Because the United Nations in its modern era has signed more agreements than it has implemented, and because the international organization has been more concerned about working out details on paper rather than coming up with realistic solutions, another episode in a series of UN-sponsored talks is
Moscow, Reuters—Russia said on Monday it saw nothing new in the tough line taken by leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) on Moscow over sanctions and suggested there were differences among its member states. British Prime Minister David Cameron and European Council President Donald Tusk said they hope
Ankara, Reuters—Turkey faced the prospect of weeks of political turmoil after the ruling AK Party lost its parliamentary majority in weekend polls, dealing a blow to President Tayyip Erdogan’s ambitions to acquire sweeping new powers. Instead of the two-thirds majority he had wanted to change
Beirut, Asharq Al-Awsat—Rebels cut off Syrian government forces’ last supply lines between the northwestern Mediterranean coastal city of Latakia and Syria’s largest city Aleppo, in what has been described as the biggest loss suffered by President Bashar Al-Assad’s forces since 2011. Latakia, which
London and Riyadh, Asharq Al-Awsat—Peace talks between Yemen’s internationally recognized government and the Houthi movement currently in control of large parts of the country will begin in Geneva on June 14, the UN confirmed on Saturday. The talks were originally scheduled for May 28, but the gover
Isanbul, Reuters—President Tayyip Erdogan sought a crushing victory for his vision of a “new Turkey” at elections on Sunday that would furnish him with sweeping executive powers opponents say could undermine democracy. But Erdogan’s ambitions could be thwarted by a Kurdish-rooted o
Cape Town, AP—A newspaper claims it has a 2007 email that shows FIFA President Sepp Blatter and then-South African President Thabo Mbeki held “discussions” over a 10 million US dollar payment to allegedly corrupt soccer executives. South Africa’s Sunday Times reports that the email
London, Asharq Al-Awsat—Ziad Aziz, the eldest son of Saddam Hussein-era foreign minister Tariq Aziz, has strongly criticized Baghdad’s handling of his father’s death, saying that the Iraqi government did not inform the family that he had passed away. Tariq Aziz died on Friday at the age of 79.
Sana’a, Asharq Al-Awsat—Yemen’s Houthi movement could push for legitimate President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi to step down at the forthcoming Geneva peace talks, a senior political figure told Asharq Al-Awsat. The UN-sponsored Geneva talks will bring Yemen’s legitimate government, the Houthi rebe
We are going through a gigantic, chaotic war in the Middle East. It is worse than anything the region witnessed even during the two world wars. All kinds of weapons are being used, from primitive knives to the most advanced military hardware such as drones. However, the most dangerous weapon of all
Diyarbakir, Reuters—Turkish Kurds gathered on Saturday to mourn and protest at the scene of bomb blasts that killed two people and wounded more than 200 at an election rally, with many voicing anger at President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan ahead of Sunday’s parliamentary polls. The two explosions, wh
Baghdad, AP—Tariq Aziz, the debonair Iraqi diplomat who made his name by staunchly defending Saddam Hussein to the world during three wars and was later sentenced to death as part of the regime that killed hundreds of thousands of its own people, has died in a hospital in southern Iraq, offici
Beirut, Asharq Al-Awsat—Lebanese Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil has called on Arab states to work together and take the initiative to fend off Iranian intervention in the region, warning that Tehran will be successful in expanding its influence in the Middle East unless Arab states stand toget
Sana’a, Asharq Al-Awsat—The General People’s Congress (GPC), Yemen’s fractured ruling party, will only attend the Geneva peace talks if the party is represented by a single delegation, a senior GPC official told Asharq Al-Awsat on Thursday. The official said the GPC had officially informed the UN Sp
Kabul, AP—Taliban representatives have concluded two days of meetings with a group of Afghan lawmakers and peace negotiators in the Norwegian capital Oslo, a Taliban spokesman and the Afghan president’s office said on Friday. In an email to media organizations, the Taliban’s Zabihullah M
The way President Vladimir Putin tells it, Russia is the victim of a great conspiracy designed to prevent it from claiming a position within the global networks of leadership. The Europeans are plotting to deny Russia the right to host the 2018 football World Cup. The Americans are trying to throw a
Sana’a, Asharq Al-Awsat—The Houthi movement will withdraw its militias from the southern port city of Aden, as part of initial efforts to reach an agreement with Yemen’s government to resolve the crisis currently gripping the country, sources told Asharq Al-Awsat on Wednesday. This comes as the gove
Jeddah, Asharq Al-Awsat—Any Saudi citizen can file a lawsuit against the King, Crown Prince, or any member of the royal family, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman Bin Abdulaziz said, comparing the situation in the Kingdom to other countries where heads of state have immunity. In a m
Vienna, Asharq Al-Awsat—OPEC countries will maintain their collective oil production output for the foreseeable future, officials from the organization said on Tuesday, maintaining that OPEC’s current strategy has helped stabilize the global oil market this year. Speaking on the sidelines of an OPEC
Ankara, AP—Assailants fired on a campaign vehicle belonging to Turkey’s pro-Kurdish party and killed its driver, officials said Thursday, in the latest violence against politicians or political parties ahead of Sunday’s general election. The governor’s office for Bingol province sa
