Middle East

At least 16 people, including children, were killed in Saudi-led air raids in Yemen’s southwestern province of Ta'iz. Saudi Arabia keeps bombing the southern impoverished neighbor in defiance of international calls to end its bloody war.

The iPhones of at least nine US state department officials were recently hacked by a government using NSO Group spyware, according to a new report that raised serious questions about the use of Israeli surveillance tools against US government officials around the world.

Iran's lead negotiator to Vienna talks says the Islamic Republic’s proposed drafts on the removal of sanctions and Tehran’s nuclear activities are based on the principles approved by all parties.

The United Arab Emirates has agreed to buy 80 French-made Rafale jets, the biggest international order ever made for the warplanes, officials stated on Friday during a visit by French President Emmanuel Macron to the Persian Gulf Arab state.

Seven Peshmerga soldiers of the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) and three civilians were killed early Friday in an attack by Daesh terrorists in northern Iraq, according to security sources.

Ali Bagheri, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister and chief nuclear negotiator, has said this round of talks aimed at removing the anti-Iran sanctions has ended in Vienna. Bagheri said the Iranian and the 4+1 group’s delegations on Friday held a session of the Joint Commission of the nuclear deal, JCPOA, in the Austrian capital.

Lebanon's information minister resigned on Friday saying he was putting the nation before his personal interest as he sought to end a diplomatic spat with Saudi Arabia sparked by his comments.

More than 60 international non-governmental groups on Thursday urged the United Nations to ensure war crimes and human rights abuses in Yemen's conflict are documented and investigated to ensure accountability.

Following months of delays, and with only some of the funding secured, Lebanon on Wednesday opened registration for two cash assistance programmes to help 700,000 vulnerable families cope with the withdrawal of crucial subsidies.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan appointed Nureddin Nebati as minister of treasury and finance on Thursday after the resignation of Lutfi Elvan, the last top official seen adhering to orthodox policy in a government gripped by a currency meltdown.

Iran’s foreign minister has expressed hope the negotiating teams in the Austrian capital, Vienna, will arrive at an agreement over lifting of Iran’s sanctions if the Western parties to the talks act in good faith.

The head of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees stated it was unable to pay its 28,000 employees on time this month because of a major funding crisis, warning of potential cuts in vital services to millions of people amid a global pandemic.

Saudi Arabia used “incentives and threats” as part of a lobbying campaign to shut down a United Nation (UN) investigation of human right violations committed by all sides in the Yemen conflict, sources with close knowledge of the matter disclosed.

A senior Emirati official said on Tuesday the United Arab Emirates (UAE) would soon send a delegation to Iran as part of efforts to improve ties with rival Tehran.

Iraqi Populist Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr's movement secured the biggest number of seats in parliament, winning 73 seats, according to final results announced by the electoral commission on Tuesday.

Lebanese President Michel Aoun says Beirut wants the “best relations” with Saudi Arabia and other regional countries amid an ongoing diplomatic rift with the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council (PGCC).

The US continuous support for Israel, including its condoning of Tel Aviv’s dangerous nuclear weapons program, has made the realization of the idea of establishing a nuclear-free zone in the Middle East impossible, an Iranian diplomat says.

Iran’s foreign minister says the new administration of the Islamic Republic seeks to continue cooperation with friends and neighbors including the United Arab Emirates.

Roadblocks were set up by demonstrators across much of cash-strapped Lebanon after the currency plummeted to a historic low.

The US military has sent in more than one hundred vehicles from Iraqi territory in two columns moving towards the province of Hasaka, the SANA news agency reported, citing accounts of local sources from the al-Yaroubiya region.

The Palestinian resistance movement of Hamas announced Sunday that it will take legal action against the United Kingdom, which recently listed it as a “terrorist organization”.

Experience shows that the west does not seek to implement a deal. Rather, it seeks to score public perception points by announcing one while stealthily “dis-implementing” the agreement in every possible way, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri wrote in an op-ed in The Financial Times.

Iran’s ambassador to Syria says Tehran stands ready to provide Damascus with the necessary tools and experience it needs to cope with illegal Western sanctions.

Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah announced on Friday a new Iranian oil vessel will reach Syria in the upcoming few days.

Russia warned foreign-backed militants in Idlib are planning to mount yet another false-flag chemical attack in order to incriminate the Syrian government.