Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri, pledged in an online audio message, allegiance to the new head of the Afghan Taliban, who was appointed last month following the death of his predecessor in a US drone strike. The veteran Islamist militant became al Qaeda’s leader after Osama bin Laden was kil
Frankfurt-German airline Lufthansa’s cargo unit has said that it will slash up to 800 jobs in the world, helping it cut costs by 80 million euros a year. The company briefed the workers on Friday about its austerity measures, which clearly indicate that the slashed jobs in Germany alone will r
Baghdad – While Sadr is in Iran for seclusion, a number of his followers attacked offices of certain political parties in south Iraq. The attackiers torched the offices including the photos of Khomeini and Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei. Council member of one of the southern districts told Asharq Al
Baghdad – While al-Sadr is in Iran for seclusion, a number of his followers attacked offices of certain political parties in south Iraq. The attacking groups torched the offices including the photos of Khomeini and Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei. Council member of one of the southern districts told
London-The issue of Iran’s arrest of American marines earlier this year has come to forefront amid calls on the Obama administration and the U.S. Navy to release the details of a report on Tehran’s humiliation of sailors in the Arab Gulf. America’s Fox News quoted Congressman Randy Forbes (R-Virgini
Beirut-The issue of U.S. sanctions has now become a priority for the so-called Hezbollah amid information that Lebanese banks will take escalatory measures that include the closure of bank accounts of Hezbollah lawmakers, ministers and their families. A verbal attack launched by the party on Central
United Nations-French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault called Friday to do all what it necessary to resolve the row between the United Nations and Saudi Arabia over the report on the violation of children’s rights, saying France could help defuse tensions. “Saudi Arabia is a partner in the fight a
Tunis-The Nidaa Tounes and Ennahda movements have agreed on forming a parliamentary-majority government if the opposition insisted on refusing to participate in the cabinet proposed by the Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi, sources said. The agreement rules that Ennahda should waive its right to
U.S. and Iraqi officials said on Friday they could not confirm a report by an Iraqi TV channel that ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi had been wounded in an air strike in northern Iraq. A spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition fighting the radical Islamist militants, Colonel Chris Garver, said in an em
The U.S. government posted a $53 billion budget deficit in May, a 38 percent drop from the same month last year, the Treasury Department said on Friday. The government had a deficit of $84 billion in May of 2015, according to the Treasury’s monthly budget statement. Analysts polled by Reuters
Before police could even manage establishing who was responsible for the car bombing in Istanbul which killed 11 this week, the government in Turkey had banned the media from reporting anything about ongoing investigations. Prohibitions have been put into effect after such incidents since 2013 and h
The Egyptian Ministry of Interior yesterday said that security forces have managed to arrest 13 members of a new terrorist cell that is affiliated to the Muslim Brotherhood in the city of Alexandria. The members of the cell, which is called “Lijan Al-Irbaak”, confessed to their involvement in carryi
For the first time since 2012 an international aid convoy made its way to the Opposition-held Syrian town of Daraya overnight to deliver food supplies, the United Nations said on Friday. The town was completely sieged by Assad’s so-called regime forces. Aid trucks from the United Nations and Syrian
The Syrian regime agreed to allow convoys of humanitarian aid to enter all nineteen areas that are besieged by the end of June according to the UN envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura’s announcement yesterday. However, he said that “the approval does not mean that the aid will reach” the areas, and con
Kurdish militants on Friday claimed responsibility for a car-bomb attack this week that killed 11 people and injured 36 in Turkey’s biggest city Istanbul, vowing to continue attacks across Turkey. In a statement posted online, the Kurdistan Freedom Hawks (TAK) also warned tourists that Turkey
Ever since the mullahs appeared in Iran as a distinct profession in the 19th century, they have developed paraphernalia of devices and contraptions linked to their trade. These include a range of rosaries with 30, 90 or 180 beads, prayer mud-cubes (mohr) made from the soil of Karbala and, of course,
Oil prices eased on Friday as a stronger dollar drew crude off the 2016 highs hit this week, although strong refinery demand and global supply disruptions lent support. Brent oil futures were trading at $51.34 per barrel at 1308 GMT, down 61 cents while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures wer
Aden – Governmental sources revealed that Aden power station has been refueled after three ships docking in oil harbor have been emptied. The ships were carrying fuel for power stations, some of which were about to shut down due to the worsening fuel crisis. Sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that additio
The Israeli government’s cabinet yesterday chose to collectively punish Palestinians after the attack carried out by two Palestinian youths in Tel Aviv on Thursday evening. The cabinet adopted a group of decisions, the most notable of which are the complete closure of the town Yatta where the perpet
Irbil-Iran has been called out for stopping artillery supply convoys scheduled for delivery to Iraqi Kurdistan four months ago, sources at the Iraqi ministry of defense confirmed to Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper. Iraqi Kurdish lawmaker Shakhawan Abdulla accused the Iraqi ministry of defense of purposely
