Author: Steven Sahiounie

Russian authorities say they have missed a target for curbing daily production of oil set by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allied producers, a grouping known as OPEC+, citing preparations for winter months as a main reason. Russian news agencies said on Sunday that output in September stood at 11.25 million barrels per day (bpd), down from 11.29 million bpd reported in August but above the target defined by OPEC+ which requires Moscow to decrease production by 228,000 bpd from an October 2018 baseline. Authorities said missing the target was mainly because of an increase in the…

At least five civilians have been killed when Saudi military aircraft carried out airstrikes in Yemen’s mountainous northern province of Sa’ada as the Riyadh regime presses ahead with its atrocious bombardment campaign against its crisis-hit southern neighbor. Saudi fighter jets conducted an aerial assault against a car as it was traveling along a road in the Kitaf wa Al Boqe’e district of the province on Monday evening, claiming the lives of four people, Yemen’s Arabic-language al-Masirah television network reported. The report added that the fallen victims were all members of the same family, and that there were a child and…

Arrests of foreign terrorists were unprotected due to the Turkish military operation in Syria. That could trigger a wave of terrorist migration to their home countries, warned Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. Turkey launched an offensive in northern Syria on 9 October to combat Kurdish militias on the Turkish border and establish a safe area in the north-east of the Arab country to accommodate thousands of refugees. On October 17, Turkey and the US celebrated a 120-hour ceasefire in Syria for Syrian Kurds to withdraw their forces 30 kilometers from the Turkish border. “The actions of the Turkish army have…

Washington and Seoul must produce new solutions for the current standoff on the Korean Peninsula, a senior North Korean military official said on Monday, adding that that “hostile policies” towards Pyongyang would lead to serious consequences. Kim Hyong-ryong, North Korea’s Vice Minister of the People’s armed forces, said at the Xiangshan Forum in Beijing that Pyongyang has worked to build lasting peace. However, the situation has relapsed into a “dangerous, vicious cycle” of exacerbating tensions because of the actions of the US and South Korean governments, Reuters quoted the official as saying. He also accused South Korea of a “double-dealing…

BY FEDERICO PIERACCINI Trump announced the withdrawal of US troops who had been protecting the SDF (Syrian democratic forces) in the northeast of Syria, prompting Kurdish leadership and the Damascus governed to strike a deal allowing Syrian Arab Army to retake control of the border with Turkey after nearly six years. With the US troops withdrawn numbering around 150 to 200 (out of the 2,000 to 3,000 illegally squatting in Syria), it is understood that Trump’s decision is for reasons other than those stated. The primary impression Trump wishes to convey to his voters is that of keeping his electoral promises, including…

By Askiah Adam That national interests determine foreign relations is the received norm and has been operating, especially under Western hegemony, forever. Hence, the inability of Western foreign relations experts to perceive of a win-win configuration of the Chinese kind in Africa and Asia. And, nothing has changed. American imperialism today, is no less about its own interests. This premise denies the possibility that the recent US withdrawal from Northeast Syria is anything but self-interest. That reports suggesting American troops are still in the oil rich areas east of the Euphrates signals this unequivocally. Ultimately, this could be the spanner in…

By Sarah Abed Monday marks the thirteenth day since Turkey began its third cross border military operation in Syria ironically named “Operation Peace Spring”. In the past two weeks civilian and militant lives on both sides have been lost, a large exodus has taken place, the House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a resolution that opposes US troop withdrawal, a five-day ceasefire was brokered between Turkey and the United States, and Kurdish militias have withdrawn from the “safe-zone”. On Wednesday, there was overwhelming bipartisan approval for a measure that opposes President Trump’s U.S. forces withdrawal from Syria. The resolution was introduced by Reps.…

By Steve Brown  If on October 10th a Saudi vessel had been struck by a missile in the Red Sea there is absolutely no doubt that US State and its major media outlets would immediately identify Iran as the culprit. So far, we’ve seen no hysteria from US State claiming that Iran was the source of the attack on the Sabiti tanker, originally claimed to be the Sinopa.  Despite a spreading oil spill related to the attack, according to the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), “No help was offered to assist by any country” even if Saudi Arabia claimed otherwise. To…

On late Saturday, Lebanon’s minister of finance said that the government had agreed on a final budget which did not include any additional taxes or fees in a bid to appease nationwide protests. People are holding anti-government protests in Beirut, Lebanon amid a government decision to agree on the final budget without imposing additional taxes. Mass protests in Lebanon erupted earlier in the month after the government moved to introduce a $6 monthly tax on online calls made via WhatsApp and other mobile applications. Even though the tax was scrapped as the protests gained momentum, the rallies continue, with dozens of people injured in…

by Tim Korso The reported destruction of the base comes amid a redeployment of American troops to Iraq that was announced on the same day by Defence Secretary Mark Esper. The US Air Force has delivered airstrikes on the Al-Qulaib military base in the north-eastern Syrian province of Al-Hasakah, which American forces themselves occupied not long ago, Syria’s SANA news agency reported. The base had a runway that was used to receive military shipments from cargo planes and helicopters. The base had just recently been abandoned by US troops due to their withdrawal to Iraq amid a Turkish offensive in northern Syria, which has…