Activists and rebels said an al Qaeda splinter group had withdrawn its forces from Syria's oil-rich eastern province of Deir al-Zour on Monday after days of heavy fighting with its rivals, Reuters said. Islamist opposition groups joined forces with some secular rebel...

Lebanese Army arrested Sunday Syrian defector colonel near the border town of Arsal in Beka’a province, Lebanese websites reported. Dissident Colonel and Military council member of Syrian Revolution, Mahmoud Abbas, has been arrested by  Lebanese army ...

    ‘President and Women’ is a Syrian sitcom produced by Zaman Alwasl will be streaming weekly on YouTube, starting February 15. The political sitcom follows in a comedian approach the relationship between presidents of the dictatorship regimes and women, as their...

The Egyptian presidency on Monday denied a report that it had upheld the death penalties of 14 people convicted of attacking police in North Sinai in 2011. The state news agency MENA had earlier reported that the presidency had upheld the sentences handed down to the men, all from...

The speaker of Iraq's parliament narrowly escaped death on Monday when a roadside bomb exploded near his convoy close to the northern city of Mosul, his office said. Usama al-Nujaifi, one of Iraq's most senior Sunni Muslim politicians, was visiting al-Salam area south of Mosul when...

  Noble Energy Inc  ( NBL.N ) slashed the risks to its colossal Israeli  natural gas project by selling a stake to Australia's largest oil producer and sealing a crucial supply deal with a Palestinian power company in one of the world's political flash points....

An Alawite village in the central province of Hama was seized by Islamist fighters on Sunday, Reuters news agency reported, adding that the fighting was “part of an offensive to try to cut off supply routes from Damascus to the north of the country.” The fighters, battling Syrian...

  Russia  and  China  on Monday rebuffed the United States,  France  and Britain and other states by failing to attend negotiations on a draft U.N. Security Council resolution to boost aid access in  Syria , diplomats said. Australia ,...

The initiative to neutralize the Palestinian refugee camps in Syria entered into force in Yarmouk camp Monday when bulldozers began to remove roadblocks as the road has been cleared from landmines, Zaman Alwasl reporter said. Mahmoud Nassar, activist and relief worker from...

Activists and rebels said an al Qaeda splinter group had withdrawn its forces from Syria's oil-rich eastern province of Deir al-Zour on Monday after days of heavy fighting with its rivals, Reuters said. Islamist opposition groups joined forces with some secular...

Presidential panel agrees to transform the country into "federal state of six regions", state news agency reports. A presidential panel has agreed to transform Yemen into a six-region federation as part of its political transition, state news agency Saba reported. The final...

An Arab-Iranian poet and human rights activist, Hashem Shaabani, has been executed for being an "enemy of God" and threatening national security, according to local human rights groups. Shaabani and a man named Hadi Rashedi were hanged in unidentified prison on January 27, ...

World View: With jihadis at their door, terrified Maysoun, Nizar, Karim and Bishr reached for grenades rather than face torture and inevitable death at the hands of Jabhat al-Nusra It is a terrible story but it throws a grim light on the terrors of the Syrian war. It is...

  A second round of  Syria  peace talks got off to a shaky start on Monday with the international mediator meeting the two sides separately after violations of a local ceasefire and an Islamist offensive set back his efforts. Ahead of the talks, mediator Lakhdar Brahimi...

Lebanese leaders adapt quickly… and they’ve done so yet again. After decades of manipulating political divisions and communal distrust, the Lords of Lebanon—your favorite Arsonist Firemen—have now co-opted a popular social media campaign aimed at undermining the logic of martyrdom that...

  Geneva talks aimed at ending the Syrian war will tackle the key issues of stopping violence, setting up a transitional governing body, and plans for national institutions and reconciliation, mediator   Lakhdar Brahimi   has told the two sides in a document obtained...

Despite living in one of the largest Syrian refugee camps, love is in the air for Zaatari camp’s inhabitants and wedding boutiques are springing up to prepare brides-to-be for their big day. Rowaida Abu Zaid, the owner of one of three wedding dress outlets operating in the Jordan-based...

Regime and opposition delegation begin the second round of “Geneva II” discussions on Monday. The first round of talks, which lasted 10 days, ended on January 31 with little advance on both the general issue of a political transition and specific issues like humanitarian relief. The...

An Alawite village in the central province of Hama was seized by Islamist fighters on Sunday, Reuters news agency reported, adding that the fighting was “part of an offensive to try to cut off supply routes from Damascus to the north of the country.” The fighters,...

Iran has agreed to take seven "practical steps" as part of its cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), a joint statement of Iran and IAEA said Sunday. Based on the agreement, Iran will allow IAEA access to a uranium mine and yellow cake complex in the central...