AT CHECKPOINTS across the country, Iraq’s many and various security forces cheer Russia’s arrival as an answer to their failure to turn the tide after 16 months battling the jihadists of Islamic State (IS) in north-western Iraq. “The US and its coalition did nothing,” says a...

German Chancellor Angela Merkel travels to Istanbul on Sunday desperate to secure Turkey's help in stemming the flow of migrants from the Middle East to Europe, but without being seen to sacrifice their human rights. Dubbed a "punch-bag" for her own party by some German media due...

Iran is to step up its military support for the Syrian regime in the form of advice on fighting terrorism, Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian said Saturday. Abdollahian, quoted by state television, denied that his country had fighters on the ground in the Syrian conflict....

Thousands of migrants surged into tiny Slovenia on Saturday as an alternative route opened in Europe for them after Hungary sealed its border for their free flow, adding another hurdle in their frantic flight from wars and poverty toward what they hope is a better life in Western Europe. The...