US slaps sanctions on four ICC judges over Israel, US cases
The United States on Thursday imposed sanctions on four judges at the International Criminal Court including over an arrest warrant...Geostrategy
Israel arms exports to UAE, Bahrain, Morocco rise sharply after 2023
Sales to countries considered part of the Abraham Accords -- the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco who signed groundbreaking...Business Geostrategy
Gaza rescuers say 80 killed in Israeli strikes
Gaza rescuers said at least 80 people were killed in Israeli bombardment across the Palestinian territory on Wednesday, as Israeli...AFP footage from the aftermath of a strike in Jabalia, northern Gaza, showed mounds of concrete rubble and twisted metal from collapsed buildings
Footage of mourners in the north of the territory showed women in tears as they kneeled next to bodies wrapped in bloodstained white shrouds
Trump presses Syria leader on Israel after lifting sanctions
US President Donald Trump landed in Doha Wednesday after visiting Riyadh, where he urged Syria's president to normalise with Israel...Trump became the first US president in 25 years to meet a Syrian leader -- Ahmed al-Sharaa, an erstwhile Islamist guerrilla and jihadist who had been on a US wanted list
Turkey and Saudi Arabia both advocated reconciliation with Syria, but the move is the latest to put Trump at odds with Israel, which has expressed deep scepticism of Sharaa
Trump welcomed grandly as Saudis invest big in US arms
Under imposing chandeliers, Trump welcomed a promise by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who effectively rules the kingdom due to...The White House said that Saudi Arabia would buy nearly $142 billion in weapons in what it described as the largest-ever weapons deal
The US leader will also visit Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, fellow oil-rich Arab monarchies with long-standing ties to the United States, and to Trump
Ocalan: founder of the PKK who authored its end
Abdullah Ocalan, the jailed founder of the militant Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), is an icon to many Kurds but a...After a decades-long insurgency against Turkey that resulted in tens of thousands of deaths, the PKK said on Monday it was disbanding and ending its armed struggle
The move came after Ocalan issued a historic call on February 27 for his fighters to lay down their arms in a major step towards ending the decades-long conflict
Al Jazeera says allowed to resume work in Palestinian territories
Ramallah, Palestinian Territories - Al Jazeera's Ramallah bureau chief said on Monday the news channel could resume working in the...The Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority (PA) ordered the suspension of the Al Jazeera's broadcasts on January 1, accusing it of incitement
The channel had aired footage of what appeared to be Palestinian security officers entering the network's office in Ramallah and handing over the suspension orders
Israel hits Gaza hospital in raid Hamas says killed journalist
Israel's military said it struck a Gaza hospital housing militants, in a raid on Tuesday that, according to Hamas, killed...The strike, which Hamas said happened at dawn, ended a brief pause in fighting to allow the release of a US-Israeli hostage
The Israeli military said that "significant Hamas terrorists" had been "operating from within a command and control centre" at Nasser Hospital
Trump heads to the Gulf eyeing deals amid diplomatic offensive
In the days before the trip, the White House has played an instrumental part in hammering out a ceasefire between...Riyadh, Doha and Abu Dhabi are expected to roll out the red carpet with a lavish royal welcome for the 78-year-old billionaire
Iran is likely to feature prominently during the visit, following a fourth round of talks in Oman over the weekend
Iraq: PKK decision to disband boosts regional stability
Iraq welcomed Monday the Kurdistan Workers' Party's (PKK) decision to disband and end its armed struggle against Turkey, saying it...The PKK decision is a "significant opportunity to promote peace efforts and end long-standing conflicts," a foreign ministry statement said
Blacklisted as a terrorist organisation by Turkey and its Western allies, the PKK operates rear bases in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region
Israel’s West Bank land registration serves ‘annexation’: NGO
Ramallah, Palestinian Territories - An Israeli rights group denounced Monday a government decision to launch extensive land registration for parts...The Israeli security cabinet on Sunday decided to initiate a land registration process in the West Bank's Area C, which covers more than 60 percent of the territory
This might lead to "a massive land theft", Peace Now said, adding that the process could result "in the transfer of ownership of the vast majority of Area C to the (Israeli) state"
Erdogan urges parties to seize ‘window of opportunity’ on Ukraine
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday urged parties to take advantage of recent contacts to strike a deal toward..."I would like to reiterate that we are ready to contribute to these meetings and we will be happy to host them," Erdogan said
Zelensky said he wanted Trump to attend the direct peace talks with Russia, after the US leader said he was "thinking" of going
