Author: Steven Sahiounie

The People’s National Assembly of Algeria – the lower house of the parliament – earlier this week approved a draft law to ensure fair presidential elections, as well as resolve issues between government and the opposition. In a televised speech, Algerian Interim President Abdelkader Bensalah announced on Sunday that the country will hold a presidential election on 12 December. “Within the constitutional powers, it was decided to set the date for the presidential election on 12 Decembe 2019”, the interim president said. The bill to ensure fair presidential elections reduces the role of the government in organizing and conducting the process and…

The US guided missile destroyer USS Ramage has docked at the Lebanese capital, becoming the first US warship to do so since 1984. According to the Twitter account of the US Embassy in Beirut, the ship’s arrival serves as “a symbol of the enduring partnership between the US and Lebanon to ensure security and stability in the eastern Mediterranean.” Later, the Embassy called the docking a “goodwill visit” aimed at “showcasing” the “strong US-Lebanon relationship”. US Ambassador to Lebanon Elizabeth Richard called the destroyer’s visit a “security reminder,” meant to demonstrate that “the US Navy is not far away,” and…

Egyptian President ‘Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said on Saturday at a conference in Cairo that the events which led to the war in Syria were planned by terrorist organizations that sought to destroy the country. Sisi made these comments during the National Youth Conference, dubbed “Evaluating the Local and Regional Counter-Terrorism Experience” Egyptian President allegedly told the audience that terrorism was used to achieve political goals away from international legitimacy. In particular, Sisi pointed out how terrorism was used to target and destroy the countries of Syria and Libya. He emphasized that a conventional war cannot destroy a state, but terrorism can…

Afghan troops backed by US forces have killed two senior Taliban leaders and over three dozen fighters of the militant group in joint airstrikes conducted in northern and western regions of the war-ravaged country. According to a statement by Afghanistan’s Defense Ministry, the Taliban’s shadow governor for northern Samangan province, Mawlavi Nooruddin, was killed along with four fighters in an airstrike in Dara-e-Soof Payeen district on Sunday morning. But Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid denied the governor had been killed in the aerial attack, claiming in a statement that Nooruddin was alive. In a separate incident, Mullah Sayed Azim, a Taliban designate governor…

Syrian President Bashar Assad has issued a decree granting amnesty and commuting sentences for all crimes committed before Sept. 14 this year, a move which could see thousands of prisoners released across the conflict-torn Arab country. According to Syria’s official SANA news agency, the Sunday’s decree by the presidency would reduce the death penalty to life sentence with hard labor, and life sentences to 20 years, among other punishments. The pardon would include freeing some prisoners detained under a 2012 “terrorism law.” Those imprisoned under the 2012 law over “conspiracy” or failing to inform the authorities of an act of “terrorism”…

US President Donald Trump has confirmed the death of Hamza bin Laden, the son of al-Qaeda’s dead leader Osama bin Laden. Trump said in a statement released by the White House on Saturday that bin Laden was killed in a counter-terrorism operation near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. The young bin Laden, who was around 30 years old, had emerged as a high profile member of al-Qaeda and a possible candidate for the leadership of the terrorist group “The loss of Hamza bin Ladin not only deprives al-Qaeda of important leadership skills and the symbolic connection to his father, but undermines important…

BY SUSAN DIRGHAM In pursuing the truth about the war in Syria, we could begin by examining a pivotal month in the war: August 2013. In doing so, we may come to realize that supporting the people of Syria might require us to re-assess our assumptions about the war, our allies’ actions in the war, and the direction of our government’s foreign policy. Pursuing the truth might put us in step with millions of Syrians who may or may not support the current president but who definitely don’t support the US and UK foreign policies toward their country, nor support…

raq’s security forces detained six terrorists, who planned to carry out an attack against Shiite Muslims during the annual pilgrimage of Arbaeen, the organization’s press service said on Saturday. “The security services of the city of Samarra [north of Baghdad] were able to detain a network of terrorists consisting of six criminals planning an attack during the pilgrimage of Arbaeen,” the statement read. Earlier, the Baghdad Operational Command reported that 78 people have been detained in Iraq since August on suspicion of plotting terrorist attacks during the Shiite Ashur holiday, celebrated earlier in September. The Shiite Arbaeen pilgrimage will take…

Tunisia is holding a presidential election this weekend, with 7 million registered voters choosing a new leader from among 26 candidates. Sunday’s first-round vote is only the second democratic presidential election Tunisia has had since its “jasmine revolution” brought down Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in 2011 and triggered the Arab Spring uprisings across the region. Amid accusations of smear campaigns and corruption, there’s no clear front-runner. However, PM Youssef Chahed, jailed media magnate Nabil Karoui, and Abdelfattah Mourou of the moderate Islamist party Ennahdha are receiving attention, AFP said. Chahed’s main competitor is his own defense minister, Abdelkrim Zbidi,…

 A group of assailants from a militant sleeper cell reportedly attacked a Syrian police station in the western countryside of the Daraa Governorate on Saturday. According to a military report from Daraa, the assailants, who were believed to be members of the Free Syrian Army (FSA), attacked the police station in the large town of Nawa, causing several casualties as a result of the attack. A source told Al-Masdar that the assailants used assault rifles and hand grenades in their attacks, which included a number of checkpoints near the town of Nawa. The Free Syrian Army and Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham…