German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday the most recent disagreement between Turkey and Greece over Cyprus had made the relationship more difficult and patience was required to settle differences. “This has been a setback but we should not be discouraged,” she said. Turkey and EU member state Greece are …

Iran Thursday began exporting crude oil for the first time in the Gulf of Oman, bypassing the strategic Strait of Hormuz. During a ceremony marking the inauguration of the project, President Hassan Rouhani called the plan “strategic.” Iranian state media described the move as an indication that sanctions imposed by …

Israeli jets have again struck at Syrian military depots according to the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the conflict. The Syrian state-run SANA news agency reported the strike but said the Syrian missile defense system deflected the bulk of the attack, intercepting “most” of the Israeli weapons …