Author: Mideast discourse

When Israeli national security adviser Eyal Hulata arrived in Washington this week, his government was highly concerned that the Biden administration was about to make new concessions to reach a nuclear deal with Iran. After the visit, that anxiety has been reduced, three Israeli officials say. Why it matters: The U.S. and Iran have moved much closer to a deal to restore the 2015 nuclear accord in recent weeks, but a few key Iranian demands remain unresolved. According to the Israeli officials, the U.S. has toughened its positions on those demands. The Israeli government has consistently objected to the Biden administration’s…

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On August 24, the Iranian military kicked off a large-scale military exercise to test its combat and reconnaissance drones. Troops from the four units of the military, namely the Ground Force, Navy, Air Force and Air Defense Force, and more than 150 drones are reportedly taking part in the two-day exercise, which covers all areas across Iran, from the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman to the northern territories. Vice Admiral Seyed Mahmoud Mousavi, the spokesman for the exercise, said on the first day that surveillance drones successfully conducted intelligence-gathering and patrol missions. Combat drones also practiced detecting and…

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Al-Mayadeen correspondent reports an attack targeting the Zlikan base in Bashiqa, east of Nineveh with several missiles. Al Mayadeen correspondent reported that the Turkish-operated Zlikan military base in Bashiqa, east of Nineveh governorate was targeted with several rockets. The rockets were launched from the city of Mosul, and no information was received about any casualties as a result of the attack. A few days ago, Al Mayadeen correspondent in Baghdad reported that Turkish warplanes targeted the village of Sigiri in the Dohuk governorate in northern Iraq. This was preceded by Turkish helicopters raiding Sidekan in Soran District, Erbil Governorate, northern Iraq. The attack resulted in…

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The US occupation bases at the Koniko oilfield in the countryside of Deir Ezzor were subjected to a missile attack for the second time within hours Local sources in Deir Ezzor told SANA reporter that a base for the US occupation at the Koniko oilfield in the eastern countryside was targeted with bursts of rocket shells, and later explosions were heard inside the base, and no causalities were reported among the ranks of the occupation forces. The sources added that the US occupation forces closed the area immediately, while the occupation’s planes were hovering in the airspace of the area.…

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The pro-Russian local administration said the power outage was caused by fires started by Ukrainian shelling Security systems have been activated at the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant after a power outage, which temporarily left the facility without electricity, members of the Russia-backed administration in the Ukrainian region have claimed. The plant has since been connected to an alternative source of power, according to officials.The blackout is said to have been caused by massive wildfires in the area, which were started by Ukrainian shelling, theу said. Fires, which have engulfed parts of the steppe and woods surrounding the city of Energodar,…

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Two Kenyan tribes are taking the UK to the European Court of Human Rights over alleged abuses in the final decades of British colonial rule. The Talai and Kipsigis want £168 billion and an apology for crimes linked to a ‘land grab’ in Kericho, a western area of Kenya which grows tea for some of the world’s biggest producers. British officials are said to have overseen the forced eviction of the clans from fertile ancestral lands to make way for plantations, Metro reported. The Talai claim they were forced to live in a nearby valley infested with mosquitos and tse-tse…

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The two countries have successfully established a mechanism for mutual settlements in rubles and rupees, Purnima Anand says Russia and India don’t need the US dollar in trade, having turned to national currencies to conduct mutual settlements, BRICS International Forum President Purnima Anand told reporters on Thursday. “We have implemented the mechanism of mutual settlements in rubles and rupees, and there is no need for our countries to use the dollar in mutual settlements. And today a similar mechanism of mutual settlements in rubles and yuan is being developed by China,” she said. “That means that the BRICS countries are…

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Ukraine’s president addressed the UN Security Council via a crackling video-link, in breach of protocol The UN Security Council allowed Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky to address it by video-link on Wednesday, after an exception was made to the in-person-only rules that Moscow’s envoy alone sought to uphold. After denouncing Russia, Zelensky decided to leave before Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia called out his government and its Western backers for being the principal threat to Ukraine’s independence. In his presentation, Zelensky argued that the freedom of the world depended on Ukraine’s independence and accused Russia of threatening a nuclear disaster at the…

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Deputy Secretary of Treasury Adewale “Wally” Adeyemo informs Turkey’s Deputy Finance Minister Yunus Elitas that Turkey’s increased cooperation with Russia could result in sanctions against Turkish business, and banks. Turkey’s business community faced, on Wednesday, mounting US pressure to sever its growing ties with Russia or risk crushing sanctions as the US grew more concerned that Russian enterprises and the government are using Turkey to get over banking and trade sanctions imposed by the collective-West against Russian following the Ukraine war. At a conference earlier this month in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep…

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“We are extremely disappointed that other members who, when they come to the council, commit themselves to comply with its rules and protect them, have today contributed to the erosion of its foundations and practices,” Vasily Nebenzya emphasized Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the UN Vasily Nebenzya on Wednesday expressed regret that the UN Security Council allowed Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky to speak by video link in violation of the council’s rules. “We regret that the members of the council spoke out against compliance with the rules of its work,” he said. “We could have understood the logic…

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