Author: Steven Sahiounie

The US Embassy in Libya welcomes the assurance of Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, the head of the Libyan National Army (LNA), that the energy sector in the country would reopen no later than 12 September. “As responsible Libyan parties come together in UN-facilitated peaceful dialogue, the U.S. Embassy is encouraged by an apparent sovereign Libyan agreement to enable the National Oil Corporation (NOC) to resume its vital and apolitical work,” the embassy said in a Saturday statement. According to the release, in an exchange of letters between US Ambassador to Libya Richard Norland and head of the LNA, Norland stressed US support…

Israel and Bahrain have agreed to establish diplomatic ties, less than a month after the United Arab Emirates did so under a peace deal brokered by the United States earlier in August. The move drew condemnation from Iran and the Palestinians. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) warned that Bahrain could face “harsh revenge” from its own people along with the Palestinians, after the kingdom decided to normalize relations with Israel. “The executioner ruler of Bahrain should await the harsh revenge of the Mujahideen (Islamic fighters) aiming to liberate Quds (Jerusalem) and the proud Muslim nation of this country”, the IRGC…

On 11 September, the Kingdom of Bahrain has reportedly agreed to a peace deal with Israel, becoming the fourth Arab country to formally recognise the Jewish state and the second in the last 30 days. International observers have discussed the new announcement as well as its potential impact on the 2020 presidential race in the US. A joint statement by the US, Israel and Bahrain hailed the development as highly positive, while Palestinian Arabs, the Islamic Republic of Iran, and Turkey condemned the agreement, reiterating that the Gulf nations’ reconciliation with the Jewish state is upending the Palestinian cause. Earlier, on…

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo expressed concerns over tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean during his Saturday visit to Cyprus. “We remain deeply concerned by Turkey’s ongoing operations surveying for natural resources in areas over which Greece and Cyprus assert jurisdiction in the Eastern Mediterranean. The Republic of Cyprus has the right to exploit its natural resources, including the right to hydrocarbons found in its territorial sea and its economic – exclusive economic zone”, Pompeo said, as quoted by the US State Department. Pompeo stressed that regional cooperation is essential for energy security in the Eastern Mediterranean. “We also believe that the…

by Ekaterina Blinova A draft of an economic and security deal between the People’s Republic of China and the Islamic Republic of Iran previously leaked by The New York Times is continuing to reverberate in the international media. Iranian political analyst Mahan Abedin has explained the fuss over the accords and shed light on Iran’s strategic shift towards the East. The 18-page Persian-language document envisages multi-billion-dollar Chinese investments in the Iranian economy as well as considerable oil discounts for the People’s Republic. The agreement also includes security cooperation, intelligence sharing, and joint military drills. Commenting on the leak, Iran’s Foreign Minister…

President Donald Trump has issued a joint statement by the United States, Israel and Bahrain announcing Tel Aviv and Manama’s intention to establish full diplomatic relations.“Another HISTORIC breakthrough today! our two GREAT friends Israel and the Kingdom of Bahrain agree to a Peace Deal – the second Arab country to make peace with Israel in 30 days!” Trump wrote in a tweet accompanying the statement. As per the statement, Israel and Bahrain agreed to normalize ties following a telephone conversation between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Bahraini King Hamad bin Isa bin Salman al-Khalifa and Donald Trump.“King Hamad and Prime…

Two explosions took the lives of four Syrians, three women and an old man, while seriously injuring five others and left considerable material damage in the city of Ras Al-Ayn, Hasakah countryside, northern Syria. The first explosion took place when an IED (Improvised Explosive Device) was detonated in ‘Abbara Haj Wasfi’, a market of shops opposite the main post office on the city’s main road. The second explosion took place in the chicken meat market, opposite the main bakery, a booby-trapped motorcycle was detonated. No casualties in the second explosion which left material damage. Exchanged bombing between terrorists loyal to the…

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday, that European countries will try to work to reach a unified policy on Turkey, pointing to the need to take a strict approach against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in light of the escalating tensions in the eastern Mediterranean.Macron stated during a press conference in Ajaccio, on the southern island of Corsica, that “work will be done to reach a unified European policy on Turkey,” adding that there is a desire to “avoid escalation.”The French President also stressed, in light of tension with Ankara, that his goal “is to reactivate an effective dialogue…

The Iranian army said that it issued warnings to U.S. drones that approached the area of ​​maneuvers being conducted east of the Strait of Hormuz, the Sea of ​​Oman and the northern part of Indian Ocean, stressing that they turned away after receiving the warnings.Shahram Irani, the spokesman for the “Zulfiqar 99” maneuvers, which began on Thursday morning, said that the army’s air defense forces issued warnings to foreign planes and asked them to stay away from the general area for the exercises.He said that a change in the behavior of the U.S. drones has been observed since yesterday, noting…

Lebanese President Michel Aoun said that the Beirut Port fire that broke out on Thursday, may be an act of  sabotage or the result of a technical error, ignorance or negligence, stressing the need to know the cause as soon as possible and to hold the perpetrators accountable.“It is no longer acceptable for errors of any kind that lead to such a fire, especially after the disaster caused by the first fire,” he said at the start of the Supreme Defense Council session to discuss the issue of the port fire.The Lebanese President indicated that the work today must focus…