Author: Steven Sahiounie

Steven Sahiounie, journalist and political commentator The US military has created a new base at Deir Ez Zor, in eastern Syria, after bringing in military supplies, the ‘Syrian Observatory for Human Rights’ (SOHR) reported on Friday. Massive reinforcements were observed in the al-Jazat area, just west of the oil-rich area of Deir Ez Zor.  Reports indicated some 300 trucks entered eastern Syria from western Iraq. 300 US military shipments reached al-Jazrat over the past few days, according to ‘SOHR’, based in the UK.  They further reported the US troops are expanding their base at the al-Omar oil field, to the…

The Saudi and UAE-backed forces in southern Yemen clashed on Monday, as tensions between the former allies continue to increase each day. According to reports from southern Yemen, the Saudi-backed Yemeni Army and UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council clashed inside the Shaqra area of the Abyan Governorate; this would result in casualties on both sides. For its part, Yemeni media sources stated that the Saud-backed forces entered the Abyan Governorate center at dawn on Monday and that the Southern Transitional Council forces withdrew. The Southern Transitional Council affirmed in a statement that the government forces launched an attack this morning against…

A video that has been widely shared on Twitter showed the moment and Iraqi Mi-171 helicopter fired on a vehicle carrying ISIS terrorists. The video shows a car passing on a bumpy road, while a helicopter is shooting at, and it stops shortly after being struck multiple times by the chopper’s machine gun.

The Libyan National Army (LNA) announced on May 10 that its units had eliminated a senior Turkish-backed Syrian commander. In a short statement, the army said that the commander, identified as Mohamed Hindawi, was killed in a special operation near the town of Ain Zara in the early hours of the morning. Ain Zara is located right to the south of the Libyan capital, Tripoli. The LNA’s media center released photos showing the dead body of Hindawi as well his military ID, which appears to be issued by Turkey. According to the LNA, Hindaw was commanding the 2nd Corps of Turkish-backed…

Washington may default on its debt obligations to China, as a form of “punishment” for the COVID-19 pandemic. In response, according to media reports, China – the second largest holder of US government debt – plans to throw a substantial amount of treasury bonds onto the market. If this indeed happens, economists are confident that this will inflict a crushing blow to the entire US securities market and the dollar. At the end of March, Senators Marsha Blackburn and Lindsay Graham demanded that Beijing be punished “for concealing information about the Wuhan outbreak that triggered a global health crisis.” In…

Saudi Arabia is set to suspend a cost-of-living allowance for state employees and increase value added tax (VAT), amid a slump in oil prices and the coronavirus crisis. “The cost of living allowance will be suspended as of June 1, and the value added tax will be increased to 15 percent from 5 percent as of July 1,” Finance Minister Mohammed Al Jadaan said on Monday. The 1000-riyal monthly allowance was granted in 2018 to compensate public sector employees for the rising cost of living after the government increased domestic gas prices and introduced value-added tax. “These measures are painful but…

Syria’s Foreign Ministry has denounced the recent marine incursion attempt into Venezuela, saying the failed operation was part of Washington’s conspiracy against the Latin American country. An official source at Syria’s Foreign Ministry said on Monday that such hostile conduct is part of the conspiracy against Venezuela’s sovereignty practiced by the White House’s mercenaries there. The unnamed source reiterated Syria’s solidarity with Venezuela and the legitimate government of President Nicolas Maduro. On May 3, a group of US-backed mercenaries attempted to intrude into the northern state of La Guaira on boats, but Venezuelan authorities foiled the attack — which was launched from…

The total number of the novel coronavirus cases within the six Persian Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries has passed the 100,000 mark, with 557 deaths, according to a Reuters tally. Saudi Arabia, the worst-hit country by the pandemic, reported 1,966 new cases and nine new deaths on Monday. The kingdom, which has the highest count at 41,014 infections and 255 deaths, has already halted international flights, suspended the year-round ‘Umrah’ pilgrimage, closed most public places, and heavily restricted internal movement. The daily number of new cases in Saudi Arabia first crossed the 1,000 threshold on April 18. Saudi Health Minister…

According to the April deal, OPEC+ nations will cut production by 9.7 million barrels per day from May-June. Output will be reduced by 7.7 million barrels from July until the end of 2020, and by 5.8 million barrels per day from January 2021 to April 2022. The Saudi Arabian Energy Ministry has instructed state oil giant Aramco to reduce crude oil output in June by a further one million barrels per day above the planned reductions agreed in the April 12 OPEC+ deal, the state-run Saudi Press Agency said Monday citing a ministry official. According to the agency, the decision will…

Brussels diplomats said the EU had now accepted that it is unlikely the UK will request an extension on the post-Brexit transition period, despite the risk of Britain crashing out of the single market and customs union without a trade agreement. Talks between the UK and Brussels on a post-Brexit trade deal resumed on Monday with both sides far apart on key issues but under pressure to make progress ahead of an EU-UK summit next month. Although the coronavirus pandemic has slowed down negotiations, Boris Johnson’s government has said they will not agree to an extension to the transition period due to…