Syrian Army recaptures town in Damascus countryside
DAMASCUS — Syrian government forces have overrun rebels in a town northeast of Damascus, strengthening President Bashar al-Assad's grip on territory around the capital.The town - Adra al-Omalia - is about 30 km from central Damascus, but far from parts of Syria where the United States has launched air strikes against fighters from the...IS-linked group execute French tourist in Algeria
ALGIERS — Algerian militants beheaded French tourist Herve Gourdel, who was kidnapped by gunmen on Sunday in what the group said was a response to France's action against "Islamic State" militants in Iraq.In a video released by his captors on Wednesday, Gourdel, a 55-year-old from Nice, is seen kneeling with his arms tied behind his...Egypt accuses Turkish president of supporting terrorism after UN speech
CAIRO — Egypt has accused Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan of supporting terrorists and seeking to provoke mayhem in the Middle East after he questioned the legitimacy of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in a speech at the UN General Assembly.Ties between Ankara and Cairo have been strained since then-army chief Sisi toppled...
“Islamic State” captures Kurdish villages, U.S. Congress approves arming rebels
September 19th, 20140 Syrian militants carry a rocket before firing it towards Hama military airport that is controlled by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad, in the Hama countryside July 25.DAMASCUS — "Islamic State" militants backed by tanks captured 16 Kurdish villages in northern Syria near the Turkish border, on Thursday, prompting...
Hizbullah Deputy Secretary General Naim Qassem: Obama does not want to finish ISIS
September 19th, 20140 BEIRUT — When Hizbullah intervened in Syria, it was accused by anti-Syrian government politicians in Lebanon of supporting the Syrian president for sectarian regions. However, the group maintains that it joined the war in Syria to protect the Lebanese border from the threat of takfiris, extremists who consider others infidels.In an...Houthi militants push into Sanaa
A follower of the Houthi movement holds up a photo showing Yemen's President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi (R) sitting with General Ali Muhssein (L) and General Saleh Fadhil, outside Fadhil's house.SANAA — Armed Shi'a rebels pushed into Yemen's capital Sanaa after clashing with the army on the northwestern outskirts on Thursday, security...Miltants abduct Lebanese soldier from home
BEIRUT — Militants Wednesday kidnapped a Lebanese Army soldier as he went to visit his family in Wadi Hmeid on the outskirts of the northeastern border town of Ersal, security sources said.According to eye witnesses, gunmen in two pickup trucks snatched First Adjutant Kamal Mohammad Hujeiri, taking him by surprise, and fled to Ersal's...Libya’s parliament rejects PM’s new cabinet
Libya's Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni speaks to reporters in Abu Dhabi Sept. 10.TRIPOLI — Libya's elected parliament has rejected the new cabinet of Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thinni, dealing a fresh blow to the acting premier whose government was forced to flee the capital Tripoli last month after it was taken over by...Bahrain slams Qatar for offering citizenship to its citizens
MANAMA — A Bahraini minister sharply criticized Qatar Wednesday for offering citizenship to Sunni nationals of the small Gulf kingdom, warning of "action" if it does not end the practice.Bahrain, like Qatar, has a Sunni Muslim regime, but its population is majority Shiite, and the loss of Sunnis would exacerbate that demographic...UN brokers Israeli-Palestinian deal on Gaza reconstruction
GAZA — The United Nations has brokered an Israeli-Palestinian deal on imports of construction materials to Gaza to ensure they will not be diverted by Hamas militants, an envoy said Tuesday.The agreement on monitoring the supply of materials "must get up and running without delay," said Robert Serry, the UN envoy for the Middle...Russia, Egypt seal $3.5 billion preliminary arms deal
CAIRO — Russia and Egypt have reached a preliminary deal for Cairo to buy arms worth $3.5 billion from Moscow, Interfax news agency quoted the head of a Russian state arms agency as saying on Wednesday.Speaking during an arms trade exhibition in South Africa, the head of the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation, Alexander...Iraqi army launches offensive on militants in three cities
BAGHDAD — Iraqi forces launched an intense military operation against "Islamic State" insurgents in three cities in central Iraq on Wednesday, fighting to regain control of lost ground, security sources said.The offensives in Ramadi, Falluja and Haditha in the western province of Anbar started before dawn, security sources in the three...
New faces vie for school board seats in crowded election
September 12th, 20140 DEARBORN — Three seats on Dearborn's seven-trustee Board of Education will be contested in the Nov. 4 election. With no incumbents on the ballot, 11 new faces are vying for a place on the board.The candidates include college teachers, activists, parents and one former trustee. The race in Dearborn is overcrowded, compared to nearby...
Analysts: Libya’s fate difficult to predict
September 12th, 20140 An Islamist fighter from the Fajr Libya (Libyan Dawn) coalition flashes the V sign for victory at the entrance of Tripoli international airport on August 24.As Libya slides deeper into political and military chaos, uncertainty reigns and analysts say it’s difficult to anticipate how things will unfold.Some say Libya needs regional or...
10 Arab states sign communique supporting U.S. intervention against “Islamic State”
September 12th, 20140 RIYADH — The United States signed up Arab allies on Thursday to a "coordinated military campaign" against "Islamic State" fighters, a major step in building regional support for President Obama's plan to strike both sides of the Syrian-Iraqi frontier.After talks in Saudi Arabia's summer capital Jeddah, Secretary of State John Kerry......
Human Rights Watch accuses Israel of war crimes
A trail of blood is seen in the courtyard of a UN School in the northern Beit Hanun district of the Gaza Strip on July 24.GAZA — Human Rights Watch accused Israel of committing war crimes by attacking three U.N.-run schools in the Gaza Strip in fighting in July and August, killing Palestinian civilians who had sheltered there.The New...Lebanon to set up two Syrian refugee camps
BEIRUT — Lebanon has decided to set up two camps for Syrian refugees for the first time along its border with war-torn Syria, Social Affairs Minister Rashid Derbas said on Thursday, Sept. 11.The move comes despite longstanding reservations among many in Lebanon over establishing camps, for fear they will encourage Syrians to stay...U.N. peacekeepers freed in Golan Heights; 28 rebel leaders killed in Idlib
Fijian U.N. peacekeepers released by al-Qaeda-linked group Nusra Front in Syria on Thursday, gesture from inside a vehicle as they arrive in Israeli-held territory on the Golan heights, Sept. 11.DAMASCUS — Dozens of Fijian U.N. peacekeepers, released by al Qaeda-linked group Nusra Front in Syria, arrived in Israeli-held territory on...Yemen reaches deal with Houthi group
A protester sprays water at a Houthi anti-government protest during hot weather.SANAA — Yemen's president has offered to appoint a new prime minister within 48 hours, under a fresh accord with Houthi Shi'a rebels in return for ending their protests, a source close to the presidency said Thursday, Sept. 11.There was no immediate......
Dozens join hunger strike for release of Egypt political prisoners
Activist Alaa Abdel Fattah (R) arrives with his wife and child to the public prosecutor's office in Cairo, March 26, 2013.CAIRO — Dozens of Egyptians have begun a hunger strike to demand the release of activist Alaa Abdel Fattah, a symbol of the 2011 uprising, and others they say are being unfairly detained in an effort to crush...Iraqi parliament approves new government headed by Haider al-Abadi
BAGHDAD — Iraq's parliament approved a new government headed by Haider al-Abadi as prime minister on Monday night, in a bid to rescue Iraq from collapse, with sectarianism and Arab-Kurdish tensions on the rise.Abadi, a Shi'a Islamist, included members of Iraq's Shi'ite majority and its Kurdish and Sunni minorities in his cabinet as he......
Cuba sends six tons of medical supplies to Gaza
GAZA — Cuba has sent six tons of drugs and medical supplies to Gaza, devastated by Israel's seven-week military campaign that killed more than 2,100 people, official media reported Thursday.The government-run Cubadebate website said the humanitarian shipment was delivered by officials at Cuba's embassy in Cairo to the Palestinian...Israel seizes 1,000 acres of West Bank land
An Israeli settlement in the Etzion bloc, in the West Bank.WEST BANK — The United States has urged Israel to reverse its decision to seize nearly 1,000 acres of land in the occupied West Bank, a move anti-settlement activists dubbed the largest land grab in 30 years.Israel announced the massive land appropriation on Sunday, Aug. 31,......