Middle Orient

Notorious Iraqi extremist killed in suicide bombing in Syria

A notorious Iraqi extremist leader was killed in a suicide bombing in Syria’s rebel-held north-west, it was revealed on Friday. Abu Maria Al Qahtani was killed in an attack by an ISIS fighter using an explosive belt, said former Al Qaeda affiliate Hayat Tahrir Al Sham, which rules Syria’s last …

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Report: 20 killed in clashes in Syria’s restive Daraa province

At least 20 people were killed in clashes Sunday in Syria’s Daraa governate a day after an explosion killed a group of children, a rights monitor said. Daraa was the cradle of the 2011 uprising against President Bashar Assad but it returned to government control in 2018 under a cease-fire …

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Worrying signs exist that IS growing stronger in Syria

Slowly but surely, the Islamic State terror group seems to be regaining its footing in Syria, launching new and brazen attacks against forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Just-released data from U.S. Central Command, which oversees U.S. forces across the Middle East and South Asia, puts the number of …

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CEP Report: Central Syria’s ISIS Insurgency In 2023

The Counter Extremism Project (CEP) released a report today detailing ISIS activity in central Syria in 2023 showing that ISIS attacks, high quality attacks, and civilian and military casualties rose dramatically last year—and were often more aggressive than in recent years. The 215 ISIS attacks chronicled by CEP often utilized …

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The war in Gaza has been ongoing for exactly six months: Is an end in sight?

The war in Gaza between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement, which has been ongoing for six months and has claimed the lives of tens of thousands of people, shows no signs of ending, according to the German news agency dpa. Negotiations for a ceasefire and the release of hostages …

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What’s happening: Israel has withdrawn most of its troops from the southern Gaza Strip, leaving only one brigade behind

The Israeli army has withdrawn all its ground forces from the southern Gaza Strip except for one brigade, said an army spokesman. The army did not immediately provide further details. It is unclear whether the withdrawal will postpone the entry of the army into the city of Rafah in southern …

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Netanyahu: There is no force in the world that will stop us

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated that Israel will continue with its goal of eliminating all Hamas brigades, including those in the city of Rafah in southern Gaza. Commenting on his statements, a Hamas spokesperson told Al Jazeera that this calls into question the purpose of the ongoing negotiations in …

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Iran Update, April 8, 2024

Senior Iranian military officials have continued to suggest that they will carefully calibrate Iran’s response to Israel’s killing of senior IRGC commanders in Syria. This careful approach aims to avoid a direct war with Israel. Iranian Armed Forces Chief of the General Staff Major General Mohammad Bagheri said on April …

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Spotlight on Terrorism: Hezbollah, Lebanon and Syria (April 1-8, 2024)

This past week Hezbollah continued its attacks on northern Israel, attacking military and civilian targets 43 times. In response, the IDF attacked Hezbollah facilities along the border and in Ba’albek. in one of the attacks a senior operative in Hezbollah’s Radwan Force was killed. Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah secretary general, delivered …

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Five years since al-Baghouz battle
The caliphate ended but the Islamic State is still present

In the Syrian village of al-Baghouz, in the eastern Deir Ezzor province, the last battles between the Islamic State organization and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), supported by the International Coalition Forces, took place on February 9 and ended on March 23, 2019, marking the end of the organization’s geographical …

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