Middle Orient

Islamic scholars, NGOs call for Makkah, Madinah to be placed under international control

A non-governmental organisation named the International Commission to Monitor Saudi Administration of the Two Holy Mosques – otherwise known as Al Haramain Watch – has launched an campaign and petition to establish an international administration to manage the affairs of the two holy mosques of Makkah and Madinah.

Read More »

Syria: Russia launched air attacks on north west Syria for the first time since Moscow and Ankara agreed to the March ceasefire

Syria: Russia launched air attacks on north west Syria for the first time since Moscow and Ankara agreed to the March ceasefire, which halted a bloody Russian-backed government offensive to retake the region. Crisis Group expert Dareen Khalifa says despite numerous Turkish-Russian patrols in May to uphold the deal (see …

Read More »

IntelBrief: Iran and Israel Continue Their Shadow Conflict in Cyberspace

Bottom Line Up Front Israeli cyberattacks against Iran are intended to send a signal, as a means of pushing back against Iran’s actions in Syria and Tehran’s own growing cyber activities throughout the region. In terms of cyber, Iran is not ‘big-game hunting,’ at least not yet, but its more …

Read More »

Iranian tankers feed fuel to Venezuela's El Palito refinery, help it resume gasoline production

Iranian tankers have fed fuel to one of Venezuela’s most important refineries, enabling the strategic El Palito facility to resume gasoline production after it was forced to largely reduce its activities under pressure from draconian American sanctions.

Read More »