Category: 2. Middle East

Damascus has turned down a US proposal to join the Abraham Accords and has instead called for expanded dialogue with Washington on the issue of foreign fighters in Syria, Al-Quds Al-Arabi reported.

According to details revealed by Syria TV, the Syrian government has formally responded to a set of conditions laid out by the United States in exchange for easing sanctions on Damascus. Among those conditions was a request for Syria to join the Abraham…

At least a dozen people were killed in a predominantly Druze town near the Syrian capital on Tuesday in clashes sparked by a purported recording of a Druze man cursing Prophet Muhammad, which angered Sunni Muslim gunmen, said rescuers and security sources.

Reuters reported that the fighting marked the latest episode of deadly sectarian violence in Syria, where fears among minorities have been swelling since former president Bashar Al-Assad was ousted in December….

Iran has proposed meeting the European parties to the 2015 nuclear deal, possibly in Rome this Friday, if talks resume with the United States, four diplomats said on Monday, cautioning that there has yet to be a response from the Europeans to the idea.

According to Reuters, Iran is looking to build on the momentum of nuclear negotiations with the US that resumed in Oman on Saturday and after talks with Russia and China last week. Omani officials have said that a…

The United Nations said yesterday that it is deeply “saddened” over the deaths of at least 68 African migrants in US air strikes on the Saada Governorate, northern Yemen, Anadolu reported.

“We are deeply saddened by reports of significant loss of life following the air strike on a migrant facility in Sa’dah. Many migrants are believed to have been killed or injured, with reports from the ground indicating that the death toll continues to rise,” said…

A UN panel of experts charged with monitoring sanctions in Sudan is investigating how mortar rounds exported from Bulgaria to the United Arab Emirates ended up in a supply convoy for paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) fighters, according to a letter seen by Reuters.

Mortar rounds seized from the convoy in November in Sudan’s North Darfur region bore the same serial number as those which Bulgaria told UN investigators it had exported to the UAE in 2019. The…

The Israeli occupation army announced yesterday that it has used a new artillery weapon in its genocidal war against Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip.

The 282nd Artillery Regiment used Bar rockets, developed by Elbit Systems, to strike targets in southern Gaza as part of the ongoing offensive against Palestinians.

According to the Israeli army, the Bar rockets feature a “guidance mechanism specifically designed for difficult combat environments” which…

A former head of Israel’s Shin Bet security agency has accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of abandoning the hostages in Gaza and clinging to power for personal gain.

“The truth is that our hostages in Gaza have been abandoned in favour of the government’s messianic ideology and by a prime minister in Benjamin Netanyahu who is desperate to cling to power for his own personal gain,” said Ami Ayalon in an op-ed in the Guardian today.

“Our government…

South Africa today told the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that Israel is using starvation as a weapon against Palestinians in the occupied territories, breaching its international obligations.

“International law prohibits Israel from the use of starvation as a method of warfare, including under siege or blockade, Israel may not collectively punish the protected Palestinian population, which it holds under unlawful occupation,” South Africa’s…

The Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine criticised the International Court of Justice (ICJ) session held yesterday over the humanitarian blockade imposed by Israel on Gaza, stressing that Israel’s criminal practices in Gaza, which have lasted for 19 months, are still being subject to legal debate in spite of Israel’s violation of international humanitarian laws.

In a statement, Islamic Jihad said the ICJ should have demanded that Israel immediately respect…