Arab World News

Hamas Says It Is Engaged in ‘Fierce Fighting’ in Gaza’s Rafah

Arab World Palestinian men walk near rubble of houses destroyed during the Israeli offensive, in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, March 13, 2025. (Reuters)

Hamas Says It Is Engaged in ‘Fierce Fighting’ in Gaza’s Rafah

Hamas fighters were engaged in "fierce fighting" with Israeli soldiers on Thursday in the south of the Gaza Strip near Rafah, the Palestinian group said. The…

Arab World  EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas speaks during a joint press conference with Poland's Foreign Affairs Minister at the EU Foreign Ministers informal meeting in Gymnich format, in Warsaw, Poland, on May 8, 2025. (AFP)

EU's Kallas Says Happy to Read about Macron's Syria Sanctions Relief Proposal

European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said on Thursday that she was happy to read that France's President Emmanuel Macron had proposed sanctions…

Arab World People crosses into Syria through the Masnaa border crossing point in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Lebanon Receives Archival Maps from France on its Borders with Syria

Lebanon received on Thursday a set of copies of archival documents and maps from France related to its border lines with Syria, the Foreign Ministry said on…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World Palestinian schoolgirls leave a UNWRA school in the Shoafat refugee camp in east Jerusalem on May 8, 2025, as Israeli security forces reportedly prepare to close the school. (Photo by Ahmad GHARABLI / AFP)

Israel Closes 6 UN Schools for Palestinians in East Jerusalem

Israel permanently closed six UN schools in east Jerusalem on Thursday, forcing Palestinian students to leave early and throwing the education of more than 800…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World This pictures taken from the southern Lebanese area of Marjeyoun shows smoke billowing from the site of Israeli airstrikes on the hills of the southern Lebanese village of Nabatieh on May 8, 2025. (AFP)

Israel Conducts 14 Strikes in South Lebanon

Israel conducted 14 strikes in the Nabatieh area in south Lebanon on Thursday, two Lebanese security sources told Reuters, one of Israel's most intense…


Arab World France's President Emmanuel Macron (L) looks on at the Elysee Presidential Palace, in Paris on May 5, 2025. (Photo by Ludovic MARIN / AFP)

Macron to Host Syrian President's First European Visit

French President Emmanuel Macron will host Syrian counterpart Ahmed al-Sharaa on Wednesday for the Syrian leader's first European visit, the French presidency…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World A handout screen grab taken from a video released by Houthi-run Al Masirah TV shows firefighters extinguishing a fire at a cement factory following Israeli airstrikes, in the port province of Hodeidah, Yemen, 05 May 2025. EPA/AL-MASIRSAH TV / HANDOUT

Israel Strikes Yemen's Hodeidah Port after Houthi Attack on Israeli Airport

The Israeli military said it carried out airstrikes against Yemen's Hodeidah Port on Monday, a day after the Iran-aligned Houthis fired a missile that struck…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World  An Israeli army tank maneuvers in the Gaza Strip, is seen from southern Israel, Sunday, May 4, 2025. (AP)

Israel Plans to Capture All of Gaza under New Plan, Officials Say

Israel approved plans Monday to capture the entire Gaza Strip and to stay in the Palestinian territory for an unspecified amount of time, two Israeli officials…

Arab World Mourners attend funeral of those killed in clashes in southern Sweida town on Saturday (AFP)

Druze Group ‘Rijal al-Karama’ Rejects Disarmament, Calls for Weapons Regulation in Sweida

A leading Druze movement said on Sunday that the issue of surrendering arms remains unresolved, even as local leaders in southern Syria announced the official…

Asharq Al Awsat (Damascus)
Arab World A Lebanese man casts his ballot during the Municipal elections at a polling station in Deir El Qamar, in the Chouf District of the Mount Lebanon Governorate, southeast of Beirut, Lebanon, 04 May 2025. EPA/WAEL HAMZEH

Lebanon Sends Message of Confidence with First Local Elections

Lebanon completed the first phase of its municipal and mayoral elections on Sunday, in a vote overseen by political and security authorities and hailed by…

Nazeer Rida (Beirut)
Arab World Palestinians inspect the damage following overnight Israeli strikes, at the Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip on May 4, 2025. (Photo by Eyad BABA / AFP)

Gaza Civil Defense Says 19 Killed in Israeli Strikes

Gaza's civil defense agency said two Israeli air strikes killed at least 19 people in the war-ravaged Palestinian territory's north early Monday. "Our teams…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World FILE PHOTO: A general view taken with a drone shows part of Idlib city, Syria June 8, 2017. REUTERS/Ammar Abdullah/File Photo

Syria to Sign Deal to Import Electricity from Türkiye

Syria is set to sign a deal to import electricity from Türkiye through a 400-kilovolt transmission line between the two countries "soon", the Syrian state news…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World FILED - 29 January 2024, Yemen, Sanaa: Armed members of the Iran-backed Houthi militia take part in a demonstration against the USA and Israel. Photo: Osamah Yahya/dpa

Houthis Report US Strikes after Israel Vows Revenge for Airport Attack

Yemen's Houthi group on Monday blamed Washington for around 10 strikes in and around the capital Sanaa after a missile fired by the Iran-backed group struck…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World Israeli soldiers walk in the grounds of Kibbutz Kfar Aza, one of the kibbutzim attacked by Palestinian Hamas group earlier this month, close to the southern Israeli border with the Gaza Strip on October 27, 2023. (Photo by FADEL SENNA / AFP)

Israeli Cabinet Approves Expansion of Gaza Offensive

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's security cabinet has approved a gradual expansion of the offensive against Palestinian group Hamas in Gaza, Israeli…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World Israeli armored vehicles take position on Israel's border with the Gaza Srip on May 4, 2025. (Photo by Menahem KAHANA / AFP)

Israel Confirms Calling Up Reservists for Gaza War Expansion

Israel's army on Sunday confirmed it was calling up "tens of thousands" of reservists to expand its war in Gaza, army chief Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir said…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World Syrian Druze fighters participate in the funeral of those killed in clashes with Syrian government forces in Sweida on Saturday (AFP)

Israel Expands Syria Intervention Under ‘Druze Protection’ Pretext

Israel expanded its involvement in Syria, launching one of its most intense airstrikes in years on Friday night and into Saturday morning. The broad operation…

Kifah Zboun (Ramallah)
Arab World Shams al-Din Kabbashi, a member of Sudan’s Sovereign Council and deputy commander of the army, said his government has no objection to delivering aid to other states, provided guarantees are in place (Sudan News Agency)

Kabbashi: Sudan War Nearing End, Arms Proliferation Poses Major Threat

The war in Sudan is nearing its end, a top military official said on Saturday, warning that the widespread availability of weapons could pose one of the…

Asharq Al Awsat (Port Sudan)
Arab World Smoke rises from the airport of Port Sudan following reported attacks early on May 4, 2025. (Photo by AFP)

Sudan's RSF Conducts First Drone Attack on Port Sudan

Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) carried out a drone attack on a military air base and other facilities in the vicinity of Port Sudan Airport, a…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World Salem Saleh bin Buraik. (SPA)

Yemen Appoints Salem Bin Buraik as New Prime Minister

Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council on Saturday appointed Salem Saleh bin Buraik as the new Prime Minister replacing Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak who resigned…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World FILE PHOTO: A picture released by the Israeli Army says to show Israeli soldiers conducting operations in a location given as Tel Al-Sultan area, Rafah Governorate, Gaza, in this handout image released April 2, 2025. Israeli Army/Handout via REUTERS

Israeli Military Issues Thousands of Call-up Notices

The Israeli military was issuing call-up notices to thousands of reservists on Saturday to support an expansion of its offensive in Gaza, Israeli media…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World Members of the Syria's security forces deploy during an operation in the edge of the town of Sharaya, south of Damascus, Wednesday April 30, 2025. (AP)

Syria Detains Damascus-Based Leader of Prominent Palestinian Faction

Syria on Saturday detained a prominent Damascus-based Palestinian official whose group was close to the government of ousted President Bashar al-Assad. Talal…

Arab World  Palestinians look at a house targeted by an Israeli army strike in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, Saturday, May 3, 2025. (AP)

Hamas Releases Video of Man Identified as Gaza Hostage

Hamas on Saturday released a video purportedly of a hostage held in Gaza whom Israeli media identified as Maxim Herkin. The video is undated and edited,…

Arab World  A Palestinian child carries a pot of soup received from a community kitchen in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, on Saturday, May 3, 2025. (AP)

Groups Fear Israeli Proposal for Controlling Aid in Gaza Will Forcibly Displace People

Israel has blocked aid from entering Gaza for two months and says it won’t allow food, fuel, water or medicine into the besieged territory until it puts in…

Arab World A Druze woman waves to relatives fleeing violence in Damascus, as they arrive in the buffer zone across from the village of Majdal Shams in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on May 3, 2025. (AFP)

UN Envoy Condemns Intense Wave of Israeli Airstrikes on Syria

The United Nations special envoy for Syria on Saturday condemned an intense wave of Israeli airstrikes as Israel said its forces were on the ground in Syria to…

Arab World Yemeni Prime Minister Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak. (Saba)

Yemen PM Says He Is Resigning over Political Differences

The prime minister of Yemen’s legitimate government said Saturday he was resigning and cited political struggles. Prime Minister Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak…

Arab World The project will directly benefit 18,000 displaced women and violence survivors, as well as 325 frontline workers in safe spaces and protection centers - SPA

KSrelief Launches Project to Protect Women Affected by Gender-Based Violence in Yemen

The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) launched a project to protect and empower women affected by gender-based violence in the Aden and…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World The Supreme Defense Council, chaired by President Joseph Aoun, issued a recommendation to the government to warn Hamas against using Lebanese territory for any actions that undermine national security (Lebanese Presidency)

Hamas Comes Under Pressure in Lebanon

Relations between Hamas and the Lebanese state have entered a critical phase not seen since the country’s civil war era. In a rare and direct move, Lebanon’s…

Paula Astih (Beirut)
Arab World Palestinians search the rubble of a house targeted by an Israeli army strike in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, Thursday, May 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

Israeli Army Plans to Remain in Gaza Until End of 2025

Despite the debate in Tel Aviv between the political leadership and the military establishment over the objective of the fighting in Gaza, sources on Friday…

Nazir Magally (Tel Aviv)
Arab World Photo showing Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad (right), Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani, and Syrian President Ahmed al-Shaara (INA)

Sudani: Syrian President’s Presence at Baghdad Summit Important for All

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani has stressed the importance of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s participation in the upcoming Arab League summit…

Hamza Mustafa (Baghdad)
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