(7.Januar 2014) the Saudis are also bent on ousting Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, and his patron, Iran, which they see as a mortal enemy. Their only real means of fighting them is through military and financial support to the Syrian rebels. And the most effective of those rebels are Islamists whose creed — rooted in the puritanical strain of Islam practiced in Saudi Arabia — is often scarcely separable from Al Qaeda’s.

The al-Nusra Front has emerged as one of the most effective groups in the Syrian resistance over the last few months, often drawing on the experience of foreign fighters who have had combat experience in Iraq and elsewhere.

The head of al-Qaeda’s offshoot in Syria has called on followers to carry out retaliatory attacks in Russia, raising the specter of blowback on Russian soil over Moscow’s military intervention to aid Syria’s embattled government.

Just hours after the call from Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, the leader of Jabhat al-Nusra, two mortar shells landed in the perimeter of the Russian Embassy in the Syrian capital, Damascus. No casualties were reported.

(9.Oktober)) Tokyo and Moscow were also unable to set up the next subcabinet-level meeting

Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida and his Iranian counterpart, Mohammad Javad Zarif, on Monday struck an agreement on a bilateral investment pact.

The two foreign ministers said in a joint news statement that they have agreed to set up a council for Japan-Iran cooperation to discuss a variety of issues ranging from economic cooperation to the environment and medical care.

The Chinese Navy‘s training vessel „Zhenghe“ arrives in the Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, the United States, Oct. 12, 2015. The Chinese navy‘s training vessel „Zhenghe“ arrived Monday in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, starting a four-day goodwill visit to the United States.

Die russische Botschaft in Damaskus ist heute mit Granaten beschossen worden. Zeitgleich hatten sich Hunderte Regierungsanhänger in der Nähe der russischen Botschaft versammelt, um ihre Unterstützung für die russische Operation in Syrien zu bekunden.

Arab-owned businesses, schools and other institutions were closed Tuesday in Israel as protests continue against Israeli aggression in Palestine.

The Syrian civil war is now a proxy war between Russia and the United States, with each side fueling the conflict with more firepower.

In the latest maneuver, the U.S. sent 50 tons of ammunition to rebels trying to topple President Bashar al-Assad and four decades of his family‘s rule.

That came after Russia went to the aid of Assad, saying it‘s targeting ISIS but launching airstrikes on rebel-controlled areas.

Kurdish forces and the Syrian army fought separate battles with Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) group around Hasaka city in northeast Syria overnight as the hardline group tried to capture more areas of the major urban center near the Iraqi border, a monitor said on Saturday.

Security forces loyal to the KDP dominate its political strongholds in the western provinces of Dohuk and Erbil, while PUK forces predominate in Kirkuk and the eastern province of Sulaimaniya.
Gorran, which was founded by disaffected PUK leaders, has attracted supporters throughout Kurdistan but enjoys the most popularity in Sulaimaniya.

The prime minister of Iraq‘s Kurdistan region has removed four members of his cabinet, a spokesman said on Monday, in an escalating political crisis that threatens to destabilize the relatively peaceful region.

U.S. forces airdropped small arms ammunition and other supplies to Syrian Arab rebels, barely two weeks after Russia raised the stakes in the long-running civil war by intervening on the side of President Bashar al-Assad.

RT-Korrespondent Murad Gazdiev berichtet von der Bodenoffensive der syrischen Streitkräfte im Norden der Hama-Provinz. Mittels der russischen Luftunterstützung gelangen der zuvor stark gebeutelten Syrisch Arabischen Armee signifikante Bodengewinne gegen die Dschihadisten von der Al-Nusra Front. Doch der Preis ist hoch. „Dank“ US-amerikanischer Lieferung von hochmoderner Panzerabwehrlenkwaffen wie dem TOW, erleiden gerade die Panzereinheiten hohe Verluste.

The Iranian parliament approved details of a disputed bill on implementing the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

The bill called “Iranian government‘s reciprocal and proportional action in implementing the JCPOA” voted in favor by 161 MPs, 59 voted against and 13 more abstained. The ratification took place in an open session Oct. 13, Iran’s State IRINN TV reported.