Category: Middle East

Syrian troops after taking Palmyra from IS, clear explosives

This file image posted online on Sunday, Dec. 11, 2016, by the Aamaq News Agency, a media arm of the Islamic State group, purports to show a general view of the ancient ruins of the city of Palmyra, in Homs province, Syria, with the Citadel of Palmyra in the background. Syrian state media said on Thursday, March 2, 2017 that military forces have entered Palmyra in the quest to again take the town from the Islamic State group.

Facebook’s Grovelling Apology To Fatah

A few days it was widely reported that Fatah had their Facebook page closed down, due to the “campaign the social media platform is carrying out against accounts that promote violence.” Munir Jaghoub, a spokesman of Fatah’s Mobilization and Organization commissariat, told The Jerusalem Post that he believes Facebook closed the account because of a historic photo of former PA president Yasser Arafat grasping a rifle, while standing alongside Fatah Vice Chairman Mahmoud al-Aloul.

Syrian government takes back Palmyra from ISIS

Syrian government had previously seized back the town from Islamic State last March but lost it again 10 months later BEIRUT-Syria’s military announced on Thursday it has fully recaptured the historic town of Palmyra from the Islamic State group as the militants’ defences crumbled and IS fighters fled in the face of artillery fire and intense Russia-backed airstrikes. The development marks the third time that the town-famed for its priceless Roman ruins and archaeological treasures IS had sought to destroy-has changed hands in one year.

The PA Succession Struggle

Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas made new appointments to the Fatah leadership on February 15, 2017, and also named a deputy Chairman of the movement. He did not, however, solve the problem of the Palestinian succession struggle for the chairmanship.

The Latest: Geneva talks to focus on Syria transition Friday

In this Wednesday, March 1, 2017 frame grab from video provided by the government-controlled Syrian Central Military Media, Syrian forces take up positions during fighting between Government forces and Islamic State group militants in the ancient city of Palmyra, near Homs, Syria. Syrian state media says government forces have reached the edge of Palmyra and are poised to reclaim the historic town from the Islamic State group.

March 2, 2017 – Discriminatory’ housing policy raises ire in Rahat

AN UNEXPECTEDLY LARGE crowd of Rahat residents waits yesterday in Beersheba to apply to purchase housing plots.. An incident this week that illustrated the inability of the authorities to organize the marketing of housing plots in Rahat has heightened anger among Beduin residents there who have long felt they are the victims of discrimination by the state.

Syrian army re-enters town of Palmyra as IS defenses crumble

Syrian government forces battling the Islamic State group re-entered Palmyra on Thursday in their quest to again take the historic town they had lost to the militants in December, state media reported. The Kremlin’s spokesman said President Vladimir Putin was informed by his defense minister that Syrian troops had gained control of Palmyra, with support from Russian warplanes.

Abu Dhabi hosts military drill amid Yemen war, Iran tensions

The capital of the United Arab Emirates has hosted a major military exercise before a public audience as the nation fights alongside Saudi troops in Yemen and tensions with Iran remain high. Such maneuvers before the public are rare in the United Arab Emirates, a major Western ally that hosts U.S. troops involved in the fight against the Islamic State group.

Sights set for modest achievements in Syria talks

Syria’s main opposition High Negotiations Committee leader Nasr al-Hariri, informs the media after the round of negotiation with the UN Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Syria Staffan de Mistura at the European headquarters of the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, Wednesday, March 1, 2017. less Syria’s main opposition High Negotiations Committee leader Nasr al-Hariri, informs the media after the round of negotiation with the UN Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Syria Staffan de … more GENEVA – Diplomats and negotiators have set their sights on modest achievements in the latest round of Syria talks in Geneva, after a week of discussions centering on setting an agenda for future talks.

Hebron shooter’ Elor Azaria appeals already lenient sentence

An Israeli soldier , sentenced to 18 months in prison for shooting dead a wounded Palestinian man in the occupied West Bank last year, has filed an appeal against his manslaughter conviction and already-lenient jail term. In the petition to the court, the lawyer asked that the date his client is due to arrive to serve his time, slated for March 5, be deferred until the end of legal proceedings.

Akfen Working With Morgan Stanley, Goldman on Asset Sales an hour ago

Turkey’s Akfen Group is in talks with banks including Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to advise on the sale of assets after completing its restructuring this month. The Ankara-based company is also in discussions with Credit Suisse Group AG and Deutsche Bank AG to find potential buyers for its overall holding businessAkfen Holding AS or stakes in individual companies such as Mersin International Port and renewable energy producer Akfen Yenilenebilir Enerji AS, Akfen Group Chairman Hamdi Akin said.

Demolition in Jerusalem leaves 30 Palestinians homeless

Last month, Israeli authorities demolished at least three homes in Issawiya in a singe day, and in January, a man in the neighborhood was forced to demolish his own home in compliance with an order from the municipality. I sraeli forces demolished a building in the occupied East Jerusalem neighborhood of Issawiya on Wednesday morning without giving prior warning, leaving 30 Palestinians homeless, under the pretext that the building lacked the nearly impossible to obtain construction permits required by Israeli authorities.

Saudi Arabia to grant Indonesia $1B for economic development

Jakarta and Riyadh also inked an agreement that builds on an existing $6 billion deal between state-owned energy firms Aramco and Pertamina to expand an Indonesian oil refinery. Saudi Arabia and Indonesia Wednesday signed agreements in areas ranging from trade to aviation as Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman visited the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country.

Man put on probation for trying to export rifles to Belarus

A United Arab Emirates man who admitted he conspired to export sniper rifles from the United States to Belarus has been sentenced by a federal judge in Utah to five years of probation. U.S. District Judge Dee Benson also ordered Kolar Rahman Anees Ur Rahman to forfeit more than $13,000 he sent to an undercover Department of Homeland Security agent as payment for the unlawful shipment of the weapons to the eastern European country.

UN panel alleges Aleppo war crimes; Syria talks inch forward

Paulo Pinheiro, Chairperson of the Independent Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic, speaks to the media during a press conference, at the European headquarters of the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, Wednesday, March 1, 2017. GENEVA – A U.N. panel said Wednesday the evacuation of eastern Aleppo, after months of siege and aerial bombing by Russian and Syrian forces, was one of many war crimes committed by those fighting for control of the city.

Saudi king continues tour in Indonesia

Cheering crowds welcomed King Salman Wednesday as he began the first visit by a Saudi monarch to Indonesia for almost 50 years, seeking stronger economic ties with the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country. The king – who is accompanied by about 1,000 people, including princes and ministers – disembarked from his plane using an escalator as he arrived at an airport in Jakarta, the latest stop on an Asian tour.

U.S. seeks end to U.N. rights council’s ‘obsession’ with Israel

U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration is reviewing its participation in the U.N. Human Rights Council, seeking reform of its agenda and an end to its “obsession with Israel”, a senior U.S. official said on Wednesday. Washington has long argued that the Geneva forum unfairly focuses on Israel’s alleged violations of human rights, including war crimes against Palestinian civilians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Israeli forces demolish 9 homes in West Bank settlement

Israeli forces are demolishing nine homes in the heart of the West Bank settlement of Ofra after the Supreme Court ruled they were built on private Palestinian land. Netzach Brodt watched as his house was destroyed and said, “We are extremely disappointed and broken that this house is being torn down.”

Pakistan hosts 10-nation regional economic summit

Participants in a regional economic summit agreed Wednesday to collectively fight the challenge of terrorism and push for greater collaboration in the areas of trade, energy and infrastructure development. Islamabad hosted the day-long 10-nation Economic Cooperation Organization summit to finalize a “Vision 2025” plan for expanding trade and prosperity among member nations.

.com | Russia, China veto UN resolution on Syria sanctions

Russia and China on Tuesday vetoed a Western-backed UN resolution that would have imposed sanctions on Syria over chemical weapons use, in the first clash at the Security Council since US President Donald Trump took office. The twin vetoes came as peace talks in Geneva showed no signs of progress on ending the nearly six-year war in Syria.

Islamic State using more suicide vehicles and armed drones in Mosul

Islamic State fighters were increasingly using Mad Max-style suicide vehicles and commercial drones armed with grenades in their defense of the Iraqi town of Mosul, Australia’s defense chief said Wednesday. Australian Defense Force Chief Mark Binskin likened the vehicles used by the Islamic State group against Iraqi government troops to those featured in the George Miller-directed post-apocalyptic movie franchise.

We cannot allow America to hate again

There has been a huge wave of terror that has hit over 100 of our nation’s Jewish institutions since January. We cannot allow America to hate again There has been a huge wave of terror that has hit over 100 of our nation’s Jewish institutions since January.

Australian Authorities Nab Man For Trying To Help ISIS Develop Missile Warning Systems

Iraqi pro-government forces hold an Islamic State group flag in the al-Dhubat II neighbourhood of Fallujah as they try to clear the city of IS fighters still holed up in the former jihadi bastion on June 19, 2016. Despite facing less resistance than expected from IS in Fallujah, an emblematic jihadist stronghold, sniper fire, car bombs and booby traps remained a risk for Iraq’s forces as they try to clear central Fallujah of pockets of IS fighters.

Civilians flee as Iraqi forces push deeper into western Mosul

Civilians continue to stream out of western Mosul as Iraqi forces press on with their assault to retake the city from Islamic State. Rough Cut ROUGH CUT Thousands of civilians, many of them wounded, fled Islamic State’s last stronghold in western Mosul on Tuesday , reaching Iraqi forces’ lines after an exhausting march through the desert.

UN: 8,000 flee as Iraqi forces fight IS in western Mosul

The United Nations says about 8,000 people have fled from the western part of Mosul and surrounding villages since Iraqi forces launched the push to take the western half of the city from the Islamic State group. The U.N. humanitarian aid office said on Tuesday those who fled and reached government-controlled areas south of Mosul “are often exhausted and dehydrated.”

Israeli forces begin evacuating 9 settler homes in West Bank

Israeli forces began evacuating nine homes in the West Bank settlement of Ofra on Tuesday, following a Supreme Court decision that ruled they were built on private Palestinian land. Dozens of settlers and their supporters were protesting on the rooftops as military and police forces handed the evacuation orders to settler leaders and asked them to cooperate peacefully and avoid confrontation.

Saudi Arabia wants oil prices to rise to around $60 in 2017

The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Russia and other producers pledged last year to cut production by about 1.8 million barrels per day from January 1. – Times file picture The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Russia and other producers pledged last year to cut production by about 1.8 million barrels per day from January 1. – Times file picture Dubai/London: Saudi Arabia wants crude oil prices to rise to around $60 a barrel this year, five sources from Opec countries and the oil industry said.

Russia pledges to veto UN sanctions resolution on Syria

Russia pledged to veto a Western-backed U.N. resolution Tuesday that would impose sanctions on 21 Syrian individuals, organizations and companies allegedly involved in chemical weapons attacks in the war-ravaged country. The draft Security Council resolution would also ban all countries from supplying Syria’s government with helicopters, which investigators have determined were used in chemical attacks.

IS militants in north Sinai showing their strength

In the past three days, Islamic State militants in Egypt’s volatile northern Sinai region abducted four men accused of collaborating with the government, three of them during a brazen raid in the middle of a public market. Two of the men have been found slain while the others remain missing; Egyptian officials say that one of the slain men had his eyes plucked out and was set on fire before being shot to death.

Palestinian envoy warns against moving US embassy in Israel

The Palestinian’s top envoy to the United States is warning that moving the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem could disrupt efforts to secure peace in the Middle East. Maen Areikat says an “emotional decision” to shift the embassy’s location “is going to have very, very negative repercussions” and could seriously complicate and undermine any future efforts to resolve the conflict between the Palestinians and the Israelis.

Iraqi forces seize key Mosul bridge

Baghdad, Feb 27 – The Iraqi military on Monday said it has retaken a bridge across River Tigris in Mosul city, after driving back Islamic State militants in the city’s southwest. The security forces also took control of two neighbourhoods in the western half of the northern city of Mosul, still under the control of the IS, a senior security official told EFE news agency.