Middle Orient

yria’s army and loyalist militiamen Sunday ousted the Daesh group from its last urban stronghold in the country as regime strikes claimed more lives in a rebel-held enclave near Damascus. The army said it had taken full control of Albu Kamal in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor, which has …

Security forces have repulsed an attack by Islamic State militants in western Anbar. Army troops repelled an IS attack in al-Jazeera region, located between Annah and Rawa towns. Thirteen villages were freed, while forty-five IS members and two suicide bombers were killed in three days, according to a statement issued …

The Daesh militant group has lost 95 per cent of the cross-border territory it declared three years ago in Iraq and Syria, the US-led coalition fighting it has said. “Since our coalition was formed in 2014, Daesh has lost 95 per cent of the territory it once controlled in Iraq …

US President Donald Trump on Thursday urged the UN Security Council to vote to renew a join investigative panel looking into possible chemical weapon attack by the Syrian regime, despite Russia’s veto threat. “Need all on the UN Security Council to vote to renew the Joint Investigative Mechanism (JIM) for …

The pro-government paramilitary troops have repulsed an Islamic State attack against a security checkpoint in Diyala, a security source said on Thursday. “Troops of al-Hashd al-Shaabi [Popular Mobilization Forces] managed to repel an attack launched by IS to target a checkpoint in al-Bou Eissa village, north of Udhaim, in Diyala,” …

Vice President Mike Pence met with Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim on Thursday “to reaffirm the enduring strategic partnership between the United States and Turkey,” the Office of the Vice President announced. The two “expressed hope that their meeting would help to usher in a new chapter in US-Turkey relations, …

Syria’s army declared victory over Daesh on Thursday, saying its capture of the militants’ last town in the country marked the collapse of their project in the region. The army and its allies are still fighting Daesh in desert areas near Albu Kamal, the last town the militant group had …

The North Atlantic Alliance Organization (NATO) supports constructive and peaceful dialogue between Erbil and Baghdad to resolve their differences, said Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg. “We would like very much to see constructive negotiations between the Peshmerga forces and the government of Baghdad,” Stoltenberg said on Tuesday, urging the sides not to …

US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis has plenty of pressing issues as he begins talks with NATO allies on Wednesday. NATO defence ministers are meeting over two days at the alliance’s Brussels headquarters. The talks will also look at efforts to revamp NATO’s command structure to help it better combat the …

Iraqi forces threatened on Wednesday to resume operations to capture northern Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG)-held territory after accusing authorities there of delaying handing over control of Iraq’s borders with Turkey, Iran and Syria. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on Friday declared a pause in an offensive that began on Oct. …