Middle East

Anti-government protests in Yemen

Thursday, 17 February 2011

Several thousand Yemeni protesters defied appeals for calm from the military and the country's most influential Islamic cleric and marched through the capital today, pressing on with their campaign to oust the US-allied president.

Bahrain protesters keep up pressure

Wednesday, 16 February 2011

Protesters demanding sweeping political reforms from Bahrain's rulers held their ground in an Egypt-style occupation of the capital's landmark square today, calling for a third day of demonstrations.

Iran: MPs demand execution of opposition leaders

Wednesday, 16 February 2011

Kim Sengupta: Conservative Iranian parliamentarians yesterday called for the country's main opposition leaders to be put to death after protests in Tehran in solidarity with the revolt in Egypt.

Bahrain: Protesters demand reforms after Shia die in clashes

Wednesday, 16 February 2011

Thousands of Shia protesters marched into the capital of Bahrain yesterday after a man was killed in clashes between police and mourners at a funeral for a demonstrator shot dead at an earlier anti-government rally.

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Iranian protesters call for 'death to dictator'

Tuesday, 15 February 2011

Tehran was convulsed by protests yesterday as thousands of demonstrators, inspired by the success of the uprising in Egypt, took to the streets of the Iranian capital for the first time in more than a year.

'Dysfunctional' Palestinian cabinet resigns

Tuesday, 15 February 2011

The Palestinian cabinet resigned yesterday, in an apparent attempt by President Mahmoud Abbas to demonstrate political reform after the uprising in Egypt. The shake-up could bolster Mr Abbas's standing among Palestinians, dissatisfied with a cabinet regarded as dysfunctional.

Clashes in Bahrain before planned protest rally

Monday, 14 February 2011

Bahrain's security forces fired tear gas and rubber bullets today at thousands of anti-government protesters heeding calls to unite in a major rally and bring the Arab reform wave to the Gulf for the first time.

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Police disperse Iranian protesters with tear gas

Monday, 14 February 2011

Clashes between Iranian police and tens of thousands of protesters wracked central Tehran today.

Iraq unearths mass grave northeast of Baghdad

Saturday, 12 February 2011

Iraqi officials say they've unearthed a mass grave northeast of Baghdad containing dozens of bodies.

Middle East celebrates Mubarak's fall

Friday, 11 February 2011

Celebrations have erupted across the Middle East after Hosni Mubarak stepped down as Egypt's president.

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Middle East leaders react nervously to Mubarak's defiance

Friday, 11 February 2011

Catrina Stewart: Reaction in the Middle East to President Mubarak's defiant address to the nation was muted late yesterday, with nervous regional leaders hesitant to prejudge the outcome of fast-moving developments in Egypt.

Iranian opposition leader under house arrest

Friday, 11 February 2011

An Iranian opposition leader, Mehdi Karroubi, was placed under house arrest yesterday. Security officers were posted at his door and one of his aides detained after calls for a rally in support of the popular uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia.

Saudi King in 'excellent' health after surgery

Friday, 11 February 2011

Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah bin Abdul-Aziz is alive and in "excellent shape", the Foreign Minister, Prince Saud al-Faisal, said yesterday after rumours about the King's health triggered a spike in the price of oil.

Video: Suicide bombing in Iraq caught on camera

Thursday, 10 February 2011

A large blast at a security centre in Iraq, that killed seven people, has been caught on camera.

Hague warns Israel to soften rhetoric

Wednesday, 9 February 2011

Mr Hague urged Israel to tone down its 'belligerent' language in the wake of the uprisings which have spread from Tunisia to Egypt and beyond.

Israel launches air strikes after rocket attack

Wednesday, 9 February 2011

Officials in Israel and Gaza said Israeli aircraft have carried out retaliatory airstrikes in the territory after militants launched rockets into Israel.

Israeli soldier faces jail for passing secrets to reporter

Monday, 7 February 2011

A former Israeli soldier who leaked secret military documents to a journalist suggesting that the army had ignored a court ruling in carrying out targeted assassinations of West Bank militants faces years in prison.

Iraq repairs Saddam's triumphal sword arch

Monday, 7 February 2011

Officials in Iraq have begun to restore the notorious "Hands of Victory" arch in Baghdad, enraging many who see the massive bronze sculpture commissioned by Saddam Hussein to mark the war with Iran as a symbol of the brutality and excesses of his long rule.

Tehran bars observers from espionage trial of US hikers

Monday, 7 February 2011

Iran blocked journalists and international observers from the opening of a trial for three American hikers accused of spying after they strayed over the border from Iraq in 2009.

Escaped prisoner smuggled home

Monday, 7 February 2011

A Hamas militant who escaped from an Egyptian prison during the protests has sneaked back into Gaza using a smuggling tunnel, receiving a hero's welcome by the Palestinian Islamist group.

Pipeline blast worries Israel

Monday, 7 February 2011

Israel has expressed concern about its energy security after an explosion ripped though an Egyptian gas terminal on the Sinai Peninsula. It was unclear if the blast, which set off a massive fire, was related to the ongoing protests, but Israel gets about half of its natural gas from Egypt and has been on alert for any disruptions to its supply.

Iran set to try US 'hiker spies'

Sunday, 6 February 2011

An Iranian court is holding a closed-door session to begin proceedings against three Americans detained 18 months ago and accused of spying.

US urges Yemen opposition to avoid "provocation"

Saturday, 5 February 2011

The US embassy in Yemen called on opposition groups today to refrain from "provocative action" and talk to the government following large street protests in the impoverished Arab country.

Yemen: 'Day of rage' in state seen as militant threat

Friday, 4 February 2011

The country considered by the US to be second only to Afghanistan in the "war on terror" saw tens of thousands take to the streets on yesterday's "Day of Rage", with police opening fire to disperse the crowd.

Thousands march against Yemen president

Thursday, 3 February 2011

Tens of thousands of demonstrators, some chanting "down, down with the regime," today marched in several towns and cities in Yemen against the country's autocratic president, a key US ally in the fight against Islamic militants.