Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry held talks with Chinese Special Envoy for the Middle East Gong Xiaosheng addressing bi-lateral ties as well as challenges in the region. Shoukry received Xiaosheng on Monday, one day after Egypt hosted the Gaza Reconstruction Conference, in which $5.4bn was pledged in aid to Palestine. Over …
Read More »Yemen rebels take province near Sanaa
Yemeni security and military officials say Shiite rebels who recently overran the capital have now seized a key port city on the Red Sea and a province south of Sanaa in a stunning new blitz. The development indicates the Shiite Houthis may be determined to carve out a mini-state within …
Read More »Turkey says it won’t accept security threats
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said here on Thursday that his country would not tolerate the undermining of peace, stability and peaceful coexistence. “Turkey will never tolerate any traps against our peace, stability or sense of brotherhood,” Erdogan said in a statement published by the presidential information center.
Read More »France says all options should be considered in Kobani situation
While expressing support for a Turkish suggestion to set up a buffer zone on the Syrian-Turkish border near the embattled Kurdish town of Kobane, France said on Thursday that the situation was urgent and fraught with risks and all options must be examined concerning Kobane and the advance of Islamic …
Read More »French, Turkish FMs to discuss strategic cooperation
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius will meet with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu in Kuwait Friday to discuss strategic cooperation between the two nations but the talks are certain to mainly focus on the ongoing struggle against the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (IS) which is threatening security in the Middle East region …
Read More »US worried about Turkey, Kurd tensions amid Kobani
Even as it prods Turkey to step up in the global fight against Islamic State militants, the United States is worried that Ankara might use military action to target Kurdish fighters who are the last line of defence against extremists trying to take over the Syrian border town of Kobani. …
Read More »Turkey rejects solo ground action in Kobani
Islamic State fighters seized control of a third of the key Syrian border town of Kobane today, as Turkey rejected sending in troops on its own against the jihadists. IS militants advanced in the strategic town overnight despite intensified US air strikes, as calls grew for ground action to support …
Read More »France backs buffer-zone between Syria and Turkey
French President Francois Hollande Wednesday said he would back the creation of a buffer zone between Syria and Turkey to protect displaced civilians fleeing the bloody Daech offensive. Talking to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan over phone, Hollande discussed the “alarming situation in northern Syria mainly in Kobani city” which …
Read More »New NATO chief to visit Turkey
Jens Stoltenberg, the new NATO secretary-general, is set to pay his first visit to Turkey since he took office on Oct. 1. Stoltenberg is expected to discuss security concerns posed to Turkey by the jihadist Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).
Read More »Intensified air strikes help Kurdish militia push back IS in Kobani
Intensified air strikes helped Kurdish militia push back Islamic State jihadists fighting for Kobani, as pressure mounted yesterday for more international action to save the key Syrian border town. Across the frontier in Turkey, the government’s lack of action against the jihadists was drawing a furious response, with at least 19 …
Read More »