I just visited Iran. Here’s what I heard about the U.S.
May 25th, 20180 By Peter Van Buren Iran is a dangerous place these days, at least in a car. Traffic in the cities here moves like Tetris, with drivers pushing their cars into any open space that will fit. Trips begin in chaos and play out in confusion. How it ends is always up to God’s will, everyone says. I went to Iran this month to...
Syrian air defense intercepts missile attack on airport, state media reports
May 24th, 20180 BEIRUT - Syrian state media said a military airport near Homs city had come under missile attack which was repelled by its air defense systems on Thursday. “One of our military airports in the central region was exposed to a hostile missile attack, and our air defense systems confronted the attack and prevented it from achieving its...
Israeli minister: U.S. may soon recognize Israel’s hold on Golan
May 23rd, 20180 TEL AVIV — Israel is pressing the Trump administration to recognize its sovereignty over the occupied Golan Heights, an Israeli cabinet minister said on Wednesday, predicting U.S. assent could come within months. Interviewed by Reuters, Intelligence Minister Israel Katz described endorsement of Israel’s 51-year-old hold on the...
Lebanese parliament re-elects Nabih Berri as speaker
May 23rd, 20180 BEIRUT — Politician Nabih Berri, a close ally of the Hezbollah group, was re-elected for a sixth term as speaker of Lebanon’s parliament in an uncontested vote on Wednesday. Reflecting a shift in Lebanon’s political landscape in favor of the heavily armed Shi’a Muslim group, another Hezbollah ally, Elie Ferzli, was elected...
Saudi Arabia expands crackdown on women’s rights activists
May 22nd, 20180 RIYADH ― Saudi Arabia has arrested at least three more women’s rights activists in a widening crackdown just weeks before a ban on women driving is set to end, international rights watchdogs said on Tuesday. Rights groups last week reported the detention of seven activists, mostly women who previously campaigned for the right to...
Palestinians demand full investigation into Israel at Hague court
May 22nd, 20180 THE HAGUE ― Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki asked prosecutors at the International Criminal Court on Tuesday to launch a full investigation into accusations of Israeli human rights abuses on Palestinian territory, saying the evidence was “insurmountable”. Maliki submitted a so-called “referral”, giving the...
U.S. toughens stance on Iran, lists sweeping demands
May 21st, 20180 WASHINGTON/ANKARA — The United States on Monday demanded Iran make sweeping changes — from dropping its nuclear program to pulling out of the Syrian civil war — or face severe economic sanctions as the Trump administration hardened its approach to Tehran. Iran dismissed Washington’s ultimatum and one senior Iranian official...
Ramadan in Kuwait — What it’s like
May 18th, 20180 By Farah Harb The Arab American News KUWAIT — With Islam being the country’s official religion, Kuwait’s traditions and religious affairs are intertwined, and that especially shows during the month of Ramadan. Because Kuwait’s weather in the summer can go as high as 122 degrees Fahrenheit (50 Celsius), the...
International court’s prosecutor warns Israel on Gaza violence, expresses “grave concern”
May 16th, 20180 AMSTERDAM - The office of the prosecutor of the world’s permanent war crimes court on Wednesday expressed “grave concern” about escalating violence in Gaza against Palestinian civilians and said alleged crimes could be subject to an investigation. Dozens of Palestinians were killed by Israeli gunfire during protests on Monday,...
Turkey expels Israeli diplomats over Gaza killing, equally blames Washington
May 15th, 20180 ANKARA - Turkey and Israel expelled each other’s senior diplomats on Tuesday in a dispute over the killing by Israeli occupation forces of 60 unarmed Palestinians on Monday during protests on the Gaza border. “The Israeli ambassador was told that our envoy to Israel was called back for consultations, and was informed that it would...
France says Middle East is ‘explosive,’ criticizes U.S. policy and unjustified Israeli violence
May 15th, 20180 PARIS - French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian on Tuesday described the situation in the Middle East as “explosive” and criticized the United States for unilateral acts in the region and Israel for what he said was an unjustified level of violence. Thousands of Gaza residents turned out on Tuesday for the funerals of...
Palestinians hold protest in Cannes against Israeli killing in Gaza
May 15th, 20180 CANNES, France - Hollywood actor Benicio del Toro joined Palestinians at the Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday in a demonstration against the Israeli army’s killing of Palestinians on the Gaza border. Sixty people were killed on Monday, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry, by Israeli gunfire or tear gas, in what Palestinian...
Shi’a cleric’s election win puts Iran to the test in Iraq
May 15th, 20180 BAGHDAD — Already pressured by the U.S. withdrawal from the nuclear deal, Iran faces a major test in managing Shi'a cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, a formidable opponent who beat Tehran’s longtime allies to achieve a shock victory in Iraq’s parliamentary election. But If Tehran overplays its hand by squeezing Sadr out of a coalition...
Pro-Trump pastor who claims Islam is a “cult” picked to lead prayer at opening of U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem
May 14th, 20180 WASHINGTON - An anti-gay, pro-Trump pastor from Dallas will give the opening prayer Monday night at the introduction ceremony of the new US embassy in Jerusalem. Pastor Robert Jeffress, a Fox News contributor and supporter of President Donald Trump, will add to the controversy surrounding the diplomatically awkward event. Jeffress,...
Israeli occupation forces kill dozens, injure hundreds of Palestinians in Gaza
May 14th, 20180 GAZA - Israeli occupation forces killed dozens of Palestinians taking part in mass protests on the Gaza border on Monday as the United States opened its embassy to Israel in Jerusalem. The U.S. move fulfilled a pledge by President Donald Trump, who has recognized the holy city as the Israeli capital, but it has fired Palestinian anger......
Israeli forces kill dozens in Gaza as U.S. Embassy opens in Jerusalem
May 14th, 20180 GAZA — Israeli troops shot dead dozens of Palestinian protesters on the Gaza border on Monday as the United States opened its embassy to Israel in Jerusalem, a move that has fueled Palestinian anger and drawn foreign criticism for undermining peace efforts. It was the bloodiest single day for Palestinians since the Gaza conflict in...
World and national leaders slam Trump for abandoning Iran nuclear deal
May 11th, 20180 WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Trump pulled the United States out of an international nuclear deal with Iran on Tuesday, raising the risk of conflict in the Middle East, upsetting European allies and casting uncertainty over global oil supplies. Trump said in a televised address from the White House that he would reimpose U.S.......
Hezbollah allies gain seats in Lebanon’s parliamentary elections
May 11th, 20180 BEIRUT — Hezbollah and its political allies won just over half the seats in Lebanon's parliamentary elections, unofficial results showed, boosting an Iranian-backed movement fiercely opposed to Israel and underlining Tehran's growing regional clout. Hezbollah's leader, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, called it a "political and moral...
Iraqis voting in first election since ISIS defeat
May 10th, 20180 BAGHDAD — For the first time since driving out ISIS, Iraqis go to the polls on Saturday in an election that will shape attempts to heal the country’s deep divisions and could shift the regional balance of power. Iraq’s three main ethnic and religious groups, the majority Shi’a Arabs and the minority Sunni Arabs and Kurds, have...
Obama: Trump’s decision on Iran nuclear deal ‘misguided’
May 8th, 20180 WASHINGTON - Former President Barack Obama said on Tuesday that President Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal, struck during Obama’s presidency, was “misguided.” “I believe that the decision to put the JCPOA at risk without any Iranian violation of the deal is a serious mistake,” Obama said in a...
Americans overwhelmingly against Trump’s decision to pullout from Iran deal
May 8th, 20180 NEW YORK - Less than one third of Americans agrees with President Trump’s decision to pull the United States out of an agreement to limit Iran’s nuclear program, according to a Reuters/Ipsos national opinion poll released on Tuesday. The poll, conducted May 4-8, ahead of the Republican president’s announcement to end the deal,......
Michigan, world leaders slam Trump for abandoning Iran nuclear deal
May 8th, 20180 WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Trump on Tuesday pulled the United States out of an international nuclear deal with Iran, raising the risk of conflict in the Middle East, upsetting European allies and casting uncertainty over global oil supplies. Trump said in a televised address from the White House that he would reimpose U.S....
U.S. urges post-election Lebanon to uphold regional policy
May 8th, 20180 BEIRUT ― The United States urged Lebanon to uphold a policy of staying out of regional wars and a U.N. Security Council resolution that sought Hezbollah’s disarmament, after the Iran-backed group and its allies won more than half the seats in Sunday’s election. The United States views Hezbollah as a terrorist group and is......
Hezbollah allies gain seats in Lebanon parliamentary elections
May 7th, 20185 BEIRUT - Hezbollah and its political allies won just over half the seats in Lebanon’s parliamentary elections, unofficial results showed, boosting an Iranian-backed movement fiercely opposed to Israel and underlining Tehran’s growing regional clout. Hezbollah’s leader, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, called it a “political and moral...
Trump via Twitter: I will announce my decision on Iran nuclear deal on Tuesday
May 7th, 20180 WASHINGTON - President Trump said he would announce a decision on the future of the Iran nuclear deal on Tuesday as European countries piled pressure on Washington to remain in the 2015 agreement. Trump has threatened to withdraw from the deal, which provided Iran with relief from economic sanctions in exchange for limiting its......
