Ankara, AP—Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Wednesday offered an unprecedented conciliatory message to Armenians on the eve of the anniversary of the massacre of Armenians almost a century ago. Erdoğan called the events of World War I “our shared pain” and acknowledged that
Ramallah, Asharq Al-Awsat—Fatah and Hamas have reached an agreement to form a Palestinian national unity government before June following the re-launch of reconciliation efforts on Tuesday, according to reports in the local Arab press. Delegations from the two sides met in Gaza on Tuesday to find a
The results of the local elections and its repercussions on the political scene continue to reverberate throughout Turkey. The Justice and Development Party (AKP) was the biggest winner in the elections and is now preparing itself for the presidential race in August. The AKP, led by Prime Minister R
Sana’a and London, Asharq Al-Awsat and AP—A number of Yemeni security officials were assassinated on Monday and Tuesday, possibly in retaliation against a series of recent air strikes and drone attacks against Al-Qaeda targets in the south of the country. Yemeni officials said three colonels i
Rio De Janeiro, AP—A Rio de Janeiro slum erupted in violence late on Tuesday following the killing of a popular local figure, with angry residents setting fires and showering homemade explosives and glass bottles onto a busy avenue in the city’s main tourist zone. Intense exchanges of gunfire
London, Asharq Al-Awsat—Lebanese MPs failed to select a new president on Wednesday, in what my herald the beginning of a fierce and divisive competition to elect a new head of state. The president of Lebanon, traditionally a Maronite Christian, is elected by a secret ballot of MPs, yet so far no con
When crises proliferate and compete in one geographic location, it is only natural that some will gain priority over others. This explains the current puzzling absence of the international and regional powers from the snowballing Libyan crisis, which is deteriorating day by day. Should the current s
Dammam, Asharq Al-Awsat—Saudi Arabia’s Ras Al-Khair desalination and power plant began its second stage of operations on Tuesday, with the event overseen by Abdullah Bin Abdul-Rahman Al-Haseen, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Water and Electricity and head of the board of directors of the state-owned Sal
New Delhi, Reuters—Indian opposition leader Narendra Modi sought to calm fears for religious minorities under his rule on Tuesday, saying he would represent all Indians whether they voted for him or not in the current general election. Modi, prime ministerial candidate for the Hindu nationalist Bhar
Kiev, AP—US Vice President Joe Biden warned Russia on Tuesday that “it’s time to stop talking and start acting” to reduce tension in Ukraine, offering a show of support for the besieged nation as an international agreement aimed at stemming its ongoing crisis appeared in doubt. Sta
Ramallah, Asharq Al-Awsat—Palestinian movements Hamas and Fatah began preparations for reconciliation talks in Gaza on Tuesday, amid fresh hopes for an end to the split between the two groups despite the failure of previous efforts. Tuesday’s meeting is perceived as the most senior-level summit betw
Amman, Asharq Al-Awsat—Splits have emerged within Jordan’s Muslim Brotherhood after the group announced it was dismissing three high-ranking members for their role in the Zamzam Initiative, a moderate movement calling for reform within the organization. The Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood issued a stat
The recent local elections in Turkey attracted several claims of irregularities, but one of the undisputed outcomes of the polls was the fact that the Kurds have become a political power to be reckoned with, both in Turkey’s southeast and beyond. The pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) took
Beirut, AP—Weakened Syrian rebels are making their last desperate stand in Homs, as forces loyal to President Bashar Al-Assad launch their harshest assault yet to expel them from the central city, once known as the capital of the revolution. Some among the hundreds of rebels remaining in the city ta
Erbil, Asharq Al-Awsat—The governor of Kirkuk announced on Monday that Iraq’s president, Kurdish leader Jalal Talabani, would return to Iraqi Kurdistan soon, after spending two years in hospital in Germany. Najmiddin Karim, a member of Talabani’s party, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), told a
Jindo, AP—One by one, coast guard officers carried the newly arrived bodies covered in white sheets from a boat to a tent on the dock of this island, the first step in identifying a sharply rising number of corpses from a South Korean ferry that sank nearly a week ago. Dozens of police officers in [
Amman, Asharq Al-Awsat—The speaker of the Jordanian parliament opposed calls from MPs to close the country’s border to Syrian refugees on Monday, but called for stricter controls on crossing points to protect national security. Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, the speaker, Atef Tarawneh, said: “Jordan i
London, Asharq Al-Awsat—Iranian President Hassan Rouhani announced the next phase of reforms to the country’s subsidies system on Monday, amid concerns the reforms could lead to a sharp rise in inflation. Speaking at a press conference after a meeting with senior officials from the Ministry of Agric
I, like many others perhaps, used to be embarrassed to be seen stretching out my hand in order to take a photo of myself with my camera or my smartphone. I used to do it discreetly, and mostly hid the photos or deleted them, as if I was trying to conceal something I had done. […]
It is ironic that British authorities supervising nonprofit organizations in the country have only just noticed the threats posed by these so-called charities which are used to espouse terrorism and engage in organized fraud. The chairman of the UK’s Charity Commission said that the authoritie
