Middle Orient

Protests In Iran Spread To Oil And Gas Sector

Protests in Iran over the death of a 22-year-old woman have spread to workers in the oil and gas sector, online videos appear to show. Videos posted on social media Monday show demonstrations taking place at Asaluyeh, Iran’s large offshore natural gas field on the Persian Gulf. Workers can be …

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Will Biden’s Support For Iran Protests Backfire?

The Biden administration, unlike the administration of President Barack Obama, has decided to take an activist approach to aiding anti-government protests in Iran in response to the death of a young woman (this time for not wearing the required headscarf properly). Not only did President Joe Biden publicly side with …

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Albanian National Security Council convenes over Iran cyber attacks

The Albanian President Bajram Begaj called a meeting of the National Security Council in Tirana on Monday, with senior government officials in attendance, to discuss matters related to the ongoing cyberattacks against state infrastructure by Iran. Over the weekend, the Homeland Justice Telegram channel, which has served as an outlet …

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US drone attack kills Islamic State member in northeast Syria, official says

A U.S.-led coalition drone strike in northeastern Syria on Monday killed an Islamic State group militant, a a Kurdish-Syrian security official said. Speaking on condition of anonymity in line with regulations, the official told The Associated Press that the strike targeted the IS member driving a motorcycle in the village …

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Erdogan reveals intelligence talks with Syria regime

The Turkish intelligence service has been conducting negotiations with the Syrian regime of Bashar Al-Assad in Damascus to define a “road map” on several issues, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has revealed. “Our intelligence service is conducting negotiations there [Damascus], and we will define our road map based on the results,” …

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Russia: Sanctions prevent it from maintaining gas pipeline to Turkiye, Balkans

Russia says that European sanctions block the energy transfer to Turkiye and Balkan region, Reuters reports. According to the report, the Russian operator of a pipeline that supplies Turkiye and the Balkans with natural gas, South Stream Transport B.V, would suspend some maintenance and repair work, citing European Union sanctions, …

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‘A time bomb’: Anger rising in a hot spot of Iran protests

Growing up under a repressive system, Sharo, a 35-year-old university graduate, never thought she would hear words of open rebellion spoken out loud. Now she herself chants slogans like “Death to the Dictator!” with a fury she didn’t know she had, as she joins protests calling for toppling the country’s …

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Iranian and Turkish Moves to Join Shanghai Cooperation Organization Raise Its Profile

Held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, from September 15 to 16, the 2022 summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Heads of State Council demonstrated that the SCO was continuing to evolve into a viable international political congregation independent from the West. Beginning in the early 1800s, international organizations (IOs) began to …

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Rare clashes erupt between jihadist group, Turkey-backed faction in Syria’s Idlib

Clashes erupted between Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and Faylaq al-Sham, affiliated with the Turkish-backed FSA, due to differences over the alleged opening of a commercial crossing with the Syrian government-held areas in the eastern Idlib countryside. Clashes erupted Sept. 29 between Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and the Free Syrian Army (FSA)-affiliated …

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Turkey’s energy deal in Libya fans regional rivalries

Turkey is likely to face stronger headwinds in the eastern Mediterranean after signing a controversial energy exploration deal with Libya’s interim government. Turkey’s signing of a hydrocarbon exploration deal with the Tripoli government has crippled its recent efforts to balance its policy in Libya and fanned the internal and external …

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