News Archive

A sophisticated fuel oil smuggling network that some experts believe generates at least $1 billion a year for Iran and its proxies has flourished in Iraq since Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani took office in 2022, five sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

A Turkish court has jailed pending trial nine protesters who disrupted President Tayyip Erdogan's speech in Istanbul last week, accusing his government of continuing oil exports to Israel despite a publicised embargo.

The Syrian army and allied forces confronted an attack launched by forces affiliated with the Syrian Democratic Forces alliance on villages in the northern countryside of Deir Al Zor province on Tuesday, state news agency (SANA) reported.

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said on Monday there would be "hell to pay" in the Middle East if hostages held in the Gaza Strip were not released prior to his Jan. 20 inauguration.

Hilton has announced a significant expansion in Morocco, aiming to more than double its hotel portfolio to over 20 properties in the coming years. 

The French government is all but certain to collapse later this week after far-right and left-wing parties said they would vote a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Michel Barnier.

Hamas said on Monday that 33 hostages in Gaza had been killed during the almost 14-month-old war between the Palestinian militant group and Israel in the enclave, without giving their nationalities.

Hezbollah said it carried out a "defensive warning strike" on an Israeli military position in the disputed Shebaa Farms area on Monday, citing repeated Israeli ceasefire violations including airstrikes and shelling in Lebanon.

Syrian rebel fighters began preparations to seize Aleppo a year ago but the operation was delayed by war in Gaza and ultimately launched last week when a ceasefire took hold in Lebanon, the head of Syria's main opposition abroad told Reuters.

Qatar's Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, will arrive in Britain on Monday for a two-day state visit hosted by King Charles and during which he will also meet Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who is seeking deeper ties with wealthy Gulf states.

The U.S. and the United Arab Emirates have discussed with each other the possibility of lifting sanctions on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad if he peels himself away from Iran and cuts off weapons routes to Lebanon's Hezbollah, five people familiar with the matter said.

Syrian rebels' capture of Aleppo from President Bashar al-Assad has brought the Syrian civil war back into focus, jolting frontlines that had been dormant for years with implications for the region and beyond.