Middle-East
Iraqi forces fire tear gas after 42 died in day of violence
Baghdad, Oct 26 (AP/UNB) — Iraqi security forces fired tear gas on Saturday to push back protesters who tried to remove blast walls erected on a bridge in central Baghdad to prevent anti-government rallies from reaching a heavily fortified government area, a day after violence claimed 42 lives.
Esper: US troops, armored vehicles going to Syria oil fields
Brussels, Oct 26 (AP/UNB) — The United States will send armored vehicles and combat troops into eastern Syria to keep oil fields from potentially falling into the hands of Islamic State militants, U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said.
Official: Death toll climbs to 42 in Friday protests in Iraq
Baghdad, Oct 26 (AP/UNB) — The death toll from protests in Iraq has climbed to 42 after a senior government official in the country's south said 12 protesters died in a fire they started while storming the office of powerful militia during a rally there a day earlier.
Lebanese army removes some roadblocks in nationwide protests
Beirut, Oct 26 (AP/UNB) — Lebanon's army on Saturday removed roadblocks set up by protesters in at least one critical juncture linking Beirut to the suburbs and the country's east amid a nationwide wave of protests, including a campaign of civil disobedience.
Afghan forces recapture northern district in Afghanistan
Taluqan, Oct 25 (Xinhua/UNB) -- Afghan security forces have recaptured Darqad district in Afghanistan's northern Takhar province and Taliban militants fled the area after suffering casualties, an army statement said here Friday.
Secret synagogue in Dubai prays for Persian Gulf revival
Dubai, Oct 25 (AP/UNB) — In an unmarked villa, nestled amid homes in an upscale Dubai neighborhood, a congregation prays in the first fully functioning synagogue in the Arabian Peninsula in decades.
Saudi Arabia's king names prince as new foreign minister
Dubai, Oct 24 (AP/UNB) — Saudi King Salman has named a new foreign minister for the kingdom amid a series of royal orders.
Iraq official: US troops from Syria to leave Iraq in 4 weeks
Baghdad, Oct 23 (AP/UNB) — U.S troops withdrawing from northeastern Syria to Iraq are "transiting" and will leave the country within four weeks, Iraq's defense minister said Wednesday.
Former top general gets a shot at forming Israeli government
Jerusalem, Oct 23 (AP/UNB) — Israel's former military chief Benny Gantz is set to receive an official mandate to form the country's next government but has few options after last month's elections left him in a near tie with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Erdogan assured by Putin on Syrian Kurds
Beirut, Oct 23 (AP/UNB) — Turkish media quote President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as saying that Turkey will resume its offensive in northeastern Syria if neither Russia nor the U.S. ensure that Syrian Kurdish fighters completely pull out of the region along Turkey's border.