AW

Iraq

Wanting a respite. Iraqi demonstrators in Baghdad protesting the presence of US troops in the country, responding to a call by Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, January 24. (DPA)

Issue of US troop presence spills over onto Iraqi streets

Algeria

Diplomatic opportunity. Algerian Foreign Minister Sabri Boukadoum leads a meeting with foreign ministers in Algiers, January 23. (Reuters)

Algeria seeks revived diplomatic role through Libya mediation

Lebanon

Bumpy start. Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab (R) arrives to attend the first cabinet meeting of the newly formed government at Baabda Palace, January 22. (DPA)

Protesters’ rejection amid challenges awaiting Lebanon’s new cabinet

Gulf

Seeing eye to eye. Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (L) meets with Omani Foreign Minister Yusuf bin Alawi (R) in Tehran. (AFP)

Iran engages regional contacts through Omani proxy but doubts endure

Mohammed Alkhereiji

Turkey

Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel, centre, accompanied by Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, talks during the opening ceremony of a Turkish-German university's new campus, in Istanbul, January 24. (AP)

Erdogan warns Europe of ‘chaos’ in Libya, threat of more refugees

Egypt

Egypt, Ethiopia clinch dam agreement as Riyadh’s Red Sea initiative moves forward

Latest Issue

Issue: 240 | Sun, January 19, 2020

Top Stories

Hezbollah’s support for Iran exposes its vulnerabilities at home and abroad

Simon Speakman Cordall

Demonstrations continue despite attempts to derail protests after Soleimani’s killing

Azhar Al-Rubaie

Protests go on in Algiers even as president pledges reform

Lebanon protests turn violent as ‘one-sided’ government preps cabinet

Iran sends hardline message, defends adventurism abroad

Fears grow over Turkey’s transfer of jihadists, mercenaries to Libya

Opinion

Lavrov set to carry forward Russia’s ambitious foreign policy

Nasiriya protesters bear torch of hope in dark times

Fear of the ‘other’ causes ructions in Britain and Norway

Rashmee Roshan Lall

Turkish discontent with Erdogan on the rise

The lessons of the Marib massacre

Khairallah Khairallah

Hassan Diab’s cabinet is unable to meet protesters’ demands or confront Hezbollah

Iranian myths exposed as Ukrainian plane shot down

Editorial

US

Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial is seen in Washington, January 20. (Reuters)

Martin Luther King’s legacy

Iran

A Yemeni supporter of the Houthi movement holds a poster of slain Iranian major general Qassem Soleimani during a demonstration in Sanaa on January 6. (AFP)

The problem with Iran’s proxies

Tunisia

President’s man. Tunisian President Kais Saied (R) and Prime Minister-designate Elyes Fakhfakh, tasked with forming a government, at the presidential palace in Carthage, January 20. (AFP)

Tunisia’s prime minister-designate to form coalition based on parties’ support to president

Iraq

Unexpected controversy. Iraqi parliament Speaker Mohammed al-Halbousi.(AFP)

Reviving the ‘Sunni region’ project raises questions about timing, opportunity

Libya

Vicious cycle. A fighter loyal to the Libyan Government of National Accord exits a vehicle in an area south of Tripoli, January 12. (AFP)

Scepticism about international efforts after Berlin’s ‘failure’

Algeria

Unyielding. A man chants slogans as he takes part in the 49th consecutive Friday demonstration against the Algerian government and the ruling class, in Algiers, January 24. (AFP)

Algerians protest shale gas but their numbers decline

Saudi Arabia

Offering help. Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (C) receives Chairman of the Sovereignty Council of Sudan Abdel Fattah al-Burhan (L) and Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok in Riyadh, last October. (SPA)

Saudi Arabia calls on US to remove Sudan from ‘terror list’

Qatar

A portrait of Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani in Doha. (AFP)

Qatar's 'repressive' press law sparks international outcry

Syria

Economic pain. Syrians scramble to purchase goods at a shopping festival organised by the Damascus Chamber of Industry in support of the local currency, in Damascus, January 22.(AFP)

Syria revives Soviet-inspired laws to slow economic meltdown, save currency

Simon Speakman Cordall

Lebanon

Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah delivers a televised speech in Beirut, January 5. (DPA)

Terror listings increase isolation of Hezbollah

Mahmud el-Shafey

Iraq

Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr carry placards depicting U.S. President Donald Trump at a protest against what they say is U.S. presence and violations in Iraq, duri in Baghdad, Iraq January 24. (dpa)

What is the future of US-Iraq relations?

Syria

Costly misadventure. A Turkish soldier stands guard on the Turkish-Syrian border in Akcakale in Sanliurfa province, last October.(Reuters)

Resistance against Turkish forces in Raqqa grows increasingly violent

Maghreb

Morocco's Foreign Affairs Minister Nasser Bourita attends a press conference in Rabat, January 24. (AFP)

Morocco adds Western Sahara waters to its maritime borders

Syria

Addressing risks. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks during the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, January 23. (AFP)

UN chief urges action to end Syria conflict, support rights

Travel

Extreme desert explorer Max Calderan warms up next to a fire in Abu Dhabi. (Caline Malek)

Trekking through the unbroken sea of sand in the Empty Quarter

Society

Women draped in the Lebanese national flag use their cell phones during a demonstration against tax increases and official corruption, in Zouk Mosbeh, north of Beirut. (AFP)

Alternative media online increasingly draws Lebanese youth audiences

Culture

The National Museum in Taiz after restoration. (Karen Dabrowska)

World Monuments Fund restores buildings in war-ravaged Yemen

Karen Dabrowska

Economy

Tourists take photos with camels on the beach at Jumeirah Beach Residence in Dubai. (Reuters)ua

Dubai announces record tourism arrivals in 2019

Culture

Attendees of “Baghdad Central” premiere at London’s British Film Institute. (Nazli Tarzi)

New thriller TV series features alternative portrait of Iraqi hero

East|West

Mohammad Abdulkarim Al-Issa (front), Secretary General of the Muslim World League leads prayers next to the memorial monument in the former German Nazi death camp Auschwitz-Birkenau, Poland, January 23. (AFP)

Muslim delegation takes part in visit to Auschwitz