry and frustrated that Turkey has not done more to protect them from the bombs or let them cross the frontier to safety. The border wall a few hundred meters (yards) away …

An explosion targeting a tourist bus has injured at least 16 people near the Grand Egyptian Museum, next to the pyramids in Giza. South African tourists are among the injured. Most of those hurt suffered minor injuries, while three were treated in hospital, officials say. A device went off close …

Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has dismissed US President Donald Trump’s “genocidal taunts” and warned him not to threaten the country. “NeverThreatenAnIranian. Try respect—it works!” Zarif said in a post on his official Twitter account on Monday amid a spike in tensions between Tehran and Washington. The Iranian foreign …

The international community and remaining signatories of Iran’s nuclear deal should act to save the accord as “supportive statements” are not enough, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif told  media during a visit to Japan and China. Last week, Iran notified the five remaining signatories that it would scale back …