TEHERAN (AFP) – The United States is unable to build a naval coalition to escort tankers in the Gulf because its allies are too “ashamed” to join it, Iran’s Foreign Minister said on Monday (Aug 5). “Today the United States is alone in the world and cannot create a coalition. Countries that are its friends […]

WASHINGTON — Senior United States military and intelligence officials are sharply divided over how much of a threat the Islamic State in Afghanistan poses to the West, a critical point in the Trump administration’s debate over whether American troops stay or withdraw after nearly 18 years of war. American military commanders in Afghanistan have described […]

Women in Saudi Arabia can now travel abroad without a male guardian’s permission, royal decrees say. Under the new rule announced on Friday, women over the age of 21 can apply for a passport without authorisation from a male guardian. All adults can now apply for a passport and travel, putting women on an equal […]

Women in Saudi Arabia can now travel abroad without a male guardian’s permission, royal decrees say. Under the new rule announced on Friday, women over the age of 21 can apply for a passport without authorisation from a male guardian. All adults can now apply for a passport and travel, putting women on an equal […]

BEIRUT, Lebanon — Saudi Arabia has freed a doctor with dual Saudi-American citizenship after he was detained for 21 months and reportedly tortured, two friends of the family said on Thursday. The Saudis first detained Dr. Walid Fitaihi in November 2017 amid what the government called a crackdown on corruption. Despite Dr. Fitaihi’s lengthy detention, […]

At least 32 people have been killed in an attack on a military parade by Yemen’s rebel Houthi movement. The parade in the southern port city of Aden was targeted by missiles and an armed drone, a Houthi-run TV channel says. Aden is the seat of Yemen’s internationally recognised government. The rebels say the military […]

The US said it was imposing sanctions on Zarif for acting on behalf of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has called a decision by the United States to sanction Iran’s foreign minister as “childish” amid rising tensions between the two countries. In its latest move aimed at ratcheting up its “maximum […]

Israeli military claims the man crossed the Gaza border into Israel overnight and shot at officers. A Palestinian who crossed the Gaza border into Israel overnight shot at Israeli troops, drawing return fire in an incident that left the Palestinian dead and three Israeli soldiers wounded, the army said on Thursday. An Israeli tank also […]

Israel has approved the construction of 6,000 new homes for Jewish settlers and 700 homes for Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. The decision about new homes in settlements further extends the Israeli presence in the West Bank. But it is Israel’s approval for Palestinian homes that is unusual. Israeli settlements in the West Bank […]

LONDON — The estranged sixth wife of the ruler of Dubai asked a London court on Tuesday to protect her child from being forced into marriage, escalating a standoff within one of the world’s wealthiest royal families that has so far been cloaked in secrecy. The wife, Princess Haya, fled with the couple’s 11-year-old daughter […]