A new 19km bridge connecting the mainland with the Crimean Peninsula has been officially opened, making Russia the host of Europe’s longest bridge. President Vladimir Putin personally drove a truck across it to mark the occasion. The opening of the bridge was all about the people, who created the massive construction in record time. [...]

Israel Defense Forces have enough bullets for everyone, a senior lawmaker party said, according to local media. At least 60 Palestinians, including children, were killed by Israeli gunfire on Monday during protests. Avi Dichter, a senior member of Benjamin Netanyahu’s ruling Likud Party, made the controversial comment when speaking to Hadashot TV news on Monday afternoon. [...]

'Jared Kushner’s speech at the US Embassy opening ceremony in Jerusalem claims both sides of an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal could gain more than they give, as Israeli forces shot dead 41 protesters on Monday. Kushner, whom President Donald Trump tasked with bringing peace to the Middle East, said the US administration had almost completed a peace plan, but is undecided about when to reveal [...]

In response to the violence in Gaza, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has recalled the country's ambassadors to both the US and Israel, accusing Israel of "state terror" and "genocide." According to reports, Erdogan is recalling the ambassadors for consultations over the ongoing situation in the Gaza Strip. [...]

While Jared Kushner, Donald Trump’s son-in-law and a White House policy adviser, took the floor at the US Embassy opening ceremony in Jerusalem, Twitter most naturally turned ablaze, with many resorting to increasingly demonstrated skepticism and even outrage over the Kushner family's involvement in yet another Middle Eastern issue. [...]

As American officials smiled and clapped at the opening of the new US embassy in Jerusalem, Palestinian protesters were gunned down by Israeli bullets at the Gaza border. Twitter users were quick to point out the competing visuals and bad optics on a day when US officials were touting the opening of the new embassy as a “magnificent tribute to peace.” [...]

Russia’s Mriya Resort & Spa in the Crimea has been named the best holiday hotel and resort by the World Travel Awards. The hotel won the award in the world’s leading leisure resort category. Russia’s Aeroflot airline was named the best brand and the city of St. Petersburg best tourist destination. [...]

The bridge across the Kerch Strait, which will connect Russia's Crimean Peninsula and Krasnodar Region is set to open to traffic on Tuesday. Construction of the bridge, the longest in Russia with a span of 19 kilometers, has been carried out since February 2016, and it is opening for cars more than half a year ahead of schedule. [...]

Jared Kushner’s speech at the US Embassy opening ceremony in Jerusalem claims both sides of an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal could gain more than they give, as Israeli forces shot dead 55 protesters on Monday. Kushner, whom President Donald Trump tasked with bringing peace to the Middle East, said the US administration had almost completed a peace plan, but is undecided about when to reveal its [...]

Forty-one Palestinian protesters have been killed by Israeli fire during demonstrations ahead of the US embassy inauguration in Jerusalem, the Palestinian health ministry said Monday.  More than 1,700 protesters have been injured in Gaza so far on what has been the most violent day of the six week long Great March of Return. Those wounded on Monday include 74 children and 23 women, according to t [...]

In 2016 the United States established a training program for Free Syrian Army militants at its military base in al-Tanf to fight Daesh terrorists in the region. According to The Washington Post, the United States has been concerned over the possibility of Iranian forces, fighting in support of the Syrian government, seizing the US outpost in al-Tanf. [...]

The preparations have been launched just over a month after Berlin gave its go-ahead to the project. Engineers have started to prepare the construction site for the Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline by the shore of Germany's coastal resort of Lubmin, a representative of Nord Stream 2 AG told Sputnik. [...]

The US Embassy in Israel will officially open in Jerusalem on Monday after its relocation from Tel Aviv. UK Prime Minister Theresa May's spokesman said that Britain has no plans to move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and disagrees with the US decision to do it. [...]

UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson vowed Monday that the UK will consider how to help European firms have confidence they can still do business in Iran. The UK and France are determined to preserve the essence of the Iran Nuclear Deal, Boris Johnson said. [...]

Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has begun a diplomatic tour to China, Russia and the European Union. The trip is aimed at bolstering Iran’s stance amid Washington’s withdrawal from the Iran deal and re-imposing sanctions. Sputnik discussed this with Rasool Nafisi from Strayer University in Virginia. [...]

The former boss of the NSA and CIA, Michael Hayden, predicts that the decision to re-impose sanctions on Iran despite protests from EU leaders will harm US relations with its allies and lead to a trans-Atlantic argument. Commenting to German media outlet Spiegel on the recent decision of the US president to abandon the 2015 JCPOA, the former head of the NSA and CIA, General Michael Hayden, stated: [...]

Dismissed in the press, the academics behind the Working Group on Syria, Propaganda and Media have found few outlets for their research. Despite this, they have extended their studies from the Syrian war to the Skripal case. Made up of 15 academics, researchers, and PhD candidates across the UK, the group was established to "facilitate research into the areas of organised, persuasive communication [...]

Russian MPs have drafted a bill which means any action or inaction that helps to implement anti-Russian sanctions from foreign states should carry criminal responsibility with punishments of up to four years in prison. The joint document has been prepared by representatives of all four parliamentary caucuses headed by Upper House Speaker Valentina Matviyenko and Lower House Speaker Vyacheslav Volo [...]

By moving its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, Washington is choosing to be part of the problem in the Middle East rather than working towards a solution, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said. “The United States has chosen to be a part of the problem rather than the solution with its latest step and has lost its mediating role in the peace process,” Erdogan said in a speech at Britai [...]

Washington’s renewed sanctions on Tehran supports China’s newly established oil futures, analysts say. The sanctions can make the yuan a more preferable currency than the dollar on the oil market. Since their launch in May, the interest in the renminbi-backed oil contracts has steadily surged. Traded daily volumes hit a record 250,000 lots last Wednesday, and the share of yuan contracts in glo [...]

Amid concerns that the US decision to withdraw from Iran nuclear deal will lead to the loss of close to $40 billion in contracts for Boeing and Airbus, Russian airplane builders have a historic opportunity to receive a new foreign market for its latest designs. On Tuesday afternoon, in a move condemned by Tehran, most of the US's allies and much of the international community, President Trump ann [...]

Beijing has officially opened its new train route to Iran, as the US urges its companies to wind down their operations with the Islamic Republic. As US President Donald Trump hardens his confrontational attitude to Tehran, tearing up the 2015 nuclear deal and calling for a new sanctions regime, China is more than ready to grab the opportunity for trade by opening a new international railroad conne [...]