Syrian warplanes bomb “Islamic State” stronghold
Smoke rises after airstrikes by the Syrian army in Raqqa, Nov. 25.DAMASCUS — At least 63 people, half of them civilians, were killed when Syrian war planes struck the northeastern city of Raqqa on Tuesday, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the war in Syria.Rami Abdulrahman, who runs the Britain-based...Bomb injures two policemen in Bahriain
MANAMA — A bomb injured two Bahraini policemen on Tuesday, authorities said, amid high tension after the opposition boycotted the country's first elections since unrest rocked the island kingdom in 2011.The Interior Ministry said the explosion in the small village of Deraz, west of the capital Manama, was a "terror blast", but provided...Closing of Egypt’s Rafah crossing leaves thousands of Gazans stranded
CAIRO — Egypt's decision to shut its border with the Gaza Strip has stranded thousands of Palestinians on the Egyptian side of the border, while around a thousand people in Gaza are desperate to get out for medical treatment in Egypt, officials in Gaza say.Egypt closed Rafah, the only crossing point between Egypt and the Gaza Trip,...Aoun proposes face off with Geagea for president
BEIRUT — Member of Parliament Michel Aoun said Wednesday he was ready to face off with his Christian rival, Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea, in a presidential vote in Parliament if there was no third candidate, an unexpected stance that was quickly rebuffed by Druze leader Walid Jumblatt.Jumblatt said he would not withdraw his...Egypt arrests Brotherhood leader as crackdown intensifies
Ali Bishr.CAIRO — Egyptian police on Thursday detained Mohamed Ali Bishr, one of the few Muslim Brotherhood leaders to escape jail after last year's overthrow of Islamist President Mohamed Morsi, extending a sweeping crackdown on political dissent.Bishr, a veteran politician who served as a cabinet minister under Morsi, was accused of...“Islamic State” beheads American aid worker
Abdul-Rahman (Peter) Kassig is pictured collecting bread for a delivery to refugee populations in this undated handout photo.DAMASCUS — "Islamic State" militants have beheaded another American hostage, Peter Kassig, issuing a video claiming the killing on Sunday and warning the United States they would kill other U.S. citizens "on...Jerusalem tense amid house demolitions
JERUSALEM — Israeli security forces fired tear gas at protesters in occupied East Jerusalem as tensions remain high over home demolitions ordered by the Israeli prime minister after a deadly attack by two Palestinians on a synagogue earlier this week.Palestinian youths on Friday threw stones at trucks and cars waiting to cross a...Saudi Arabia beheads Turkish man, marking 70th execution of 2014
RIYADH — Saudi Arabia beheaded a Turkish man convicted of drug trafficking in Riyadh, the interior ministry said on Thursday, in the latest execution in the ultra-conservative Gulf kingdom.Ali Agridas was convicted of receiving a "large amount of drugs", the ministry said in a statement.His execution brings to 70 the number of Saudis...
Minister: Half of Yemen’s children are malnourished
November 21st, 20140 SANAA — Nearly half the children in Yemen are suffering from malnutrition, the agriculture minister has said, as insurgencies, water scarcity and climate change exacerbate sectarian strife in the Arabian Peninsula's poorest state."More than half the population of Yemen suffers from food insecurity... 48 percent of the children suffer...“Islamic State” commander killed in Mosul
BAGHDAD — An "Islamic State" leader has been killed in an air strike in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, residents and a local medical source said on Thursday.Radwan Taleb al-Hamdouni, whom the sources described as the extremist group's leader in Mosul, was killed with his driver when their car was hit in a western district of the...PLO: Israel detained 10,000 Palestinian children since 2000
RAMALLAH — More than 10,000 Palestinian minors in the occupied West Bank and annexed Jerusalem have been held by the Israeli army for varying periods since 2000, a Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) official said Wednesday, adding that 20 percent of those detained since June of this year are minors."Israel does not provide any...Bombs explode near Egyptian and UAE embassies in Libya
The wreckage of a car, which was destroyed when a bomb exploded, is pictured next to the Egyptian embassy in the Libyan capital of Tripoli Nov. 13.TRIPOLI — Bombs exploded near the Egyptian and United Arab Emirates embassies here in the Libyan capital on Thursday, but there were no reports of casualties or major damage.The blasts...
Settlers burn mosque in the West Bank, Israel announces 400 homes in East Jerusalem
November 14th, 20140 A Palestinian boy looks out of a damaged mosque after it was set ablaze, in the West Bank village of Mghayr, Nov. 12.RAMALLAH — Israel approved new settler homes in east Jerusalem on Wednesday, despite mounting unrest.The new settlement construction was announced just hours after suspected Jewish extremists torched a West Bank mosque,...Attacks kill 12 in Egypt
CAIRO — At least seven people were wounded when a bomb went off in a Cairo metro carriage on Thursday, security officials said.Meanwhile, unidentified gunmen killed at least five Egyptian soldiers and policemen on Thursday in two separate gun attacks in northern Sinai, an area under emergency rule due to militant violence, security and...Moroccan teen disfigured by rapist husband
RABAT — A Moroccan teen forced into marrying her alleged rapist last year has been attacked with a razor blade and beaten by him for seeking a divorce, media reported Tuesday.The 17-year-old was attacked in Marrakech on Saturday after filing for divorce, the Tel Quel weekly said, citing the AMDH independent rights group.She suffered......
Presidential aide: Yemen’s Houthi group endorse new government
Yemen's newly appointed Prime Minister Khaled Bahah listens to a reporter's questions at a news conference after his cabinet was sworn-in at the Presidential Palace in Sanaa Nov. 9SANAA — The Houthi group has endorsed the new Yemeni government despite opposition to some ministers, a presidential aide said on Thursday, in a move that...Qatar cleared in FIFA World Cup corruption investigation
DOHA — Russia and Qatar, the next hosts of the World Cup, were cleared Thursday of corruption allegations by FIFA, the soccer tournament's organizing body.A 42-page report noted any ethical violations by Russia, which will stage the event in 2018, and Qatar, which gets the World Cup in 2022, were "far from reaching any threshold that......
Saudi Arabia transfers deputy governor after sectarian attack
Mourners attend the funeral of eight people killed by gunmen in the town of Al Dalwa in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province.RIYADH — Saudi Arabia on Wednesday transferred the deputy governor of the kingdom's Eastern Province, in the aftermath of an unprecedented attack against minority Shiites in the region.A royal decree "decided to...Renowned Lebanese poet George Gerdaq dies
BERUT — Lebanese poet George Gerdaq passed away on Wednesday, Nov. 5 at age 83.Gerdaq, who has published many poetry collection, is best known for writing "This is My Evening", which was turned into a song by the legendary Egyptian singer Oum Kalthoum.Gerdaq, who graduated from the Patriarchal College, is also known for his...“Islamic State” leader calls for worldwide attacks
BAGHDAD — "Islamic State" leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi called for attacks against the rulers of Saudi Arabia in a speech purported to be in his name Thursday, saying his self-declared caliphate was expanding there and in four other Arab countries.Baghdadi also said a U.S.-led military campaign against his group in Syria and Iraq...Syria frees thousands, jails prominent dissident
DAMASCUS — Syria has freed around 11,000 detainees since President Bashar al-Assad declared a general amnesty in June, the country's National Reconciliation Minister Ali Haidar said.But authorities jailed Thursday a veteran dissident, arrested a day earlier as he tried to leave the country to visit his family abroad, his lawyer......
Barghouthi placed in solitary confinement after calling for armed resistance
RAMALLAH — The Israeli Prison Service on Wednesday moved jailed Fatah leader Marwan Barghouthi to solitary confinement in Hadareim prison, a day after he sent a widely-published letter from prison calling for armed resistance against the Israeli occupation, a rights group said.In a statement, the Palestinian Prisoner's Society said...Local and state election results
Below are the results for this year's local and state elections.MICHIGAN GOVERNOR (R) Rick Snyder…1,598,922…51%(D)Mark Schauer…1,469,375…47%(L)Mary Buzuma…35,574…1%(UST) Mark McFarlin…19,177…1%(G)Paul Homeniuk…14,893…0%U.S. SENATE (D) Gary Peters…1,693,781…55%(R) Terri Lynn Land…1,283,850…41%(L) Jim......
Senator-elect Peters: We want to increase minimum wage
November 7th, 20140 DETROIT — In a post-election rally held at the at the MGM Grand Hotel on Tuesday, the Michigan Democratic Party celebrated Democratic Rep. Gary Peters’ win over Republican former Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by the retiring Democratic Sen. Carl Levin.Peters defeated Land by 13 percentage...
Victorious Snyder: It is time to get more done
November 7th, 20140 Snyder gives his acceptance speech in Detroit. Photo: Natasha DadoDETROIT — Addressing supporters after winning reelection, Gov. Rick Snyder touted his administration’s work throughout his first term and stressed this is only the beginning of what it will accomplish. “When you have success like this, what is the......