A plan for talks presented to the United States and Iran by French President Emmanuel Macron is broadly acceptable to the Islamic Republic, President Hassan Rouhani said on Wednesday during a cabinet meeting that was broadcast live. He said some wording needed to be changed in the plan,...

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's lawyers arrived for his pre-indictment hearing on corruption allegations Wednesday and pledged to convince prosecutors to drop the cases against him. Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit had in February announced his intention to indict the premier...

Iran will continue reducing its commitments under its 2015 nuclear deal until it reaches the "desired result," Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Wednesday, according to his official website. "We will continue the reduction of commitments," Khamenei said in a meeting with commanders...

Iraq's president and the United Nations urged security forces to show restraint on Wednesday after two protesters were killed in clashes with police that other top officials blamed on "infiltrators." Hundreds took to the streets of the capital and cities across the south on Tuesday in the...

The energy market must be non-political in order to prevent interference, Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh said Wednesday, according to the official IRNA news agency. "The energy market must be non-political in order to prevent unilateral and illegal interference," Zanganeh said upon...

Iran's statement that Saudi Arabia sent messages to its president through other countries was "not accurate", Adel al-Jubeir, the kingdom's minister of state for foreign affairs, has said. Saudi Arabia blames Iran for an attack on two Saudi oil facilities on Sept. 14, a charge Tehran...

Talks to form a national unity government in Israel hit a further snag on Tuesday after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's centrist election rival called off a meeting with the embattled leader. Netanyahu said Sunday he would make a final effort this week to reach an agreement and would...

Security forces Tuesday used a volley of live fire to disperse hundreds of Iraqis protesting in central Baghdad against state corruption and poor public services, an AFP reporter said. More than 50 people were injured, most of them from tear gas inhalation and some by rubber bullets, in the...

Russian President Vladimir Putin plans to discuss Iran’s nuclear deal and situation in the Strait of Hormuz with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani at their bilateral meeting in Armenia on Tuesday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

Police used tear gas, water cannon and live fire to disperse demonstrators in Baghdad on Tuesday, wounding several people as thousands of Iraqis rallied in protest against unemployment, government corruption and poor services. Police initially opened fire in the air and it was not clear if...

Iranian courts have sentenced one person to death for spying for the CIA and jailed two others for 10 years for the same crime, as well as imprisoning a fourth person for 10 years for spying for Britain, the judiciary said on Tuesday. The verdicts come amid spiralling tensions between...

The international community must confront America's hostile approach, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Tuesday as tensions have spiked between the Islamic Republic and the United States. "The international community must confront America's hostile and unilateralist approach by...

Lebanon's central bank is to facilitate access to dollars for importers of petroleum products, wheat and medicine, state media said Tuesday, following fears of a dollar shortage and possible currency devaluation. Economic growth in Lebanon has plummeted in the wake of repeated political...

An Iranian court sentenced the brother of President Hassan Rouhani to five years in prison, a judiciary spokesman was quoted as saying on Tuesday by the semi-official Fars news. In May, Hossein Fereydoun was sentenced to an unspecified jail term in a corruption case that the president’s...

More than 1,000 migrants have died in the Mediterranean Sea this year, the sixth year in a row that that "bleak milestone" has been reached, the United Nations refugee agency said on Tuesday. "UNHCR is urgently calling for an increase in search and rescue capacity, including a return of...

Iran's parliamentary speaker Ali Larijani said on Tuesday he welcomed Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's willingness to resolve issues with Iran through talks. The Saudi Crown Prince had said he preferred a political resolution rather than a military one to the issues with Iran in an...

Iraq's premier has said for the first time that his government had "indications" Israel was behind some attacks on paramilitary bases this summer, but stopped short of making an explicit accusation. The Hashed al-Shaabi force has blamed the series of explosions at its bases and arms depots...

The commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guards said on Monday that destroying arch-rival Israel was an "achievable goal". "This sinister regime must be wiped off the map and this is no longer ... a dream (but) it is an achievable goal," Major General Hossein Salami said, quoted by the Guards'...

Saudi Arabia has sent messages to Iran’s president through the leaders of other countries, an Iranian government spokesman said on Monday, at a time of heightened tensions between the regional rivals. “Messages from the Saudis were presented to (Iran’s President) Hassan Rouhani from the...

An NGO accused Israeli security forces Sunday of torturing a Palestinian arrested on suspicion of leading a cell allegedly behind a West Bank bomb attack that killed an Israeli teenager. Israeli police and the Shin Bet domestic security agency said late Saturday they had arrested three...