Middle Orient

Nineteen people were killed on Sunday and many injured in airstrikes by Syrian warplanes on the town of Kafr Batna, in the governorate of Rif Dimashq (the Countryside of Damascus), southern Syria, also a suburb of Damascus, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. Two similar strikes targeted the city …

Despite criticism from Israel, Secretary of State John Kerry reiterated on Monday his desire for a ceasefire in the conflict between Israel and Gaza in order for the two sides to begin a process of negotiation. Before leaving for home, Kerry submitted to Israel on Friday a ceasefire proposal that …

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he and newly appointed Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura and deputy Ramzy Ezzedin Ramzy will work with the Syrian parties, regional and international stakeholders to identify “new elements” for a political process that will end the violence in Syria and facilitate a peaceful political …

Turkey is working with international partners to negotiate both a ceasefire in the Gaza conflict and access for humanitarian aid, the Turkish foreign minister said on Thursday.

Visiting UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon stressed here on Thursday the significance of creating a new Iraqi government as a gateway to rebuilding Iraq. Speaking at a short news conference following a just-one-hour meeting with top Shi’ite cleric Ayatollah Al-Sistani in Najaf for the first time, Ban said the formation of …

At least 11 people, including three children and a woman, were killed and eight others wounded when a mortar shell fell on a district of Aleppo city, north Syria, on Thursday. The area is controlled by the regular forces, according to a statement by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights …

Iraqi lawmakers elected a veteran Kurdish politician as the nation’s new president on Thursday, hours after an attack on a prison convoy killed dozens of people, brutally underscoring the challenges faced by the country’s leaders as they struggle to form a new government.

The EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Brussels Tuesday decided to add three additional Syrian persons and nine entities to its blacklist in view of the gravity of the situation in Syria. The Council in a statement said Syrian regime officials are involved “in the violent repression of the civilian …

The European Union (EU) has extended the suspension of restrictive measures on Iran over its nuclear programme until November 24, the Council of EU Monday said in a statement. Under the sanction relief specified in the Joint Plan of Action, the Islamic republic could continue parts of its international oil trade, which is the …

Iraqi security forces killed about 117 insurgents in a series of battles with the Sunni militant groups across Iraq on Tuesday as the government is trying to take back the lands seized by rebel fighters recently, security sources said. In Salahudin province, the army forces seized four villages after clashes …