February, 2021

• 27 February

  Iran Says It’s Developed New Long-Range Combat Drone

  Iran says it has developed a new long-range wide-body combat drone that has a range of 3,000 kilometers, reports local media. The IRGC-linked Tasnim News Agency, cited Brigadier General Aziz Nasirzadeh as saying the Kaman-22 (Bow-22) is the first wide-body combat drone manufactured by local experts.

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• 27 February

  Armenian Defense Minister Says Yerevan Would Like Russia Expand Gyumri Base – OpEd

  Armenian Defense Minister Vagarshak Arutyunyan has told Russia’s Novosti news agency that Yerevan would welcome an expansion of the Russian military base at Gyumri in Armenia because that would increase Armenia’s security

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• 27 February

  Post-Brexit UK Trade Strategy Needs To Engage China – Analysis

  The United Kingdom’s trading aspirations in Asia will not negate its dependence on the European Union, nor will they unwind the dominant economic role of China in its neighbourhood. UK trade with Asia post-Brexit needs to be accompanied by efforts to engage Beijing in the strengthening of trade rules and …

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• 25 February

  How Islamic State returned to haunt civilians in northeast Syria

  

  Remnants and cells of the Islamic State have recently increased their attacks against the Syrian Democratic Forces and civilians in the areas under the SDF control in northeast Syria. The provinces of Deir ez-Zor, Hasakah and Raqqa, and the Manbij area in the countryside of Aleppo, which are under the …

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• 25 February

  Libyan interior minister says he survived assassination attempt

  

  The security force involved in Fathi Bashagha’s motorcade collision dispute the claim, saying the interior minister’s men fired on them. Fathi Bashagha, interior minister for eastern Libya’s United Nations-recognized government, allegedly survived an assassination attempt on Thursday, sources in his office told multiple news outlets. Bashagha’s motorcade reportedly came under …

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• 25 February

  Erik Prince violated Libya arms embargo, UN report alleges

  

  The Blackwater founder and associates sought to buy helicopter gunships from Jordan to aid Libyan warlord Khalifa Hifter’s assault on Tripoli, investigators believe. Blackwater founder and prominent Donald Trump campaign donor Erik Prince is accused of violating the United Nations’ arms embargo on Libya by working with a team of …

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• 25 February

  Iran begins restricting short-notice nuclear inspections

  

  Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif tweeted that Iran has halted its implementation of the Additional Protocol. Iran has begun restricting inspections of its nuclear facilities by the global atomic watchdog, the Iranian foreign minister said Tuesday. A law passed by Iran’s hard-liner-dominated parliament in December called for stopping the country’s …

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• 25 February

  In Syria’s Deir ez-Zor, SDF conscription ‘severs livelihoods’

  

  The Syrian Democratic Forces’ recent campaign to conscript youth for military service is compounding economic hardship in Deir ez-Zor province, one of the poorest areas of Syria. In villages where the campaign is most active, young men are staying home for fear of arrest, forgoing daily wages and delaying grocery …

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• 25 February

  Hamas: Israel trying to stop us from running in Palestinian election

  

  Some Hamas representatives claimed that they were warned by Israeli authorities against presenting their candidacy. Israel is trying to prevent Hamas from participating in the Palestinian parliamentary election, slated for May 22, Hamas officials said Tuesday.

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• 25 February

  Gantz: If Hezbollah attacks, all of Lebanon will sadly suffer

  

  Among the topics discussed in his visit were the threats being posed by Hezbollah and other Iranian proxies that have stationed themselves along Israel’s borders with Lebanon and Syria. Defense Minister Benny Gantz spoke about the ongoing threats posed by Hezbollah in Southern Lebanon in a Tuesday visit to the …

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