Category: 2. Middle East

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Syria envoy Tom Barrack will lead a meeting with senior officials from Israel and Syria on Thursday, Axios reported on Tuesday citing unnamed sources.

It is unclear where the meeting will take place, but it is expected to focus on security arrangements in southern Syria and increasing coordination and communication, according to Axios.

(Reporting by Bhargav Acharya and Susan Heavey)

PARIS (Reuters) -French judges on Tuesday ordered that French Culture Minister Rachida Dati and former automobile executive Carlos Ghosn must stand trial for alleged corruption and abuse of power in a case focusing on consulting fees, a judicial source said.

The French prosecutor’s office for financial crimes (PNF) had requested in November 2024 that Dati, widely expected to run for the post of Paris mayor in March 2026, and former Renault-Nissan boss Ghosn be tried as part of its…

France’s foreign minister urged Israel on Tuesday to allow international journalists into the besieged Palestinian territory of Gaza to “bear witness” to the situation after 21 months of war.

The United Nations and human rights groups say Gaza and its population of more than two million people face famine-like conditions, with near-daily deaths of people queueing for food aid.

“I ask that the free and independent press be allowed to access Gaza to show what is happening there and to bear…

AFP journalists in the Gaza Strip said Tuesday that chronic food shortages are affecting their ability to cover Israel’s conflict with Hamas militants.

Palestinian text, photo and video journalists working for the international news agency said desperate hunger and lack of clean water is making them ill and exhausted.

Some have even had to cut back on their coverage of the war, now in its 22nd month, with one journalist saying “we have no energy left due to hunger”.

The United Nations in June…

Greece is pushing for stricter EU-wide policies in dealing with migration, media reports said Tuesday, Anadolu reports.

“The EU needs to prioritize deportations and create pre-departure holding centers outside the bloc if it wants to curb migrant inflows,” Migration Minister Thanos Plevris told his counterparts during an informal meeting of EU justice and home affairs ministers in Copenhagen, according to the Kathimerini newspaper.

“The return of illegal…

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim Tuesday appealed US President Donald Trump to use his influence to press for an “immediate” end to Israeli brutalities in Gaza, Anadolu reports.

“In this regard, I urge all those with influence over Israel to find the courage to act decisively. I especially appeal to US President Donald Trump to use that influence to press for an immediate end to the killing, stop the indiscriminate bombings, and ensure that…

Israel’s Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir said Tuesday that the war against Iran is not over, Anadolu reports.

“Iran and its axis remain in our sights. The campaign against Iran is not over,” Zamir said during a military assessment meeting, as cited by an army statement.

He said he instructed the army to be prepared for “a continued wide-scale and comprehensive campaign” in the several areas that Israeli forces carry out aerial and ground offensives.

“We…

By Daphne Psaledakis

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The United States on Tuesday imposed sanctions on what it said was a Houthi-linked petroleum smuggling and sanctions evasion network across Yemen and the United Arab Emirates in fresh action targeting the Iran-backed militant group.

The U.S. Treasury Department in a statement said the two individuals and five entities sanctioned on Tuesday were among the most significant importers of petroleum products and money launderers that benefit the…

France’s Culture Minister Rachida Dati is to go on trial accused of corruption and abuse of power while she was a member of European Parliament, a judicial source told AFP Tuesday.

Dati, a 59-year-old who holds ambitions to become Paris mayor next year, was charged in 2019 on suspicions she lobbied for the Renault-Nissan carmaking group while at the European Union institution. She denies the allegations.

Dati is accused of accepting 900,000 euros ($1.06 million at current rates) in lawyer’s…