Middle-east Arab News Opinion | Asharq Al-awsat

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Iraqi Kurdish President Masoud Barzani sits with Kirkuk Governor Najmaldin Karim (R) during his visit in Kirkuk, Iraq September 12, 2017. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed

Scrutinizing The Kurdish Referendum

by Eyad Abu Shakra | Oct 11, 2017 | Opinion

It was really significant that the coffin of Jalal Talebani, the ex-Iraqi president, was wrapped by the national flag of Kurdistan rather the flag of Iraq, during his funeral in his hometown As-Suleimanyyah. What we are now witnessing is a virtual ‘divorce’ between...

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A woman casts her vote during Kurds independence referendum in Kirkuk, Iraq September 25, 2017. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani

Kurdish Secession and Mysteries of Identity

by Amir Taheri | Oct 6, 2017 | Opinion

An old Arab adage asserts that there is always something good in whatever happens. The secession referendum held in the autonomous Kurdish region of Iraq is no exception. It has added to tension in the region, awakened many old demons and diverted attention from more...

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(L-R) Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif, EU envoy Catherine Ashton, Omani Foreign Minister Yussef bin Alawi and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry pose for a photo in Muscat November 9, 2014. REUTERS/Nicholas Kamm/Pool

Zarif in Oman to Discuss Critical Topics

by Asharq Al-Awsat | Oct 3, 2017 | World

London- Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif held discreet talks with his Omani counterpart Yusuf bin Alawi upon his arrival to Muscat before meeting Omani Sultan Qaboos bin Said. During the meeting with Sultan Qaboos, they discussed regional topics...

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Catalonia’s regional President Carles Puigdemont poses next to a pro-independence supporter with a Catalan Estelada flag showing the date for which the regional government called for a referendum on a split from Spain outside the Palau de la Generalitat, the regional government headquarters, in Barcelona, Spain, June 9, 2017. Reuters

Tension in Catalonia Rise Ahead of Referendum

by Mohammed Fahmi | Sep 30, 2017 | World

London- Referendum on the secession of the province of Catalonia in northern Spain will begin soon, however, a state of tension started to prevail among the scene, following the verbal and media attack between the central government in Madrid rejecting the referendum...

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A man stains his finger with ink during the Kurdistan independence referendum in Kirkuk, Iraq, on Monday. Thaier Al-Sudani / Reuters

Coordinated Iraqi-Turkish Escalation Tightens the Noose on Kurds

by Saeed Abdel Razek and Asharq Al-Awsat | Sep 27, 2017 | Middle East

Ankara, Baghdad, Irbil- Ankara and Baghdad escalated on Tuesday their coordinated measures in reaction to the referendum on independence held in northern Iraq, a move that is expected to tighten the noose on the Kurdistan Region. The Turkish government hinted to...