Cairo, Asharq Al-Awsat—US Secretary of State John Kerry held meetings on Sunday in Cairo with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, and Arab League chief Nabil Elaraby, before leaving for Jordan, with the Iraq crisis featuring prominently among the discussions. In a joint news conference with Egy
Baghdad, Asharq Al-Awsat—A prominent Shi’ite movement in Iraq has defended a military parade it organized in the country’s capital Baghdad on Saturday amid heightened fears of widespread sectarian conflict breaking out across the country. The event, organized by the Sadrist Movement, showed off heav
London, Asharq Al-Awsat—South Sudan Defense Minister Kuol Manyang Juuk described reports of his resignation circulating in the country’s media as “harmful rumors,” saying they were attempts to divide the South Sudanese government. Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, Juuk said the reports, which have appear
Muscat and Dubai, Reuters—Oman has scrapped price controls for all but 23 basic products, prompting rare public criticism of government policy, after companies demanded freer markets. Economists said the move was unlikely to have a major impact on inflation. Under rules dating back to 2011, retailer
Porto Alegre, Brazil, Reuters—They might want to change Porto Alegre’s name to Porto Algeria after the Desert Foxes’ 4-2 victory over South Korea in the southern Brazilian city on Sunday. Algeria’s four goals ended a 32-year wait for a World Cup win and shot them into contention fo
Erbil, Asharq Al-Awsat—Sunni Arab tribal fighters will “take full control” of Iraq’s restive Anbar province within the next two days, according to Ahmad Al-Dabash, the founder of the Islamic Army in Iraq. Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat in Erbil on Saturday, he said: “In two days’ time, the tribal revol
Cairo, AP—An Egyptian court on Monday convicted three journalists from Al-Jazeera English and sentenced them to seven years in prison each on terrorism-related charges in a case that has brought an outcry from rights groups. The sentences were handed down against Australian correspondent Peter Grest
Sao Paulo, AP—The goals kept coming at the World Cup Sunday and—unfortunately for the US—the scoring didn’t stop until the last 30 seconds of its 2–2 draw with Portugal. Both teams stayed alive, while Belgium advanced and Algeria won its first World Cup game in 32 years. No t
Reuters—Authorities in China’s far-flung western region of Xinjiang have detained 380 people and busted 32 terror cells in a month-long crackdown on violence, state media said on Monday, following an upsurge in attacks blamed on Islamist militants. China has been toughening its response after
Tunis, Asharq Al-Awsat—Having served in various UN roles, most notably as the secretary-general’s representative in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and as the Tunisian ambassador to the UN, Kamel Morjane’s name is currently being bandied about as a possible replacement to former UN–Arab
Moscow, AP—Russian President Vladimir Putin publicly expressed support Sunday for Ukraine’s declaration of a cease-fire in its battle against pro-Russian separatists and called on both sides to negotiate a compromise. Putin said such a compromise must guarantee the rights of Russian-speaking r
Sana’a, Asharq Al-Awsat—Shi’ite Houthi fighters said on Saturday they had cut off the main road leading to Yemen’s main airport, as fighting between the rebels and the country’s military spreads to areas surrounding the capital, Sana’a. The rebels said they had positioned themselves in the Al-Jaraf
Cairo, Asharq Al-Awsat—Libyans living abroad went to the polls on Saturday in legislative elections scheduled to begin on Wednesday inside the country, with 22 election centers in 13 countries opening their doors to voters. In this second vote to be held since late leader Muammar Gaddafi was ousted
Baghdad, Asharq Al-Awsat—Iraq’s largest Sunni parliamentary bloc has strongly denounced the Islamist militant group the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and its extremist ideology, as reports came in that the militant group had seized three further towns in the restive Western Anbar province o
Brasília, Reuters—Argentina captain Lionel Messi and record-equaling Miroslav Klose of Germany rode to the rescue of their teams with trademark goals on another day of rich entertainment at the World Cup on Saturday. Messi snatched a 1–0 win for Argentina against plucky Iran with a typical pie
Hong Kong, Reuters—Nearly 600,000 votes have been cast in three days of an unofficial referendum on democratic reforms in Hong Kong, part of a civil campaign that has been branded illegal by the former British colony and by Communist Party authorities in Beijing. Hong Kong returned to Chinese rule i
I am not aware of any event that captivates its followers to the extent to which the World Cup—currently being held in Brazil—does. What is more important is its ability to endure, and to multiply its success many times over, whether in terms of geographic expanse or in financial returns
Cairo, Asharq Al-Awsat—Saudi King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz paid a visit to Cairo on Friday to meet with Egypt’s newly elected President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi. The two leaders discussed the latest developments in the Arab world and the prospects of increased bilateral cooperation between Riyadh and Cair
Kabul, AP—Hundreds of Afghans took to the streets Saturday to protest against alleged fraud in last week’s presidential runoff, forcing a closure of the airport road amid escalating tensions over what Western officials had hoped would be a smooth transfer of power. Former Foreign Minister Abdu
Anbar, Reuters—Sunni fighters seized a border post on the Iraq–Syria frontier on Saturday, smashing a line drawn in 1932 by colonial powers and linking hundreds of miles of land they control to create an Islamic Caliphate from the Mediterranean Sea to Iran. The militants, led by the Islamic St
