Middle East Experience

Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblatt has accused Israel of exploiting followers of his minority faith in Syria as part of a broader plan to divide the Middle East along sectarian lines.Israel wants "to implement the plan it has always had... which is to break up the region into confessional entities and extend the chaos," said Jumblatt, a key figure in Lebanese politics for more than four decades.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Lebanon Druze leader accuses Israel of exploiting minority in Syria

AFP photographer Yasin Akgul, who was arrested this week covering Turkey's worst unrest in more than a decade, was freed Thursday from an Istanbul jail, AFP correspondents said, though his lawyer said the charges against him remain.Akgul was detained in a pre-dawn raid at his home Monday and remanded in custody by an Istanbul court a day later. He was charged with "taking part in illegal rallies and marches", drawing outrage from rights groups and the Paris-based news agency.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: AFP journalist Yasin Akgul leaves jail, but lawyer says charges remain

Despite an increase in medical professionals, Israel’s healthcare workforce remains below the OECD average, highlighting ongoing challenges.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Israel’s healthcare workforce lags behind OECD averages despite growth in doctors and nurses

Commitments from Abu Dhabi–based asset manager Lunate and the Qatar Investment Authority, the sovereign wealth fund, increased Affinity’s assets by $1.5 billion over a year.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: UAE, Qatar investments fuel Jared Kushner's firm assets to .8 billion

Turkey intensified its crackdown on anti-government protests on Friday, arresting the lawyer of the jailed Istanbul mayor and targeting more journalists, as the country faces its biggest wave of unrest in more than a decade.Nine days after the arrest and subsequent jailing of Istanbul's popular opposition mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu, demonstrators were again out on the streets on Thursday night, despite a growing sense of fear.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: More arrests as Turkey escalates crackdown over protests

With the jailing of Istanbul's mayor on corruption charges, Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan has got rid of his most powerful opponent. Now his sights are set on the main opposition CHP, analysts say."When the big fishes are exposed, they won't dare to look their own families in the eye, let alone the nation," the president warned this week, hinting at a fresh legal action targeting the Republican People's Party (CHP).
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Erdogan turns sights on opposition CHP with his main rival in jail

Over half of northern Gaza appears to be under evacuation orders.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Israel flouting international law with forced evacuations in Gaza, UN says

Parliament Speaker Mohammad Qalibaf: "If the Americans attack the sanctity of Iran, the entire region will blow up like a spark in an ammunition dump."
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Middle East will 'blow up like a spark': Iran speaker warns Trump against attack

Sossana is one of eight women from around the world to receive the award, which recognizes exceptional women who advocate for peace, justice, and human rights.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Ex-hostage Amit Soussana to receive US State Dept.'s Int'l Woman of Courage award

The danger of changing Israel’s character has increased. The country is still a vibrant democracy, but will it remain so?
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Israel's not a dictatorship, but it's headed toward becoming one