Iranian authorities on Tuesday announced the approval of eight candidates who will be allowed to compete in the June 14 presidential election. The Guardian Council, which vetted the candidates, made sure that Iran’s next president will be a pliable servant of the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The regime hopes …
Canadian police announced on Monday that they had arrested two foreign men plotting to derail a passenger train and who had received some unspecified form of support from al-Qaeda personnel based in Iran. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said that Raed Jasser, a 35-year-old Palestinian living in Toronto, and Chiheb …
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel announced Wednesday that he has ordered the deployment of U.S. troops to work with Jordan’s military to “improve readiness and prepare for a number of scenarios” related to Syria. The Army will send up to 200 personnel, including intelligence and communications specialists, from the headquarters of …
The leader of al-Qaeda’s Iraq branch, the Islamic State of Iraq, announced on Tuesday the formal merger of his organization and Jabhat al-Nusra (“Victory Front”), an al-Qaeda-controlled front group that has played a growing role inside Syria. Sheikh Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared, “It’s now time to declare in front of …
Although the Obama Administration has proclaimed its intention to “pivot” toward Asia, Secretary of State John Kerry has been forced to pivot back to the Middle East in advance of his forthcoming trip to Asia. Kerry was originally slated to travel to South Korea, Japan, and China following the April …
As the Syrian civil war escalates, it is increasingly spilling over Syria’s borders to threaten Syria’s neighbors and the long-established U.N. peacekeeping forces deployed along Syria’s border with Israel. On Wednesday, Syrian rebels captured 21 peacekeeping troops from the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) in the Golan Heights near …
Iran defiantly continues to expand its uranium enrichment program despite international sanctions and multiple U.N. Security Council resolutions, according to a report from the International Atomic Energy Agency. Iran has begun installing advanced centrifuges that will increase the rate of enrichment and reduce the amount of time it needs to …
Israel was a conspicuous omission when the itinerary of Secretary of State John Kerry’s first trip overseas to Europe and the Middle East was announced this week. Although Kerry will visit Egypt, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and United Arab Emirates, he will not be visiting America’s most important ally in …
