middle-east - INTERNATIONAL AGENCY FOR JOURNALISM AND STRATEGIC STUDIES

Coronavirus: 6,000 people infected in Middle East

The coronavirus continued to cause alarm in the Middle East with new deaths and infections reported across the region, and with countries taking a raft of measures to control the spread of the highly contagious disease. ...

UN food agency welcomes agreement on Idlib ceasefire

The UN World Food Program on Friday welcomed Turkey and Russia’s agreement on a cease-fire in Syria’s Idlib province. ...

Suicide bomber targets US Embassy in Tunisia

At least one militant on a motorbike blew himself up outside the US embassy in Tunisia today, wounding police officers, witnesses said, in the country’s most serious attack in months, Reuters reported. ...

Lebanon’s state prosecutor blocks decision to freeze bank assets

Lebanon’s state prosecutor Ghassan Oueidat suspended the order to freeze the assets of 21 Lebanese banks, their CEOs and board members, late yesterday. ...

US defence chief says discussed Syria with NATO head

US Secretary of Defense Mark Esper said Monday he has discussed the situation in Syria with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg amid increased hostilities in the country’s northwest. ...

Iraq confirms 5 new coronavirus cases

Iraq has detected five new cases of coronavirus, four in Baghdad and one in Babel province, the Health Ministry said on Saturday, taking the total number of cases in the country to 13, reported Reuters. ...

Iran's death toll from coronavirus jumps to 54, with 978 infected

Iran’s death toll from the new coronavirus has reached 54, Health Ministry spokesman Kianush Jahanpur told state TV, adding the number of those infected had reached 978, reports Reuters. ...

Syria war: Alarm after 33 Turkish soldiers killed in attack in Idlib

At least 33 Turkish soldiers have died in a Syrian government attack in opposition-held north-western Syria, in a major escalation of the conflict. ...

Iraq files complaint against PM-designate over bribery allegations

The Iraqi Parliament has filed an official complaint with the country’s public prosecutor against Prime Minister-designate Muhammad Tawfiq Allawi after he accused lawmakers of receiving bribes in order to “thwart his government”. ...

Iraq parliament postpones vote on new government

The Iraqi parliament has postponed by two days a vote scheduled yesterday to grant confidence to the new cabinet of Prime Minister-designate Mohammad Allawi. ...

Coronavirus: Iran's deputy health minister tests positive as outbreak worsens

Iran's deputy health minister and an MP have both tested positive for the new coronavirus disease, as it struggles to contain an outbreak that has killed 15. ...

50 dead as coronavirus hits Iran’s Qom

Fifty people have died in the Iranian city of Qom from the new strain of the coronavirus so far this month, Iran’s news agency ILNA reported today. ...

Lebanon reduces flights, blames Iran for coronavirus spread

Lebanon has officially reduced the number of flights to and from coronavirus infected countries, after some blamed Iran for its first case of the virus. ...

Sudan: Authorities launch investigation into Thursday’s clashes

The Sudanese Public Prosecution opened an investigation on Friday into the clashes that broke out between police forces and protesters on Thursday in the capital of Khartoum, after the police fired tear gas to disperse the demonstrators who demanded restructuring the armed forces and reintegrating the dismissed pro-revolution officers. The clashes resulted in the injuries of 53 demonstrators. ...