Iran says to oversee Hormuz as Swiss talks conclude
AFP, Burgenstock
23 June 2026, 12:53 PM Middle East
Qatar gas plant blast kills 13, injures dozens
AFP, Doha
23 June 2026, 00:00 AM Middle East
Jordan hangs six after 9-year death penalty pause
AFP, Amman
22 June 2026, 00:00 AM Middle East
92% Israelis believe Iran won war: poll
AFP, Jerusalem
22 June 2026, 00:00 AM Middle East
Al Jazeera says Israeli strike kills journalist in Gaza
AFP, Doha, Qatar
21 June 2026, 10:33 AM Middle East
Israeli strikes kill 9 more in Gaza
Reuters, Cairo
21 June 2026, 00:00 AM Middle East

BITS OF HISTORY (FEBRUARY 11)

1929: The Lateran Treaty was signed establishing an independent Vatican state in Rome.
11 February 2019, 18:00 PM

Saudis don't know where Khashoggi's body is: FM

Saudi authorities do not know where dissident Jamal Khashoggi's body is despite having in custody the Saudi team that murdered him,
11 February 2019, 18:00 PM

Europe can't be trusted

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei yesterday said that Europe "cannot be trusted", a week after the EU launched a trade mechanism to bypass US sanctions on Tehran.
8 February 2019, 18:00 PM

Iran tells US to get out of Syria

Senior Iranian figures said yesterday that Syria was a top foreign policy priority and American troops should withdraw, as planned by US President Donald Trump. "Whether they want to or not, the Americans must leave Syria," Ali Akbar Velayati, a senior adviser to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was reported as saying.
6 February 2019, 18:00 PM

US Senate rebukes Trump

The Republican-led US Senate backed largely symbolic legislation on Monday that broke with President Donald Trump by opposing
5 February 2019, 18:00 PM

Violence in God's name cannot be justified: Pope

Pope Francis yesterday rejected "hatred and violence" in the name of God, on the first visit by the head of the Catholic church to the Muslim-majority Arabian Peninsula.
4 February 2019, 18:00 PM

Bids to disarm Iran will backfire

The deputy chief of Iran's Revolutionary Guards has warned Europe against forcing the Islamic Republic into boosting the range of its missiles by trying to halt their development.
3 February 2019, 18:00 PM

32 wounded in Gaza clashes

Thirty-two Palestinians were shot and wounded by Israeli troops in renewed clashes along the Gaza border Friday, the health ministry in
2 February 2019, 18:00 PM

Egypt unveils Pharaonic tomb

Egyptian archaeologists uncovered a Pharaonic tomb containing 50 mummies dating back to the Ptolemaic era, in Minya, south of Cairo,
2 February 2019, 18:00 PM

Trade mechanism launched to by-pass US sanctions

France, Germany and Britain have set up a mechanism for non-dollar trade with Iran to avert US sanctions, although diplomats acknowledge it is unlikely to free up the big transactions that Tehran says it needs to keep a nuclear deal afloat.
31 January 2019, 18:34 PM

Cold kills 29 children fleeing Syria fighting

The cold has killed close to 30 children in two months among the civilians who have been fleeing the last jihadist pocket in eastern Syria, the United Nations said yesterday.
31 January 2019, 18:34 PM

S Arabia's anti-graft drive ends; $106b recovered

Saudi Arabia has ended a sweeping crackdown on corruption ordered by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman that it said had recovered more than $106 billion through settlements with scores of senior princes, ministers and top businessmen.
31 January 2019, 18:32 PM

Kabul control slips in Afghanistan

The Kabul government is steadily losing its grip over parts of Afghanistan even as American forces intensify their air campaign against insurgent groups, a US government watchdog said yesterday.
31 January 2019, 18:23 PM

US security aid to Palestinians ends today

US security aid for the Palestinian Authority is set to dry up today after it declined the money over concerns it could increase its exposure to US anti-terrorism lawsuits.
30 January 2019, 18:00 PM

Blame 'oath-breaker' US for woes

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani slammed his critics yesterday, defending the political achievements of a landmark 2015 nuclear deal and calling the US an "oath-breaker".
30 January 2019, 18:00 PM

UN expert to present report before June

A UN judicial expert tasked with investigating the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi said yesterday she would present her report by the end of May.
29 January 2019, 18:00 PM

Palestinian PM, govt resign

Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Al-Hamdallah has tendered his resignation and that of his unity government to President Mahmoud Abbas, he said yesterday, dealing a blow to faltering reconciliation efforts with Gaza's Islamist Hamas rulers.
29 January 2019, 18:00 PM

IS in Syria confined to four square kms

The Islamic State group's once-sprawling "caliphate" has been reduced to a four-square-kilometre pocket of territory in eastern Syria, a senior Kurdish commander said yesterday.
28 January 2019, 18:00 PM

EU adds S Arabia to draft 'terrorism financing' list

The European Commission has added Saudi Arabia to an EU draft list of countries that pose a threat to the bloc because of lax controls against terrorism financing and money laundering, two sources told Reuters on Friday.
26 January 2019, 18:00 PM

Users now can only forward message to 5

Facebook Inc's WhatsApp is limiting worldwide the number of times a user can forward a message to five, starting on Monday, as the
22 January 2019, 18:00 PM