Middle East

‘This is a crisis of national identity,’ Lebanese minister tells FRANCE 24

A day after Lebanese prime minister Saad Hariri unexpectedly resigned saying he feared for his life, Education Minister Marwan Hamade told FRANCE 24 his country is facing an identity crisis, caught between Saudi Arabia and Iran. In announcing his resignation on Saturday from the Saudi capital Riyadh, Hariri accused Iran and Hezbollah – Tehran’s ally […]

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Middle East

IDF says it has the bodies of 5 terrorists buried in Gaza tunnel demolition

By Judah Ari Gross Israel has recovered the bodies of five Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorists that were buried when the army destroyed a Gazan attack tunnel that crossed into Israeli territory last week, the IDF announced on Sunday. “During the past few days, the Southern Command and Gaza Division have been operating to finalize the

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Middle East

Saudi Arabia arrests princes, ministers in sweeping purge

Saudi Arabia arrested 11 princes, including a prominent billionaire, and dozens of current and former ministers, reports said, in a sweeping crackdown as the kingdom’s young crown prince consolidates power. Separately, the head of the Saudi National Guard, once a leading contender to the throne, as well as the navy chief and the economy minister

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Middle East

Watch: Jewish and Muslim medics pray together in Jerusalem

[youtube:2034655] On Thursday evening two emergency response dispatchers from United Hatzalah went on their shift break and took time out to pray in the break-room. Both responders prayed their evening prayers but they were of two different religions. Working side by side as dispatchers, helping volunteers of all religions save the lives of all people

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Middle East

Israeli envoy slams UNESCO as ‘Titanic of international organizations’

By Raphael Ahren UNESCO is “the Titanic of international organizations,” Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization said, accusing it of deliberately falsifying history to persecute the Jewish people. In a scathing speech Friday to UNESCO’s 39th General Conference in Paris, Carmel Shama-Hacohen also slammed the United Arab Emirates for having

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International, Middle East

Will PA sue Britain?

Pro-Palestinian Arab experts on international law support legal proceedings against Britain for its responsibility for the “occupation of Palestine” and the commitment to establish a national homeland for the Jewish people in Palestine based on the 1917 Balfour Declaration. Mohammad Jamil, head of the Arab Organization for Human Rights, told the Hamas-affiliated newspaper Palestine that

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International, Middle East

President Rivlin heads to Spain to mark 30 years of diplomacy

President Reuven and First Lady Nechama Rivlin is to depart this morning, Sunday, for a State Visit to Spain at the invitation of King Felipe VI. During the visit, which will mark 30 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries, the President will also mark 100 years since the reestablishment of the Jewish community

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International, Middle East

Netanyahu in London meets with UK Jewish leaders to mark Balfour centenary

By TOI staff Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met Sunday with British Jewish leaders in London at the tail end of his visit to mark the 100th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration, telling them the histories of Britain and Israel were intertwined. Accompanied by his wife, Sara Netanyahu, Culture Minister Miri Regev, and Israel’s Ambassador to

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International, Middle East

Thousands of pro-Palestinians march in London against Balfour

By TOI staff Several thousand pro-Palestinians marched through the streets of London on Saturday to protest the centenary of the historic Balfour Declaration that helped lead to the creation of the Jewish state. The marchers held signs reading “Free Palestine” and Justice for Palestine,” while they chanted “Free, Free Palestine and “Occupation no more.” There

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International, Jewish History, Middle East

JEA campaign to revamp old buildings in Jerusalem returns for sixth year

AMMAN — The Jordan Engineers Association (JEA) has continued organising its annual fundraising campaign aimed at revamping old houses and schools in Jerusalem for the sixth year. Bader Naser, the campaign chief, said that Jordanian donors took part in the campaign with “great enthusiasm”, especially on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Balfour

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Middle East

Iran marks 1979 US Embassy takeover with ‘Down With America’ signs, and a missile

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran on Saturday held the heavily choreographed pageant of anti-Americanism that marks the anniversary of the 1979 takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran amid worsening relations with the Trump administration and uncertainty about the fate of its nuclear agreement with world powers. This year’s anniversary was commemorated under cloudy, polluted skies

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Middle East, USA

Saudi Crown Prince Tackles Extremism on the Road to Social, Economic Reform

The recent flurry of social and economic reform coming out of Saudi Arabia has left some Saudis ecstatic, others more circumspect, and a few conservatives bewildered or even angry. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman told a crowd of investors at a conference in late October that he was merely attempting to “return Saudi Arabia

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Middle East

Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri announces surprise resignation

Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri announced his resignation on Saturday, citing Iran’s “grip” on the country and threats to his life. The surprise move risks plunging the small and already fragile Middle Eastern country deeper into turmoil. “I announce my resignation from the post of prime minister,” Hariri said in a speech broadcast from Saudi

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Middle East