Their world was the oyster: Oldest pearl town found in UAE
March 20, 2023 GMTSINIYAH ISLAND, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Archaeologists said Monday they have found the oldest pearling town in the Persian Gulf on an island off one of the northern sheikhdoms of the United Arab Emirates.
Israel, Palestinians aim to curb violence as holiday nears
March 19, 2023 GMTCAIRO (AP) — Israel and the Palestinians pledged Sunday at a meeting in Egypt to take steps to lower tensions ahead of a sensitive holiday season — including a partial freeze on Israeli settlement activity and an agreement to work together to “curb and counter violence.”
Netanyahu urges military chief to contain reservist protest
March 19, 2023 GMTTEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged the military's chief of staff on Sunday to contain a wave of protest from within the ranks over a contentious government plan to overhaul the judiciary.
Biden calls Israel’s Netanyahu with judicial plan ‘concern’
March 19, 2023 GMTWILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — President Joe Biden spoke Sunday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to express "concern” over his government’s planned overhaul of the country’s judicial system that has sparked widespread protests across Israel and to encourage compromise.
Syria’s Assad in UAE to mark ongoing thaw in relations
March 19, 2023 GMTBEIRUT (AP) — Syrian President Bashar Assad arrived in the United Arab Emirates on Sunday, his first visit to the wealthy Gulf country since the devastating earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria last month.
State news: Kuwait court annuls 2022 parliamentary election
March 19, 2023 GMTDUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A Kuwaiti court on Sunday annulled the results of a parliamentary election held last year, saying it would reinstate the previous slate of lawmakers elected in 2020.
Qatar charges ex-finance minister with bribery, embezzlement
March 19, 2023 GMTDUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Qatar announced Sunday the nation's former finance minister faces charges including bribery and embezzlement from his time in the post.
Ali Sharif al-Emadi was arrested in May 2021, with little about his case being made public.
Palestinian militant group: commander assassinated in Syria
March 19, 2023 GMTDAMASCUS (AP) — A commander in the Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad was killed in Syria on Sunday in what it described as an assassination by Israeli agents.
The Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad group, said in a statement that Ali Ramzi al-Aswad, 31, was killed Sunday morning in the Damascus countryside in a “cowardly assassination with bullets bearing the fingerprints of the Zionist enemy,” referring to Israel.
Turkey’s top diplomat visits Cairo in effort to mend ties
March 18, 2023 GMTCAIRO (AP) — Turkey’s chief diplomat was in Cairo on Saturday for talks with Egyptian officials as the regional powers seek to mend their frayed ties after years of tension.
Mevlut Cavusoglu, Turkey's foreign minister, arrived in the Egyptian capital early Saturday.
Israelis protest legal overhaul plans for 11th week
March 18, 2023 GMTTEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israelis on Saturday took to the streets in protests, now in their 11th week, against plans by Benjamin Netanyahu’s hard-line government to overhaul the country’s legal system.
Military: rocket fired from Gaza lands on southern Israel
March 18, 2023 GMTJERUSALEM (AP) — The Israeli military said Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired a rocket toward southern Israel Saturday evening.
The rocket fell and exploded in an open area, triggering warning sirens in the Nahal Oz community to the east of Gaza City.
Palestinians: 1 killed by Israeli army fire in West Bank
March 17, 2023 GMTJERUSALEM (AP) — The Israeli military said troops shot a Palestinian who approached soldiers on Friday and pulled a knife near the city of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank. Palestinian authorities said the man died of his wounds a short while later.
20 years after U.S. invasion, young Iraqis see signs of hope
March 17, 2023 GMTBAGHDAD (AP) — On the banks of the Tigris River one recent evening, young Iraqi men and women in jeans and sneakers danced with joyous abandon to a local rap star as a vermillion sun set behind them.
Syrian Kurdish force says it lost 9 fighters in Iraq crash
March 17, 2023 GMTQAMISHLI, Syria (AP) — The main U.S.-backed and Kurdish-led force in northeastern Syria said Friday it lost nine fighters, including a commander, when two helicopters crashed this week in neighboring Iraq.
Turkish FM to visit Egypt as countries end decade-long split
March 17, 2023 GMTISTANBUL (AP) — Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu will visit Egypt, both countries announced Friday, the first such high-level trip in more than a decade as their leaders repair relations damaged in the wake of the 2011 Arab Spring.
At least 5 killed in mysterious north Iraq helicopter crash
March 17, 2023 GMTDOHUK, Iraq (AP) — A mysterious helicopter crash in northern Iraq has killed at least five people, allegedly including militants belonging to an outlawed Kurdish insurgency group, according to statements Thursday from the Iraqi Kurdish-run counterterrorism agency and the regional government.
European team ends questioning of Lebanon Central Bank chief
March 17, 2023 GMTBEIRUT (AP) — A European legal team on Friday wrapped up two days of questioning of Lebanon’s Central Bank chief in Beirut in a money-laundering probe linked to the governor, officials said.
Elite officers in Israel’s military plan Sunday walkout
March 17, 2023 GMTJERUSALEM (AP) — Hundreds of elite officers in Israel’s military reserves say they will not show up for duty starting on Sunday in protest over the government's plans to overhaul the judicial system.
In Israel, TV’s dystopian ‘Handmaids’ is protest fixture
March 17, 2023 GMTTEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — It's become an ominous fixture of the mass anti-government protests roiling Israel: a coil of women in crimson robes and white caps, walking heads bowed and hands clasped. They are dressed as characters from Margaret Atwood's dystopian novel, “The Handmaid's Tale,” and the eponymous TV series.
Former Israeli premier urges world leaders to shun Netanyahu
March 17, 2023 GMTTEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israel’s former prime minister on Thursday urged world leaders to shun Israel’s current prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, as he presses ahead with a plan to overhaul the country's justice system.
UN nuclear watchdog: 2.5 tons of uranium missing in Libya
March 17, 2023 GMTDUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Some 2.5 tons of natural uranium stored in a site in war-torn Libya have gone missing, the United Nations nuclear watchdog said Thursday, raising safety and proliferation concerns.
Timeline of events: 20 years since U.S.-led invasion of Iraq
March 17, 2023 GMTBAGHDAD (AP) — It’s been 20 years since the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq began. Here are some key dates from the invasion and following developments.
Senate takes first step in repealing Iraq War authorizations
March 16, 2023 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate took a first step Thursday toward repealing two measures that give open-ended approval for military action in Iraq, pushing to end that authority as the United States marks the 20th anniversary of the Iraq War.
UN announces new advisers to bolster young voices on climate
March 16, 2023 GMTUnited Nations Secretary-General António Guterres named seven young climate leaders Thursday to be his Youth Advisory Group on Climate Change, underlining the role of youth advocates in climate action.
With Saudi deals, US, China battle for influence in Mideast
March 16, 2023 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — In a matter of days, Saudi Arabia carried out blockbuster agreements with the world’s two leading powers — China and the United States.
Riyadh signed a Chinese-facilitated deal aimed at restoring diplomatic ties with its arch-nemesis Iran and then announced a massive contract to buy commercial planes from U.S.
Palestinians: 4 killed in Israeli army raid in West Bank
March 16, 2023 GMTJERUSALEM (AP) — An Israeli army raid killed four Palestinians, including a teenage boy, near the occupied West Bank city of Jenin on Thursday, Palestinian officials said.
It was the latest bloodshed in a year-long wave of violence in the region.
Iranians facing economic crisis find little New Year’s cheer
March 16, 2023 GMTDUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran's bazaars are packed ahead of the Persian New Year next week, but there's little holiday cheer as customers survey the soaring prices of meat and holiday treats, wondering if they can afford either.
Lebanon Central Bank chief questioned by European lawyers
March 16, 2023 GMTBEIRUT (AP) — Under heavy security, Lebanon's embattled Central Bank chief was questioned for the first time on Thursday before a visiting European legal team in a money-laundering probe linked to the governor.
Senior Iranian official visits UAE on heels of Saudi deal
March 16, 2023 GMTDUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A senior Iranian official visited the United Arab Emirates on Thursday, just days after Tehran agreed to restore diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia in a Chinese-brokered deal that raised hopes of a broader rapprochement across Middle East.
Lebanon’s empty schools bode long-term damage from crisis
March 16, 2023 GMTBEIRUT (AP) — On a recent school day, the Rene Mouawad High School in Beirut was empty, its classrooms dark, just like all of Lebanon’s public schools have been for most of the past three months. Its striking teachers were protesting in front of the Education Ministry, not far away.
Netanyahu rejects judicial compromise, deepening crisis
March 16, 2023 GMTJERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday swiftly rejected a compromise proposal aimed at resolving a standoff over his plans to overhaul the country's legal system, deepening the crisis over a program that has roiled the country and drawn international criticism.
UN says intense diplomacy under way to end 8-year Yemen war
March 16, 2023 GMTUNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. special envoy for Yemen said Wednesday that intense diplomatic efforts are underway to end the eight-year war in Yemen. He cited new regional and international momentum, including the recent restoration of diplomatic ties between Saudi Arabia and Iran, who back rivals in the conflict.
Putin, Assad discuss rebuilding Syria, regional issues
March 15, 2023 GMTMOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin hosted Syrian leader Bashar Assad in the Kremlin on Wednesday for talks that focused on rebuilding Syria after a devastating civil war and efforts to stabilize the region.
Here’s how an AI tool may flag parents with disabilities
AP InvestigationMarch 15, 2023 GMTPITTSBURGH (AP) — For the two weeks that the Hackneys’ baby girl lay in a Pittsburgh hospital bed weak from dehydration, her parents rarely left her side, sometimes sleeping on the fold-out sofa in the room.
Israel says roadside bomb suspect may have come from Lebanon
March 15, 2023 GMTTEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — The Israeli army said Wednesday that soldiers killed an armed man suspected of entering the country from Lebanon and blowing up a car, raising the risk of renewed tensions with Hezbollah.
Official: EU foreign policy chief unwelcome in Israel
March 15, 2023 GMTJERUSALEM (AP) — Israel has signaled to the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, that he is not welcome to visit following critical comments he made about Israeli policies in the occupied West Bank, Israeli officials said Wednesday.
Analysis: Syria rebuilding hopes dim as war enters year 13
March 15, 2023 GMTBEIRUT (AP) — The recent deadly earthquake in Turkey and Syria which caused billions of dollars in damage has boosted the prospects of Syria's once widely shunned president return to the Arab fold, but appears unlikely to jump-start large-scale reconstruction in the war-ravaged country.
Iran says 110 arrested over suspected schoolgirl poisonings
March 15, 2023 GMTDUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iranian police said Wednesday that 110 suspects have been arrested in connection with the suspected poisoning of thousands of girls in schools across the country.
Officials: 2 men arrested in burglary of Salah’s Cairo home
March 15, 2023 GMTCAIRO (AP) — Two men were arrested on suspicion of burglarizing Mohamed Salah's Cairo villa earlier this month while the Egyptian soccer star was out of the country, authorities said Wednesday.
In a statement, Egypt's Interior Ministry said the suspects stole several pairs of soccer cleats, a medal, a small crystal ball and cable TV receivers from the Liverpool forward's luxury villa.
China, Russia, Iran hold joint naval drills in Gulf of Oman
March 15, 2023 GMTBEIJING (AP) — Naval forces from China, Iran and Russia — countries at odds with the United States — are staging joint drills in the Gulf of Oman this week, China’s Defense Ministry said Tuesday.
Other countries are also taking part in the “Security Bond-2023” exercises, the ministry said without giving details.
Videos show scattered protests during Iran’s fire festival
March 15, 2023 GMTDUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iranians have held scattered anti-government protests during an annual fire festival with ancient roots, according to videos circulating online.
The videos appeared to show protesters in different cities chanting against the country's ruling clerics and hurling firecrackers at security forces during celebrations of Chaharshanbe Soori, which took place on Tuesday.
Lebanon’s Central Bank chief again charged with corruption
March 15, 2023 GMTBEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s Central Bank chief was again charged with corruption on Wednesday, this time after failing to show up for questioning before a European legal team visiting Beirut in a money-laundering probe linked to the governor, officials said.
Why US troops remain in Iraq 20 years after ‘shock and awe’
March 15, 2023 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — Twenty years after the U.S. invaded Iraq — in blinding explosions of shock and awe — American forces remain in the country in what has become a small but consistent presence to ensure an ongoing relationship with a key military and diplomatic partner in the Middle East.
Netanyahu critics urge Germany, Britain to cancel his visit
March 14, 2023 GMTJERUSALEM (AP) — Hundreds of Israeli writers, artists and intellectuals on Tuesday called on Germany and Britain to cancel upcoming visits by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying his plan to overhaul Israel’s judicial system has put the country on a destructive course.
Syrian president Assad arrives in Moscow, set to meet Putin
March 14, 2023 GMTBEIRUT (AP) — Syrian President Bashar Assad arrived in Moscow on Tuesday, where he is scheduled to meet top ally Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Russia is a main backer of Assad and has a broad presence in Syria, where a 12-year uprising-turned-civil war has killed nearly half a million people and displaced half the country’s pre-war population.
Lebanon’s pound hits a new low as banks go back on strike
March 14, 2023 GMTBEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon's embattled currency hit a new low Tuesday, trading at an unprecedented 100,000 Lebanese pounds to the dollar on the black market as the crisis-hit country's banks went back on strike.
Rights group: Egypt withheld documents of dissidents abroad
March 14, 2023 GMTEgypt's authorities refused to issue or renew passports, birth certificates and other documents for more than two dozens journalists, critics and lawyers living abroad, a leading rights group said Monday.
Netanyahu allies in Israel plow ahead on legal overhaul
March 13, 2023 GMTJERUSALEM (AP) — The Israeli parliament on Monday advanced a bill that would make it harder to oust Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the corruption charges against him, as it plowed ahead with a broader plan to overhaul the country’s legal system in defiance of mass protests.
Ex-Jordanian official hospitalized after hunger strike
March 13, 2023 GMTA former top Jordanian official imprisoned in an alleged plot against the Western-allied monarchy was rushed to the hospital over the weekend after a three-week hunger strike, the man’s American lawyer said Monday.
UN inquiry commission: Quake aid was slow to reach Syria
March 13, 2023 GMTGENEVA (AP) — The international community and the Syrian government did not act quickly enough last month to help people in need in the rebel-held northwest after a deadly earthquake hit Turkey and conflict-ravaged Syria, a U.N.-backed commission said Monday.
Iran says 22,000 arrested in protests pardoned by top leader
March 13, 2023 GMTDUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran announced Monday that the country's supreme leader has pardoned more than 22,000 people arrested in the recent anti-government protests that swept the Islamic Republic.
Iran-Saudi Arabia deal casts China in unfamiliar global role
March 13, 2023 GMTBEIJING (AP) — An agreement between Iran and Saudi Arabia to reestablish diplomatic relations has cast China in a leading role in Middle Eastern politics — a part previously reserved for longtime global heavyweights like the U.S.
Italy estimates 680K migrants might cross sea from Libya
March 12, 2023 GMTROME (AP) — Intelligence reports indicate nearly 700,000 migrants are in Libya awaiting an opportunity to set out by sea toward Italy, a lawmaker from Premier Giorgia Meloni’s far-right party said Sunday, but a U.N.
Israel to weigh action after Silicon Valley Bank collapse
March 12, 2023 GMTJERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that the government would assess the effect of Silicon Valley Bank's collapse on Israeli companies and determine whether or not to assist them.
Iran: Death sentence for leader of deadly Ahvaz attack
March 12, 2023 GMTDUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran's top court has upheld the death sentence for a man allegedly behind an attack that killed dozens of people at a military parade in the southern province of Khuzestan in 2018, state media reported on Sunday.
Iran says deal with Saudi Arabia will help end Yemen’s war
March 12, 2023 GMTCAIRO (AP) — Iran's mission to the United Nations says a breakthrough agreement with Saudi Arabia restoring bilateral relations will help bring a political settlement to Yemen's yearslong war, Iranian state media reported on Sunday.
US calls Iran’s prisoner swap claim a ‘cruel lie’
March 12, 2023 GMTDUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran's top diplomat claimed Sunday that a prisoner swap was near with the U.S., though he offered no evidence to support his assertion. The U.S. immediately dismissed his comments as a “cruel lie.”
3 Palestinian militants killed in attack on Israeli troops
March 12, 2023 GMTJERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli forces shot and killed three Palestinian militants Sunday who opened fire on troops in the occupied West Bank, the military said, the latest bloodshed in a year-long wave of violence in the region.
Iraqi PM promises action to tackle crippling climate change
March 12, 2023 GMTBAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq's prime minister Sunday promised sweeping measures to tackle climate change — which has affected millions across the country — including plans to meet a third of the country's electricity demands using renewable energy.
Syrian state media: Israel fires missiles at western city
March 12, 2023 GMTBEIRUT (AP) — Israeli missiles targeted a western Syrian city on Sunday wounding three Syrian soldiers, Syrian state media reported.
The official news agency SANA, citing a military source, said the missiles were fired at Masyaf in Hama province at dawn.
Saudi Arabia’s golf case threatens to spill kingdom secrets
March 12, 2023 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — Officials who oversee Saudi Arabia's tens of billions of dollars in U.S.
Israelis protest proposed legal changes for 10th week
March 11, 2023 GMTTEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Tens of thousands of Israelis demonstrated Saturday against a contentious plan to overhaul the judiciary as the government pressed ahead with the plan.
The nationwide demonstrations have been a regular weekly event for more than two months.
Saudi deal with Iran worries Israel, shakes up Middle East
March 11, 2023 GMTJERUSALEM (AP) — News of the rapprochement between long-time regional rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran sent shock waves through the Middle East on Saturday and dealt a symbolic blow to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has made the threat posed by Tehran a public diplomacy priority and personal crusade.
Quake death toll nears 48,000 in Turkey, 6,000 in Syria
March 11, 2023 GMTISTANBUL (AP) — The head of Turkey's disaster and emergency management agency has raised the country's death toll from a magnitude 7.8 earthquake last month to 47,975.
Yunus Sezer said during a news conference on Saturday that the people who died included 6,278 foreigners, with Syrian nationals accounting for the largest share.
Yemen sides begin UN-brokered talks on prisoner exchange
March 11, 2023 GMTCAIRO (AP) — Yemen’s warring sides began talks Saturday aimed at implementing a U.N.-brokered deal on a prisoner exchange, the United Nations said.
The discussions between Yemen’s internationally recognized government and the Houthi rebels are talking place in Switzerland.
China denies hidden motives after hosting Iran-Saudi talks
March 11, 2023 GMTBEIJING (AP) — After hosting talks at which Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed to reestablish diplomatic relations, China said Saturday it has no hidden motives and isn’t trying to fill any “vacuum” in the Middle East.
Iran, Saudi Arabia agree to resume ties, with China’s help
March 11, 2023 GMTDUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed Friday to reestablish diplomatic relations and reopen embassies after seven years of tensions.
Countries that could be impacted by renewed Iran-Saudi ties
March 10, 2023 GMTDUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to resume diplomatic ties has wide-reaching effects across the Middle East and beyond, and reduces the chance of armed conflict between regional rivals.
NYC bike path killer convicted, could face the death penalty
March 10, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — An Islamic extremist who killed eight people with a speeding truck in a 2017 rampage on a popular New York City bike path was convicted Thursday of federal crimes and could face the death penalty.
Israeli fire kills Palestinian attacker, teen in West Bank
March 10, 2023 GMTJERUSALEM (AP) — A Palestinian man who entered a settlement in the occupied West Bank armed with knives and explosive devices was shot and killed by an Israeli settler on Friday, the military said.
US organization urges Egypt to release hunger-striking poet
March 10, 2023 GMTCAIRO (AP) — A U.S. free speech and literary organization has called on Egypt to release a well-known poet and songwriter who is on a hunger strike to protest his five-year incarceration.
PEN America demanded Thursday that Egyptian authorities release Galal al-Behairy, who was first detained in March of 2018 and later handed a three-year sentence for spreading false news and insulting Egypt's military.
Syria’s Aleppo airport resumes flights days after airstrike
March 10, 2023 GMTDAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Flights at Syria’s international airport in Aleppo resumed Friday, three days after it was put out of service by a suspected Israeli airstrike, the country’s head of civil aviation said.
Iraq’s crackdown on booze, social media posts raises alarm
March 10, 2023 GMTBAGHDAD (AP) — Only a few months into its term, Iraq’s government is suddenly enforcing a long-dormant law banning alcohol imports and arresting people over social media content deemed morally offensive.
Chaim Topol, Israeli actor known for Fiddler’s Tevye, dies
March 10, 2023 GMTJERUSALEM (AP) — Chaim Topol, a leading Israeli actor who charmed generations of theatergoers and movie-watchers with his portrayal of Tevye, the long-suffering and charismatic milkman in “Fiddler on the Roof,” has died in Tel Aviv, Israeli leaders said Thursday.
Indonesia unveils construction site of new capital city
March 9, 2023 GMTPENAJAM PASER UTARA, Indonesia (AP) — Orange-red ground has been broken in the jungle of East Borneo, where the Indonesian government has begun construction of its new capital city.
No verdict this week on death penalty in NY bike-path attack
March 9, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — Jurors deliberated Thursday without reaching a decision in the death penalty phase of a man convicted of killing eight people on a Manhattan bike path in 2017.
Netanyahu airlifted to airport after protesters block road
March 9, 2023 GMTTEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had to be airlifted Thursday to the country's main international airport for an overseas trip after throngs of cars and protesters prevented him from driving there.
UN signs deal to salvage stranded oil from tanker off Yemen
March 9, 2023 GMTUNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations announced Thursday it signed an agreement to purchase a very large vessel that can transfer more than 1 million barrels of crude now stranded in a rusting tanker off the coast of war-torn Yemen.
3 wounded in Tel Aviv shooting, hours after West Bank raid
March 9, 2023 GMTTEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — A Palestinian gunman opened fire on a crowded street in central Tel Aviv late Thursday, wounding three people before he was shot and killed, Israeli officials said. The shooting came hours after an Israeli military raid killed three Palestinian militants in the occupied West Bank.