Middle East

Turkey will start easing coronavirus containment measures from Monday, President Tayyip Erdogan said, lifting inter-city travel restrictions in seven provinces and easing a curfew imposed on senior and youth citizens. Turkey has about 130,000 confirmed coronavirus cases – the highest total outside Western Europe, the United States and Russia – …

Firefighters brought under control a fire that broke out at a residential tower in Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday night, Sharjah’s government media office said. Seven people were treated for minor injuries from the fire in the tower in Sharjah’s al-Nahda area and taken to hospital for …

Hezbollah’s leader hailed the Lebanese government’s crisis plan as an “important step” on Monday and warned the country should not blindly surrender in talks with the IMF to terms it can not bear. Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah called on the Lebanese to give the cabinet a chance as it tries to …

At least nine Syrian policemen have been killed after a group of unidentified armed men launched an attack on a government building in the southwestern province of Dara’a. The Syrian Interior Ministry, in a statement carried by the official SANA news agency, said the Dara’a Police Command personnel were killed …

Turkey has become a primary destination for plastic waste from richer European countries after the garbage was rejected by China and India. An environmental and health crisis is now in the making in Turkey, locals say. In 2018, China banned the import of plastic waste, citing the environmental damage the …

The leader of Lebanon’s Hezbollah said on Monday that Germany was “succumbing to American will” by banning Hezbollah and designating it a terrorist organization. In a televised speech, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said last week’s German move, which Israel and the United States have long urged, would not deter Hezbollah from …

The Iranian Parliament on Monday voted for the details of a government monetary reform bill which will change the country’s currency name and drop four zeros from banknotes. Under the new law, which will come into effect after the final approval of the Guardian Council, the national currency unit will …

The vice president for science and technology says Iran is to export diagnostic kits that it has indigenously produced for identification of the new coronavirus patients to Germany and Turkey. Speaking to IRNA on Monday, Sourena Sattari identified the devices as serologic test kits developed by Iranian science-based companies that …

Jordan’s cash-strapped economy is expected to contract around 3% in 2020 due to the impact of the coronavirus, the finance minister said on Sunday. The International Monetary Fund (IMF), which last March approved a four-year $1.3 billion programme with the kingdom, had expected Jordan’s economy to grow around 2.1% in …

The Egyptian army said today, Sunday, that 15 of its members were killed or injured in recent operations in the Sinai Peninsula, and that 126 terrorists were killed. The General Command of the Armed Forces said in a statement: “As a result of the valiant hostilities of our armed forces …

Lebanon’s government on Friday signed a request for assistance from the International Monetary Fund, a statement from Prime Minister Hassan Diab’s office said. “This is a historic moment in the history of Lebanon. We have taken the first step on the path of saving Lebanon from the deep financial gap; …

Israeli helicopters fired several rockets from the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on targets inside southern Syria, Syrian state media reported on Friday, in what intelligence sources say is part of an increase in strikes against Syrians. Opposition sources in the area said several militia posts near Quneitra were targeted in the …

Yemen reported multiple coronavirus infections and deaths linked to the disease for the first time on Wednesday and an official in the southern port of Aden said the number of cases was very likely to increase in the coming days. The United Nations has said it fears the novel coronavirus …

The Lebanese governments endorsed an economic reform plan on Thursday aimed at dealing with the nation’s deepening financial crisis, President Michel Aoun said. “Today is a historic day because for the first time an economic and financial plan has been endorsed after a lack of planning and prospects almost brought …

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani says Iran will soon name those counties, which have been identified as “white zones” with regard to the new coronavirus outbreak, in the near future, and will also announce regulations governing expected loosening of anti-virus restrictions. The chief executive made the remarks at a gathering of …

As the United States pressed Saudi Arabia to end its oil price war with Russia, President Donald Trump gave Saudi leaders an ultimatum. In an April 2 phone call, Trump told Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman that unless the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) started cutting oil …

More than 180 Palestinian, regional and international human rights campaigners and organizations have called upon the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Fatou Bensouda, to investigate the crimes being perpetrated by Israeli forces in the occupied territories. The rights groups, in a joint open letter initiated by Palestinian …

Human Rights Watch has urged the Egyptian authorities to release two translators, women who were arbitrarily arrested and “forcibly disappeared” last week. According to the HRW, security forces arrested Marwa Arafa, 27, and Kholoud Said, 35, at their homes on April 20 and 21, respectively. They are held in undisclosed …

At least a dozen Lebanese banks across the country were torched and vandalized during the second consecutive night of angry protests fuelled by frustration over the national currency’s unfettered depreciation. Hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets from Beirut to southern Sidon along with Nabatieh, the Bekaa Valley, and Tripoli …

Saudi Arabia has urged the separatists allied with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to end the self-rule rule they have newly announced in Yemen’s south and return to cooperation under a Riyadh deal, as a rift in the Saudi-led coalition waging war on Yemen cracks open again. The Saudi cabinet …