Iraq’s new president commenced his duties, and the designated prime minister will form his Cabinet next week. Latif Rashid, a veteran political leader in the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) who was elected Oct. 13 as Iraq’s new president, commenced his duties in Al-Salam Palace in Baghdad on Monday. Rashid …

EU sanctions over Iran’s clampdown on dissent unsettled Iranian authorities, which are grappling with one of the biggest domestic challenges they have faced since the 1979 revolution. The spokesperson for Iran’s Foreign Ministry, Nasser Kanani, condemned sanctions slapped by the Council of the European Union on a number of Iranian …

Amid Ankara’s overtures to Damascus, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham — the radical group controlling Idlib — has seized Afrin and is seeking a deal to expand its control further into territories held by factions allied with Turkey. A dramatic shift of control has been underway in Afrin and other areas held …