Beirut, Asharq Al-Awsat—The Fee Syrian Army, aided by moderate Islamist brigades, launched an attack on the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in northern Syria after receiving new weapons, including anti-tank missiles, amid doubts about their ability to defeat the organization. The latest campa
Sana’a, Asharq Al-Awsat—More Houthi protesters were killed by government forces in the Yemeni capital of Sana’a on Tuesday, according to reports, as fighting between the movement and Yemeni army units continues in the province of Al-Jawf. According to wire service reports, four members of the moveme
The Hague, Netherlands, AP—Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was likely struck by multiple “high-energy objects from outside the aircraft,” causing it to break up over eastern Ukraine, a preliminary report into the deadly aviation disaster concluded on Tuesday. The report by the Dutch Safety B
Baghdad, Reuters—Iraq’s parliament approved a new government headed by Haider Al-Abadi as prime minister on Monday night, in a bid to rescue Iraq from collapse, with sectarianism and Arab–Kurdish tensions on the rise. Abadi, a Shi’ite Islamist, included members of Iraq’s Shi&
In positive news from Saudi Arabia, it seems that the government has decided to launch a major new anti-narcotics initiative. According to details published by the newspaper, Al-Riyadh, Saudi Interior Minister Prince Muhammad Bin Naif has issued instructions to establish the Saudi Observatory for Na
In 2007, TIME magazine reported how Sultan Hashim Ahmad Al-Ta’i, the defense minister during Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein’s era, escaped execution just five hours before he was scheduled to be hanged. Ta’i’s life was spared after his American jailor refused to hand him over
London, Reuters—Britain’s Prince William said on Monday that he and wife Kate were thrilled to be expecting their second baby, after news of the pregnancy was released early because the Duchess of Cambridge had been suffering from morning sickness. The baby will be fourth-in-line to the Britis
Cairo, Asharq Al-Awsat—Even before becoming the Arab League’s secretary-general in July 2011, Nabil Elaraby had a distinguished political and legal career. After serving as an adviser to the Egyptian delegation at Camp David—also later advising on a number of other agreements between Egypt and
When one looks at the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) it becomes clear that out of all the armed groups in Syria, it is by far the most important, the best funded, armed and organized, and possesses more members than any other. No other group carries out so many acts of violence and […
Cairo, Asharq Al-Awsat—Sunday’s meeting of Arab League foreign ministers in Cairo endorsed the calls from Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia, to rid the Middle East of terrorist organizations, most prominently the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Th
Baghdad, Asharq Al-Awsat/Reuters—Iraq’s Kurdish political bloc is heading back to Iraqi Kurdistan for a final meeting on Monday to decide whether to participate in the next national government, the Kurds’ top negotiator Hoshyar Zebari told Reuters. “We are going back today to Sulei
Sana’a, Asharq Al-Awsat—One protester was killed and 40 were injured when clashes erupted between Yemeni security forces and Houthi protesters in the Yemeni capital on Sunday. The clashes occurred when government forces attempted to clear protestors off the road to Sana’a airport, and after protesto
Conakry, AP—Doctors Without Borders shuttered one of its Ebola treatment centers in Guinea in May. They thought the deadly virus was being contained there. The Macenta region, right on the Liberian border, had been one of the first places where the outbreak surfaced, but they hadn’t seen a new
The French far-right magazine Minute recently decided to run a cover story decrying the “provocative” appointment of Najat Vallaud-Belkacem—a “Moroccan Muslim,” as the headline of the story ran—as the French minister of education. The editors of the magazine knew very well that this, and
Erbil, Asharq Al-Awsat—The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has killed a number of its own Kurdish fighters in Mosul, an official of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in Iraq said on Saturday. Ministry of Endowments spokesman Marwan Naqshabandi told Asharq Al-Awsat that ISIS killed five
Manama, Asharq Al-Awsat—Saudi Arabia and Bahrain have announced plans to construct a second cross-sea bridge linking the two Gulf kingdoms. The announcement was made following a meeting on Friday in Jeddah between the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, Saudi King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz, and Bahrain’
Beirut, Asharq Al-Awsat—Fears of a resurgence of violence in the Lebanese border town of Arsal grew over the weekend, following the return of the body of a resident, Kayed Ghadadah, who was shot dead by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) on the outskirts of the town. The town, located on the
London, Reuters—The British government is scrambling to respond to a lurch in the opinion polls towards a vote for Scottish independence this month by promising a range of new powers for Scotland if it chooses to stay within the United Kingdom. British finance minister George Osborne said on Sunday
Donetsk and Mariupol, Reuters—Shelling erupted in eastern Ukraine’s strategic port Mariupol and its biggest city Donetsk overnight, threatening a ceasefire struck less than two days earlier between Ukrainian government forces and pro-Russian separatists. The ceasefire, brokered by envoys from
Baghdad, Reuters—US warplanes launched four air strikes against Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants threatening western Iraq’s Haditha Dam early on Sunday, witnesses and senior officials said, broadening Washington’s campaign against the group. The leader of a pro-Iraqi gove
