Middle East

The landmark referendum in Turkey to enhance President Erdogan’s power has erupted into violence in a village near the southeastern city of Diyarbakir, leaving 2 people dead and one wounded.

Turkey’s decisive referendum has started after weeks of tense campaigning by the “yes” and “no” camps regarding an 18-article constitutional amendment that will endow the president with vastly enhanced powers.

The US military’s attack on ISIS targets in Afghanistan using the largest non-nuclear weapon ever used in combat has been both hailed as a successful attack, and condemned as a brutal and inhuman misuse of Afghanistan as a testing ground.

The Israeli regime’s Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman said he would “not be surprised” if Iranian President Hassan Rouhani was assassinated in the country’s upcoming presidential election next month.

A top Iranian parliamentarian says the ISIS terrorist group seeks to incite sedition and sectarian conflicts in Egypt.

A political commentator says the US interference in Syria is aimed at a series of objectives including the overthrow of President Bashar Assad and the disintegration of Syria.

Top defense officials from Iran and Syria agreed on closer coordination to intensify military action against the terrorist groups that have plagues Syria for six years.

Iran’s foreign minister will join his counterparts from Russia and Syria on Friday for a trilateral meeting due to be held in the Russian capital, an Iranian spokesman said.

German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel highlighted the significant role played by Tehran and Moscow in the resolution of Syria issue, and urged the G-7 member states to cooperate with them.

A senior advisor to Iran’s foreign minister says the Islamic Republic is a key player in Syria and will not allow the United States to change the equations to its benefit.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani underlined the need for implementation of some reforms in Syria’s ruling system, but at the same time noted that the only way out of Syria’s problem is the ballot box.

A Saudi Mufti was ridiculed after commenting on how an adulterous stork is punished by its mate, and comparing it with Islamic rules.

In his first post in Arabic, Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif strongly denounced the recent terrorist attacks on Egyptian churches, and condoled with the Arab nation on the tragedy.

A top Iranian parliamentarian says Washington’s plan to establish an air-exclusion zone in Syria is a nonstarter and will only further complicate the crisis in the Middle East.

Presidents of Iran and Russia say the US missile attack on a Syrian airfield was a violation of international law and the United Nations Charter.

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei says the recent missile strikes by the US military against a Syrian airfield were a “strategic mistake.”

Egyptian health ministry announced at least 11 people were killed in an Alexandria church bombing on Sunday, hours after a blast killed 25 worshippers in another church in Egypt.

President Hassan Rouhani and his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad have held phone talks over a US missile strike which targeted an airbase used as a frontline in the battle against foreign-backed terrorists.

At least 30 people were killed in an explosion at a Coptic Church in the city of Tanta in northern Egypt, sources say.

An analyst says the United States’ recent missile attack on a Syrian airbase will only play into the hands of terrorists and infuse new life into their activities.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry rejected as “ill-advised” the comments made by king of Jordan who has accused Iran of being involved in strategic problems in the Middle East, saying his move to put Iran on the same list with ISIS demonstrates his shallow view of the regional developments.

The military brass of Iran and Russia say the pre-planned US missile strikes against a Syrian airfield were a blatant attack on an independent country with the purpose of hindering its recent military gains and boosting the morale of terrorists and their allies.

Iran’s top security official says the Tuesday chemical incident in Syria’s Idlib province was definitely caused by a third party in an effort to pave the way for the US strike on the Syrian airbase.

The United States’ recent aggression in Syria sows terrorism, which recently displayed itself in Sweden, Iran says.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has criticized the US administration for its missile attack on a Syrian airfield, saying the move has just served the interests of terrorists in the Arab country.