Middle East

Khamenei Accuses Trump of \
Khamenei Accuses Trump of "Incitement, Destruction"

Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on Saturday alleged U.S. President Donald Trump was responsible for the slaughter of protesters in Iran, saying "We see the president of the United States as a criminal, because of the deaths, destruction and incitement he has committed against the Iranian nation.”  “We do not intend to lead the country to ...

Naim Kassem Slams Lebanon’s Foreign Minister
Naim Kassem Slams Lebanon’s Foreign Minister

Hezbollah Secretary General Naim Kassem on Saturday sharply criticized Lebanon’s Foreign Minister Youssef Rajji, accusing him of “acting against the presidency, the government, the Lebanese people, and the resistance.” In a speech during a religious ceremony, Kassem said the absence of an effective foreign minister had ...

Trump Invites Foreign Leaders to Join Gaza 'Board of Peace'
Trump Invites Foreign Leaders to Join Gaza 'Board of Peace'

U.S. President Donald Trump has invited Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan to join the so-called Board of Peace that will oversee post-war Gaza, Turkey said Saturday. Erdogan received the proposal in a letter sent Friday by Trump inviting him to "become a founding member" of the board, Turkish presidential communications director ...

Gaza Governance Committee Begins Work
Gaza Governance Committee Begins Work

The Palestinian committee set to govern post-war Gaza has begun its work in Cairo, a member told AFP on Friday. Formed on Wednesday as the second phase of the US-brokered Gaza ceasefire deal came into effect, the committee is made up of 15 technocrats charged with administering the Palestinian territory after the Hamas-Israel war. The ...

Exclusive: Trump States U.S. Decision Not to Attack Iran Due to Cancelled Executions
Exclusive: Trump States U.S. Decision Not to Attack Iran Due to Cancelled Executions

Speaking to the press on Friday, President Trump stated that his decision not to attack Iran was not influenced by Arab and Israeli officials, but rather due to Iran cancelling the mass-execution of 800 protesters.  When asked why he made this decision, he stressed that “nobody convinced me, I convinced myself. [Iran] had yesterday scheduled ...

Syrian Army Issues Warnings Ahead of Strikes East of Aleppo
Syrian Army Issues Warnings Ahead of Strikes East of Aleppo

Syria's army issued warnings on Friday ahead of strikes on Deir Hafer, east of Aleppo, saying it will target the positions of Kurdish forces and urging civilians to stay away. In several warnings, the Syrian military announced it will target specified areas of Deir Hafer, which it said Kurdish forces were using "as a launching point for their ...

Syrian President Makes Kurdish a 'National Language'
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 ...

Syrian Financial Conduit of Assad Regime Detained in Lebanon
Syrian Financial Conduit of Assad Regime Detained in Lebanon

Syrian national Ahmad Dunya, who was collaborating with former affiliates of the Bashar Al-Assad regime plotting to destabilize the new Ahmad al-Sharaa regime, was arrested in Lebanon on Friday. Since December 2025, Syrian and Lebanese officials have engaged in discussion over the status of over 200 exiled members of the Assad regime who fled to ...

Who are the Shia Opposition Seeking to Break Hezbollah’s Stranglehold?
Who are the Shia Opposition Seeking to Break Hezbollah’s Stranglehold?

Lebanon’s upcoming parliamentary elections, coming on the heels of the 2024 Hezbollah–Israel war that devastated the organization and its core constituencies, have reopened the question of Shia political representation. For decades, Lebanese political discourse has treated the Shia community as a unified political bloc, electorally ...

Gaza Governance Committee Holds First Meeting in Cairo: Egypt State-Linked Media
Gaza Governance Committee Holds First Meeting in Cairo: Egypt State-Linked Media

The Palestinian committee set to govern post-war Gaza held its first meeting in Cairo on Friday, Egyptian state-linked channel Al-Qahera News reported. Formed on Wednesday as the second phase of the US-brokered Gaza ceasefire deal came into effect, the committee is made up of 15 technocrats charged with administering the Palestinian territory ...

U.S. Imposes New Sanctions on Iranian Officials Over Crackdown on Protests
U.S. Imposes New Sanctions on Iranian Officials Over Crackdown on Protests

The U.S. on Thursday unveiled a new round of sanctions targeting Iranian officials accused of involvement in the violent suppression of nationwide anti-regime protests that have swept across Iran and directly challenge the country’s theocratic leadership. Among those sanctioned is the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, ...