Middle East

The Bundeswehr has been deployed in Iraq since 2015, at times against the opposition of the Iraqi parliament. The assignment has now been extended. The argument that this would reduce the risk of terrorism in Germany is implausible in view of the uncontrolled arms deliveries to Ukraine. read more.

Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri was killed over the weekend in a US drone strike in Afghanistan, US President Joe Biden announced on Monday evening, after multiple media outlets reported it citing anonymous sources within the government. Biden made a brief televised appearance while quarantining with Covid-19. read more.

The unrest comes just days after supporters of Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr burst into the heavily fortified Green Zone in the center of the Iraqi capital, where they danced, sang, posed for selfies, and dispersed. read more.

Ankara’s comments come after it announced plans for a new military offensive against US-backed Kurdish militants. read more.

Iran is technically capable of producing a nuclear bomb but no political decision on such an option has been made, Kamal Kharrazi, a senior adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, has said. read more.

The modern borders of the Arab world vaguely resemble the blue and red crayon lines secretly drawn on a map of the Levant in May 1916, at the height of the First World War. read more.