The Middle East
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Iran rejects foreign help as coronavirus death toll nears 2,000
Iran on Tuesday rejected "foreign" help on the ground to deal with the coronavirus pandemic after an offer from a France-based medical charity.
On Sunday,...
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Syria braces for lockdown after first virus case
Syria reported the first coronavirus infection on Monday. The healthcare system in the country has been ravaged after a decade of civil war, and...
Afghanistan
UN's Gutteres calls for 'immediate global ceasefire' to focus on COVID-19 fight
The United Nations’ chief Antonio Guterres appealed Monday for a global ceasefire to protect civilians in conflict zones during the coronavirus pandemic. He warned...
Afghanistan
Coronavirus to adversely affect the Caspian region oil market
NUR-SULTAN, Kazakhstan – Coronavirus pandemic and drop in oil prices adversely affected the oil industry in the Caspian region, a Russian expert on oil...
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Two aid workers killed in Yemen
Two aid workers have been killed in Yemen after they were kidnapped by unknown armed men, the United Arab Emirates branch of the Red...
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Iran's supreme leader refuses US help citing widely panned conspiracy theory
Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Sunday refused American assistance to fight the new coronavirus, citing a conspiracy theory claiming it could be...
Africa
Union for the Mediterranean calls for regional action to tackle water scarcity
In light of World Water day on March 22, the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) has called for regional dialogue to address common challenges...
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Iran digging mass graves for coronavirus victims
New satellite images show Iranian authorities digging large numbers of graves in the city of Qom area, which media say is due to the...
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US places ISIS head al-Mawli on terror list
The United States on Tuesday put the new leader of the Islamic State group, Amir Mohammed Abdul Rahman al-Mawli, on its terror list.
The United...
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Iraq names new US-backed PM as rockets hit base hosting foreign troops
Iraq's president Barham Salih has appointed on Tuesday Adnan Zurfi, a pro-Western lawmaker and former governor of the holy Shia city of Najaf, as...
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Iranian extradited to US for alleged illegal military surplus exports
The US Department of Justice said that an Iranian national was extradited to the United States for allegedly exporting sensitive military equipment from the...
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OPEC, IEA underscore importance of oil and gas market stability
International Energy Agency (IEA) Executive Director Fatih Birol and Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) Secretary General Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo
underscored the importance of...
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Saudi Arabia detains hundreds of government officials
The Saudi's National Anti-Corruption Commission (Nazaha) announced on Sunday that 298 government officials, including military and security personnel, have been detained in Saudi Arabia...
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Coronavirus kills top Iranian cleric
A member of the clerical body that appoints the Iranian supreme leader has died of the new coronavirus, according to state media.
78-year-old Ayatollah Hashem...
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Russia, Saudi Arabia scrap opens oil pipes, floods market
While Moscow is in a much better financial position today than Saudi Arabia, or Russia’s position in 2014, Russia stands to lose a lot...
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Turkey, Russia carry out first joint patrol in Syria
Turkey and Russia have completed their first joint military patrol along a strategic highway in Syria's northwestern region.
Under the recently agreed ceasefire, Syria’s president...
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Iran seeks IMF loan after Khamenei aide becomes infected with coronavirus
Iran has announced the infection of a top adviser to the country's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei amid a major spike in deaths from...
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Turkey says Idlib ceasefire details agreed on with Russia
Turkish defence minister Hulusi Akar announced on Thursday that Turkish and Russian officials have agreed on the details of a ceasefire deal in Syria's...
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Playing Russian roulette with the US shale oil industry
The rapid growth of the US shale industry seems to be at the heart of the Saudi-Russia crude oil price war. Already weak from...
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US launches airstrikes against Iran-backed militias after deadly attacks
The United States launched a series of air strikes on Thursday against an Iran-backed Shia militia in Iraq that it blamed for a major...
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US Congress passes resolution to restrain Trump on Iran
Both chambers of the US Congress gave a final approval on Wednesday to a resolution to restrain president Donald Trump from attacking Iran.
The vote...
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Iran agrees to give PS752 black boxes to Ukraine more than two months after shoot down
The civil aviation organisation for the Islamic Republic of Iran has agreed to send the black boxes from Ukrainian Airlines Flight 752, which was...
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Senior Hezbollah officials infected with COVID-19
Senior Hezbollah officials have been placed under quarantine after being infected with Coronavirus, Israel's Channel 13 reported on Wednesday, citing Al Arabiya.
Hezbollah leader, Hassan...
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Merkel meets Haftar to discuss Libya crisis
Libya’s commander Khalifa Haftar met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin on Tuesday, a day after he met with French president Emmanuel Macron...
Energy
Kazakhstan calls for consensus on OPEC+ deal
NUR-SULTAN, Kazakhstan – Kazakhstan’s Energy Minister Nurlan Nogayev on 11 March called for the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies led...
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Iran releases 70,000 prisoners amid coronavirus fears
Iran’s judiciary chief Ebrahim Raisi announced a temporary release of prisoners as the authorities seek to counter the spread of the deadly coronavirus.
Javaid Rehman,...
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Macron meets Haftar in bid to secure Libya ceasefire
French president Emmanuel Macron met Monday with Libya’s military commander Khalifa Haftar, who promised he would commit to a ceasefire with the country’s rival...
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Saudi princes arrested amid reports of coup plot
Saudi authorities have detained three princes including King Salman's brother and nephew on charges of plotting a coup, the US media reported Friday. The crackdown...
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Oil price war
Crude prices plunged to record lows on 9 March as an oil price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia commenced after the latter refused...
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UN warns of critical phase in Yemen civil war
Martin Griffiths, the United Nations' envoy to Yemen, has said that the country is at a crossroads, as tens of thousands of people flee...
Archive
US tells Iran it must let inspectors into its nuclear sites
The US Special Representative for Iran Brian Hook demanded that the Islamic Republic, Washington's arch-enemy in the Middle East, immediately ensure that UN inspectors...
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Clashes between migrants, police erupt on Greek-Turkish border
Clashes have erupted on the Greek-Turkish border, with Greek security forces using tear gas and a water cannon to hold back the thousands of...
Archive
Uzbekistan signs agreements with Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power
Uzbekistan’s Energy Ministry announced on 5 March the signing of three new strategic agreements, worth over $2 billion, with the Saudi Arabian utility developer...
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Putin, Erdogan agree ceasefire in Syria’s Idlib
Russia and Turkey agreed a ceasefire in Syria's Idlib province, Russia’s president Vladimir Putin announced on March 5 after talks with his Turkish counterpart...
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Saudi coalition foils terrorist attack on oil tanker off Yemen coast
The Saudi-led Arab coalition announced that it had foiled a terrorist attack against an oil tanker in the Arabian Sea off the coast of...
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Saudi Aramco’s sole control over SABIC gets EU nod
The acquisition of sole control over Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) by energy giant Saudi Aramco complies with EU Merger Regulation, the European Commission...
Archive
COVID-19 no hit for Russian oil exports to China
Russia’s oil exports to China were almost unaffected last month amid the coronavirus outbreak as the East Asian country has been benefiting from lower...
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Syria violence escalates, brawl in Turkish parliament ahead of Putin-Erdogan talks
Russia’s president Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan are set to meet today in Moscow in a bid to ease tensions...
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Iran refuses to let UN nuclear watchdog into sites
Iran has said it has "no obligation" to grant the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency access to certain sites in the country. It also...
Archive
Turkey shoots down warplane as Syrian forces retake town
Turkish forces downed a warplane flown by Syrian government forces over Idlib on Tuesday, as a strategic town in northwest Syria fell under the...
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Russia rejects UN’s claims on war crimes in Syria
Russia on Tuesday rejected a claim by United Nations investigators that Russian air attacks in Syria amounted to a war crime by targeting civilian...
Archive
UN warns of sharp increase in Iran’s uranium stockpile
Iran has nearly tripled its stockpile of enriched uranium since November in violation of its 2015 deal with world powers, the UN’s International Atomic...
Azerbaijan
Kazakh seaports temporarily suspend servicing ships from Azerbaijan and Iran
NUR-SULTAN, Kazakhstan – As of 5 March, Kazakhstan is temporarily suspending services at the ports of Aktau and Kuryk in the Caspian Sea for...
Archive
UN envoy to Libya resigns
Ghassan Salame, the UN envoy for Libya, said on Monday he was stepping down due to health reasons, amid an escalation in fighting in...
Archive
Erdogan warns Europe to expect millions of migrants
Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned on Monday that "millions" of migrants would soon head for Europe.
He was accused by EU leaders that he...
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UN report says Russia and Turkey may have committed war crimes in Syria
United Nations investigators said in a report issued on March 3 found that the actions by the armed forces of both Russia and Turkey...
Archive
Turkey announces major offensive against Syrian government forces
Turkey said Sunday it was pursuing a military operation called “Operation Spring Shield” in northwest Syria after the government forces killed 34 Turkish soldiers...
Iran
Syrian peace talks in Kazakhstan may be postponed due to coronavirus
NUR-SULTAN, Kazakhstan – It’s not known whether the next round of Syrian talks scheduled for March in Kazakhstan’s capital Nur-Sultan will be postponed, First...
Archive
Iraq's PM-designate Allawi withdraws from race
Mohammed Allawi, the designated candidate to be Iraq's new prime minister, has announced his withdrawal, hours after parliament adjourned a session to approve his...
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Yemen's rebels seize strategic northern city
Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels took control of a strategic city in the country's north, officials said.
Yemeni officials said on Sunday the Houthis took control...
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