Middle Orient

The Federal Bureau of Investigation says the Iranian regime and “its terrorist partners” aren’t just a threat to the Middle East, but also a critical risk for the United States. In a number of tweets on Monday, the FBI said Iran and its proxy groups “don’t just endanger the Middle …

A Turkish drone strike Tuesday killed at least four people in a northeast Syrian city held by Kurdish forces, the latest in a flurry of attacks, a war monitor said. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the attack struck near a hospital in Qamishli, the de-facto capital of …

The autonomous government in northern Iraq has an ambitious plan to curb gun violence, but some in the region have concerns about the feasibility of gun control due to societal and political factors. Gun violence in the United States continues to make headlines around the world, but Iraq’s Kurdistan Region …

Tehran says Iranian experts will control “from day one” an Iranian satellite due to be launched by Russia next week, rejecting reports that it will be first used by Moscow to “enhance its surveillance of military targets” in Ukraine. “All orders related to the control and operation of this satellite …

Talks to revive the nuclear deal between Iran and world powers reportedly resumed in Vienna on Thursday, after a six-week hiatus. Negotiators from Iran, the United States, and the European Union separately announced late on Wednesday that they were leaving for Vienna to continue the talks to re-up the 2015 …

Israeli airstrikes flattened homes in Gaza on Saturday and Palestinian rocket barrages into southern Israel persisted for a second day, raising fears of another major escalation in the Mideast conflict. Gaza’s health ministry said 24 people had been killed so far in the coastal strip, including six children. The fighting …

Senior US official accuses Beijing of playing both sides in the Middle East’s race for drone technology. Unmanned drones fired by Iran-backed militias at targets across the Middle East in recent years, sometimes with lethal effect, are being supplied from China, a senior US official revealed. Barbara Leaf, the State …

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited Russia Friday for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin focusing on a grain deal brokered by Turkey and the UN, prospects for talks on ending hostilities in Ukraine, the situation in Syria and growing economic ties between Moscow and Ankara. Speaking at the start …

Ankara’s central role in facilitating the Russia-Ukraine grain deal could strengthen its hand in securing Moscow’s acceptance of a Turkish military incursion. Turkey’s president will meet Russia’s Vladimir Putin on Friday amid plaudits for his role in the Ukraine-Russia grain deal and plans for a military incursion into north Syria …

Vehicles allegedly carrying Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) commanders continue to be targeted in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq amid claims Iran controls both the PKK and Shiite-led forces in oil-rich and disputed Kirkuk. Attacks continue on vehicles carrying alleged Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) fighters in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq …