Sanctions have led to Iran's oil industry falling behind but Iran will resist, Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh said on Tuesday, according to the semi-official Mehr news agency. "The conditions in Iran are in a way that once every few years the oil industry receives a deadly blow...

The Swedish Academy will crown two Nobel literature laureates this year, making up for lost time after it skipped last year's prize over a sexual harassment scandal. Experts say the academy will seek to avoid ruffling any feathers with this year's choice of laureates as it seeks to move on...

Hong Kong's under-fire leader Carrie Lam said Tuesday she would not rule out accepting help from mainland China in tackling increasingly violent pro-democracy protests. The financial hub has been gripped by four months of rallies, and last weekend saw much of the city grind to a halt as...

Since they erupted a week ago, deadly protests in Iraq have been tracked closely in Iran where they are seen as a plot to undermine ties between the neighbours. Tehran has close but complicated relations with Baghdad, holding significant clout among its Shiite political groups. The two...

London's Metropolitan Police said Monday it had so far arrested 276 people taking part in demonstrations organized by the climate change protest group Extinction Rebellion. Thousands of climate-change protesters took to the streets in cities aroun d the world Monday, launching two weeks of...

The United Arab Emirates will lift a ban on its citizens travelling to Lebanon from Tuesday, UAE state news agency WAM said Monday, as a Lebanese delegation visits Abu Dhabi seeking support for its ailing economy. The UAE's close Gulf ally Saudi Arabia said in February it was lifting its...

Iraq's president Barham Salih in a televised speech Monday condemned attacks on both protesters and the media, and urged security forces to preserve the rights of all Iraqis. He also called for ministerial changes and urged parliament to enact reforms, including electoral reform, to address...

Tunisia faced political deadlock on Monday after Sunday’s election delivered a fragmented parliament and no obvious path to forming a government that must urgently address chronic economic and fiscal problems. Sunday’s exit polls showed the moderate Islamist Ennahda as the largest party,...

Every single child born and raised in Afghanistan has experienced war and conflict since the start of 18-year war between the coalition forces and the Taliban, said an international charity report on Monday. Since the start of the conflict on Oct. 7, 2001, an estimated 20 million children...

Yemen's internationally recognised government and southern separatists are holding indirect negotiations and are close to reaching a power-sharing agreement, sources from both sides said on Monday. The two camps have been for weeks in indirect and discreet talks in Saudi Arabia's western...

Egypt has urged international mediation over what it called a "deadlock" in talks in Sudan over a massive dam under construction on the Nile River, sparking fresh tensions with Ethiopia. Negotiations between the three countries have been at a stalemate for years after Ethiopia began...

 (Zaman Al Wasl)- Malmö Arab Film Festival in Sweden has not responded to the demand of the Syrians Forward organisation in Malmö to ban a Syrian film polishing Bashar al-Assad. Syrians Forward group said ‘The Cord’, which had been filmed on the ruins of Zabadani town, northwest of...

Indians petitioned the country's prime minister and president on the current situation in Jammu and Kashmir, describing the current restrictions in the region, "unacceptable". Some 284 petitioners, including academics, journalists, political leaders and others, said in the document: "On...

The lira took a hit as investors braced for a Turkish military operation in northern Syria. The currency weakened as much as 1.1% to breach 5.75 against the dollar. It pared losses to 0.8%, trading at 5.7458 as of 11:31 a.m. in Istanbul, still leading declines among emerging-market...

The Turkish drillship Yavuz will begin drilling for oil and gas southwest of Cyprus Monday or Tuesday, Energy Minister Fatih Donmez said, in a move which has intensified tensions between the two countries. Ankara said Thursday it had sent the ship to the area where Greek Cypriot authorities...

Apple Inc supplier Japan Display Inc  said it aims to clinch a deal for least 50 billion yen ($468 million) in vital funding by the end of the month, having had to scramble after a Chinese investor group suddenly pulled out of a bailout plan. New Chief Executive Minoru Kikuoka told...

Israeli forces rounded up ten Palestinians in overnight raids carried out across the occupied West Bank, according to the military on Monday. A military statement said the individuals had been arrested for “suspected involvement in popular violent activities", without elaborating about the...

France's interior minister said Monday that the terrorist risk remained "high" to "very high" in France following the killing of four police personnel by a radicalized colleague. Minister Christophe Castaner, who also reiterated he had no plans to resign, added to France Inter radio that...

 Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said "enemies" were trying to drive a wedge between Tehran and Baghdad in a tweet Monday following deadly unrest in neighboring Iraq. "#Iran and #Iraq are two nations whose hearts & souls are tied together... Enemies seek to sow discord...

Top officials from Saudi Arabia and the UAE, key players in a coalition fighting Yemeni rebels, have discussed military cooperation following a positive response by Riyadh to a truce offer from the insurgents. Saudi's deputy defence minister Prince Khalid bin Salman met with Abu Dhabi Crown...