Former prime minister Nouri al-Maliki looked set to have the next largest win among Shia parties, initial results showed. Iraq’s Shia groups have dominated governments and government formation since the US-led invasion of 2003 that toppled Sunni dictator Saddam Hussein and catapulted the Shia majority and the Kurds to power. Sunday’s election was held several … Read more
Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi did not disclose details of the operation, however in a statement posted to Twitter, he said that Jasim was detained outside of Iraq. He did not disclose the location or date of Jasim’s arrest. “While our [Iraqi Security Forces] heroes focused on securing the elections, their [Iraqi National Intelligence Service] colleagues … Read more
TAP said a passenger train collided with a stationary train near Megrine Riadh station in the Tunisian capital, according to Hassen Miaadi, spokesperson for the Tunisian National Railway Company. More than 10 ambulances and several rescue teams were deployed to the site and an investigation was initiated to determine the causes of the collision. This is a … Read more
Five people, two minors among them, have been detained by Israeli police after an attack by Jewish settlers on a Palestinian village in the West Bank. The assault, the latest in what human rights groups say is a constant pattern of aggressive acts by settlers in the Masafer Yatta area southeast of Hebron, has drawn … Read more
High-ranking Hezbollah official Wafiq Safa issued the threat to Judge Tarek Bitar through an unnamed intermediary, who relayed the contents of the message, according to the source. The intermediary was someone the judge knew and trusted, the source said, and mentioned Safa by name. Safa is head of the Iran-backed militant group’s Liaison and … Read more
In his first interview with an international media outlet since forming a government a week ago, Mikati acknowledged that some Lebanese would struggle to put their faith in him and his government after so many politicians have failed them in the past. But, he told CNN, it is “time to have a government” to take … Read more
The agreement comes ahead of a key IAEA meeting on Monday — and has been touted as a sign that the relationship between Iran and the IAEA is moving forward following its breakdown in the past few years. “The parties recalled and reaffirmed the spirit of cooperation and mutual trust and its continuation and emphasized … Read more
The first two were arrested on Friday evening in Nazareth, about 30 kilometers (18 miles) from the Gilboa prison where the breakout happened, while two other escapees were picked up in the early hours of Saturday in the village of Umm Al-Ghanam, about 25 kilometers (15 miles) from the prison. Photos and video circulating on … Read more
Prime Minister Najib Mikati, a billionaire who has already twice served as premier, will lead a cabinet of ministers that will preside over an economic depression which the World Bank considers one of the world’s worst since the mid-19th century. Mikati visited Lebanese President Michel Aoun at the Baabda Presidential Palace where he signed a … Read more
The men escaped from Gilboa prison, which lies between the Sea of Galilee in Israel and the West Bank town of Jenin. A picture of a tunnel entrance purportedly used by the prisoners to escape has been widely shared on Palestinian social media, and Israeli media are reporting the men used a tunnel to get … Read more