Middle Orient

Since his sweeping overhaul of Turkey’s political system in 2017, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has cemented his near-total control over the country. Despite the worst electoral setback of Erdogan’s career in the Istanbul mayoral election in June 2019, as well as a tailspinning economy exacerbated by the fallout from the …

A high-ranking Syrian militant commander was reportedly killed in the ongoing conflict in the Karabakh region, opposition activists reported on Tuesday.

Clashes on Tuesday in the Syrian desert between Russia-backed regime forces and Islamic State (ISIS) militants have killed almost 30 fighters.

On Thursday, President Bashar al-Assad received a Russian delegation from the Defense and Foreign Ministries headed by the Russian President’s Special Envoy to Syria, Alexander Lavrentiev.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that the Turkish Armed Forces may carry out a new operation in Syria if ‘terrorists’ do not move away from the Turkish border.

Two White House senior officials visited Damascus to meet with the head of Syrian Security and Intelligence, Ali Mamlouk, in an attempt to release two American hostages who have been kidnapped and forcibly hidden by the Assad regime for years.

Sunni political parties are using murders in Salahuddin province to demand an end to the presence of armed militias blamed for killings. The Oct. 17 murder of 12 people from the Sunni community in Salahuddin province north of Baghdad has raised the ire of Sunnis against Shiite factions present in …

The kingdom “rejects any attempt to link Islam with terrorism,” a Foreign Ministry source said. Saudi Arabia is the latest Muslim country to denounce French President Emmanuel Macron’s controversial comments on Islam and depictions of the Prophet Muhammad.

Israeli, Greek and Cypriot foreign ministers met today in Athens, showcasing again the strong strategic alignment between the three countries. Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi met this afternoon in Greece with his Greek and Cypriot counterparts, Nikos Denidas and Nikos Christodoulides. The trilateral meeting was dedicated to issues of energy, security …

Ahrar al-Sham, a prominent armed group that has often collaborated with Turkey in Syria, is hit by infighting that plays into the hands of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and dampens Turkish plans to remold rebel factions in Idlib. Turkey has gained ample experience in organizing, training, equipping and using armed militants …