Middle Orient

In the wake of an Iranian ballistic missile attack on air bases which house US forces in Iraq, the UN Secretary-General said on Wednesday that he would “continue his active engagement” to de-escalate tensions and avert full-scale war.

Iranian Foreign Minister says Iran informed the Iraqi government of its retaliatory attack on US bases, reaffirming Tehran’s respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Arab country.

The U.S. killing of senior Iranian military commander Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani left many of America’s allies in the Middle East confused and nervous. That includes Saudi Arabia, the top regional rival of Iran.

Iran on Wednesday targeted two US airbases in Iraq, including the US airbase of Ain al-Assad in Anbar province in western Iraq.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Seyyed Abbas Mousavi has expressed deep regret over the crash of a Ukrainian airline’s passenger plane in Tehran, which killed a number of Iranian citizens and foreign nationals, especially Ukrainians.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif had a phone conversation with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu on Wednesday.

The United States continues to deploy and reposition troops throughout the region of Iraq and Iran to bolster U.S. security and force protection and to be prepared for any contingency, Defense Secretary Dr. Mark T. Esper said.

The Trump administration’s strategic miscalculation in assassinating Iranian General Qassem Soleimani has institutionalized anti-American sentiment in Iran’s domestic politics and among the Iranian public. This has given Iran’s government the upper hand in confronting U.S. strategic goals in the greater Middle East region, consequently challenging America’s global position.

Abu Ali al Askari’s Twitter statement calling for volunteers for suicide operations in Iraq. Abu Ali al Askari, the security official for Iraq’s Hezbollah Brigades (or Kata’ib Hezbollah, KH), purportedly released a statement earlier today calling for volunteers for suicide bombings against US forces in Iraq.

Muqtada al Sadr’s statement in which he reactivates both the Mahdi Army and the Promised Day Brigade. In the wake of the U.S. airstrike that killed Iranian Qods Force commander Qassem Soleimani and important militia leader Abu Mahdi al Muhandis, radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al Sadr has reactivated two of …