A fervent supporter of Jewish settlements in the West Bank, the US envoy to Israel has emerged as a central figure in the uncertainty surrounding Israel's annexation plans in the Palestinian territory. Ambassador David Friedman has, according to some experts, encouraged Israeli Prime...

 It's hard to say what exactly will change in the West Bank if Israel follows through on its plans to annex parts of the occupied territory, but east Jerusalem, which was annexed more than a half-century ago, may provide some answers. Israeli leaders paint Jerusalem as a model of...

Daesh expert Hisham al-Hashemi was shot outside his home in Baghdad Monday and died shortly thereafter at a local hospital, an official from the Iraqi interior ministry told AFP. Hashemi was an authoritative voice on Sunni extremist factions including the Daesh group, but was also...

Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group and the Palestinian Hamas Monday said Israel’s plan to annex parts of the West Bank is an "aggression against the Palestinian people" and called for unity to confront it. Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh sent a letter to Hezbollah’s chief Hassan Nasrallah in...

The Turkish foreign minister Monday called on the European Union to be an "honest broker" in disputes between Ankara and EU member states France, Greece and Cyprus. Mevlut Cavusoglu warned that Turkey would be forced to "reciprocate" against any decisions the bloc takes against the country....

Iran’s hardline lawmakers plan to summon the president for questioning, a move that could ultimately lead to impeachment, media reported on Monday, amid growing discontent over the government’s economic policies. Iranians’ daily struggle to make ends meet has become harder since the...

Russian officials and the Orthodox church urged caution Monday over calls in Turkey to alter the status of the Hagia Sophia, the historic former cathedral in Istanbul. Turkey's top court is debating whether one of the architectural wonders of the world can be re-designated as a mosque, a...

As scandal-plagued Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stands trial for corruption, his 28-year-old son has emerged as a driving force in a counterattack against critics and the state institutions prosecuting the longtime Israeli leader. A favorite of the prime minister’s nationalistic base...

The Israeli military said aircraft struck targets in the northern Gaza Strip late Sunday following a barrage of rocket fire into southern Israel. No casualties were reported on either side. In a statement, the military said attack helicopters and fighter jets struck "underground...

A philharmonic orchestra performed to spectator-free Roman ruins in east Lebanon Sunday, after a top summer festival downsized to a single concert in a year of economic meltdown and pandemic. The Baalbek International Festival was instead beamed live on television and social media, in what...

Turkey in August will open its very first indigenous integrated solar panel factory as part of its efforts to strengthen the nation’s power grid, the country's president said on Sunday. "We ensured over $100 billion has been invested in energy by the public and private sectors over the past...

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday extended a state of emergency for 30 days to stem the spread of coronavirus pandemic. The move comes as the Palestinian territories saw a surge in virus infections in recent days. “The concerned authorities shall continue to take all...

Iranian health authorities on Sunday announced 163 new deaths due to the COVID-19 disease, the country's highest official one-day toll since the outbreak began in February. The previous record of 162 deaths was announced on Monday in the Islamic republic, which has been battling the Middle...

Two rocket attacks targeted American diplomatic and military installations overnight, Iraq's security forces said Sunday, a little over a week since unprecedented arrests prevented a similar incident. Since October, US diplomats and troops across Iraq have been targeted by around three...

In the Jewish settlement of Ariel, Perri Ben Senior can't wait for Israel to annex this part of the occupied West Bank, hoping it will be a boon for her real estate firm. With its 20,500 residents, a university and shopping centres, Ariel has been tipped as one of the settlements likely to...

Turkey's defence minister and military chief visited war-torn Libya's capital Friday, the country's UN-recognised government said, the second visit in weeks by a minister from its main international backer. Defence Minister Hulusi Akar and Chief of General Staff Yasar Guler discussed...

For Amer al Dahn, the idea of eating meat is now a dream. Today, he can't even afford bread and depends on credit from the local grocer to feed his wife and four children in the Lebanese city of Tripoli. "We can no longer buy meat or chicken. The closest we get to them is in magazines and...

Some Israeli settlers agree with their Palestinian neighbors in the occupied West Bank that the Jewish state's plan to annex part of the territory would undermine their years-long reconciliation efforts. Palestinian Khaled Abu Awwad and Israeli rabbi Shaul Judelman live just a few miles...

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan rejected criticism Friday over his willingness to convert Istanbul's famed Hagia Sophia landmark into a mosque despite international and domestic concern. "Charges against our country over Hagia Sophia are a direct attack on our right to sovereignty,"...

Russia has decided to reopen its embassy in Libya, the Interfax news agency cited Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as saying on Friday. Lavrov said a ceasefire in the Libyan conflict, proposed by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi alongside Libya’s eastern commander Khalifa Haftar in...