The central city of Homs has paid a very high tax from the victims since the revolution erupted in March 2011. The city that the Syrians considered as the capital of their revolution also meant a lot to Bashar al- Assad’s regime. The sectarian mix inside the city, in addition...

(AP) — House Democrats nominated Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday to be the speaker who guides them again next year as Joe Biden becomes president, and she quickly seemed to suggest these would be her final two years in the leadership post. The California Democrat, the first woman to be...

Apple said Wednesday it would cut in half its App Store fees for small developers, moving in the face of lawsuits over its 30 percent commission and increased antitrust scrutiny of the online marketplace. The iPhone manufacturer said that developers who make less than $1 million from...

Liverpool star Mohamed Salah's second coronavirus test came back positive, the Egyptian football body said on Wednesday.
 In a statement, the Egyptian Football Federation said that the 28-year-old winger underwent a new swab test after he tested positive for the virus on Friday. 
It was...

France on Wednesday launched the fifth generation, or 5G, of mobile networks, with the first activation of frequencies going live for users who had signed up for its use. The service is limited to areas where companies have set up 500 antennae used in test phases and only in nine of...

 Iran will impose "severe restrictions" across many areas of the country on Saturday in an effort to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus, President Hassan Rouhani said. The Islamic republic has not imposed a full lockdown since it reported its first Covid-19 cases in February....

 Saudi Arabia's oil minister on Wednesday struck a conciliatory tone toward US President-elect Joe Biden, saying energy cooperation could be a launch pad for a "good relationship". OPEC kingpin Saudi Arabia, a close ally of President Donald Trump, has appeared wary of the incoming US...

 Eyeing Washington's withdrawal of 500 more troops from Iraq, pro-Iran factions have boldly resumed attacks on the US embassy there despite suspicions outgoing President Donald Trump could strike back. Just as the US was announcing it would further shrink its roughly 3,000-strong...

Bahrain's Foreign Minister Abdellatif al-Zayani, leading his country's first-ever official visit to Israel, called for Israelis and Palestinians to renew peace talks aimed at a two-state solution to their conflict. In remarks made next to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US...

The United States on Wednesday announced a sweeping new sanctions package on Iran targeting a foundation controlled by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as Washington accused Iranian officials of human rights abuses a year after a deadly crackdown on anti-government demonstrators. The...

Turkey’s government urged “tight discipline” on Wednesday as the country prepared for new weekend curfews, online schooling and limits on restaurants and cafes that are to begin Friday evening and last through year end to contain the pandemic. President Tayyip Erdogan announced the tighter...

Israel launched air raids against what it called a wide range of Syrian and Iranian targets in Syria on Wednesday, sending a signal that it will pursue its policy of striking across the border despite U.S. President Donald Trump’s election defeat. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a...

German police on Wednesday fired water cannon to disperse thousands of unmasked protesters who had massed in central Berlin to demonstrate against government measures to curb the spread of coronavirus. After repeated warnings for the crowd to put on face coverings went unheeded, police said...

The Taliban on Wednesday welcomed the Pentagon's announcement it would soon pull about 2,000 US troops from Afghanistan as a "good step" that will help end the country's long-running conflict. The Pentagon announced Tuesday that the US will slash troop levels in Afghanistan and Iraq to...

Former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson will fight in an exhibition match later this month. Tyson will meet Roy Jones in an eight-round exhibition match at 9.00 p.m. local time on Nov. 28 (0200GMT Nov. 29) at Dignity Health Sports Park in Los Angeles. The 54-year-old finished his career...

Pfizer Inc said on Wednesday that final results from the late-stage trial of its COVID-19 vaccine show it was 95% effective, adding it had the required two-months of safety data and would apply for emergency U.S. authorization within days. The drugmaker said efficacy of the vaccine...

Clashes in the Syrian desert between Russia-backed Syrian government forces and Daesh (Islamic State group) militants killed 11 regime loyalists Wednesday, a Britain-based pro-opposition war monitor said. Mobile Daesh units have remained active in the Badia desert since the jihadists lost...

Fresh from the success of creating the world’s largest free trade region, China’s President Xi Jinping will be among the speakers on Thursday heralding a Asia-Pacific virtual summit that U.S. President Donald Trump has decided to skip. Last week, 15 countries signed the Regional...

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Wednesday unveiled a six-month action plan he said was designed to ensure his country’s democratic stability even as the make-up of the government was in flux. Pashinyan has rejected calls from opponents and protesters to resign over what they say...

Iran has fired up advanced uranium-enriching centrifuges that it had installed underground at its Natanz site, in the latest breach of its nuclear deal with major powers, a report by the U.N. atomic watchdog obtained by Reuters on Wednesday showed. Natanz is Iran's main uranium-enrichment...