Middle East

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu says there is no change in his bid to annex large parts of the occupied West Bank and the strategic Jordan Valley despite allegations that a normalization deal with the UAE included a halt to the annexation plan. “There is no change to my plan …

The director of Bamerni district, Hamid Zubair district, north of Duhok governorate, said that the bombing targeted a car carrying PKK members in the Araden, east of the district, killing two and wounding another seriously. This attack comes after 4 PKK fighters were killed on Thursday by Turkish airstrikes targeting …

No Iranian ships or gasoline cargoes have been seized, an unnamed official told Iran’s state news agency on Friday, following reports that four Iranian fuel cargoes had been transferred to other ships for transport to U.S. waters. “Iran, as it has repeatedly stated, will not tolerate any such hostile actions …

Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas called for an urgent meeting on Thursday with other Palestinian leaders following the announcement of the peace deal between Israel and the United Arab Emirates. Abbas spokesman Nabil Abu Rdeneh called the deal “treason,” saying it must be reversed. He called on other Arab states …

Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have reached a deal that will lead to a full normalization of diplomatic relations between the two sides, in an agreement that US President Donald Trump apparently helped broker. Under the agreement announced on Thursday, Israel has allegedly agreed to suspend applying its …

Israel and the UAE have restored diplomatic ties after inking a deal with the US that will see Tel Aviv temporarily shelve its annexation of the West Bank and Jordan Valley to focus on improving relations with its neighbors. At US President Donald Trump’s request, Israel has agreed to suspend …

Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad says the US needs terrorists on the ground in the region, and levied its recent draconian sanctions against Syria as a means of throwing support behind them. “The US needs terrorists in the region, on top [of them] Daesh,” he said in an address at the …

The Israeli military has launched aerial and ground attacks against targets across the Gaza Strip for a second night in a row, while Tel Aviv tightens its grip on the blockaded territory’s fishing activities and fuel imports. It claimed in a statement that warplanes, attack helicopters and tanks struck a …

Iraqi officials and Senior Iranian held a meeting in the Iraqi capital and stressed the need to reach the level of 20 billion dollars in their trade exchanges. The meeting was held between Iraqi minister of commerce and Iran’s Ambassador to Iraq Iraj Masjedi in Baghdad late on Wednesday. The …

U.S. President Donald Trump and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdoğan discussed steps to establish a demilitarised zone in Libya in a phone call, Al Jazeera said on Thursday. Trump and Erdoğan also discussed possible ways to achieve the withdrawal of all foreign forces and mercenaries from Libya and emphasised …

France will increase its military presence in the eastern Mediterranean, President Emmanuel Macron said on Wednesday, calling on Turkey to halt oil and gas exploration in disputed waters that has heightened tensions with Greece. The French leader voiced concern over “unilateral” exploration by Turkey in a call with Greek Prime …

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said that the United States is in desperate need of terrorists in the region including ISIL terrorist group and seeks to support terrorists using Caesar sanctions law against Syria. Speaking to the members of the People’s Assembly’s third legislative term on Wednesday, he said, “Electing your …

The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday it had appealed for $76 million in aid for Lebanon after last week’s massive explosion in Beirut destroyed or damaged hospitals, clinics, and medical supplies. Lebanon was already struggling with a financial crisis and a rise in the number of new coronavirus …

The Arab Parliament on Wednesday condemned in the strongest terms the heinous aggression by Turkey on the sovereignty lands of Iraq. In a statement, the Arab Parliament slammed “the Turkish drone strike that killed two officers of Iraqi border guard near the Turkish and Iranian borders.” “Such repeated military violations …

U.S. efforts to get the U.N. Security Council to extend an arms embargo on Tehran would fail, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said in a televised speech on Wednesday, a day after U.S. officials circulated a revised proposal. Washington streamlined its bid on Tuesday to win more support in the 15-member …

Jordan will close its land trade border crossing with Syria for a week after a rise in COVID-19 cases coming from its northern neighbour, officials said on Wednesday. The interior minister’s decision to close the Jaber crossing, the main gateway of goods from Lebanon and Syria to the Gulf, will …

Qatar has distanced itself from a hostile call by the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council (PGCC) for the UN Security Council to back a US-proposed extension of the UN arms ban against Iran, highlighting good neighborly relations between the two countries. According to Press TV, speaking in an interview with al-Jazeera …

The Israeli military has carried out overnight airstrikes and artillery attacks on several parts of the besieged Gaza Strip, with no immediate reports of casualties. Israeli forces conducted attacks on at least three sites in the Gaza Strip early on Wednesday, with Palestinian sources saying the occupying regime’s aircraft had …

An internal probe into a controversial US arms sale to Saudi Arabia has cleared Secretary of State Mike Pompeo of any wrongdoing, according to a senior State Department official, who briefed reporters prior to the report’s release. The State Department on Monday said the inspector general’s report found that Pompeo …

Iran’s Intelligence Ministry dismantled five spying teams working for foreign intelligence services, deputy intelligence minister for counter-espionage said. “With the help of God Almighty and round-the-clock efforts of the intelligence forces a number of spies linked to foreign intelligence services of arrogant powers were identified and arrested as the strikes …