Turkish diplomatic and security sources denied reports stating that dozens of Syrian refugees including women and children were killed as they tried to cross into Turkish territory in order to escape the fighting in the areas that they inhabited in Syria. The sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that these
The Specialised Criminal Court in the Saudi capital Riyadh sentenced 15 people involved in an Iranian spy cell made up of 32 people to death yesterday. Two other people were acquitted and 15 other defendants were given prison sentences. These sentences are provisional and are not final- they might b
Tunisia- Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands have signed various agreements with the Tunisian government to help revive the North African nation’s struggling economy. The agreements signed on Monday with the three countries which constitute a sub-regional bloc known as Benelux covered various ar
The leaders of six major Western states called on Wednesday for an immediate ceasefire in the Syrian city of Aleppo and condemned Russia and Iran for supporting the Syrian regime. In a joint statement by President Barack Obama and leaders of Britain, Germany, Italy, France and Canada demanded that S
Brussels- NATO “continues to strive for more constructive relations with Russia,” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said at a press conference on Monday ahead of NATO countries’ foreign ministers’ meeting scheduled for December 6-7. “We continue to strive for more constructive relationship wit
Khobar- Oil drilling and production in Saudi-Kuwait common wells might be resumed after a two year halt. The relaunch of production, however, will not affect the cut agreement reached by OPEC members last week. Bloomberg wrote that Saudi Arabia and Kuwait will cut output from their producing oil fie
Washington-U.S. President Barack Obama delivered Tuesday a speech at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, home to the military’s Central Command and Special Operations Command. He stood before a crowd of about 2,500 men and women mostly in uniform and presented himself as the most battle-tested
Baghdad, London – Iraqi army units advanced toward the center of Mosul on Tuesday in an attack from the city’s southeastern edges following days of slow advancements. Iraqi television reported campaign commander Lieutenant General Abdul Ameer Rasheed Yarallah saying troops had entered Sa
Washington – Egypt’s Foreign Affairs Minister Sameh Shoukry stressed the strong and consolidated relations with Saudi Arabia, while belittling recent tensions that rose between the two Arab States. Shoukry served as Egypt’s ambassador to the United States between 2008 and 2012, and was known in Wash
Cairo- Egyptian authorities announced on Tuesday the successful arrest of what is considered the largest Egyptian international organ trafficking ring. The network including both Egyptians and Arabs has pivoted its work on exploiting difficult economic conditions suffered by some patients. The healt
New York – Two Muslim women working for authorities in New York suffered hate crimes just 36 hours apart, officials said Monday. A uniformed city transit employee was taken to hospital with injuries to her knee and ankle after being pushed down the stairs at Grand Central Station on her way to work
Beijing- Donald Trump has been blasted as a ‘diplomatic rookie’ who must learn not to cross Beijing by Chinese state media, which warned the U.S. could pay dearly for his naivety. The president-elect was attacked by Chinese newspapers this week, just days after he created potential diplomatic contro
Nouakchott- Masked militants raided a prison located in the central Mali town of Niono early on Tuesday, officials said. The gunmen were able to free dozens of prisoners. Mali army spokesman said that the attack was organized and had taken place on Monday evening—two prison guards were severely inju
Cologne- German Chancellor Angela Merkel won re-election as chairwoman of her Christian Democrats (CDU) on Tuesday in Essen with 89.5 percent of votes cast by just under 1,000 party delegates, her second-worst showing since taking over the party in 2000; giving her a boost as she seeks a fourth term
Cairo- Despite claims on securing the final group of buildings formerly occupied by ISIS hardliners in the Libyan city of Sirte, Government National Accord military leaders and forces said yesterday said that the announcement of officially liberating the city may be up for delay. The announcement wo
Washington – A decade after pretending to be a U.S embassy, authorities in Ghana have busted the fake facility in the capital Accra run by a criminal network that issued illegally-obtained authentic visas. “It was not operated by the United States government, but by figures from both Ghanaian
Shaken by the surprise election of Donald J Trump as the next US President, the leadership in Tehran is trying to deal with the unknown with a mixture of threats and promises. A glimpse into the leadership’s thinking came yesterday in a speech by President Hassan Rouhani at Tehran University in whic
Manama – British Prime Minister Theresa May announced her country’s commitment to maintaining security in the Gulf region saying that the UK will always support the Gulf countries. “Gulf security is our security,” she said. She praised the strategic value of her country’s relations with Bahrain, str
Manama – Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz received at his guest residence in Manama on Tuesday British Prime Minister Theresa May. During the meeting, they discussed relations and fields of cooperation between the two countries and ways of enhancing them in addition to the
London- A new government report released yesterday has warned against the isolation of some separate British groups from other elements of the society, noting that extremists are taking advantage of the government’s failure in treating the social and economic isolation from which suffer Muslims in B
