World / Middle East

Years into war, Damascus hikes fines for dropping litter 17 Oct 2016 - 06:14 pm

Damascus: Syria may have been devastated by a five year civil war, but that hasn't stopped Damascus city council tackling the problem of...

UNHCR fears 100,000 may flee Mosul for Syria, Turkey; seeks funds 17 Oct 2016 - 02:00 pm

GENEVA: Up to 100,000 Iraqis may flee to Syria and Turkey to escape the Iraqi government's military assault aimed at ousting Islamic State...

Fresh Russian airstrikes kill 16 in Aleppo, Syria 17 Oct 2016 - 01:53 pm

ALEPPO, Syria: At least 16 people were killed, including eight children, in fresh Russian airstrikes Monday on opposition-held areas in Syria’s northwestern city...

Peshmerga forces capture 8 villages east of Mosul 17 Oct 2016 - 01:42 pm

ERBIL, Iraq: Kurdish peshmerga forces of the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) on Monday captured eight villages east of Mosul from Daesh militants, according...

Erdogan says Turkey to take part in Mosul operation 17 Oct 2016 - 01:29 pm

Istanbul: President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday indicated that Turkey would play a role in the US-backed Iraqi offensive to retake the city...

Suicide bombing kills 10 at security check-point south of Baghdad 17 Oct 2016 - 12:07 pm

BAGHDAD: A suicide driver detonated a car packed with explosives at a security check-point south of Baghdad on Monday, killing ten people and...

1,500 Turkey-trained Iraqi forces taking part in Mosul operation 17 Oct 2016 - 11:14 am

ANKARA: Around half of some 3,000 Iraqi forces trained by Turkey at the Bashiqa camp in northern Iraq are taking part in the...

EU mulls more Syria sanctions as political efforts falter 17 Oct 2016 - 10:50 am

LUXEMBOURG: European Union foreign ministers are debating whether to extend sanctions against the Syrian regime as political efforts to secure a cease-fire falter....

Air raids kill at least 12 civilians in Syria's Aleppo: monitor 17 Oct 2016 - 10:09 am

Beirut: Air strikes killed at least 12 civilians in Syria's Aleppo on Monday, a monitor said, bringing to 45 the death toll from...

Iraq launches offensive to recapture Mosul from Islamic State 17 Oct 2016 - 08:39 am

BAGHDAD: Iraqi government forces, with air and ground support from the U.S.-led coalition, launched an offensive on Monday to drive Islamic State from...

Turkish military says Syrian border security largely achieved with Dabiq seizure 17 Oct 2016 - 08:23 am

ANKARA: Turkey-backed Syrian rebels seized control of nine areas, including the village of Dabiq, from Islamic State on Sunday, largely achieving border security ...

Kuwait emir dissolves parliament: state media 16 Oct 2016 - 03:56 pm

Kuwait City: Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad Al-Sabah on Sunday issued a decree dissolving the Gulf state's parliament, the official KUNA news agency...

Putin says hopes U.S. will seek to avoid civilian casualties in Mosul 16 Oct 2016 - 03:32 pm

GOA, India: Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Sunday he hoped the United States and its allies would do their best to avoid...

Iraqi army drops leaflets over Mosul in preparation for offensive 16 Oct 2016 - 02:40 pm

BAGHDAD: The Iraqi army dropped tens of thousands of leaflets over Mosul before dawn on Sunday, warning residents that an offensive to recapture...

Cities, towns and territory retaken from Islamic State 16 Oct 2016 - 02:28 pm

Beirut: Turkish-backed Syrian rebels captured the northern town of Dabiq from the Islamic State group on Sunday, a monitoring group and rebels said....

Three police officers killed in blast in Turkey's Gaziantep - sources 16 Oct 2016 - 02:09 pm

ISTANBUL: Three police officers were killed by an explosion in Turkey's southeastern city of Gaziantep on Sunday, hospital sources said. The blast was...

Jordanians charged with killing sisters for 'honour' 16 Oct 2016 - 01:04 pm

Amman: Two Jordanian brothers were charged with murdering their two sisters in apparent "honour killings", a court official said Sunday. The men, aged...