Cairo, Asharq Al-Awsat—Rival Palestinian groups, Fatah and Hamas, reached an agreement on Thursday to hand over the administration of the Gaza Strip to the Palestinian national unity government, representatives of both factions have announced. After two days of talks under the auspices of Cairo, the
Beirut, AP—US-led coalition warplanes bombed oil installations and other facilities in territory controlled by Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants in eastern Syria on Friday, taking aim for a second consecutive day at a key source of financing that has swelled the extremist group&
Sana’a, Asharq Al-Awsat—Talks are underway in Yemen as all political factions seek to form a national unity government under the terms of a UN-brokered agreement to end a month-long crisis between the central government and the Houthis, a senior presidential source told Asharq Al-Awsat. Severa
London, Reuters—British Prime Minister David Cameron urged parliament on Friday to vote to approve “years” of air strikes against Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants in Iraq, saying the group was guilty of “staggering” brutality and posed a direct threat to
Because the Syrian government is angry with Syrian singer and celebrity Asala Nasri, Lebanese authorities have detained her, revoked her passport and prevented her from traveling. These actions, taken on behalf of the government of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad and to the benefit of Iran, have be
Al-Khobar, Asharq Al-Awsat—The opening of two new oil refineries in Saudi Arabia will help the Kingdom maintain and grow its share of the global crude and petroleum products markets, sector experts have told Asharq Al-Awsat. The SATORP Jubail Export Refinery, owned by Saudi Aramco Total Refining and
With news from the Middle East dominated by horror stories, little attention has been paid to a small piece of good news from a remote corner of the turbulent region. Earlier this week, the outgoing President of Afghanistan Hamid Karzai bid his fellow countrymen farewell, handing over power to his s
Nicosia, AP—A cruise ship was trying on Thursday to rescue hundreds of people stranded aboard a small boat off Cyprus, and officials said they are apparently refugees who fled Syria. Salamis Cruise Lines Managing Director Kikis Vasiliou told The Associated Press that one of its cruise ships ha
Riyadh, Asharq Al-Awsat—Riyadh’s specialized terrorism court sentenced three Saudis to death on Monday, and handed down prison terms to 20 more on charges related to terrorism, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported. The 23 men were convicted of a variety of charges, including belonging to terrorist
Beirut, Asharq Al-Awsat—Turkey is to discuss providing support to the US-led coalition against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Wednesday, at the same time that official sources have told Asharq Al-Awsat that any involvement by Turkey would be depend
Sana’a, Asharq Al-Awsat—Several Iranian military personnel previously detained in Yemen’s national security headquarters were released on Wednesday by Houthi rebels who are in control of most of the capital Sana’a, sources told Asharq Al-Awsat. Shi’ite rebels overran the main base of Yemen’s intelli
London, Asharq Al-Awsat—Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani and British Prime Minister David Cameron met in New York on Wednesday, in the first meeting between British and Iranian leaders since Iran’s 1979 revolution. The meeting between the two leaders, who were in New York to attend the UN General Ass
Beirut, AP—US-led airstrikes targeted Syrian oil installations held by the militant Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) overnight and early Thursday, killing nearly 20 people as the militants released dozens of detainees in their de facto capital, fearing further raids, activists said. The
United Nations, Reuters—The UN Security Council demanded on Wednesday that all states make it a serious criminal offense for their citizens to travel abroad to fight with militant groups, or to recruit and fund others to do so, in a move sparked by the rise of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (IS
During this period of successive, barely understood regional developments, I believe a question worth asking regarding the Middle East is whether the US, and the international community behind it, has a serious vision of how the current situation may develop. What we have seen over the past few days
Baghdad, Asharq Al-Awsat—When the leader of the Badr Organization, Hadi Al-Ameri, became Iraq’s minister of transport during former prime minister Nuri Al-Maliki’s second term in office, no one from Iraq’s political class or the major international political players objected. The reason behind his s
Damascus and Mürşitpınar, Reuters—US planes pounded Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) positions in Syria for a second day on Wednesday, but the strikes did not halt the fighters’ advance in a Kurdish area where fleeing refugees told of villages burnt and captives beheaded. President Barac
Amman, Reuters—Muslim cleric Abu Qatada walked free from a Jordanian jail on Wednesday after being cleared of charges of conspiring in a plot to attack tourists—his second acquittal this year following a long extradition process from Britain. The state security court in the capital Amman
Dammam, Asharq Al-Awsat—It is too early for OPEC countries to make a decision on lowering the organization’s output target, United Arab Emirates Energy Minister Suhail Al-Mazroui told reporters on Tuesday, despite oil prices falling below the critical 100 US dollar per barrel mark in recent months a
London, Asharq Al-Awsat—The British, Dutch and Belgian parliaments are to consider proposals to join the US-led coalition’s airstrikes on Iraq, according to reports. Sources in the British prime minister’s office said the UK’s parliament would be recalled from its summer recess on Friday in order to
