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Gaza Civil Defense Says Israeli Strike Kills Three Journalists

Gaza's civil defense agency said an Israeli strike in the center of the territory on Wednesday killed three journalists, including a freelancer who regularly contributed for AFP, despite the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Since October 10, a fragile US-sponsored truce in Gaza has largely halted the fighting between Israeli forces and Hamas, ...

Almost 140 Foreigners Arrested in Central Iran Over Protests

Iranian authorities arrested 139 foreign nationals in central parts of the country during recent anti-government protests, local media reported Tuesday. Iran's Tasnim news agency quoted the police chief in the city of Yazd as saying those arrested were involved "in organising, inciting and directing riotous actions, and in some cases were in ...

Lebanese Forces Party Delegation Meets Syrian Officials in Damascus

A delegation from the Lebanese Forces, one of Lebanon’s main Christian political parties, held talks in Damascus on Tuesday with Syria’s Information Minister Hamza Mustafa, Lebanese media reported. According to MTV, the delegation included Lebanese MP Melhem Riachi, a former information minister, and the party’s head of foreign relations, ...

Iran Formally Allows Women to Ride Motorcycles

Women in Iran can now formally obtain a license to ride a motorcycle, local media reported Wednesday, ending years of legal ambiguity surrounding two-wheelers. The law previously did not explicitly prohibit women from riding motorbikes and scooters, but in practice authorities refused to issue licenses. Due to the legal grey area, women have ...

Over 4,500 IS Detainees Brought to Iraq from Syria

More than 4,500 suspected jihadists have been transferred from Syria to Iraq as part of a U.S. operation to relocate Islamic State group detainees, an Iraqi official told AFP on Tuesday. The detainees are among around 7,000 suspects the U.S. military began transferring last month after Syrian government forces captured Kurdish-held territory ...

U.S. Approves Major Arms Deals to Israel, Saudi

The United States on Friday approved multibillion-dollar weapons sales to both Israel and Saudi Arabia, at a point of high tensions with Iran. The State Department said it green-lighted a $3.8 billion sale of 30 Apache attack helicopters to Israel, which has agreed to a fragile ceasefire in Gaza. "The United States is committed to the security ...

Salam, Macron Discuss Lebanese Sovereignty, Security and Reforms in Paris

On Friday evening, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam met with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris to discuss Lebanon’s internal reforms and consolidation of state control.  Salam reiterated that the Lebanese state is committed to its goal of confiscating all non-state weapons on Lebanese territory. Macron stated that France will ...

Over 400 Prominent Women Urge Iran to Halt Execution of Woman Activist

More than 400 prominent women, including four Nobel laureates and several former presidents and prime ministers, demanded Tuesday that Iran immediately release engineer and activist Zahra Tabari, fearing she faces imminent execution. The urgent public appeal charged that Tabari, a 67-year-old mother, was handed a death sentence in October ...

Witkoff: Prefers Diplomacy With Iran But Warns of Consequences

Speaking Thursday night at the Israeli-American Council conference in Florida, Steve Witkoff, the U.S. special envoy for Middle East diplomacy, was asked during an onstage interview whether he believes a U.S. military strike against Iran is likely. He signaled a renewed preference for diplomacy with Iran while pointedly warning that failure to ...

Salam Says Lebanon to Expand State Control as International Confidence Grows

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam announced in Davos, Switzerland on Thursday that Lebanon has full operational control over southern Lebanon and will expand operations north of the Litani river as international engagement with Lebanon increases.  Salam outlined a two-part policy driving the Lebanese state’s governance goals: institutional and ...

UN Says Yemen's Houthis Seized Telecoms Equipment, Vehicles

Yemen's Houthi rebels have confiscated telecommunications equipment and vehicles from unstaffed United Nations offices in Sanaa, the world body said in a statement Friday, decrying potential disruptions to its humanitarian work. The Houthis have repeatedly targeted UN agencies and detained dozens of its staff as part of a crackdown on alleged ...

Syrian President Makes Kurdish a 'National Language'

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa issued a decree on Friday declaring Kurdish a "national language", in an apparent gesture of good will towards the minority following clashes in past days. The move came as the Syrian army warned of new strikes east of Aleppo, despite a meeting between the US-led coalition and Kurdish forces seeking to ...

Qatar Pledges Continued Economic and Political Support to Lebanon

During a visit to Beirut, Qatari Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Mohammed bin Abdulaziz al-Khulaifi announced a new aid package for Lebanon, including $40 million dedicated to the electricity sector, alongside development, and humanitarian initiatives. President Aoun reaffirmed the importance of Qatar’s support and expressed gratitude for ...

Israel Killed Hezbollah Operative in Tallousa in Second Monday Airstrike

A second Israeli strike in Lebanon on Monday evening killed one person, targeting a car in the town of Tallousa in southern Lebanon’s Marjayoun district, according to the Public Health Emergency Operations Center.  The person killed by the drone strike was allegedly involved in recouping Hezbollah infrastructure, according to the ...

Turkey Urges U.S.-Iran Disputes Be Resolved ‘One by One’

Turkey's foreign minister on Wednesday urged the U.S. to resolve its disputes with Iran "one by one" instead of through a sweeping deal, saying this would avoid humiliating Iranian officials, and added that Tehran was ready for talks on its nuclear programme. "If you put them as a package all of them, it will be very difficult for our Iranian ...

Iran Warns Shipping Ahead of Live-Fire Naval Drills Near Strait of Hormuz

Iran has sent out warnings to passing ships of live-fire naval exercises expected to be conducted next week near the Strait of Hormuz, according to the Associated Press. The Strait of Hormuz is a significant bottleneck in global energy supply chains, seeing 20% of global oil shipments, and would be vulnerable in the event of a conflict with ...

UN Visit to Sudan's El-Fasher Finds Traumatised Civilians in 'Unsafe Conditions'

Traumatised civilians left in Sudan's El-Fasher after its capture by paramilitary forces are living without water or sanitation in a city haunted by famine, UN aid coordinator Denise Brown told AFP on Monday. El-Fasher fell to the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in October after more than 500 days of siege, and last Friday a small UN ...

U.S. Policy Toward Lebanon: Obstacles to Dismantling Hezbollah’s Grip on Power

At 10:00 a.m. EST, the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa will convene a hearing titled “U.S. Policy Toward Lebanon: Obstacles to Dismantling Hezbollah’s Grip on Power” to assess the political, security, and institutional challenges confronting U.S. policy in Lebanon. The hearing will feature ...

Trump Says Iran Wants to "Negotiate"

U.S. President Donald Trump said Sunday that Iran’s leadership had called him seeking “to negotiate” after he repeatedly threatened to intervene militarily if Tehran killed protesters. He added, however, that the U.S. "may have to act before a meeting.” Trump has not elaborated on what the U.S. is considering, but said on Sunday that ...

Taylor Swift’s Wine Choice Shines a Spotlight on French Sancerre

A French winemaker has hailed the impact of his Sancerre appearing in Taylor Swift's latest documentary, which looks set to deepen America's love affair with the famed Loire appellation. A bottle of Sancerre by the Terres Blanches Domaine, which sells for around $40 in the United States, is glimpsed briefly by a mixing desk during episode five of ...

Trump Says U.S. Still Watching Iran, Fleet Sailing to Region

President Donald Trump said Thursday a US naval "armada" was heading toward the Gulf, maintaining pressure on Iran, although he has recently downplayed the prospect of imminent military action. Last week, Trump pulled back from a threat to strike Iran over its deadly crackdown on anti-government protests after the White House said Tehran had ...

U.S.-Led Coalition Meets With Kurds to Ease Tensions With Damascus: Kurdish Spokesman

A US-led coalition delegation met with Kurdish forces east of Syria's Aleppo on Friday in a bid to ease tensions with Damascus following clashes over the past week, a Kurdish spokesman said. Farhad Shami, spokesman for the US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, told AFP the meeting took place in Deir Hafer, as Syrian government ...

Trump, Netanyahu Signal Hard Line on Lebanon as Hezbollah Disarmament Takes Center Stage

U.S. President Donald Trump signaled a tougher stance toward Hezbollah following talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday in Florida, warning that the group is “behaving badly” and stressing that efforts to disarm it remain a central focus of U.S. policy toward Lebanon. Speaking after the meeting at his ...

Northern Israeli Residents Tell This Is Beirut They Hope for Peace With Lebanon

Israeli independent journalist and political analyst Selena Ryan traveled across northern Israel to speak with residents of border communities about peace with Lebanon. From Metula to Shlomi, Malkia, Hanita, and Adamit, she interviewed coffee cart owners, farmers, teachers, students, couriers, and artisans. Despite their different backgrounds and ...

Israel Says Ban on Aid Groups Operating in Gaza to Hit 37 Organisations

Israel has said that 37 aid organizations will be banned from operating in Gaza starting on Thursday unless they comply with its new guidelines requiring detailed information on Palestinian staff. "They refuse to provide lists of their Palestinian employees because they know, just as we know, that some of them are involved in terrorism or linked ...

Iran FM Says Davos Appearance Cancellation Based On 'Lies'

Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi hit out at the World Economic Forum in Davos for cancelling his appearance over a crackdown on recent protests, saying the decision was based on "lies and political pressure". Protests in Iran sparked by economic strain in late December exploded into the biggest challenge to the Iranian leadership in years, ...

Greta Thunberg Arrested at Pro-Palestinian Protest in London

London police on Tuesday arrested Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg during a demonstration held in support of pro-Palestinian hunger strikers, according to Palestinian activist groups. The group Prisoners for Palestine said in a statement that Thunberg was detained under the UK’s Terrorism Act while attending what it described as a ...