The Paris attacks trial resumed on Tuesday with police evidence from Brussels on the background and Syrian activities of Mohamed Abrini. Abrini did not hear what was said about him, since he is one of five accused who continue to boycott the trial in protest against Belgian police witnesses being …
Read More »Israel wants Erdogan to act on Hamas
For Jerusalem, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s intentions for better relations need to be backed up with actions. Israel’s President Isaac Herzog met Dec. 1 with Natali and Mordi Oknin, who were liberated two weeks ago from an eight-day detention in Turkey. The couple thanked the president for his efforts …
Read More »Bennett urges Blinken to end Iran talks over ‘nuclear blackmail’
Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett called for an “immediate cessation of negotiations” in Vienna. Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett urged the United States on Thursday to immediately call off the seventh round of indirect negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program. In a phone call with US Secretary of State …
Read More »Najaf seminary prepares for post-Sistani Iraq
The opening of Sheikh Baqir al-Irawani’s office in Najaf indicates that he may be preparing to be one of the successors to 92-year-old Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, head of the Shiite religious authority. It appears that the sudden death of Grand Ayatollah Sayyed Mohammed Saeed al-Hakim, who was the most …
Read More »How Migrants Got Weaponized
The EU Set the Stage for Belarus’s Cynical Ploy Over the past month, as thousands of migrants gathered on Belarus’s border with Poland and tried to cross into the European Union, some European leaders accused Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko of engaging in a “hybrid war.” In an effort to put …
Read More »All Against All
The Sectarian Resurgence in the Post-American Middle East The Biden administration’s mantra for the Middle East is simple: “end the ‘forever wars.’” The White House is preoccupied with managing the challenge posed by China and aims to disentangle the United States from the Middle East’s seemingly endless and unwinnable conflicts. …
Read More »Ethiopian Army Recaptures Historic Lalibela, Eight Other Towns in Counteroffensive Against TPLF
The Ethiopian National Defense Forces (ENDF) said on Wednesday it had recaptured more than eight towns from the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), including the historic town of Lalibela, helping push the TPLF further back from the capital. Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s office announced on Wednesday that Lalibela had …
Read More »Naval drills signal Russia interest in SE Asia, not a strategic sea change
Naval ships from Russia and countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are holding their first-ever joint exercise, signalling Moscow’s intent to engage the region though not heralding a major shift in its geopolitical strategy, analysts say. The first ARNEX-21 joint exercise opened on Wednesday in Indonesian waters …
Read More »Kremlin Downplays Lukashenka’s Gas Threat As Poland Summons Belarus AttachÃ
The Kremlin has downplayed a renewed threat by Belarusian strongman Alyaksandr Lukashenka to cut Russian gas supplies to the European Union in response to Poland’s possible move to shut down its border with Belarus over an ongoing migrant crisis. The EU has blamed Lukashenka’s regime for funeling thousands of migrants …
Read More »NATO Warns Russia of ‘Serious Consequences’ for Ukraine Actions
NATO allies are concerned about Russia’s military build-up along the border with Ukraine, and Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Russia will face serious consequences if it once again invades the country. Stoltenberg spoke to the Reuters NEXT Global Conference at the conclusion of the NATO Foreign Ministers meeting in Riga, …
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