Middle East Experience

Iraq’s national security adviser said on Thursday that US-led forces had ended their combat mission in Iraq, a move that transfers all remaining troops into a training and advising role.Qasim al-Aaraji said on Twitter that the combat mission had ended on schedule ahead of the end of the year and that combat troops were to withdraw.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.US President Joe Biden and Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi sealed an agreement in July to formally end the US combat mission in Iraq by the end of 2021.Western security and diplomatic officials say that calling the shift a withdrawal is misleading because it changes little in terms of the number of forces based in Iraq.The US has kept around 2,500 troops in Iraq since 2020.The Western officials say that most of those forces have been operating only in a training and advising role for some time.The US-led military mission focuses on countering the remnants of ISIS. It began its mission in 2014 as part of an international effort to defeat the extremist group which had taken over vast areas of Iraq and Syria.Read more:President Biden strongly condemns attack on Iraqi PM al-Kadhimi’s homeIraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr says he is dissolving armed faction loyal to himIranian commander urged escalation against US forces at Iraq meeting: Sources
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: US-led troops end combat mission in Iraq: Official

The Lebanese health ministry said Thursday that it had confirmed the country’s first two cases of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 in passengers tested upon arrival at the airport.“Two cases detected in airport testing” were confirmed to be of the Omicron variant, Health Minister Firass Abiad told a press conference.For more coronavirus news, visit our dedicated page.He said both passengers had flown in from the African continent and had been placed in quarantine.Lebanon reported 1,994 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, one of the country’s highest figures for a single day since the start of the pandemic, the minister said.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Abiad voiced concern over a resurgence of the virus he said the crisis-hit country’s ailing health system was even less prepared to handle than during previous waves.When cases spiked in late 2020, the influx of critical patients had brought Lebanon’s hospitals to breaking point.A worsening depreciation of the local currency and the mass emigration of health workers has only made the situation worse.Lebanon has recorded more 683,000 cases of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic two years ago and 8,804 deaths, according to government figures.Read more:Beirut blast probe judge cleared to continue investigationPope Francis says ‘greatly concerned’ over Lebanon crisisLebanon reports 2,591 new COVID-19 cases, highest count since April
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Lebanon detects first cases of Omicron COVID-19 variant

On a hot day of 10 August 2020, Mikita Zalatarou was standing at a bus stop in the central square of the city of Homel in south-eastern Belarus. Everyone around him was intensely discussing the results of presidential elections that had just ended, and many people were protesting that day and the night before. The square ..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: “I could send him books to prison. But they do not have a free minute there”. A story of 17-years old Mikita Zalatarou

Persian culture is in the spotlight in an exhibition at the James Simon Gallery in Berlin. The artefacts feature unexpected multicultural influences. More….
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: : Five millennia of Iranian art – an exhibition

Erdogan has said he is open to improved relations with Israel and that better ties with the Jewish state would be “beneficial” for peace in the wider region..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Erdogan ready for better ties with Israel if it displays 'sensitivities'

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said on Thursday that the discussions held with Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani in Doha showed the depth of ties between their two countries.The Saudi Crown Prince added that both countries stressed joint keenness to further expand cooperation in all fields “under the leadership of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz,” according to a cable sent to Sheikh Tamim, the Saudi state news agency SPA reported.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.The Saudi Prince's cable came after concluding talks in Doha, part of his tour of Gulf states ahead of a Gulf summit which will be held in Riyadh in mid-December.Earlier on Thursday, the Crown Prince and Qatar’s Emir visited the Lusail Stadium in Doha, one of the many stadiums set to host the FIFA World Cup, according to a statement carried by the SPA.The Saudi prince’s has already visited Oman and the UAE where he visited Expo 2020 in Dubai on Wednesday before taking the short flight to Doha. He is expected to travel to Kuwait after his visit to Bahrain on Thursday.Read more:Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman arrives in Abu DhabiSaudi Arabia’s Crown Prince concludes first stop of Gulf tour in OmanSaudi and Omani companies sign 13 MoUs, Saudi Crown Prince lands in Muscat
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Our talks with Qatar show depth of ties: Saudi Crown Prince

The Biden administration is moving to tighten enforcement of sanctions against Iran with the dispatch of a senior delegation to the United Arab Emirates next week, the US State Department said on Thursday.The move comes as the UAE, a US ally, works to improve ties with Iran in a bid to contain regional tensions and amid Western doubts about Tehran’s determination to salvage a 2015 nuclear agreement.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.The US delegation, which will include the head of the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, Andrea Gacki, will warn banks in the UAE that have business with Iran and are not in compliance with the sanctions.A State Department spokesperson said the United States had evidence of non-compliance, and that the banks could later be sanctioned or penalized over their dealings.UAE authorities did not respond to a request for comment.While the UAE shares the concerns of Gulf power Saudi Arabia over Iran’s nuclear ambitions, missiles program and regional proxies, Abu Dhabi has intensified its outreach to Tehran and sent a senior official to Iran last Monday.The UAE, which has business ties to Iran stretching back over a century, had in 2018 said it was fully complying with sanctions reimposed on Iran after then-US president Donald Trump quit the nuclear agreement.Under the pact, Iran agreed with major powers that it would curb its nuclear program in return for the lifting of international economic sanctions.About a year after Washington reimposed sanctions, Iran started violating the nuclear restrictions. Tehran denies seeking nuclear weapons.Talks are being held in Vienna on reviving the deal, but have shown little advance so far.If there is no progress in these talks, the United States could send delegations to several other countries to tighten the economic pressure on Iran, the Wall Street Journal reported.US and Israeli defense chiefs were expected on Thursday to discuss possible military exercises to prepare for a worst-case scenario of destroying Iran’s nuclear facilities if diplomacy fails, a senior US official told Reuters.Read more: US hits out at Iran for not coming to Vienna with constructive proposals
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: US official to discuss tightening Iran sanctions compliance on UAE trip

The artifacts returned include hieroglyphic inscriptions on stones and papyruses, a piece of sarcophagus and several figurines.

Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Israel returns looted antiquities to Egypt during diplomatic visit

Across Iraq, about 100 children were killed or injured between January and September as a result of remnants of conflict..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Unexploded ordnance bring endless nightmare to Iraq

The British would continue to hold onto the city until fully withdrawing from Mandatory Palestine in 1948. 
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: On This Day: Ottomans surrender Jerusalem in World War I