Asharq Al-Awsat Editorial

Editorial desk and wire-service reports (AFP, Reuters, AP) as published in the Asharq Al-Awsat English Edition. This archive preserves the original text (2005–2017); attribution appears in the article dateline where provided by the source.

54082 articles
World

Saudi Security Forces Kill Two Gunmen in Raid

Saudi security forces killed two men who opened fire on police during a raid on a farm in eastern Saudi Arabia used by militants to plot and prepare for attacks, the interior ministry said on Wednesday. The Mokhtar Brigades, a little known militant group based in neighboring Bahrain, identified the

World

24 Crucial Hours for UK

Edinburgh – Scottish parliament, dominated by the Scottish National Party (SNP), was supposed to vote on the independence referendum last week but the vote has been postponed because of the terrorist attack outside the UK Parliament in London. Thus, both the Scottish vote and signing of Brexit coinc

ISIS Shelling Halts Work on Damaged Tabqa Dam

The ISIS terrorist group shelled on Wednesday positions held by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) at the Tabqa Dam on the Euphrates River, forcing engineers to pause efforts to stop a potential collapse, a Reuters witness said. ISIS fired from the southern end of the dam, which it control

World

EU Receives Letter from Britain Launching Brexit

EU President Donald Tusk received on Wednesday a notification letter from the British ambassador to the Union that triggers a two-year countdown to Brexit under Article 50 of the EU treaty. Britain formally launched the process to leave the EU on Wednesday with Ambassador Tim Barrow personally deliv

US, Iraq Investigate ‘Mosul Massacre’

Mosul – The US-led coalition probably had a role in an explosion in Mosul believed to have killed scores of civilians, but said ISIS could also be to blame, said the senior US commander in Iraq on Tuesday, as Amnesty International suggested the coalition failed to take enough to protect civili

KSA, Jordan Sign $1Billion-Worth Trade Agreements

Riyadh- Saudi and Jordanian business sectors anticipate the soon boosting of economic, investment and commercial cooperation. Fourteen agreements and memorandums of understanding (MoU) were signed on Tuesday between the two in Jordan’s capital Amman. The dealings between the MoUs and agreements moun

Amazon Acquires Souq.com

Dubai – Amazon completed on Tuesday its acquisition of Souq.com, the Middle East’s largest online retailer. A joint statement revealed that the agreement brings Amazon into a fast-growing market as it expands into a wide range of services. The deal’s specific value was not announced in t

World

Saudi Crown Prince Chairs 2 Council Meetings

Riyadh – Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Naif bin Abdulaziz chaired a meeting of Political and Security Affairs Council at al-Yamamah Palace on Tuesday. During the meeting, the council listened to a political and security briefing on a number of topics and latest developments at regional and interna