Iraqi special forces and police fought ISIS militants to edge closer to the al-Nuri mosque in western Mosul Wednesday, tightening their control around the landmark site in the battle to recapture Iraq's second city, military commanders said. The close-quarters fighting is focused on the Old...

 Bangladesh police came under grenade attack when they raided two suspected Islamist extremist hideouts Wednesday, days after a major anti-militant drive in which 10 people were killed. Police said counter-terrorism officers raided two houses in Moulvibazar district in the northeast...

A drone strike killed four suspected members of Al-Qaeda in south Yemen Wednesday, a security official said, as the United States intensifies air raids on extremists in the war-torn country. Two missiles hit a vehicle on the outskirts of the town of Mudiyah in Abyan province, killing all...

The world's biggest smartphone maker Samsung will unveil its latest flagship, the Galaxy S8, Wednesday in New York as it seeks to move on from last year's humiliating recall crisis. Samsung Electronics was forced to discontinue the Galaxy Note 7, originally intended to compete with Apple's...

The Shi'ite populations of two pro-Syrian government towns are to be evacuated in exchange for the evacuation of Sunni rebels and their families from two opposition-held towns in a mediated deal between the warring sides, a pro-government source and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights...

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will present a meeting of the NATO allies on Friday with a demand from President Donald Trump that they increase defense spending. The annual NATO foreign ministers talks in Brussels were brought forward at the last minute after Tillerson warned he would...

A Republican-controlled congressional panel rejected a bid by Democrats on Tuesday to obtain President Donald Trump's tax returns, despite warnings that Trump's business holdings could pose conflicts of interest as Congress turns to tax reform. At a sometimes fiery 2-1/2-hour hearing that...

 (Zaman Al Wasl)- Syrian moderate rebels took 15 hilltops and checkpoints from ISIS in the Syrian desert east of Damascus in the past two days, commander told Zaman al-Wasl Tuesday.  Jaish Asoud al-Sharqiya, or the Army of East Lions, mostly tribesmen, has captured Tel Dakwah on...

The top U.S. commander in Iraq on Tuesday acknowledged the likelihood that the U.S.-led coalition had a role in blasts in Mosul that killed civilians this month but said an investigation was underway and that ISIS may also be to blame. "My initial assessment is that we probably had a role in...

 (Zaman Al Wasl)- Clashes renewed Tuesday between regime army and rebels in the eastern district of Damascus as regime forces launch offensive to take the industrial zone near Qaboun neighborhood. The rebel factions led by Failaq al-Rahman have thwarted the attack, leaving dozens of army...

A political deal to end the Syrian conflict is not possible without a strong US role, the opposition's chief negotiator told AFP, warning that Washington's absence was threatening ongoing peace talks. Lead negotiator for the main opposition High Negotiations Committee (HNC), Mohamad Sabra,...

Prime Minister Theresa May will file formal Brexit divorce papers on Wednesday, pitching the United Kingdom into the unknown and triggering years of uncertain negotiations that will test the endurance of the European Union. Nine months after Britons voted to leave, May will notify EU Council...

Syrian engineers worked on Tuesday to open spillways and ease pressure on a major dam across the Euphrates River, amid a pause in a U.S.-backed assault to capture it from ISIS, a Reuters witness said. The Tabqa dam is a key strategic target in the military campaign to isolate and capture the...

 FIFA says it has opened a disciplinary case against Lionel Messi after TV pictures showed the Argentina forward verbally abusing a match official in a World Cup qualifying game against Chile. FIFA can judge Messi before Tuesday's qualifier in Bolivia and impose a ban if a red card was...

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Tuesday that Syrian peace talks sponsored by Tehran, Russia and Turkey would continue in Kazakhstan without specifying a date for the next round of negotiations. Rouhani, who was speaking after wrapping up two days of talks in Moscow, said he had...

A Tunisian allegedly caught red-handed taking a bribe was among three regional officials sacked on Monday by Prime Minister Youssef Chahed, who has vowed to fight graft. A government statement announced the sackings but did not say why the three were relieved of their duties. A spokesman...

Clashes raged around a key northern Syrian town on Tuesday after ISIS launched a counter-attack to fend off a US-backed advance near the extremists' stronghold Raqa. Backed by air power from an international coalition bombing ISIS, the Syrian Democratic Forces are laying the groundwork for...

Syria has received 50,000 tons of Russian wheat as humanitarian aid, Syrian and Russian government sources said on Tuesday. The two cargoes arrived in March, they said. However, no Russian wheat from the commercial deals signed with state grain buyer Hoboob have arrived yet, the Syrian...

The U.N. secretary-general has appealed to Arab nations to set aside differences and help end Syria's six-year-old civil war. Antonio Guterres made the appeal while visiting the Zaatari camp for Syrian refugees in Jordan Tuesday, a day ahead of attending a key annual Arab summit hosted this...

(BBC)- A Spanish court has ordered the first criminal investigation into the actions of Syrian government officials during the country's civil war. The case involves a Spanish woman, born in Syria, who said her brother was tortured and executed by Syrian security forces in 2013....