Category: 2. Middle East

Syrian government forces were advancing towards the southern city of Sweida on Monday to quell deadly clashes between Druze fighters and Bedouin tribes, with one Druze armed group saying talks with authorities aimed at brokering a truce were underway.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor reported 99 people killed since the fighting erupted on Sunday — 60 Druze, including four civilians, 18 Bedouin fighters, 14 security personnel and seven unidentified people in military…

Syria deployed security forces Monday in the southern province of Sweida after at least 50 people were killed in clashes between Sunni Bedouin tribes and Druze fighters, a monitor said.

The outbreak of sectarian violence underscores the challenges facing the administration of interim leader Ahmad al-Sharaa, whose Islamist forces overthrew president Bashar al-Assad in December, in a country reeling from 14 years of war.

The latest fighting, which began Sunday, continued sporadically into Monday…

At least 89 people were killed in the southern Syrian province of Sweida as clashes between Sunni Bedouin tribes and Druze fighters raged for a second day Monday, a monitor said.

As the violence escalated, Israel — which had previously warned that it would intervene in Syria to protect the Druze — said it struck “several tanks” in Sweida, without providing further details.

The fighting underscores the challenges facing interim leader Ahmad al-Sharaa, whose Islamist forces ousted president…

Lawyer Ghaid Ghanem Qassem has revealed that Palestinian detainee Dr Hossam Abu Safieh is in poor condition in Israeli custody, noting that he has lost over 40 kilograms and has been subjected to repeated physical abuse.

In a Facebook post on Sunday, Qassem wrote: “Dr Hossam Abu Safieh is not okay. My most recent visit to him was just a few days ago, on 9 July 2025. He has lost more than 40 kg — over a third of his weight.”

“At the time of his arrest, he…

After years in a Syrian detention camp, Ibrahim Darwish was relieved to be allowed to return home to Iraq, but his joy was quickly punctured by the harsh reality that he had to disown his sons accused of being jihadists.

“All I wanted was to return to Iraq,” the 64-year-old said of his time in the Kurdish-controlled al-Hol camp, where family members of suspected Islamic State group fighters are held in prison-like conditions alongside refugees and displaced people.

But back home in Iraq, “I…

Iranian Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, has said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wrongly believed he could eliminate over four decades of Iran’s peaceful nuclear achievements, stressing that Iran’s nuclear scientists have trained hundreds of students despite Israeli efforts to undermine the programme.

In a post published Monday via X, Araghchi stated: “Netanyahu pledged victory in Gaza almost two years ago,” Araghchi wrote. “The end…

Palestinian-American Saif al-Din Abdul Karim Musalat’s body — draped in a flag and covered with a yellow and orange wreath — was carried through the crowded streets of Al-Mazra’ah ash-Sharqiyah in the occupied West Bank on Sunday.

The village, perched atop limestone hills, is known for its colonnaded villas and manicured gardens — and its few thousand residents who mostly come from the Palestinian diaspora in North America.

Musalat, 20, was one of them. Born and raised in Florida, he ran an…

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Sunday criticized Israel’s plan to relocate Palestinians to an internment camp built on the ruins of Rafah in southern Gaza, Anadolu reports.

“The way things are currently happening in the Gaza Strip is unacceptable,” Merz said during an interview with public broadcaster ARD, reiterating his call for increased humanitarian aid and a diplomatic resolution to the conflict.

“I have not liked what the Israeli government has…

Freedom Flotilla Coalition set sail on Sunday toward Gaza with its new vessel “Handala” from Siracusa, Italy, Anadolu reports.

“Just weeks after Israeli forces illegally seized our boat ‘Madleen’ and abducted 12 unarmed civilians in international waters, we continue — with global solidarity — to challenge Israel’s illegal and deadly siege,” the coalition announced on X.

The coalition noted that they aim to break the blockade “for the children…