Author: Steven Sahiounie

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif is in Turkey on a working visit to discuss, among other things, breathing a new life into the two countries’ trade ties that have been hit hard by the new coronavirus’ pandemic. “The countries’ ties are close in various areas. During my trip to Turkey, we will talk with the country’s authorities about the resumption of economic relations following the coronavirus,” he said upon landing in Ankara. The volume of trade exchanges between Iran and Turkey declined significantly in the first quarter of 2020 amid the viral spread and the United States’ illegal sanctions targeting the…

Afghanistan’s government and Taliban have agreed to hold their first high-level meeting in a long-awaited peace process in Qatar. Both sides announced on Sunday that the talks — known as the intra-Afghan dialog — will be held in the Qatari capital Doha, where Taliban reached a peace agreement with the US earlier this year before engaging in the political process with Kabul. No date has been announced for the meeting, but it is expected to take place within one week after the release by the Afghan government of 5,000 Taliban prisoners. Kabul has already released 3,000 prisoners under the agreement…

Turkey is reportedly planning to set up two permanent military bases in Libya following the Tripoli government’s operation to retake areas seized by rebel forces under the command of renegade general Khalifa Haftar. Citing military sources, Turkish newspaper Yeni Safak, reported earlier this week that Ankara was planning to set up a military base in the strategic Misrata port and also use the al-Watiya airbase, located south of the Libyan capital, Tripoli. The report added that the Misrata facility would serve as a naval base with permanent assault and reconnaissance capabilities, where auxiliary aircraft could be stored. Tripoli, it added, would…

A report says the United Arab Emirates has allegedly provided financial support to the anti-Turkey PKK militant group in Iraq’s northern semi-autonomous Kurdistan region. A security source at the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) told the London-based al-Araby al-Jadeed newspaper that the authorities had imposed limitations on money transfers coming from the UAE. The source said any money transfers exceeding $1,000 coming from the UAE to the region’s foreign exchange companies and banks required a “proof of approval” from security authorities. The move comes amid reports that the UAE has provided financial support to anti-Turkey Kurdish militants in recent months. The source,…

Turkish occupation mercenary groups on Sunday set fires to large areas of wheat and barley fields in Abu Rasin town in Hasaka northern countryside. Civil sources told SANA reporter that Turkish occupation and its mercenaries of terrorist organizations set fires to large areas of the cultivated fields with wheat and barley affiliated to Tal Ward and Rabba’at villages in Abu Rasin town. The sources pointed out that fires extended to large areas and reached the houses of people near al-Aresha where the Turkish occupation forces are positioned in Ras al-Ayn countryside in south west of Hasaka.

The United States has confirmed its plans to further decrease the number of servicemen deployed to Iraq, the joint statement of the governments of the United States and Iraq said. “On the security partnership, the two countries recognised that in light of significant progress towards eliminating the Daesh* threat, over the coming months the US would continue reducing forces from Iraq and discuss with the Government of Iraq the status of remaining forces as both countries turn their focus towards developing a bilateral security relationship based on strong mutual interests. The United States reiterated that it does not seek nor request permanent…

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani called on South Korea on Friday to release billions of dollars of Iran’s oil-export revenue that was blocked by Korean banks after Washington imposed sanctions on Tehran, the presidential press service said in a statement, adding that the frozen funds were needed to counter the COVID-19 pandemic. Rouhani held a telephone conversation with the head of the Central Bank of Iran (CBI), Abdolnaser Hemmati, urging him to pursue the case of freeing the Iranian assets. “South Korea’s ban on Iran’s use of central bank resources to buy basic goods, medicine, and humanitarian items is not acceptable…

In March, more than 15 medium-sized missiles hit the Taji base. Three soldiers died and 12 more were injured as a result of the attack. A rocket has hit Iraq’s Taji military base which hosts the US-led coalition forces, according to Al-Arabiya TV channel. No injuries or damage have so far been reported. Last time the Taji military base came under attack was in March when three soldiers were killed and 12 more injured after 15 medium-sized missiles hit the base. Following the attack, the US carried out precise attacks on five munition depots owned by the Shiite ‘Kataib Hezbollah’ network in Iraq. Six…

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune is holding a meeting with Aguila Saleh, the speaker of Libya’s eastern-based parliament, the presidential office said on Saturday. The visit takes place after the Algerian leader announced that his country was ready to host intra-Lybian talks to settle the longstanding conflict. “President Abdelmadjid Tebboune is currently receiving the head of the Libyan House of Representatives, Aguila Saleh, and his delegation”, the office said. Last week, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Sisi announced the roadmap for Libyan peace after a meeting in Cairo with Saleh and its ally, Head of the Libyan National Army Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar. The…

Overnight clashes between protesters and army personnel in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli have left 76 people injured with 16 requiring hospital visits, state news agency NNA reported Sunday morning. According to the agency, continuous unrest in Lebanon’s second-largest city started when protesters began vandalizing stores and hurling what appeared to be Molotov cocktails at the government building, prompting the army to intervene. The army had regained full control by Sunday morning but several facilities were destroyed, the agency reported. Unrest across Lebanon returned earlier this week on the back of a plunging currency and a deteriorating economic situation. The…