Middle East

The US continues to use militants under its control to undermine Syrian President Bashar Assad, Director of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service Sergey Naryshkin has said. He added Washington is planning to hire terrorists to kidnap Russian and Iranian servicemen there.

About 700 Israeli reservists said they will no longer report for duty if the proposed overhaul to Israel's judicial system is approved by the far-right leadership.

Palestinian and Israeli officials have agreed at a meeting in Egypt to take steps to curb rising violence ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Two decades after the US invaded Iraq, most Americans believe the war, which left about a million people dead and ruined the Arab country, was a mistake, a new poll shows.

Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani says strategic cooperation between Tehran and Baghdad will guarantee security and progress of the region.

The deputy chief of staff for political affairs of the Iranian president says Saudi King Salman bin Abdul Aziz has invited President Ebrahim Raisi to visit the kingdom following the recent restoration of ties between Tehran and Riyadh.

An informed source says Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani is visiting Iraq to sign a border security memorandum of association.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanaani says the agreement between Iran and Saudi Arabia to re-establish diplomatic ties can serve as a propulsion engine for movement toward regional stability.

An Israeli army raid has left at least four Palestinians dead in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin, Palestinian officials have confirmed.

Israelis have pressed ahead with demonstrations against a government plan to weaken the independence of the judiciary, pushing back against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after he rejected a President’s proposal meant to diffuse the crisis.

Former Saudi intelligence chief Turki al-Faisal has expressed optimism that the deal between Tehran and Riyadh to restore diplomatic relations will be a “game-changer” for the West Asia region.

Former Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi has hailed late Iranian anti-terror commander Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani as a “pacesetter” in the recent agreement between Tehran and Riyadh to restore diplomatic ties.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Syrian counterpart, Bashar al-Assad, held talks in Moscow. The leaders have exchanged views on a broad range of bilateral and international issues.

The ambassador of the United Arab Emirates to Tehran says the Persian Gulf country is opposed to any move that would harm the Islamic Republic of Iran.

US senators have introduced a resolution that could force the White House to critically appraise Saudi Arabia’s human rights record and possibly reassess Washington's security assistance for Riyadh.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad arrived in Moscow on Tuesday for talks with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

Several European states have condemned the Israeli parliament’s approval of a bill that will enable settlers to return to areas of the West Bank evacuated in 2005 as part of the so-called Disengagement Law.

The Lebanese pound has sunk to a historic low against the US dollar on the country’s parallel market. It's the latest sombre milestone in an economic meltdown that has plunged much of the population into poverty.

Iran and Bahrain are engaged in talks aimed at normalizing mutual ties in the near future and the reopening of embassies, the Russian news agency Sputnik reported, citing informed sources.

A Jordanian man said to have been tortured for 12 days into signing “a false confession”, was executed over drug charges in Saudi Arabia, despite interventions from the UN and the UK.

The deputy foreign ministers of Russia, Iran, Syria and Turkey will meet in Moscow on March 15-16, Turkey’s TRT TV channel reported on Monday.

President Joe Biden’s administration is doing nothing to counteract steps by China, Russia and their allies to work more closely together, jeopardizing US interests and undermining its global influence, former White House National Security Adviser John Bolton has said.

Saudi Arabia’s oil giant Aramco has reported earning $161bn last year, claiming the highest-ever recorded annual profit by a publicly listed company.

Following an agreement between Tehran and Riyadh on the resumption of diplomatic relations, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal Bin Farhan said he looks forward to meeting his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amirabdollahian soon.

The United Arab Emirates will stop purchasing Israeli defense systems following the actions and remarks made by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, according to a report by Israel's Channel 12.