Middle East
Latest stories
Israeli police enter al-Aqsa as Jewish visits resume

Israeli police entered a flashpoint holy site in Jerusalem to clear away Palestinian protesters on Thursday, after Jewish visits that had been paused for the Muslim holidays resumed.

Recent weeks have seen several rounds of clashes at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound, the third holiest site for Muslims, which is built on a hilltop that is the holiest site for Jews, who refer to it as the Temple Mount. It lies at the emotional heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

W140 Full Story
Rockets target north Iraq oil refinery, cause 'minor damage'

Six rockets landed overnight in northern Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region, Kurdish counter-terrorism forces said, with "minor damage" reported at a key oil refinery, according to a separate security source.

W140 Full Story
Israel FM: Russian remarks are 'unforgivable'

Israel has summoned the Russian ambassador over comments made by the Russian foreign minister about Nazism and antisemitism.

In an interview with an Italian news channel, Sergey Lavrov explained that Ukraine could still have Nazi elements even if some figures, including the country’s president, were Jewish.

W140 Full Story
Suspected IS militants blow up gas pipeline in Egypt's Sinai

Suspected Islamic State militants have blown up a natural gas pipeline in Egypt's restive northern part of the Sinai Peninsula, causing a fire but no casualties, security officials said.

The officials said the suspected militants planted explosives under a pipeline in the town of Bir al-Abd.

W140 Full Story
Israel searches for Palestinian attackers who killed guard

The Israeli military on Saturday launched a manhunt in the northern West Bank as it searched for a pair of Palestinian attackers who shot and killed a security guard at the entrance of a Jewish settlement.

The fresh attack, combined with the death of a Palestinian man elsewhere in the occupied West Bank, could further fuel tensions that have soared over the past two months. A string of Palestinian attacks in Israel and the West Bank have left 15 Israelis dead, while at least 27 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli security forces in recent weeks.

W140 Full Story
Why are foes Turkey and Saudi Arabia fixing ties?

The killing of columnist Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi agents in Istanbul sent an already tense and shaky relationship between Turkey and Saudi Arabia into complete free fall.

Fast-forward 3 1/2 years later and it appears Turkey and Saudi Arabia are attempting to build a bridge and move on.

W140 Full Story
New Pakistan PM on 1st trip to Saudi amid political division

Pakistan's newly elected prime minister was visiting Saudi Arabia Friday on his first foreign trip since taking office, an attempt to boost economic relations with the wealthy, oil-rich kingdom as Pakistan struggles with huge debt, soaring inflation and a worsening energy crisis.

Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif landed on Thursday in the holy city of Medina, just weeks after political turmoil that rattled Pakistan's fragile democracy and led to the ouster of former Premier Imran Khan.

W140 Full Story
Iraqi Communists raise flag for women's rights, secular politics

The Iraqi Communist Party may have seen its red star fade but it hopes to come back by advocating what remain radical ideas in the country: women's rights and secular politics.

W140 Full Story
Palestinians in fresh clashes with Israeli police at al-Aqsa Mosque

Palestinians hurled stones and Israeli police fired rubber-coated bullets at a major Jerusalem holy site early Friday that has seen waves of unrest in recent weeks.

The police say Palestinians inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound began hurling stones and fireworks around dawn in the direction of a heavily guarded gate that leads to the Western Wall, the holiest place where Jews can pray. The police advanced into the compound, firing rubber-coated bullets.

W140 Full Story
Iranians hold annual pro-Palestinian rallies nationwide

Thousands of Iranians took to the streets Friday to join annual pro-Palestinian rallies, as Israeli-Palestinian clashes in Jerusalem left dozens injured.

W140 Full Story