Middle Orient

Turkey’s latest strike comes on the four-year anniversary of the Kurdish fighters’ capture of Raqqa from the Islamic State. A drone strike believed to have been launched by Turkey struck a vehicle in the Kurdish-controlled town of Kobani in northeast Syria on Wednesday, according to local reports. Three people in …

Axios reports that White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan discussed Saudi Arabia’s potential diplomatic ties with Israel during his meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan raised the possibility of Saudi Arabia normalizing relations with Israel during his meeting with Crown Prince …

Turkey’s Sabah newspaper reported that a 15-member spy network was arrested on Oct. 15 in an operation carried out across four Turkish provinces. Turkish authorities arrested 15 people earlier this month who are accused of spying for Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, Turkish media outlets reported on Thursday. Turkey’s Sabah newspaper …

The remote Tanf outpost has been quiet for years, but Iran’s pinprick provocations may once again be targeting the base, which plays a key role in Washington’s effort to obstruct Tehran’s influence. A remote US military outpost in the southern Syrian desert was hit by a suspected drone attack on …

The reported capture of Iranian spies in Turkey comes as the latest sign of the rivalry heating up between Ankara and Tehran, as bilateral tensions over Iraq and Syria have been steadily expanding to the Caucasus since last year’s war between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Turkey extended strong military support to …

The large backing by the Sunni community for the current parliamentary speaker’s party despite a tradition of voting along tribal lines may mark a break with the past. Supporters of firebrand Shiite cleric Muqtada Sadr were already celebrating in the streets the night after the Oct. 10 elections while parties …

The victory of the coalition led by populist cleric Muqtada Al-Sadr, and the rise of independent Shiite politicians, could foreshadow a new chapter in Iraqi politics. Final results of Iraq’s Oct. 10 elections were announced on Oct. 18. The results are expected to be approved by the federal court in …

President Bashar al-Assad has tightened his grip on Damascus, but the attack suggested that militants who oppose him can still do harm. A brazen attack on a military bus driving through the Syrian capital, Damascus, killed 14 people on Wednesday, according to state news media, a reminder that President Bashar …

Turkish intelligence forces arrested 15 people working on behalf of Israel’s Mossad secret service agency, Turkey’s Sabah newspaper first reported on Thursday. The suspects, divided into five cells of three people each and all said to be Arabs, were arrested in four separate provinces in a covert operation on October …

Iran launched a countrywide air force drill on Thursday, involving bombers, fighter planes and surveillance drones, as well as weapons that use laser-guided missiles. A report on state television said that all of Iran’s military air bases – reported to be 12 – are participating in the exercise. The drill …