Middle Orient

Senate Republicans introduce a bill to impose sanctions on Iran

Senator Barrasso said that “Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei and new President Ebrahim Raisi both have atrocious human rights records.” A group of 17 Senate Republicans introduced a bill on Friday that seeks to impose sanctions on Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Ebrahim Raisi, who was elected president …

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US: Iran ‘deflecting blame’ for not returning to nuclear deal

Washington and Tehran have been engaged in indirect negotiations in Vienna since April to return to the JCPOA, the nuclear agreement between Iran and world powers reached in 2015. Iran is trying to avoid responsibility for not returning to its nuclear deal with world powers, the US State Department said …

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Gantz denies New Yorker report of pushing US to strike Iran

“We should not push America to fight for us,” the defense minister said. “Iran is a regional and global problem.” Defense Minister Benny Gantz denied a report in The New Yorker on Saturday night, telling Channel 12: “I don’t know of this story and I assume this is not what …

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Has Iran launched a new stealth missile boat?

A new Iranian ship is one of several under construction that will be called the Shahed Soleimani class of stealth ships. Iran has launched one of its new stealthy catamaran “missile corvettes” according to open-source intelligence analyzed by expert H.I. Sutton, who runs the Cover Shores website. He noted that …

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What can we expect from Biden and King Abdullah’s first meeting?

The meeting on Monday between President Joe Biden and King Abdullah is the first in a series of meetings with Middle East leaders. President Joe Biden and King Abdullah enjoy a decades-long close relationship, nurtured over many years while Biden was both in the Senate and vice president, says Lucy …

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Abdullah heads to US as Bennett upholds Jewish rights on Temple Mount

The meeting comes a day after Jordan sent an official complaint to Israel for allowing Jews onto the Temple Mount. King Abdullah of Jordan was set to meet with US President Joe Biden on Monday, the day after his government complained about Israel allowing Jews onto the Temple Mount and …

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Exclusive: IDF sees sharp increase in Muslim draft

The IDF has seen a large increase in the number of Muslims drafting to the IDF and a decrease in those finishing their service early. Even in the wake of Operation Guardian of the Walls and the violent rioting in mixed cities and other towns, the IDF presented encouraging statistics …

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Sadr withdraws from Iraqi elections

Populist cleric Muqtada al-Sadr has withdrawn from Iraq’s October elections, removing his support for the government. The head of Iraq’s Sadrist movement, populist cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, announced July 15 that he will not participate in the early elections scheduled for Oct. 10. Soon after, hundreds of Sadrists gathered in various …

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Syrian jihadi groups crack down on rivals in Idlib

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham is tightening the noose on the jihadi Jundallah group and asking it to join it or leave Idlib, in what observers described as an attempt on the part of HTS to get rid of non-Syrian fighters. Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which controls Syria’s northwestern province of Idlib, …

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