This week I found an article about Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and the corruption charges he currently faces. Netanyahu is set to be indicted on three separate bribery charges, with a hearing date currently pending. The charges make Netanyahu’s goal of a fifth term come the April elections seem very unlikely, probably having lost the trust of Israel’s people… Read more »
During this round of region reports I read an article about the war crime charges facing security forces in Israel. The security forces are believed to be responsible for the deaths of 189 people in 2018 and causing upwards of 6,000 to be wounded. Those killed and wounded were Palestinian protests who “did not pose an imminent threat of death… Read more »
For this round of region reports I read about Egyptian President, Abdul Fattah al-Sisi and how he could stay in power until 2034. Despite his presidential term due to close in 2022, the Egyptian government plans to pass a new bill that would allow the president to serve an extra 12 years. WIth the extended term, the president would also… Read more »
Jerusalem (CNN)Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be indicted on bribery and breach of trust charges arising from three separate corruption investigations, pending a hearing, Israel’s attorney general announced Thursday evening.The announcement, so close to April’s general election, marks a dramatic moment in Israeli politics and is a major blow to Netanyahu as he seeks a fifth term in office.He… Read more »
Eastern Syria (CNN)The US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces has started a ground operation to clear the last ISIS enclave in Syria, a spokesman for the group told CNN Friday.SDF spokesman Mustafa Bali said thousands of civilians have been evacuated and kidnapped fighters have been freed in Baghouz, in eastern Syria,”Only the terrorists remain in Baghouz.” Bali said in a tweet.At its… Read more »
Eastern Syria (CNN)She was covered from head to toe in black. Identifying herself only as Um Bassam, the mother of Bassam, she told me she was 25 years old, the mother of four children, a widow, and from the city of Aleppo. All around her were clusters of other women with similar stories, also clad in black, faces concealed, with their… Read more »
Tens of thousands of Algerians have been protesting against 81-year-old President Abdelaziz Bouteflika’s decision to run for a fifth term on 18 April. It is a rare show of dissent in the North African country, where more than 30% of people aged under 30 are unemployed. Are the demonstrations a surprise? Yes, they are the biggest protests against President Bouteflika… Read more »
Tens of thousands of people are marching in the Algerian capital, Algiers, in the latest protest against President Abdelaziz Bouteflika. The demonstrations – now in their third week – were triggered by the ailing president’s decision to seek re-election for a fifth term in April. Mr Bouteflika has ruled Algeria for 20 years but has rarely been seen in public… Read more »
AL-OMAR OIL FIELD BASE, Syria (AP) — Abandoned tents, vehicles and foxholes to hide from airstrikes are all that are left from evacuated parts of the Islamic State group’s last shred of territory in Syria. An exclusive video obtained by The Associated Press on Friday showed parts of the tiny pocket of land in the village of Baghouz vacated recently… Read more »
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is on a trip to Gulf countries this week to bolster ties between Moscow and a variety of countries in the Middle East. The visit will pave the way for a high-level trip by Russian President Vladimir Putin that comes at an important time for Russia’s role in the region. According to a report at… Read more »