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Activists demand recognition for Kurdish, North and East Syria – analysis

This vast area which includes the deserts along the Euphrates as well as the old ISIS capital of Raqqa and also includes Kurdish towns and cities was badly harmed by ISIS and then attacked by Turkey. It is time to recognize the status of the Autonomous Administration of North and …

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What can we expect from Biden and King Abdullah’s first meeting?

The meeting on Monday between President Joe Biden and King Abdullah is the first in a series of meetings with Middle East leaders. President Joe Biden and King Abdullah enjoy a decades-long close relationship, nurtured over many years while Biden was both in the Senate and vice president, says Lucy …

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Exclusive: IDF sees sharp increase in Muslim draft

The IDF has seen a large increase in the number of Muslims drafting to the IDF and a decrease in those finishing their service early. Even in the wake of Operation Guardian of the Walls and the violent rioting in mixed cities and other towns, the IDF presented encouraging statistics …

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Power struggle in Iraqi Kurdistan on hold as Talabani brothers prevail

Patriotic Union of Kurdistan co-chair Lahur Talabani has been peacefully ousted, and Ankara is clearly happy about the turn of events. Lahur Talabani, the ousted co-chair of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), has signaled that he will not fight back, saying the succession for the leadership of Iraqi Kurdistan’s …

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Sadr withdraws from Iraqi elections

Populist cleric Muqtada al-Sadr has withdrawn from Iraq’s October elections, removing his support for the government. The head of Iraq’s Sadrist movement, populist cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, announced July 15 that he will not participate in the early elections scheduled for Oct. 10. Soon after, hundreds of Sadrists gathered in various …

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Syrian jihadi groups crack down on rivals in Idlib

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham is tightening the noose on the jihadi Jundallah group and asking it to join it or leave Idlib, in what observers described as an attempt on the part of HTS to get rid of non-Syrian fighters. Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which controls Syria’s northwestern province of Idlib, …

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New Druze political party, military faction take shape in Suwayda

Suwayda has a new political party and an associated military arm after decades of Druze exclusion from the Syrian political scene. Political opposition forces in Syria’s southern province of Suwayda launched a new political party July 7, calling it the Syrian al-Liwa Party. According to a statement posted on Facebook, …

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Can African Union revive Nile dam talks?

After the UN Security Council expressed support for the African Union-sponsored talks on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, the African grouping is reportedly seeking a new round of talks to resolve the dispute between Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan. The Democratic Republic of the Congo, in its capacity as the African …

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Has Erdogan achieved his goal to build his ‘New Turkey’?

As Turkey marks the fifth anniversary of the July 15, 2016, failed coup attempt, the putsch has served as a founding myth for Erdogan’s “New Turkey.” Some dates serve as milestones. For Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, July 15 is one of them. The failed coup attempt to remove Erdogan …

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