‘Faulty intel’: Family after US raid kills Syrian undercover agent; Islamic State militant was target

Khaled al-Masoud, who was killed at his home during a raid in the town of al-Dumayr in the Damascus countryside. (Courtesy of the al-Masoud family via AP) A joint raid by the US forces and a local Syrian group targeting an Islamic State (IS) militant instead resulted in the killing of a man who had […]

Pakistan-Afghanistan clashes: Delegations hold crisis talks in Qatar; regional powers urge peace

Locals inspect site of a cross-border attack by Pakistani army in Afghanistan’s eastern Paktika province (AP) Delegations from Afghanistan and Pakistan arrived in Doha, Qatar, on Saturday to hold high-level talks aimed at ending the intense cross-border hostilities that left dozens dead on both sides and significantly strained already fragile bilateral ties.Both countries have sent […]

Unesco is choosing new director who will face big funding shortage after US exit

The Unesco logo hangs from a podium in Paris (Image credits: AP) PARIS: An Egyptian antiquities professor and ex-tourism minister is facing off against a Congolese economist who promoted schooling in refugee camps in a race to become the new director of Unesco. Whoever wins will inherit a world body reeling from the Trump administration’s […]

11 killed in separate blasts in Pakistan’s Balochistan, insurgent group claims one attack

At least 11 people were killed in two separate blasts in Pakistan’s restive Balochistan province on Friday, officials said, underscoring the growing wave of militancy in the mineral-rich region bordering Afghanistan and Iran.A suicide bomber rammed an explosive-laden vehicle into a convoy of paramilitary soldiers in Dasht, near the Iranian border, killing five people, including […]

Attack on Christians threatens Syria’s postwar cohesion

Representative Image (AI-generated) In an official statement issued immediately after a suicide bomber opened fire on worshippers before blowing himself up at a Christian church in Damascus, Syria’s government called the attack a desperate attempt to undermine national coexistence and destabilize the country. The Interior Ministry blamed the so-called “Islamic State” group for the attack, […]

Donald Trump-Ahmad Al-Sharaa Meet Scripts History

Quick Reads Summary is AI generated, newsroom reviewed. Donald Trump met Syria’s interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa in Saudi Arabia. Al-Sharaa, formerly a UN-designated terrorist, now leads Syria’s new regime. Trump announced the lifting of sanctions on Syria, in place since 1979. Riyadh: Donald Trump, who is on a whirlwind visit to the Middle East, has […]