Egypt’s el-Sisi elected new chairman of African Union
Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi has been elected chairman of the African Union at the continental body’s summit in Ethiopia.
World Headlines
US-backed fighters close in on last IS-held village in Syria
A spokesman for U.S.-backed Syrian forces says they have captured 41 positions held by Islamic State group militants and destroyed their fortifications in the last tiny pocket they hold in eastern Syria.
House Democrats advance bill to shut down U.S. role in Saudi-Yemen war
A key House panel on Wednesday moved to block any U.S. military support for the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen, in the first move by the new House Democratic majority to challenge President Trump’s close alliance with Riyadh.
Moscow Says New Missile Systems Planned To Counter U.S. By 2021
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu says Moscow will push to develop two new land-based missile systems before 2021 in response to Washington’s planned exit from a landmark nuclear arms control agreement.
Russia reiterates support for Nicolas Maduro by sending 400 military contractors to Venezuela
Russia is playing a high-stakes game in the mounting crisis in Venezuela, where socialist President Nicolas Maduro has been mortgaging part of the country’s oil resources in exchange for financial and military support from Moscow.
Trump says U.S. military intervention in Venezuela ‘an option;’ Russia objects
U.S. President Donald Trump said military intervention in Venezuela was ‘an option’ as Western nations boost pressure on socialist leader Nicolas Maduro to step down, while the troubled OPEC nation’s ally Russia warned against ‘destructive meddling.’
Iran says new cruise missile successfully fired on revolution’s 40th anniversary
Iran on Saturday said it had successfully fired a new long-range cruise missile, amid events marking 40 years since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Iran controls new Lebanese government, Netanyahu tells visiting UN envoys
Iran controls the new Lebanese government via its proxy Hezbollah group, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday, in his first public comments on the government formed in Beirut last week.
Report: Hezbollah terror group in midst of deep economic crisis
Are U.S. sanctions beginning to have an impact on Hezbollah? Sky News Arabia has reported that the Shiite terrorist organization has postponed a number of payments, including to Hezbollah members as a result of financial difficulties.
Nearly all of Iran’s advanced nuke centrifuges failing, top expert reveals
Nearly all of Iran’s advanced centrifuges used for enriching uranium potentially towards a nuclear bomb are failing, one of the world’s leading nuclear weapons experts revealed to The Jerusalem Post this week.
Iran general says Tehran aims to wipe Israel off the ‘global political map’
he deputy head of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said Monday that Tehran’s strategy was to eventually wipe Israel off the ‘global political map.’
Top Saudi official: Barack Obama lied, set Middle East back 20 years
Former US president Barack Obama lied to Saudi Arabia when violating the redlines he famously declared regarding Syria’s use of chemical weapons and then not acting when they were used, a former senior Saudi official said in an interview with Independent Arabia.
EU rejects fresh Brexit negotiations
European leaders stood firm late Tuesday after the British parliament voted to send Prime Minister Theresa May back to Brussels to renegotiate the EU-backed withdrawal agreement.
US spy agencies doubt North Korea will give up its nukes
In an assessment casting doubt on US President Donald Trump’s goal of a nuclear-disarmed North Korea, US intelligence agencies told Congress on Tuesday that the North is unlikely to entirely dismantle its nuclear arsenal.
Brexit: Britain faces ‘accidental’ no-deal, EU warns
Britain risks an accidental crash-out of the EU, warned the deputy to EU Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier on Monday. In some of her toughest remarks, Sabine Weyand slammed Prime Minister Theresa May’s handling of the divorce talks.
Trump warns Europeans not to try to evade Iran sanctions
The Trump administration is closely eyeing efforts in Europe to set up an alternative money payment channel to ease doing business with Iran and avoid running afoul of sanctions the US has levied on the Islamic Republic.
US calls to ‘stand with freedom’ in Venezuela as EU gives ultimatum
The United States pressed all nations on Saturday (Jan 26) to “stand with the forces of freedom” in Venezuela, encouraged by a tougher European line as Russia stood in the minority in backing embattled leader Nicolas Maduro.
Russian bombers buzz North American coastline
A pair of Russian supersonic, nuclear-capable bombers buzzed North America Saturday, forcing American and Canadian fighter jets to scramble and intercept them, the U.S. military said.
Satellite images appear to show Saudi Arabia working on ballistic missile program
Newly analyzed satellite imagery may suggest that Saudi Arabia is advancing its ballistic missile development at a suspected testing facility in the country’s center.
U.S. sanctions hit Iran-backed airlines, fighters in Syria
The United States on Thursday targeted two Iran-backed foreign fighter militias in Syria and two airlines that help send weapons to Syria in fresh sanctions as Washington prepares for a military withdrawal from the war-torn country.