Syria
Iran, Hezbollah build militia networks in Syria in event that Assad falls, officials say
Author Archives: CJ Radin
Egypt
Angry protests broke out on the second anniversary of former President Mubarak’s ouster. Clerics from Egypt’s leading religious institution chose the country’s Grand Mufti, a position previously appointed by the president.
Syria
Syrian War Closes In on the Heart of Damascus
Syria
Islamist rebels captured the country’s largest hydroelectric dam. The government moved tanks to reenforce hard-pressed units in the eastern Jobar district of Damascus. The government said it was ready to meet with the leader of the opposition Syrian National Coalition.
Iran
President Ahmadinejad said he is ready to have talks with the US if the West stops pressuring his country over its nuclear program. Hundreds of thousands of pro-government supporters celebrated the 34th anniversary of the Islamic revolution that ousted the shah in 1979.
Hamas
Hamas Weighs Options For Recognizing Israel
Iran
Insight: Iran nuclear fuel move may avert mid-year crisis
Somalia
Have hired guns finally scuppered Somali pirates?
Bahrain
After two years of political conflict, the government and the opposition started reconciliation talks. The opposition is demanding a constitutional monarchy with an elected premier.
Syria
Syria’s Druze Grapple With Jabhat al-Nusra
Syria
Government and rebel forces battled for the fifth day for control of a key highway in Damascus that connects the city with the country’s north. Rebels fought for control of a military base outside the city of Dei el-Zour, using tanks they had captured previously.
Iran
Iran political bickering heats up as election approaches
Syria
Government aircraft struck targets across Damascus. Fighting broke out in the town of Daraya and in the eastern district of Jobar. The Minister of Information said the government was open to dialogue with the opposition without any preconditions.
Egypt
Fatwa in Egypt Permits Killing Morsi Opponents
Egypt
A judge ordered YouTube to be blocked for 30 days for carrying the trailer to the controversial film “Innocence of Muslims” that caused massive protests in September 2012. An Islamic Jihad leader endorsed the use of violence against opponents of President Morsi. The opposition planned four rallies against Morsi for Monday.
Iran
Iran’s ambassador to Bulgaria denied that his country was involved in a bombing that killed five Israelis in Bulgaria last year. After the attack, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu had accused Hezbollah and Iran of waging a terror campaign.
Syria
Syria: how jihadist group Jabhat al-Nusra is taking over Syria’s revolution
Lashkar-e-Taiba
Lashkar-e-Taiba Founder Takes Less Militant Tone in Pakistan
Palestinian Territories
Palestinian security forces in the West Bank arrested more than 25 members of Hamas. The arrests follow Monday’s raids by the Israeli army that also targeted Hamas members.
Egypt
Across the country thousands of demonstrators marched, denouncing President Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood. One was killed and 40 injured in clashes with police.
Syria
Rebels continued to push forward in Damascus, fighting while government forces fought back in an effort to retake sections of the strategic ring road. The UN reported 5,000 refugees per day are fleeing Syria.
Algeria
Algeria captured four heavily armed militants near its border with Mali. Al Qaeda fighters have tried to cross the border after a French offensive drove them from Mali’s northern cities.
Iran
Iran’s leader Khamenei rejected an offer from the US for direct talks over its nuclear program. State television broadcast videos it said were taken from a US spy drone captured in December 2011. The US and Western nations imposed a new round of economic sanctions on Iran.
Egypt
Several hardline Muslim clerics issued a fatwa calling for the killing of prominent opposition leaders. The government condemned the action and beefed up security around the opposition leaders’ homes.
Syria
Inching closer to the center of Damascus, rebels overran government positions on a key road. Government forces responded with air and artillery attacks. After 16 days of fighting, government troops took control of the central town of Karnaz.
Palestinian Territories
Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal said he was in talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas over forming a national unity government. A Palestinian court sentenced a man to a year in jail for cursing President Abbas on Facebook.
North Korea
China said it was “extremely concerned” about North Korea’s threat to go beyond a third nuclear test. A foreign ministry spokesperson said: “We oppose any behavior which may exacerbate the situation and any acts which are not beneficial towards the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.”
Egypt
Ahmadinejad visits Cairo: How sect tempers Islamist ties between Egypt, Iran
Iran
At the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation summit in Cairo, President Ahmadinejad called for a strategic alliance with Egypt and proposed a loan to the cash-strapped country. Egypt’s response was cool.
Syria
After a lull, heavy fighting broke out in Damascus. Rebels said they had gone on the offensive against strategic targets in the city’s southern neighborhood of Jabar. Two suicide bombings, targeting a military compound in the central city of Palmyra, killed 19 government soldiers.