Category: Middle East

Three major earthquakes rock Dardanelles for second day

A series of earthquakes continued to rock the western Turkish province of Canakkale for a second day on Feb. 7, with more than 300 aftershocks affecting worried locals in the region, Dogan News Agency has reported. The first quake with a magnitude of 5.3 was recorded at 6:51 a.m. in the Ayvac k district on Feb. 6. It was followed by another with the same magnitude at 13.58 p.m., according to figures by the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority .

Trump shares unfounded story about immigration bans on Facebook

The commander in chief, or one of his aides, shared a Facebook post on Thursday that linked to a story from Albawaba.com with the headline, “Kuwait Issues Its Own Trump-esque Visa Ban for Muslim-Majority Countries.” “The foreign ministry categorically denies these claims and affirms that these reported nationalitiesa have big communities in Kuwait and enjoy full rights,” Assistant Foreign Minister Sami Al-Hammad said in a statement circulated via the Middle Eastern country’s official news agency.

Daesh under siege in Al-Bab as members of Astana talks fail to reach ceasefire agreement

Syrians walk past destroyed buildings in Al-Bab in the northern province of Aleppo on 1 September 2012. Daesh militants are now encircled in the city of al-Bab after Syrian regime forces advanced Monday in the north of Syria towards the south of the city while the Turkish army and Free Syrian Army factions tightened the lose on the militant organization from the city’s three other sides.

Daesh under siege in Al-Bab as members of Astana talks fail to reach ceasefire agreement

Syrians walk past destroyed buildings in Al-Bab in the northern province of Aleppo on 1 September 2012. Daesh militants are now encircled in the city of al-Bab after Syrian regime forces advanced Monday in the north of Syria towards the south of the city while the Turkish army and Free Syrian Army factions tightened the lose on the militant organization from the city’s three other sides.

Stop picking Tulsi

I’m getting really tired of US House Rep. Tulsi Gabbard being targeted. She’s one of the few members of Congress actually attempting to do her job, When Liza Featherstone started her nonsense on Tulsi, I stopped going to Featherstone’s Twitter feed.

Amnesty says at least 13,000 people hanged at Syrian prison

Syrian authorities have killed at least 13,000 people since the start of the 2011 uprising in mass hangings at a prison north of Damascus known to detainees as “the slaughterhouse,” Amnesty International said in a report Tuesday. It covers the period from 2011 to 2015, when Amnesty said 20-50 people were hanged each week at Saydnaya Prison in killings authorized by senior Syrian officials, including deputies of President Bashar Assad, and carried out by military police.

I.S. militants besieged in Syria’s Al-Bab

Syria’s army and its allies have severed a main road linking Al-Bab, held by Islamic State, with the militants’ strongholds further east. It comes after weeks of advances, and as power-brokers Russia, Iran and Turkey discuss how to shore up a brittle ceasefire.

Turkey hit by 2 magnitude 5.3 quakes; 11 villages damaged

Two earthquakes with preliminary magnitudes of 5.3 jolted Turkey’s northern Aegean Sea coast on Monday, damaging dozens of homes in 11 villages and injuring at least five people, officials said. The first quake, which was centered beneath the Aegean off the coast of the town of Ayvacik in Turkey’s northwestern Canakkale province, struck at 6:51 a.m. , according to the government’s crisis management agency.

Israeli leader presses UK to impose new sanctions on Iran

In this Sunday, Jan. 22, 2017, file photo, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem. Israel’s prime minister is moving ahead with a contentious law that would legalize dozens of settlement outposts in the West Bank, despite questions about the bill’s legality and a warning from the White House that settlement construction “may not be helpful.”

IS suspects detained in Turkey raids rises to nearly 750-Image1

Turkish anti-terrorism police stand by their armoured vehicle during an operation to arrest people over alleged links to the Islamic State group, in Adiyaman, southeastern Turkey, early Sunday, Feb. 5, 2017. Turkey’s state-run agency says anti-terrorism police has detained more than 400 people in simultaneous police operations that spanned several cities, including Istanbul and Gaziantep near the border with Syria, according to the report.

Iranian exiles linked to Cabinet pick

An official in President Donald Trump’s Cabinet and at least one of his advisers gave paid speeches for organizations linked to an Iranian exile group that killed Americans before the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Elaine Chao, confirmed last week as Trump’s transportation secretary, received $50,000 in 2015 for a five-minute speech to the political wing of the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq, previously called a “cult-like” terrorist group by the State Department.

Israel pushes measure to make outposts legal

Israel is moving toward a vote on a bill intended to legalize dozens of settlement outposts in the West Bank, despite claims by experts that the bill is illegal and a warning from the White House that settlement construction “may not be helpful.” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is under intense pressure from members of his coalition to bring the bill to a vote, which has been scheduled to take place today in parliament.

Auckland Airport welcomes world’s longest flight

Auckland Airport has welcomed Qatar Airways this morning as the airline launches the world’s longest commercial passenger flight on the Auckland-Doha route. Scott Tasker, Auckland Airport’s acting general manager – aeronautical commercial, says, “We welcome Qatar Airways to Auckland and New Zealand.

Turkey detains 440 in anti-IS raids

Turkey’s anti-terrorism police have detained over 440 people for alleged links to the Islamic State group, the state-run news agency reported Sunday. The Anadolu Agency said 60 suspects, the vast majority of them foreigners, were taken into custody early Sunday in the capital, Ankara.

Jeremy Corbyn calls on the PM to stand up for rights of Palestinian people

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who is to visit 10 Downing Street on Monday for talks with Theresa May Jeremy Corbyn has called on Theresa May to stand up for the rights of the Palestinian people when she meets Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday. The Labour leader said that it was “simply not good enough” for Mrs May to say that Israeli settlement building on occupied Palestinian land undermined trust in the Middle East peace process.

Trump ‘evaluating’ Iran nuclear deal: Pence

News selected on topics and regions – oil and gas, business, politics, IT, the South Caucasus, the Caspian Sea region, Central Asia Ranking of the Azerbaijani banking sector The administration of US President Donald Trump is currently “evaluating” whether to uphold the Iran nuclear agreement, says Vice President Mike Pence, PressTV reported. Speaking to ABC News on Sunday, Pence said the White House had not yet made any decisions about honoring the 2015 agreement, which was reached between Iran and the P5+1 group of nations – the US, the UK, Russia, France, China and Germany.

The Latest: Iranian researcher affected by ban headed to US

The Latest on the reaction to U.S. President Donald Trump’s ban on travelers and immigrants from seven predominantly Muslim countries : An Iranian researcher who was prevented from boarding a flight to the U.S. last week because of President Donald Trump’s travel ban on certain Muslim-majority countries has checked in on an Emirates Airline flight … (more)

Court rejects Trump appeal to restore travel ban

A U.S. appeal court late on Saturday denied an emergency appeal from the U.S. Department of Justice to restore an immigration order from President Donald Trump barring citizens from seven mainly Muslim countries and temporarily banning refugees. Ivor Bennett reports.

Trump Cabinet pick paid by ‘cult-like’ Iranian exile group

An official in U.S. President Donald Trump’s Cabinet and at least one of his advisers gave paid speeches for an Iranian exile group that killed Americans before the 1979 Islamic Revolution, ran donation scams and saw its members set themselves on fire over the arrest of their leader. Elaine Chao, confirmed this week as Trump’s transportation secretary, received $50,000 in 2015 for a five-minute speech to the political wing of the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq, previously called a “cult-like” terrorist group by the State Department.

Iran lifts ban on American wrestling team

Iranian media are saying the country has lifted a ban on U.S. wrestlers, allowing them to take part in the Freestyle World Cup later this month in the Iranian city of Kermanshah. The Sunday report by the semi-official Fars news agency quotes Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi as saying that the ban was lifted after the “discriminative restrictions” on Iranian nationals travelling to the U.S. was suspended by a U.S. federal judge.

Move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, and do it soon

With Donald Trump in the White House, speculation is mounting: Does he intend to act on his pre-election promise, dating back to January 2016 and reaffirmed both before and since his election, that he will transfer the U.S. embassy in Tel Aviv to Israel’s capital, Jerusalem, in accordance with standard diplomatic practice and the 1995 Jerusalem Embassy Act? A plethora of pieces have argued against the move. For example, Talia Sasson’s Op-Ed in these pages, “Move the U.S. embassy at Israel’s peril,” argued against moving the embassy on the novel basis, among others, that “Never have the Palestinians given up Jerusalem as their capital.”

Turkey’s economic recovery to continue, says minister

News selected on topics and regions – oil and gas, business, politics, IT, the South Caucasus, the Caspian Sea region, Central Asia Ranking of the Azerbaijani banking sector After last year’s slow economic expansion the Turkish economy is set to continue recovering in 2017, the country’s finance minister said on Friday. Speaking to Anadolu Agency’s Editors’ Desk in Ankara, Naci Agbal said the recovery would come on the back of government incentives, ongoing structural reforms, increasing consumer spending and increased political stability.

Trump sanctions against Iran spook India

New Delhi, Feb. 4: US President Donald Trump’s fresh sanctions against Tehran have spooked India into reviewing its marquee connectivity project in Central Asia, the Chabahar port in Iran, imperilling a prime ministerial promise and a key route to Afghanistan bypassing Pakistan. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised the “early implementation” of a commitment India made to Iran during his visit to Tehran last May on developing two terminals and five berths at the strategically located port on the Gulf of Oman, within 18 months.

Louvre museums reopens; Egypt identifies machete attacker

The Louvre Museum reopened to the public Saturday, less than 24 hours after a machete-wielding assailant shouting “Allahu akbar!” attacked French soldiers guarding the sprawling building and was shot by them. The worldwide draw of the iconic museum in central Paris, host to thousands of artworks including the “Mona Lisa,” was on full display on a drizzly winter day as international tourists filed by armed police and soldiers patrolling outside the site, which had been closed immediately after Friday’s attack.

The Latest: About 140 Somali refugees sent back to camp

The Latest on the reaction to a court order blocking U.S. President Donald Trump’s ban on travelers and immigrants from seven predominantly Muslim countries : A Somali refugee says about 140 refugees whose resettlement in the United States was blocked by President Donald Trump’s executive order on immigration have been sent back to their refugee camp. Nadir Hassan says the group of Somali refugees was relocated to Dadaab camp in eastern Kenya on Saturday.

Louvre museums reopens as Egypt identifies machete attacker

The Louvre in Paris reopened to the public Saturday morning, less than 24-hours after a machete-wielding assailant shouting “Allahu Akbar!” was shot by soldiers. In drizzly weather, tourists filed by armed police and soldiers outside the central Paris museum, which had been closed immediately after Friday’s attack.

Israel Can’t Avoid the Settlement Talk Anymore

In his inimitable fashion, U.S. President Donald Trump has succeeded in beginning a national conversation about immigration. It is not the nuanced, cerebral discussion about the value of migrants versus the danger of terrorists that Americans need to have, but despite — or perhaps because of — the horribly amateurish rollout of his immigration executive order, the U.S. is at least beginning to talk.