Middle East

President Hassan Rouhani has said that Iran’s health infrastructure is strong enough and prepared to counter a possible rise in COVID-19 cases. “Our health infrastructure is strong; not only has it endured the present circumstances, but our doctors and nurses are ready for a possible spike,” Rouhani said on Saturday. …

Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif on Thursday urged to stop observing the US sanctions against Iran as the world facing the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic, describing it’s as a moral duty. Earlier in the day, Washington added five organizations as well as 15 people to is sanctions lists, including organizations allegedly …

The United States has imposed new sanctions against 20 companies, officials and individuals in Iraq and Iran, amid growing pressure on the US to end sanctions on Iran as the country battles the coronavirus pandemic. The US Treasury Department said in a statement on Thursday the sanctions freeze any US-held …

Up to 40,000 people may lose their lives due to the COVID-19 disease in Israel, the regime’s health ministry predicted, after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu boasted that Israelis were fully protected against the pandemic. Israel’s leading daily Haaretz on Thursday reported the results of a study conducted by the regime’s …

Tehran said on Thursday that a former FBI agent who disappeared in Iran 13 years ago had left the country a long time ago, despite his family saying a day earlier that he had died in Iranian custody. Robert Levinson went missing on Iran’s Kish Island in the Gulf in …

The burden caused by the fast-spreading coronavirus accelerated across the United States on Wednesday beyond the hot spots of New York, California and Washington state as Louisiana and others faced a severe crush on their healthcare systems. U.S. President Donald Trump issued the latest major federal disaster declarations for Louisiana …

Egypt began deep cleaning the area around the Giza pyramids on Wednesday as authorities work to disinfect tourist spots closed down by the coronavirus outbreak. Workers wearing face masks and gloves swept and sprayed the walkways around the bases of the pyramids, as well as the ticket office and a …

Istanbul prosecutors said on Wednesday they had prepared an indictment against a close aide to Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and a former deputy head of general intelligence over the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The prosecutor’s office accused the two men of instigating Khashoggi’s murder at the …

The World Health Organization said on Tuesday that the United States could become the global epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, which finally forced reluctant organizers to postpone the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics. Britain joined the ranks of countries in lockdown to try to hold back the virus, and data showed …

Heavy downpours have caused flooding in several Iranian provinces, mainly in the southern parts of the country, killing at least 11 people and leaving two others missing. A spokesman for Iran’s emergency services Mojtaba Khaledi said on Monday that over 17 people have also been injured by the flooding in …

Iran President Hassan Rouhani says the US offer to help Iran in its fight against the coronavirus is “one of the biggest lies in history” where American sanctions are hindering Tehran’s access to medical supplies. Rouhani on Monday noted that Washington’s “unjust, illegal and terrorist” sanctions against Iran as well …

Saudi Arabia will impose a nationwide curfew starting on Monday after reporting a jump of almost a quarter in coronavirus cases, while the United Arab Emirates will suspend all passenger and transit flights to and from the country. Saudi King Salman ordered a curfew – from 7 pm to 6 …

Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani says social distancing will continue for two or three weeks as the coronavirus pandemic in the country is expected to slow down by then. Social distancing measures to stop the outbreak of the coronavirus in the country would be needed for two or three weeks as …

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif says US sanctions against Iran have hampered the country’s access to medicine and medical equipment amid the outbreak of the novel coronavirus. US sanctions are still the “main obstacle” to the country’s effective fight against the coronavirus pandemic, Zarif told his Japanese counterpart Toshimitsu Moteg …

Palestinian worshippers scuffled with Israeli police in East Jerusalem on Friday as crowds headed to Al-Aqsa Mosque to pray, amid a partial lockdown imposed to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Police in riot gear and wearing face masks put barricades up outside Damascus Gate and other entrances to the …

The US army is pulling out of al-Qaim and two other key military bases in Iraq in the coming weeks. The decision to leave three of its eight bases in Iraq is a sign the US is looking to dramatically reduce its footprint in the country. It comes amid heightened …

US stocks have plunged more than 10 percent as panic following emergency moves by the Federal Reserve to try to avert a recession due to the coronavirus pandemic that is shutting down global business and travel. About 25 minutes into trading on Monday morning, the Dow Jones Industrial Average stood …

Bahrain reported the Gulf’s first death from the new coronavirus on Monday, as the total number of confirmed infections in the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) stood at 965. The deceased woman was a 65-year-old Bahraini citizen who had underlying health conditions, the health ministry said on Twitter. Bahrain has …

Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque and Dome of the Rock will shut their doors until further notice, religious authorities said on Sunday, in a move to protect worshippers at Islam’s third holiest site. Prayers will still be held on the huge open area around the two shrines and other Muslim prayer sites …

The so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) says Turkey has dispatched a new military convoy to Syria’s embattled northwestern province of Idlib, a day ahead of the first joint patrol by Turkish and Russian troops on the strategic M4 highway and establishment of joint coordination centers in the region. …