Middle East

Israel Deploys Army to Control Huge Fire Near Jerusalem
Israel Deploys Army to Control Huge Fire Near Jerusalem

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz ordered troops to deploy on Wednesday to support firefighters battling rapidly spreading wildfires near Jerusalem, calling the situation a "national emergency". The country's Magen David Adom rescue agency reported hundreds of civilians were currently at risk from the fires. At least 23 people ...

16 Killed as Sectarian Clashes Near Damascus Spread: Authorities, Monitor
16 Killed as Sectarian Clashes Near Damascus Spread: Authorities, Monitor

Sectarian clashes between forces linked to Syria's new authorities and Druze fighters spread overnight near Damascus, leaving 16 people dead, state media and a monitor said Wednesday. The expanding violence is a major challenge to the Islamist authorities who overthrew longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December and comes after sectarian massacres ...

Joumblatt Steps In to End Deadly Clashes Near Damascus as Israel Strikes Syria
Joumblatt Steps In to End Deadly Clashes Near Damascus as Israel Strikes Syria

A ceasefire between gunmen linked to Syrian authorities and Druze fighters was reportedly reached on Wednesday, following intensive mediation by former Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) leader Walid Joumblatt. The effort involved contacts with the new Syrian administration, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Jordan, according to al-Markazia news ...

Shaken Baby Syndrome: A Devastating Form of Abuse
SpotlightShaken Baby Syndrome: A Devastating Form of Abuse

Shaken baby syndrome (SBS) is one of the most extreme and tragic forms of child abuse worldwide. Often triggered by a moment of anger or helplessness in response to persistent crying, a single violent shake can cause catastrophic brain injuries in infants – altering the course of a life before it has even begun. Behind this tragic reality lies a ...

UAE Says Foils Bid to Transfer Weapons to Sudan Army
UAE Says Foils Bid to Transfer Weapons to Sudan Army

The United Arab Emirates said Wednesday it had foiled a weapons shipment intended for the Sudanese army, which has accused the Gulf state of backing rival paramilitaries in the country's two-year war. "The security services succeeded in preventing the transfer of a quantity of military equipment to the Sudanese Armed Forces following the arrest ...

Swiss Ban on Hamas Comes Into Force May 15
Swiss Ban on Hamas Comes Into Force May 15

A Swiss ban on the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas will come into force on May 15, the federal government said Wednesday following a parliamentary vote at the end of 2024. The government's political and security committees submitted a motion to ban Hamas in October 2023, after the group's deadly attack on Israel that month, said a government ...

Khartoum in Ruins: A Capital Torn by War
Khartoum in Ruins: A Capital Torn by War

Shattered walls and bullet-riddled buildings dominate central Khartoum, where hospitals, markets and key institutions lie in ruins after months of fierce urban combat.

Iran Says Next Nuclear Talks With US Set for Saturday in Rome
Iran Says Next Nuclear Talks With US Set for Saturday in Rome

Iran and the United States will hold a fourth round of talks on the Islamic republic's nuclear programme in Rome on Saturday, Iran's foreign minister said. The longtime adversaries have held three rounds of talks aiming for a deal on the programme, which the West believes is intended to develop nuclear weapons -- an allegation Tehran denies. The ...

Pakistan Says India Planning Strike as Tensions Soar Over Kashmir
Pakistan Says India Planning Strike as Tensions Soar Over Kashmir

Pakistan said on Wednesday it had "credible intelligence" that India was planning an imminent military strike and vowed to retaliate, as worries of spiralling conflict grew over a deadly attack in Kashmir. Relations between the nuclear-armed neighbours have plummeted since New Delhi blamed its arch-rival Pakistan for last week's ...

Iran Blasts French ‘Threats’ of New Sanctions
Iran Blasts French ‘Threats’ of New Sanctions

Iran's UN mission has slammed "threats" by France to reimpose sanctions lifted under a landmark 2015 deal on Tehran's nuclear programme, media in the Islamic republic reported on Wednesday. France on Monday said that along with Germany and Britain, it "will not hesitate for a single second to reapply all the sanctions" scrapped a decade ago if ...

Pietro Parolin, Career Diplomat Leading Race to be Pope
PortraitPietro Parolin, Career Diplomat Leading Race to be Pope

A seasoned diplomat who worked with Pope Francis for 12 years, Cardinal Pietro Parolin is well-known in Rome and abroad, and a serious contender to be the next pontiff. The 70-year-old Italian was Secretary of State -- the Vatican's effective number two -- for almost the entire Francis pontificate, and its most visible exponent on the world ...

Filipino Cardinal, the ‘Asian Francis’, Is Papal Contender
Filipino Cardinal, the ‘Asian Francis’, Is Papal Contender

Asia's front-runner for the papacy, Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle of the Philippines is a charismatic moderate often dubbed the "Asian Francis". Tagle, 67, who shares with Pope Francis a history of advocating for the poor, migrants and other marginalized people, is known for his missionary spirit and pastoral focus. Wearing glasses ...