Cairo, Asharq Al-Awsat—Egypt’s outlawed Muslim Brotherhood appealed to Al-Qaeda chief Ayman Al-Zawahiri to send 3,000 Islamist volunteers to fight government forces in the restive Sinai Peninsula, an Egyptian security report claims. The report which Asharq Al-Awsat obtained a copy of is the re
In 1992 I made my first visit to North Carolina, and Chapel Hill clearly stood out as its most charming town. I loved that little American “college town” which wasn’t much different from Europe’s beautiful university cities like Oxford, Leiden, Tubingen and Leuven (Louvain). Violence may be commonpl
Imagine if you could ask Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad whether, if he were able to travel back in time, he would do anything differently regarding the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Hariri was killed exactly 10 years ago today. It was a politically-motivated crime t
Beirut, Asharq Al-Awsat—The delayed renovation project to turn the childhood home of Lebanon’s legendary singer Fairuz into a museum will begin by the end of this year, the mayor of Beirut said. “When maps and the tender documents for the house repairs are ready, we can start implementation. This wi
Sana’a, Asharq Al-Awsat—Army officials facilitated the takeover of a strategic military base in southern Yemen by Al-Qaeda-linked fighters, Yemen’s southern separatist Al-Hirak group said. Ansar Al-Sharia, an Al-Qaeda-linked group, took over the military base in Yemen’s southern Shabwah
Sana’a, Asharq Al-Awsat—The governor of Yemen’s Ma’rib province Sultan Al-Arada said local tribes have every right to defend the province from the advance of Houthi fighters, rejecting the “constitutional declaration” issued by the Shi’ite rebel group last week after seizing power
Vienna, Reuters—The UN envoy for Syria said on Friday that President Bashar Al-Assad must be part of the solution for easing violence in Syria, and he would continue discussions with him after talks in Damascus earlier this week. The envoy, Staffan de Mistura, is struggling to advance a proposal tha
Yangon, Myanmar, AP—Clashes between Myanmar troops and ethnic Kokang rebels near the Chinese border have left 47 government soldiers dead and 73 wounded, state media said Friday. The Global New Light of Myanmar said there have been more than 13 clashes in the last several days between government tro
Ankara, Asharq Al-Awsat—With general elections in June fast approaching and rising debate about President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s attempts to transform the country’s ruling system, Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) has a busy few months ahead. President
While learning from history is the first duty of any statesman worth his salt, he should also be on guard against learning the wrong lessons. One example is Russian President Vladimir Putin’s attempt at building a national strategy around certain moments in history that are long gone, never to retur
Cairo, AP—An Egyptian judge on Thursday ordered the release on bail of a pair of Al-Jazeera English journalists being retried on terror-related charges, bringing cheers from their families who have sought to get them out of detention for more than a year and are hoping for a resolution in the case.
Riyadh, Asharq Al-Awsat—The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has no plans to take military steps to safeguard its interests in neighboring Yemen following the Houthi takeover of power, a senior Gulf official told Asharq Al-Awsat. The oil-rich organization strongly condemned what it described as a “bla
Doha, Asharq Al-Awsat—Relations between Iraq and its Gulf neighbors are close to becoming normalized again, Iraqi President Fuad Masoum told Asharq Al-Awsat on Wednesday, following a visit to the Qatari capital Doha. Masoum, who was in Doha for a whistle-stop visit to meet with Qatari Emir Sheikh Ta
Al-Khobar, Asharq Al-Awsat—Iraq, OPEC’s second-biggest oil producer, will offer buyers from Asia the largest discounts on its oil since 2003, in another sign of intense competition among OPEC members vying for larger shares of the lucrative Asian market. Iraq’s state-owned oil company SOMO announced
Minsk, Reuters—The leaders of Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine have agreed a deal to end fighting in eastern Ukraine, participants at the summit talks said on Thursday. The deal reached after all-night negotiations in the Belarussian capital Minsk included a ceasefire that would come into effect
Erbil, Asharq Al-Awsat—Kurdish Peshmerga forces have surrounded Mosul from three sides ahead of a planned operation to liberate the city from Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) control, a senior Peshmerga official said. In comments to Asharq Al-Awsat, Peshmerga Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Jama
The Syrian people are being oppressed, humiliated and killed by a criminal and tyrannical regime. This is the only view that any rational, objective and just person can have of the Syrian revolution, and this is the right view. Syria is being ruled by a criminal gang that has stripped the Syrian peo
Rome, AP—Some 300 migrants who tried to cross the frigid Mediterranean in open, rubber boats, were reported missing Wednesday by survivors as the UN refugee agency and other aid groups sharply criticized the new EU rescue operation as insufficient and costing lives. The suspected deaths add to the 2
Cairo, Asharq Al-Awsat—Russia will help Egypt build its first nuclear power plant, the leaders of both countries said on Tuesday, as Russian President Vladimir Putin wrapped up a two-day official visit to the Egyptian capital. At a joint press conference, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said
Sana’a, Asharq Al-Awsat—Fighters from Yemen’s powerful Houthi group seized control of the provincial capital of the Al-Bayda governorate on Tuesday without any resistance from government forces, local sources and eyewitnesses told Asharq Al-Awsat. Eyewitnesses said Houthi militias, backed by the Yem
