An early morning attack intended for southern Israel following President Shimon Peres’s birthday bash fizzled with at least one – and possibly two -- of the rockets intended to kill Jewish civilians exploding instead inside Gaza. A total of three rockets were fired overnight, security officials said. The third rocket reportedly landed on the
A man stood still in Istanbul's Taksim Square: silent, staring straight ahead, he had not moved for hours. His peaceful action, on the square that police cleared of protesters on Saturday and where the Turkish authorities have banned gatherings, was a new form of protest. He arrived Monday evening as night was falling
President Barack Obama on Tuesday called planned U.S. talks with the Taliban an “important first step” to ending the Afghanistan war but warned of a long and bumpy road ahead. U.S. officials plan to meet with Taliban representatives in the insurgent group’s newly opened office in Qatar to discuss a more peaceful exit from
Syrian warplanes struck rebel positions near a besieged military air base and other rebel-held areas in the country’s north Tuesday as regime forces stepped up attacks against opposition fighters in the key province of Aleppo, activists said. Rebels fighting to topple President Bashar al-Assad have for months been trying to take Kweiras and two
As the hot weather arrives in Gaza, teenagers head to the town of Rafah for summer camp -- not to play sports but to join war games organised by radical Palestinian group Islamic Jihad. Youngsters wearing military fatigues and the movement’s black insignia capture a fellow camper posing as an Israeli soldier and
U.S. President Barack Obama sparred with Russia’s Vladimir Putin over how to end the war in Syria on Monday during an icy encounter at a G8 summit where divisions over the conflict eclipsed the rest of the agenda. Speaking after talks with Obama, Putin said Moscow and Washington had differing views over Syria
An Israeli security source said that Russia is actively engaged in the Syrian conflict helping Syrian troops by providing intelligence-gathering technology, Al Arabiya’s correspondent reported. “Russia is effectively and actively engaged [in the Syria conflict] beside the army of the Syrian regime by [providing] drones that are collecting information and data and relaying
Western leaders rebuked Russian President Vladimir Putin for supporting Syria’s Bashar al-Assad attempt to crush a two-year-old uprising, setting the stage for a tense G8 summit of the world’s most powerful nations. U.S. President Barack Obama is expected to use his first face-to-face meeting with Putin in a year to try to
Does Egypt face a new revolution? Millions hope so, it seems; they have signed a national petition demanding the president resign and plan to take to the streets on June 30, when Mohamed Mursi marks a year in office. Their slogan is a call for revolt: “Tamarud - Rebel!” But for
June 30 will be the “day of salvation" from the government of Egyptian President Mohammad Mursi, former Prime Minister Ahmad Shafiq said on Monday. Shafiq was referring to nationwide protests planned by opposition groups to mark Mursi’s first anniversary in power. This day will be “the certain end” of the “shameful” Muslim Brotherhood
