(The Daily Star)- Iraqi forces prepared to retake the country's largest Christian town from ISIS Wednesday, a key milestone in their progress towards the extremists' main hub of Mosul. News of the move to recapture Qaraqosh sparked jubilation among Christians who had fled the town, with...

Daesh has been ousted from five villages in northern Syria as part of Turkey’s Operation Euphrates Shield, the Turkish military said in a statement Wednesday. According to Turkish Armed Forces, the terrorist group lost the villages of Mazraat al-Uyun, Beyt Misto, Tel Malid, Jisr al-Samukah...

Anti-terrorist police arrested 20 Daesh suspects in the southeastern province of Diyarbakir on Wednesday, a police official said. The suspects were rounded up in raids launched around 8 a.m. local time (0500GMT) at four locations across the province and documents were seized, the official...

A Shi'ite paramilitary force said late on Tuesday it will support the Iraqi army's offensive on Mosul, Islamic State's last major stronghold in Iraq, raising the risk of sectarian strife in the mainly Sunni region. The Popular Mobilization Force (PMF), a coalition of mostly Iranian-trained...

The Syrian army and its allies see a risk that Islamic State will regroup in eastern Syria as it is forced from the Iraqi city of Mosul in a U.S.-backed operation, posing new risks for President Bashar al-Assad. Both the Syrian army and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah have warned of what they...

This farming village east of Mosul was turned into a bunker during more than two years of Islamic State rule: A network of tunnels and cramped living quarters betrays an extremist group increasingly forced to operate underground by a punishing air campaign and mounting territorial losses....

Turkish jets will continue to take part in the air operation backing Iraqi forces and Kurdish Peshmerga to retake Iraq's second city of Mosul from jihadists after the defence minister said late Tuesday Ankara had agreed a deal with its coalition partners. "We have agreed with coalition...

(The Daily Star)- A drone strike killed eight suspected members of Al-Qaeda in south Yemen late Tuesday, security sources said. The strike hit two vehicles carrying the suspected militants in Shabwa province, killing six instantly while two died later of their wounds, the sources said....

(The Daily Star)- International aid groups including the Red Cross said Tuesday they were preparing for the possible use of chemical weapons in the battle for the Iraq city of Mosul. Iraqi forces backed by an international coalition are making gains in their advance on the city, the last...

(The Daily Star)- The Syrian army Tuesday accused the U.S.-led coalition of planning to allow ISIS militants to flee Iraq's city of Mosul across the Syrian border, saying it would confront this attempt with all its means. A statement by the army command said the plan entailed securing roads...

Iraqi and Kurdish forces closing in on Mosul said on Tuesday they had secured some 20 villages on the outskirts of the city in the first day of an operation to retake what is Islamic State's last major stronghold in Iraq. With around 1.5 million people still living in Mosul, the...

Iraqi forces and Kurdish troops have taken 19 villages on the first day of a major offensive to recapture the northern city of Mosul from Daesh militants.  The Iraqi army and Kurdish Peshmerga forces launched a much-awaited operation late Sunday to retake Mosul – the last Daesh...

Turkey's nationalist opposition is in favor of maintaining the country's parliamentary system but is not against holding a referendum on introducing an executive presidency, its leader Devlet Bahceli said on Tuesday. The government said last week it would revive efforts to change the...

Iraqi and Kurdish commanders said Tuesday they have paused their advance on Mosul a day after the start of a massive operation to retake the Islamic State-held city, which is expected to take weeks, if not months. The front lines to the east of Mosul were largely quiet, a day after Iraqi...

Kurdish Peshmerga forces are using U.S.-made drones during an ongoing offensive to recapture Iraq’s northern city of Mosul from Daesh terrorists.  The Iraqi army and Kurdish Peshmerga forces launched a much-awaited offensive late Sunday to retake Mosul – the last Daesh stronghold in...

(The Daily Star)- The family of a mother and her daughter, who died when the Sidon tour boat they were in capsized last month, dropped their lawsuit against the managers of the boat, a source told The Daily Star Tuesday. The source said that contacts with the Yassin family had managed to...

The Free Syrian Army (FSA) has seized more than 1,200 square kilometers from Daesh terrorist group in northern Syria as part of Turkey’s Euphrates Shield Operation.  Within the context of the offensive, Daesh militants have been removed from nine towns and villages in northern Syria,...

(The Guardian)- A landmark case due to be heard by the high court in Istanbul over alleged crimes committed by Israel during the 2010 aid flotilla to Gaza could be dropped as a result of a bilateral agreement signed in June. The Turkish court is expected to hold a hearing on Wednesday aimed...

(The Daily Star)-  Lebanon public drivers Tuesday continued with their strike which caused the country's automotive inspection centers to shut down until the state takes control of the facilities. Truckers and taxi drivers in the capital Beirut, in the eastern city of Zahle, and in...

Yemeni President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi has agreed to a 72-hour ceasefire that could be extended, the war-torn country's foreign minister said Monday, a day after international calls for a truce. "The President agreed to a 72 hrs ceasefire to be extended if the other party adheres to it",...