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When the US formed its anti-Daesh coalition in September 2014, Saudi Arabia was one of the first Arab countries to join. From the very beginning of the conflict, the...
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The Supporting Syria Conference, starting in London this week, aims to raise $9 billion for Syrian refugees. The purpose of this money is to end the limbo in which...
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Since the Syrian civil war began in 2011, Geneva has hosted two rounds of peace talks. Today, Friday, a third round of UN-brokered talks is set to begin in...
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Today the Iraqi army stormed the centre of Ramadi, the Iraqi city captured by Daesh in May. Backed by airstrikes from the US-led coalition, the Iraqi army is attempting...
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When Russia began its campaign of airstrikes in Syria in September, Vladimir Putin said that his country would only target “terrorists”, primarily jihadist militants from the Daesh group. Yet...
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“Over the past few weeks, there has been an alarming change in the way Saudi Arabia is discussed in Britain. The Kingdom has always had to deal with a...
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Since the start of the year, in excess of 130,000 refugees have crossed to Europe from the North African coast. On some days, 20 boats set sail from Libya...
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During the final days of this year's hajj pilgrimage in the holy city of Makkah last month, two large waves of pilgrims converged on a narrow road. The crowding...
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The Syrian conflict is nothing if not complicated. The exact dynamics on the battlefield have shifted frequently in the five years since it began; so too has the role...
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The Gaza Strip is a tiny patch of land – just 362 square kilometres (225 square miles) – that is currently home to around 1.8 million Palestinians. It has...
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When Jordan broadened its anti-terror law last year, critics warned that it could be used to silence opposition. The law expanded the definition of "terrorism" to include any act...
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Hugo Chavez, the then President of Venezuela, condemned Israel's actions during its invasion of Lebanon in 2006. He was the first world leader to do so, and it precipitated...
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On Sunday, Syrian government warplanes attacked a busy marketplace in Douma, a rebel-held suburb of the capital city Damascus. At least 100 people were killed and more than 200...
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Tomislav Salopek was kidnapped three weeks ago as he travelled in Egypt, about 14 miles west of Cairo. The Croatian national was working as a surveyor for a French...
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On 8 August last year, Barack Obama authorised airstrikes against Daesh targets in Iraq. He said that it would only involve "targeted airstrikes to protect our American personnel, and...
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One of the less-publicised victims of the 2003 invasion of Iraq was the country's electrical grid. This infrastructure has been damaged further by the continued unrest in the country;...
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Israel has long been criticised by human rights groups for its use of "administrative detention". The term refers to detaining people – always Palestinians – without charge or trial....
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When a nuclear deal between Iran and six world powers was agreed this month, some predicted that it would lead to a wider thaw in relations with western countries....
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When the US formed an international coalition to fight ISIS last year, Turkey was a reluctant partner. It has been accused, at best, of turning a blind eye to...
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Iran has been in the headlines fairly consistently over the last two years, as talks over the country's nuclear programme have reached their crescendo. The preliminary deal agreed this...
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After years of deadlock and months of wrangling, a nuclear deal between Iran and six world powers was finally agreed in mid-July. The deal, endorsed by the UN Security...
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In 2011, the Arab Spring was set in motion when Tunisian fruit vendor Muhammad Bouazizi set himself on fire to protest against corruption. He became a potent symbol of...
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On 8 July 2014, Israel began airstrikes over Gaza, in what was known as Operation Protective Edge. The bombardment followed weeks of ramped up tensions that had begun with...
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It didn't take long for talks between Yemen's warring factions to fall apart earlier this month. The five-day process, which was brokered by the UN and took place in...
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When the Palestinian Authority joined the International Criminal Court (ICC) in April, commentators across the world warned that it was a provocative move that risked ratcheting up tensions with...
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The Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fish (often shorted to the Church of the Multiplication) stands in Tabgha, Israel, on the north-western shore of the Sea...
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Does Israel operate an apartheid system? The question is highly fraught and provokes strong emotions on both sides. Pro-Palestinian activists argue that it does; defenders of the Israeli state...
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Ever since the 2011 revolution in Egypt ousted President Hosni Mubarak and kick-started several years of political instability, the country's tourism industry has been struggling. The number of foreign...
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For the past 13 years, Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been gradually amassing power. The Justice and Development Party (generally known by its Turkish acronym, AKP) that he...
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It is rare for top level foreign politicians and diplomats to visit the war-torn Gaza Strip, not least because it is controlled by Hamas, the political organisation viewed by...
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This week, the eyes of the world are on Fifa, the international governing body of football, after top executives were arrested in Switzerland on American corruption charges. Fifa has...
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This month, two Palestinians from occupied east Jerusalem have been jailed for their social media activity. The charges were related to incitement and "supporting terror" against Israelis. The first...