Middle East

U.S. to meet with Taliban ‘within days’

"The United States on Tuesday welcomed the Taliban’s decision to open an office in Qatar and senior US officials said they hoped to meet with their Afghan foes within days. The Taliban opened a political office in Doha on Tuesday, planning to hold talks with Afghan leader Hamid Karzai’s government on ending the conflict that erupted when the Islamist group was ousted from power in 2001 by US troops sent in after the September 11 terror attacks. Confirming that the United States will also use the office to communicate with the guerrillas, who are still battling US-led NATO and Afghan troops on the ground, the official said the road ahead would be difficult." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingU.S. to meet with Taliban ‘within days’

Iran’s Ahmadinejad meets successor after being ousted in election

"Iran’s outgoing President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad met his successor Hassan Rowhani on Tuesday for the first time since the moderate conservative was elected, in talks centred on political and economic issues. Rowhani, a 64-year-old cleric who is scheduled to take office on August 3, won an outright victory in Friday’s presidential election, ending Ahmadinejad’s eight years of hardline leadership. Reinforced by UN Security Council sanctions, punitive measures have cost Iran’s economy billions in vital oil revenues and foreign investment, leaving the country struggling with raging inflation, high unemployment and a depreciated currency." Continue reading →

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Canada’s Harper gives up on Russia assisting Syrian rebels, labels G8 summit ‘G-7 plus 1’

"At least one official at the G-8, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, suggested that Russia shouldn’t even be at the table with other world leaders. He blasted Russian President Vladimir Putin and all but dismissed Russia from meaningful involvement in this week’s talks. The G-8 includes the U.S., Canada, Russia. Great Britain, France, Italy, Germany and Japan. The group is holding its annual meeting this week at a resort in Northern Ireland, with the Syrian civil war expected to dominate the agenda. The recent U.S. decision to arm Syrian rebel forces has been met with approval from Great Britain, France and other nations." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCanada’s Harper gives up on Russia assisting Syrian rebels, labels G8 summit ‘G-7 plus 1’

Turks invent new form of ‘standing’ protest to get around ban on gatherings

"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 and took up position in the middle of the square, just a stone’s throw from Gezi Park. Five hours on, the man was still there, hands in his pockets, a bag and some bottles of water at his feet." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTurks invent new form of ‘standing’ protest to get around ban on gatherings

Putin questions why Western powers support Syrian rebels who ‘eat human organs’

"Russian President Vladimir Putin warned the West against arming Syrian rebels on Sunday. In his first public comments since a decision by President Barack Obama’s administration to arm rebels trying to overthrow Assad, Putin said Russia wanted to create the conditions for settling the two-year conflict. 'I think you will not deny that one does not really need to support the people who not only kill their enemies, but open up their bodies, eat their intestines, in front of the public and cameras,' Putin said at a joint news conference in London. 'Are these the people you want to support? Is it them who you want to supply with weapons?'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPutin questions why Western powers support Syrian rebels who ‘eat human organs’

Egypt’s Islamist president cuts diplomatic ties with Syria, urges no-fly zone

"Egypt’s President Mohamed Morsi, in severing ties with Damascus, aims to show solidarity with Western and fellow Arab states opposed to Syria’s regime and also boost his under-fire image at home, analysts said. Morsi, an Islamist from the Muslim Brotherhood, told supporters in a Cairo stadium for a 'Support for Syria' rally on Saturday that he was going to 'definitively' cut diplomatic relations with Syria. The Syrian government on Sunday slammed the decision, accusing Morsi of announcing the cut in ties to deflect attention from domestic crises. Morsi called on the international community to impose a 'no-fly zone' over Syria." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEgypt’s Islamist president cuts diplomatic ties with Syria, urges no-fly zone

Jordan wargames: Patriot batteries, F-16s and 4,500 US troops near Syrian border

"Multinational military exercise 'Eager Lion' has been launched in Jordan amid condemnation from neighboring Syria and its ally Russia. The US brings Patriot missile batteries to the Syrian border, which could remain deployed afterwards. The exercises will last for 12 days, bringing together about 8,000 personnel from 19 countries, mostly Arabic, but also including the US and Europe. The maneuvers will also involve some 3,000 Jordanian and 500 British troops. The US military revealed it may indefinitely leave behind the Patriot batteries and F-16s deployed in Jordan due to the threat of the violence in Syria crossing into Jordanian territory." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingJordan wargames: Patriot batteries, F-16s and 4,500 US troops near Syrian border

Iran to send 4,000 troops to aid President Assad forces in Syria

"America has plunged into the great Sunni-Shia conflict of the Islamic Middle East, entering a struggle that now dwarfs the Arab revolutions which overthrew dictatorships across the region. For the first time, all of America’s ‘friends’ in the region are Sunni Muslims and all of its enemies are Shiites. Breaking all President Barack Obama’s rules of disengagement, the US is now fully engaged on the side of armed groups which include the most extreme Sunni Islamist movements in the Middle East. A military decision has been taken in Iran to send a first contingent of 4,000 Iranian Revolutionary Guards to Syria to support President Bashar al-Assad’s forces." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIran to send 4,000 troops to aid President Assad forces in Syria

CIA preparing to deliver Syrian rebels weapons through Turkey and Jordan

"The CIA is preparing to deliver arms to rebel groups in Syria through clandestine bases in Turkey and Jordan that were expanded over the past year in an effort to establish reliable supply routes into the country for nonlethal material, U.S. officials said. The bases are expected to begin conveying limited shipments of weapons and ammunition within weeks, officials said, serving as critical nodes for an escalation of U.S. involvement in a civil war. Syria experts cautioned that the opposition to Assad remains a chaotic mix of secular and Islamist elements, highlighting the risk that some American-provided munitions may be diverted from their intended recipients." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCIA preparing to deliver Syrian rebels weapons through Turkey and Jordan

U.S. to leave ‘training’ military forces in Jordan

"The United States will keep F-16 fighter jets and Patriot anti-missile weapons in Jordan after a joint military exercise ends this month, a US defense official said Thursday. The US administration also planned to keep a unit of US Marines on amphibious ships off the coast after consultations with Jordanian leaders, the official told AFP on condition of anonymity. 'It was decided the assets would remain in place,' said the official. The 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit taking part in the drill consists of about 2,400 troops, which arrived in a group of three amphibious ships, including the USS Kearsarge. Continue reading →

Continue ReadingU.S. to leave ‘training’ military forces in Jordan