By Sara Rajabova AzerNews Kazakhstan will resume oil production in its largest oil and gas field – Kashagan, located in the north of the Caspian Sea. Vladimir Shkolnik, Kazakhstan’s energy minister said oil production at Kashagan field in the Kazakh sector of the Caspian Sea is expected to …
Read More »Pentagon says US ‘able to respond’ if needed after Iran seizes cargo ship
The Pentagon said Wednesday that the U.S. would “be able to respond” if necessary to help a Marshall Islands-flagged ship that was diverted, and boarded, a day earlier by Iran — though it remains unclear how far the U.S. Navy might be willing to go if the tense …
Read More »Future of Iraqi Kurds hangs in the balance
By Abdul Wahed Jalal Nori News Strait In this article, I will attempt to answer two questions: first, what is the status of the Iraqi Kurds in Northern Iraq and, second, will Kurdistan continue to develop itself as a quasi-state while avoiding a direct push toward sovereignty or …
Read More »US defense bill to directly arm Kurdish Peshmerga
By Yerevan Saeed Kurd Post The US House Armed Services Committee passed a watered down defense bill on Thursday, removing a clause asking for recognition of Kurdish Peshmergas and Sunni tribal forces as “country,” but maintaining that some of the military aid should go directly to the two …
Read More »What Went Wrong in Iraq? An Interview with David Petraeus
David Petraeus is the former Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). He was the commander of US forces in Iraq in 2007-2008, when he oversaw the surge of US troops that ended Iraq’s sectarian violence. Petraeus also commanded all coalition forces in Iraq. He was at the …
Read More »White House opposes key bill recognizing Iraqi Kurdish, Sunni forces as ‘country’
By Yerevan Saeed RUDAW The Obama administration is opposing a US defense bill that authorizes “direct military assistance” for Kurdish forces and Sunni tribal forces and recognizes them as “country,” the State Department said on Wednesday. The House Armed Services Committee on Monday released the National Defense Authorization …
Read More »Change in the name of stability for Saudi Arabia
By Michael Stephens Michael Stephens is head of the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) in Qatar. Out with the old in with the new, so it seems with the latest move in Saudi Arabia’s cabinet that has set gossip flying and rumours swirling as to the intrigues of this …
Read More »‘Islam at war’ vs ‘War within Islam’
By Marwan Bishara Muslims have a long memory and deep distrust of Western motives when it comes to provoking war or invoking Islam. Not a day passes without certain pundits sharing their newfound “insights” about Islam; “Islam at war”, “Islam’s war within”, or “Islam’s inherent violence”, etc. These …
Read More »Nigeria: More women and children freed from Boko Haram
Report by Al Jazeera News Military says at least 160 children and women rescued from the Sambisa Forest, days after 293 others were freed. The military has launched an assault to eliminate the armed group holed up in the Sambisa Forest [AP] Nigeria’s military says it has rescued …
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