Dr. Yusuf Al-Qaradawi criticized the US-led fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) earlier this week. In a tweet, he said: “I oppose ISIS in its ideological path and its methods of action, but I will never agree that the country to fight it should be the United States, which is not
Freetown, Reuters—Sierra Leone began a three-day lockdown on Friday in an effort to halt the spread of the Ebola virus, as President Ernest Bai Koroma urged residents to comply with the emergency measures. Streets in the normally bustling seaside capital Freetown were deserted, barring vehicle
Manama, Asharq Al-Awsat—Bahrain announced that an agreement has been reached between the country’s political parties for renewed National Dialogue, which will include discussions of five “core elements,” including electoral districts, legislative authority, cabinet formation, judicial reform a
Sana’a, Asharq Al-Awsat—Yemen’s central government is considering a new set of demands issued by the Shi’ite Houthi movement to end the politial unrest and bloodshed that has engulfed the country, high-level political sources told Asharq Al-Awsat. The new Houthi demands come following re
One hundred days into Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi’s presidency, it is time to count up the country’s achievements—although this is something that will no doubt depend on a person’s political position. But no one, not even Sisi’s opponents, can deny that the presid
Baghdad, Asharq Al-Awsat—Iraq’s new parliametary speaker Salim Al-Jabouri faces a tough task heading the country’s top legislative body at a time when political blocs are jockeying for position behind the Haider Al-Abadi government to confront the advancing Islamic State of Iraq an
Paris, Reuters—France said on Friday its jets had launched strikes inside Iraq for the first time since the country promised to join military action against Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) insurgents who have taken over parts of the country. “This morning at 9:40 am our Rafale jet
Edinburgh, AP—Scottish voters have resoundingly rejected independence, deciding to remain part of the United Kingdom after a historic referendum that shook the country to its core. The decision prevented a rupture of a 307-year union with England, bringing a huge sigh of relief to Britain̵
As Iranian President Hassan Rouhani prepares to fly to New York, the buzz in his faction is that he will return with “another great diplomatic victory.” We heard the same tune last year when Rouhani paid his first visit to the Big Apple for the United Nations General Assembly. A brief phone chat wit
Erbil, Asharq Al-Awsat—Kurdistan’s Peshmerga Ministry formally announced its readiness to participate in the US-led international military alliance that is being formed to combat the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, Peshmerga Ministry spokesman Col. Holgurt
Damascus, Asharq Al-Awsat—Ahmed works as a masseur at a Damascus hammam (bathhouse), and he and a tea boy—who insisted on serving us steaming cups of the beverage—are the last two workers to have remained at the premises. With an expression saddened by seeing the empty chambers of
Cairo, Asharq Al-Awsat—There are currently no plans to privatize Egypt’s stock market either in the near or distant future, according to the head of the bourse. Speaking on Wednesday on the second and final day of the 2014 Euromoney Egypt Conference in Cairo, Chairman of the Egyptian Exchange (EGX)
Beirut, Reuters—Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants released a video on Thursday that they said shows British journalist John Cantlie in captivity saying he will soon reveal “facts” about the group to counter its portrayal in Western media. ISIS, which controls territo
London, Asharq Al-Awsat—The official website of Iranian Supreme Leader Grand Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has published an infograph illustrating US diplomats making demands and issuing threats against the Islamic Republic during negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program. The infograph, published on We
Manama, Asharq Al-Awsat—Bahrain warned on Wednesday it was ready to take serious counter-measures against Qatar over Doha’s alleged policy of offering Qatari citizenship to Bahraini nationals, in a development that will further heat up already tense relations between Qatar and its Gulf neighbors. In
Sana’a, Asharq Al-Awsat—Yemen’s Houthis and the central government appeared to move closer to an agreement to end the bloodshed that has recently gripped the country, following Omani–Iranian pressure on the Shi’ite Houthi movement. Yemeni sources have told Asharq Al-Awsat that rene
New York, AP—Iran’s foreign minister on Wednesday ruled out cooperating with the United States in helping Iraq fight Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants and warned that the terrorist group poses a much broader global threat that needs new thinking to eradicate. Mohammad Java
Edinburgh, Reuters—Scots began voting in an independence referendum on Thursday that will decide the fate of the United Kingdom, after opinion polls showed hundreds of thousands of them were still agonizing over whether to stay with the 307-year union or back secession. In the final hours befo
Erbil, Asharq Al-Awsat—Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) fighters currently pose no threat to the Kurdish capital Erbil, as Peshmerga forces continue to drive Islamist fighters out of Iraq’s semi-autonomous region, a Peshmerga official said. Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, Peshmerga Ministry
London, Asharq Al-Awsat—Laïla Marrakchi’s Rock the Casbah opens with a narration from the film’s family patriarch, Hassan Ben Amor, played by screen legend Omar Sharif (Lawrence of Arabia, Doctor Zhivago). Dressed in white and with a mischievous grin, the successful entrepreneur meanders throu
