Author: Steven Sahiounie

The United States has recovered the remains of individuals from a US military aircraft that crashed in Afghanistan. On Monday, the US military said an E-11A jet, built by Bombardier Inc, had crashed in the province of Ghazni in an area controlled largely by the Taliban militant group. Taliban claim responsibility for downing ‘US aircraft’ in Afghanistan’s GhazniA plane goes down in eastern Afghanistan, Taliban claim have shot down a US military aircraft. US and Afghan officials told Reuters on Tuesday that the Americans were in the process of confirming the identities of two US service members who were on the plane…

Just as US President Donald Trump is taking time off his controversial impeachment trial to unveil his much hyped-up peace plan for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, a potentially explosive situation is unfolding in Palestinian territories where there is huge resentment among the leadership and the people towards the so-called ‘deal of the century.’ Palestinians argue that one primary flaw of Trump’s deal is that despite presumably offering a recipe for peace between Israelis and Palestinians, it totally excludes and sidelines them, as one side of any mutual agreement. Palestinians view the deal as Washington’s seal of approval for Israel’s long-desired annexation…

The US military has acknowledged the loss of a Bombardier/Northrop Grumman E-11A plane in central Afghanistan. They added that they have not found any “indication” that the aircraft was downed. The aircraft crashed in Ghazni city area on Monday. An investigation into the incident is underway and the military will provide further information when its available, a spokesman for the US force in Afghanistan, Col. Sonny Leggett has tweeted. The official also dismissed Taliban claims that another aircraft had crashed in the country, describing them as “false.” Earlier in the day, the Taliban said that a military helicopter went down…

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani says bilateral relations between Iran and Russia are rapidly advancing despite the will and intention of the United States. Rouhani made the remark in a meeting with the visiting chairman of Russia’s State Duma Vyacheslav Volodin in Tehran on Monday. “I stand assured that in spite of Washington’s pressures on the region and Iran in particular, the two countries will expand their relations more than ever before regardless of the White House’s will and intention,” Rouhani said. Underlining that Iran is by no way interested in the spread of tensions across the region, Rouhani said, “Regional…

By: Mohammed al-Attab Just days after Saudi-backed forces failed in their attempt to advance towards the Yemeni capital Sana’a, Ansarullah fighters and their allies took the battle to the strongholds of the invading forces. Videos have emerged showing the Yemeni forces taking control of large areas in Nihm district in Sana’a Province and Al Jawf Province. The troops also took control of two military camps from forces loyal to the former government in Ma’rib province. Such gains were highlighted in a meeting between members of Yemen’s consultative council and tribal leaders of Ma’rib. Ansarullah forces are pushing forward with their…

In December last year, media reported that terrorists had carried out three simultaneous attacks on an oil refinery in Homs, a gas factory, and an Al-Rayan gas station in the central part of the country, causing damage to production units. Terrorists have attacked oil storage tanks in Baniyas, Syria, setting off pre-installed explosives, SANA reported, citing the country’s Petroleum Ministry. The news of the attack comes after media reported, citing the Petroleum Ministry, that terrorists targeted energy facilities in central Syria on 21 December. Prior to this, a US military base at the al-Omar oil field in the south-eastern Syrian province of…

According to data released by the US Air Forces Central Command (AFCENT) on Monday, the US dropped more bombs and other munitions on Afghanistan in 2019 than in any year since records began in 2006. This follows news that the same was true of Somalia last year. New data published by AFCENT shows that US aircraft deployed 7,423 munitions against targets in Afghanistan in 2019 – more than any year since 2006. The data further shows that Operation Freedom’s Sentinel/Resolute Support Mission aircraft flew 8,773 missions in 2019, with 2,434 of them resulting in a weapons release. The figures include bomb…

The Palestinian leadership will hold an emergency meeting to formulate a response to a forthcoming US Middle East peace plan expected to be announced on Tuesday, chief negotiator Saeb Erekat said. “We’ll have an emergency meeting tomorrow. Our answer will be immediately after we hear what [US President Donald] Trump will say and what [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu will say,” Erekat said on Monday. Trump announced that he would unveil on Tuesday a long-awaited initiative to reconcile Israel with the Palestinians, dubbed by Washington as the “deal of the century,” in an attempt to remove a major stumbling block on…

Late on Sunday night, several projectiles landed next to the ‘green zone’ in the Iraqi capital city of Baghdad, where the US embassy and various Iraqi government buildings are located. The attack occurred less than a week after a previous shelling hit the heavily-fortified area. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in a Monday phone call with Iraqi Prime Minister Adil Abd al-Mahdi said that Sunday’s attack resulted in one injury and expressed “outrage at the continued assaults by Iran’s armed groups against US facilities in Iraq”, according to a statement issued by US Department of State. “The Secretary underlined once again…

Steven Sahiounie, political commentator The Middle East was recently brought to the brink of a regional war, if not a world war. Few analysts compare to Sabtain Ahmed Dar, a Pakistani geopolitical analyst, and expert on the Middle East. He is an author of two theses; “The Clash of Islam and Zionism” and “Pakistan and Global Game for a New World Order”. I reached out to him for understanding in this interview of timely importance. Steven Sahiounie: In your opinion, why did the Trump administration kill General Soleimani at this time? Sabtain Ahmed Dar: Firstly, the timing of the incident…