Iran sent 2,000 advance troops to Iraq to help fight an extreme jihadist insurgency effectively seizing control of major cities in the country, a senior Iraqi official told The Guardian on Saturday. Around 1,500 basiji forces crossed the border into Khanaqin, a town in central Diyala province on Friday, while another 500 entered the
Egyptian authorities on Sunday seized two retail outlets owned by leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood, part of the ongoing crackdown against the group since its president Mohammed Morsi was ousted last year. According to the AFP news agency, the businesses targeted were the Seoudi supermarket chain and Zad department store, respectively owned by Abdel
The Al Qaeda offshoot the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) has conquered great sections of Iraq since capturing Mosul on Tuesday, going on to expand its control southward over several other cities, with its sights set on Baghdad. In the process of seizing the oil hub of Mosul, the Islamists made
Islamists from Al Qaeda offshoot the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) continue to gain ground in northern and eastern Iraq Friday, conquering both Saadiyah and Jalawla as they move throughout the Diyala province toward Baghdad from the west. Sources told Reuters Friday that the Islamists have also captured several small villages
Egyptian police arrested Saturday a fugitive Sunni scholar who had been sentenced to death in absentia in a trial involving the leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, state media reported. Abdallah Hassan Barakat, a former senior academic at the prestigious Al-Azhar University, was arrested at a checkpoint in Cairo, the official MENA news agency reported.
Officials in the office of Egypt’s top prosecutor say 13 men have been referred to trial for sexually assaulting women during a public rally, in what was possibly first implementation of tough new legislation against rampant sexual violence, according to the Associated Press. See more: Seven arrested after Egypt sex assault video The
Three Israeli teenagers have gone missing near a West Bank settlement, the army said Friday, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he held the Palestinian leadership responsible for their safety. “The IDF (Israeli military) confirms three teenagers are currently missing,” an army statement said. “The individuals were last seen late last night in
The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS), an Al-Qaeda-inspired Islamist group that has taken over the Iraqi city of Mosul, has begun to implement Islamic Sharia law in the city. Since taking over Mosul, members of the group have been handing out documents to residents, stating that Islamic law is binding from
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu warned on Wednesday that Ankara will retaliate if any of its citizens and diplomats held in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul are harmed. "Right now we are engaged in calm crisis management, considering our citizens' security. This should not be misunderstood. Any harm to our citizens and staff
Former Palestinian Authority (PA) Chief Negotiator Saeb Erekat slammed PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas's "soft" policies in the new "unity" government with Hamas, according to tapes leaked by the Awrak news agency. In the tapes, Erekat makes a series of furious remarks over Abbas's decisions, saying that Abbas views the government as his "personal
