Middle-east Arab News Opinion | Asharq Al-awsat

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Southern Sudanese citizens hold their flag and chant slogans as they march in the streets in support of the independence referendum in Juba, South Sudan, December 9, 2010. (Reuters/Benedicte Desrus)

Saving South Sudan from its Founding Fathers

by Eli Lake | Sep 14, 2016 | Opinion

Five years after gaining its independence, South Sudan is a basket case. It is wracked by civil war. Its leaders have looted the treasury. Many of its people are on the brink of starvation. Now some of the most high-profile champions of the young nation’s...

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Forces loyal to Syria’s Bashar Assad stand near barricades on the southern side of the Castello road in Aleppo, Syria. SANA / HANDOUT VIA REUTERS

Syria’s Ceasefire: Cautious Calm as Tanks Fire Shells on Aleppo Countryside

by Nazeer Rida | Sep 14, 2016 | Middle East

Beirut-Russia on Tuesday deployed fighters along the Castello road to secure the delivery of humanitarian aid to areas that fall under the control of opposition factions in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo. Meanwhile, Syrian regime forces have withdrawn their...

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Speech of Custodian of Two Holy Mosques for heads of state and senior Islamic dignitaries who performed Hajj/ SPA

King Salman Rejects Exploitation of Hajj for Political Agendas

by Asharq Al-Awsat | Sep 14, 2016 | Saudi Arabia

Mina-The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud, has reaffirmed his country’s rejection of the exploitation of the Hajj season to serve political agendas or intensify ideological differences. “Exaggeration in religion is abhorred....

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Rebel fighters stand in a damaged building in Quneitra countryside, Syria, September 10, 2016/Reuters, Alaa Al-Faqir

Ankara Gives First Official Sign of Buffer Zone in Northern Syria

by Said Abdul Razzak | Sep 14, 2016 | Middle East

Ankara-Turkey on Tuesday gave the first official sign it has started implementing a plan to establish a buffer zone in northern Syria. Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Nurettin Canikli announced that his country would start building new residential cities in Syrian areas...

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Sunni tribal volunteers with national flags stand in formation during their graduation ceremony in Habaniyah, 80 kilometers west of Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, June 17, 2015 (AP Photo/ Khalid Mohammed)

In Iraq, Tribes are Stronger than Judiciary

by Moed Fayad | Sep 14, 2016 | Middle East

Baghdad–Iraqis are more likely to resort to their tribes to secure their rights in the absence of a rule-of-law and a strong state authority, legal and tribal sources said. In remarks to Asharq al-Awsat newspaper, lawyer Azhar Al-Khafaji said that Iraqis are now...