Middle Orient

Intel: Former US ambassador to UAE to join McGurk on National Security Council

Barbara Leaf is set to join other Obama-era officials with established Middle East policy credentials. Barbara Leaf, the former US ambassador to the United Arab Emirates during the Barack Obama administration, is expected to be named to President-elect Joe Biden’s National Security Council, Vox reported.

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Syrian opposition split on timing of Assad military offensive

An anticipated military operation by the regime and its allies in the city of al-Bab stirs controversy among the opposition ranks. News spread recently among popular and military quarters in the city of al-Bab in the northeastern countryside of Aleppo about the Syrian regime and its Russian-backed allies launching a …

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France scores big Iraqi construction project at Turkey’s expense

A French company has beaten out a Turkish one for the Mosul airport project; political considerations along with economic concerns seem to have factored into Baghdad’s decision. Turkey has lost a major construction bid in Mosul to the French, the latest curveball France has thrown Turkey in the two countries’ …

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What can Turkey expect from Qatari-Gulf deal?

Turkey feels vindicated as al-Ula Declaration ends the blockade against Qatar. The Kuwaiti emir’s proposal to end the more than three-year-old Qatar blockade was accepted just as the Gulf Cooperation Council summit started on Jan. 5 in the historic city of al-Ula, Saudi Arabia. All four states — Saudi Arabia, …

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Ankara gives police access to military, intelligence assets to crush protests

A presidential decree has paved the way for Turkish police to use military and intelligence resources to crack down on public protests. A recent presidential decree concerning the weapons and other assets of Turkey’s military and security bodies has generated little debate in Turkey but might have crucial consequences down …

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Ethiopia’s worsening crisis threatens regional, Mideast security

With the Horn of Africa increasingly becoming an integral part of the Middle East’s security landscape, the fallout from Ethiopia’s current crisis will have a significant impact on states of the region. The Gulf Arabs recognize a strategic reality that has eluded the stove-piped US foreign and security policy bureaucracy …

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SDF kills three Iraqi ISIS members during operation in Deir al-Zor

“Iraqi ISIS members do operate in Syria as well. Many have been killed and arrested in the last few months during SDF and International Coalition raids.” The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) on Friday announced they killed three Iraqi members of the so-called Islamic State during an operation in the eastern …

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