One of the unifying themes of the Sunni jihadi movement as it has developed over the past half-century has been the view that Western-style democracy is an affront to Islam. Even worse, it is a religion fundamentally incompatible with the faith, a version of polytheism (shirk) in which authority is …

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich lauds approvals as part of a ‘clear strategic move to strengthen settlement’ Israel has approved the construction of 764 houses in three Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said on Wednesday. The decision is likely to stoke tensions in the …

Toplines Russian forces are reportedly preparing to conduct long-range strikes against substations powering Ukraine’s nuclear power plants. Ukraine’s Main Military Intelligence Directorate (GUR) and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned on January 17 that Russia is considering strikes on electricity transmission substations on which Ukrainian nuclear power plants depend to operate.[1] …

Toplines Syrian President Ahmed al Shara likely decided to temporarily halt the Syrian government offensive on Syrian Democratic Forces-held (SDF) territory in northeastern Syria after a phone call with US President Donald Trump on January 19.[1] Shara and SDF Commander Mazloum Abdi failed on January 19 to finalize a ceasefire …

Syria’s Ministry of Interior said an escape incident at al-Shaddadi Prison in the countryside of al-Hasakah Governorate (northeastern Syria) resulted in the escape of about 120 Islamic State (IS) members, adding that it had arrested 81 of them. Special Tasks units affiliated with the ministry began, immediately after entering al-Shaddadi …

Syrian government forces and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are massing at the entrances to al-Hasakah city (northeastern Syria) after a meeting between Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and SDF commander Mazloum Abdi failed on Monday, 19 January. Enab Baladi obtained information from sources familiar with the negotiations between the two …

The ongoing conflict between Damascus and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) risks unleashing tens of thousands of ISIS-linked detainees, reviving a threat that the United States and the SDF spent years and much blood trying to contain. Following intense clashes over the weekend, during which Syrian government troops entered …

As the rivalry between Riyadh and Abu Dhabi sharpens in Yemen and beyond, Turkey has begun edging closer to Saudi Arabia. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has openly acknowledged Saudi concerns, saying in a televised interview, on January 8, that “developments in the region — especially recent ones — pose …

The Syrian pound has strengthened against foreign currencies since the morning of Sunday, 18 January, coinciding with the Syrian army regaining control of the most important oil and gas fields in eastern Syria. The exchange rate reached 11,000 Syrian pounds to the US dollar, according to the “Lira Today” website, …

Protesters who took to the streets in Iran say the media is wrongly portraying monarchists as leading the uprising. A week after Iranian security forces violently crushed the latest anti-regime protests, the streets are quiet for now, but a battle over who speaks for the uprising has erupted. With Iran …