Middle East

Up is Down: Trump Oil Sanctions on Iran Likely to Increase Tehran Sales – Report
New sanctions placed on Iran by US President Donald Trump are likely to have the reverse effect the White House is hoping for, according to new reports, as Tehran’s petroleum exports are set to increase just as Washington’s restrictions commence. [...]
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US threatens to smack SWIFT with sanctions if it fails to cut off financial services to Iran
US threatens to smack SWIFT if it allows transactions in violation of Iran sanctions. US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has warned global financial messaging service SWIFT on Friday that it could be penalized if it doesn’t cut off financial services to entities and individuals doing business with Iran. [...]
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Utah mayor killed in Kabul the latest victim of perpetual US presence in Afghanistan
The US serviceman killed in an insider attack in Kabul is identified as Brent Taylor, a mayor from Utah. While shocking to some back at home, this is only the latest such incident in a war that even top brass now call unwinnable. [...]
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After 17 years of war, top US commander in Afghanistan admits Taliban cannot be defeated
The Afghanistan war cannot be won militarily and peace will only be achieved through a political resolution with the Taliban, the newly-appointed American general in charge of US and NATO operations has conceded. [...]
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Bolsonaro Says Brazil Will Move Embassy to Jerusalem
Brazilian President-elect Jair Bolsonaro tweeted that he intends to transfer the Brazilian Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem as a part of fulfilling his election campaign promises. Brazil will become the third country after the United States and Guatemala to move its embassy to Jerusalem, Associated Press reported. In a tweet published on Thursday, Bolsonaro said: “Israel is a sovereign state, [...]
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Israel Sells $250Mln Worth of Cutting Edge Spy Systems to Saudi Arabia – Reports
Tel Aviv hasn’t confirmed the reports, nor has the Gulf kingdom, which doesn’t have official diplomatic ties with the Jewish state. Saudi Arabia and Israel held covert meetings “in Washington and London,” which resulted in an estimated $250 million deal, including the transfer of Israeli espionage technologies to the kingdom, Israeli media reported on Sunday, citing an exclusive report by [...]
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‘Brutally honest’: Public outcry forces Facebook to stop banning pics of starving Yemeni girl
A backlash prompted Facebook to stop removing posts featuring a photo of an emaciated seven-year-old Yemeni girl, which accompanied a harrowing New York Times report from the war-torn country. The atrocities in Yemen don’t make poignant headlines in Western mainstream media as often as stories about chemical weapons in Syria or ‘Russian meddling,’ as the conflict usually gets sidelined in th [...]
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‘Criminal negligence’ or disregard to Russia-Israel ties: MoD details chronology of Il-20 downing
A minute-by-minute account of the Il-20 downing shows Israel's culpability and either its military bosses' lack of appreciation of relations with Moscow, or their control of commanding officers, the Russian defense ministry said. [...]
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Bone Saw Mystery: Did Apple Watch Record Saudi Journalist’s Butchering?
On today's TRUNEWS, what really happened in the Saudi embassy in Istanbul? Rick Wiles considers the convoluted international intrigue surrounding the death of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who Turkish reports through audio and video say was brutally carved up alive by supposed rogue elements from Saudi Arabia. Rick also looks at Khashoggi's past connections with the CIA and Osama Bin [...]
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‘Trump doesn’t want any country even near challenging American power’
By withdrawing from a key nuclear arms treaty, the US could be shooting itself in the foot in Europe, but Trump doesn’t care about Europeans, he cares about Russia, China and - most of all – Israel, says author John Laughland. [...]
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Saudi crown prince calls Khashoggi killing case ‘painful’ in first remarks since admitting death
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman pledged that “justice will prevail” in the case involving the death of columnist Jamal Khashoggi, who was killed in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul earlier in October. [...]
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Ex-White Helmets Open Up: ‘We Were Used for Their Political Agenda & Discarded’
The controversial White Helmets rescue group has been praised in the Western media as heroes, and derided by the Syrian government as 'al-Qaeda's civil defense' network. But is there a middle ground between such polarizing views? A Sputnik correspondent got an unprecedented inside look into the group's operations in southern Syria. [...]
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‘We seek justice!’ Erdogan calls Trump, vows to reveal ‘naked truth’ about Khashoggi’s fate
In a phone call with President Donald Trump, the Turkish leader emphasized the need to disclose all circumstances of journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s death. Earlier Recep Tayyip Erdogan promised to make an “important statement” soon. [...]
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Russian Aerospace Forces Destroyed Over 122,000 Terrorist Targets in Syria
The Russian Aerospace Forces have carried out over 40,000 missions, including over 21,000 sorties during the night time, in the course of their operation in Syria, Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said at the fifth ASEAN and Dialogue Partners Defense Ministers Meeting (ADMM-Plus) in Singapore.   [...]
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Candid tape, black van and bone saw? What we know about Khashoggi case so far
The mysterious disappearance of Saudi dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi has captivated the world, as accusations against Riyadh keep growing. RT unpacks allegations and gruesome details reported over the last two weeks.  Jamal Khashoggi was once close to the Saudi elites but fled the kingdom last year in fear of prosecution. [...]
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US Not to Change Logistical Support for Saudi-led Operations in Yemen
WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The United States has no plans to change its logistical support for Saudi-led military operations in Yemen, US Air Force Special Operations Command chief Lt. Gen. Brad Webb said at a press briefing. "I see nothing on the horizon that may change this focus at this point," Webb said on Wednesday, when asked about possible changes in future logistical support for Riyadh's opera [...]
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Pentagon Unaware of US Hostages Taken Near Syria’s Deir Ez-Zor
WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The US Department of Defense has no information regarding US nationals being taken hostage near the Syrian city of Deir Ez-Zor, Pentagon spokesperson Cmdr. Sean Robertson told Sputnik. Earlier on Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Daesh* terrorists had recently begun expanding their presence on the left bank of the Euphrates river in Syria, taking nearly 700 peo [...]
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Forensics expert ‘cut to pieces’ Saudi journalist’s body as colleagues listened to music – sources
Journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s body was cut into pieces after his death at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul two weeks ago, a Turkish source has told CNN and Al Jazeera. The source told Al Jazeera that the murder took about seven minutes and said that Saudi forensics expert Saleh al-Tubaiqi dismembered Khashoggi’s body and asked his colleagues to listen to music while he did it. [...]
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Syrian Army Digs Up US-Made Guns in Terrorist Arms Cache Near Damascus (PHOTOS)
During operations to clear terrorist-controlled areas across the country in recent months, Syrian forces discovered countless caches of Western and Israeli-made weapons, munitions and supplies. Authorities in the town of Yalda, about 10 kilometers south of the Syrian capital, have discovered a large stock of weapons and ammunition carefully hidden inside a plastic water tank at a local farm [...]
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Ankara Blames Saudis for Lack of Cooperation in Probe Into Journo Disappearance
ANKARA (Sputnik) – The Saudi authorities are not cooperating on the investigation into the disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, and in particular, are not letting Turkish prosecutors to the consulate building, Turkish Foreign Minister said on Saturday. [...]
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S-300s in Syria Will Be Able to ‘See’ America’s 5th-Gen Jets
The delivery of Russia's S-300s to Syria has prompted US media to speculate that the US Air Force may deploy its F-22 stealth fighters to take out the country's air defenses. Meanwhile, Washington also promised to supply Israel with more F-35s. But will the 5th gen planes be able to evade the Russian air defense system? Not likely, analysts say. [...]
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‘It’s Not Helpful’: US Warns India Against Buying Iran Oil, Russian S-400s
On Thursday, US President Donald Trump promised that India will soon see his decision on punitive measures after New Delhi moved to purchase advanced S-400 air defense systems from Russia. [...]
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