Middle Orient

U.S. pulling troops from northern Syria posts, leaving Kurdish allies to face Turkey

American troops have begun pulling back from positions in northern Syria in line with an order from the White House. Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan confirmed the action hours after the White House said U.S. forces in northeast Syria would move aside and clear the path for an expected Turkish …

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Iran’s attack on Saudi Arabia was ill-timed and premature

On Sept. 14, the news that Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities had been attacked and damaged came as a shock. While there had been a gradual escalation in Iranian-led hostilities following the U.S. dismantling of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (aka the Iran nuclear deal), the general expectation was that …

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The war in Syria is far from over, but its nature is changing

Since the beginning of 2018, the Syrian regime has expanded its control of territory across the country from approximately 52 percent to 62 percent. That 10 percent of territory gained was a crucially important 10 percent, encompassing opposition-held areas in Syria’s southwest, rural Homs, and eastern Ghouta, as well as …

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U.S. Sees Rising Threat in the West From Qaeda Branch in Syria

American counterterrorism officials are voicing increased alarm about a Qaeda affiliate in Syria that they say is plotting attacks against the West by exploiting the chaotic security situation in the country’s northwest and the protection inadvertently afforded by Russian air defenses shielding Syrian government forces allied with Moscow.

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Iran's Rouhani calls US the 'supporter of terrorism' in the Middle East and downplays role in Saudi oil attacks

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani called the United States the “supporter of terrorism” in the Middle East and downplayed Tehran’s role in the recent Saudi oil facility attacks in a Tuesday interview with Fox News.

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