Sana’a and Aden, Asharq Al-Awsat—Forces loyal to Yemen’s internationally recognized President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi on Monday captured the strategic southern Al-Anad military base from Houthi militias who had held it for over four months. Yemen’s Defense Ministry made the announcement late on Monda
[inset_left] Taking on Iran: Strength, Diplomacy, and the Iranian ThreatBy Abraham D. Sofaer Hoover Institution Press, 182 pages United States, 2015 [/inset_left] With the future of the much-advertised nuclear “deal” between Iran and the six major powers still uncertain, the debate about how to deal
Let us stop, even just once, our stubborn denial and talk openly about why we seem addicted to reactions and self-assurances, while others are achieving political advances which even their foes acknowledge. I contend that if we were to pose a direct question along these lines, we would not like the
Sana’a, Asharq Al-Awsat—Houthi leader Abdul Malik Al-Houthi on Sunday acknowledged that the Iran-backed group had suffered a defeat in the southern Yemeni city of Aden in recent weeks and said he was open to a political solution to the crisis that has gripped the country since September 2014. The co
London, Asharq Al-Awsat—A new UK immigration bill announced by the government on Monday gives landlords the authority to evict their tenants if they lose their right to stay in the country, the BBC reported. Under the proposals, landlords must check all tenants’ immigration statuses in a
Doha, AP—US Secretary of State John Kerry brought the Obama administration’s case for the Iran nuclear deal to wary Arab officials in Qatar on Monday. Kerry was meeting with the foreign ministers of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the six-member bloc of Gulf Arab nations that fear IranR
Sana’a, Asharq Al-Awsat—Yemen’s exiled Vice President and Prime Minister Khaled Bahah returned to Yemen on Saturday for the first time since March, when he was placed under house arrest by Houthi rebels and then forced to flee the country. “I aim to return to the country to liberat
Nicosia, Asharq Al-Awsat—Since the modern state of Cyprus split into the Republic of Cyprus in the south and the internationally unrecognized Turkish-controlled northern region following a conflict in 1974, both sides have staged a number of attempts at reunification. In February 2014, Republic of C
Kabul, Reuters/AP—In his first public message released on Saturday Afghanistan’s new Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansour appealed for unity amid reports his predecessor’s family members opposed his selection. “The enemy can’t defeat us if we show unity,” he said in an audio rec
The US administration’s deal with Iran on its nuclear program, which ends sanctions and paves the way for rapprochement with Tehran, was viewed by some as a rather low move by Washington against its longtime allies in the Gulf, who were loyal for over five decades. As a result, some in the region be
Jeddah and Sana’a, Asharq Al-Awsat—Forces loyal to Yemen’s internationally recognized President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi will launch an assault on the Houthi-controlled capital Sana’a within 15 days, according to a senior Yemeni military commander. Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, Brig. Gen. Abdullah Al-S
Ankara and Beirut, Reuters/Asharq Al-Awsat—Turkey looks increasingly likely to face an early election as its airstrikes against Kurdish militants in Iraq and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in Syria stir nationalist sentiment and coalition talks make little apparent progress. The NATO mem
Cairo, Asharq Al-Awsat—The United Nations has proposed sending UN observers to Yemen in cooperation with the Arab League in order to oversee a resolution to the crisis that has gripped the country since last September. The proposal is among a number of ideas put forward by UN Secretary General Ban K
What does a salesman do when he knows that the product he is pushing is not what it is claimed to be? He tries to stress other advantages the buyer would enjoy, for example winning a box of chocolates or a free holiday. This is what US Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian President […]
London, AP/Reuters—British Prime Minister David Cameron is facing criticism for using the word “swarm” to describe migrants trying to get into Britain through the Channel Tunnel. Cameron told ITV News that the situation is “very testing,” and that it was brought on by Britain
Cairo, Asharq Al-Awsat—Egypt and Saudi Arabia have signed an agreement which they have dubbed the “Cairo Declaration,” aiming to boost ties across several sectors, a statement from the Egyptian president’s office said on Thursday. The agreement, signed during a visit by Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Crown P
Beirut, Asharq Al-Awsat—Turkey’s cabinet on Wednesday formally approved a deal to open up the İncirlik Airbase for use by jets from the US-led coalition targeting the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). According to Reuters, Washington and Ankara have now signed a deal to formally open the airba
Sana’a and Riyadh, Asharq Al-Awsat—The governor of Yemen’s southern Aden province revealed on Wednesday that Iranian fighters have been caught among the Houthi militias currently in control of large parts of Yemen. Naif Al-Bakri told Asharq Al-Awsat forces loyal to Yemen’s internationally recognized
Reem Sahwil, the young Palestinian girl who was reduced to tears in front of Angela Merkel, told the German chancellor she didn’t know what her own future held so long as her stay in Europe remained uncertain. In a televised forum, Sahwil spoke of how she would like to go on to college and tha
Peshawar and Kabul, Reuters—The Afghan Taliban have appointed Akhtar Mohammad Mansour as leader of the insurgency, two Afghan commanders present at a meeting of the militant movement’s most senior figures said on Thursday, following reports that Mullah Mohammed Omar is dead. “The shura h
