World governments reacted with concern after Turkey launched a military offensive on Kurdish forces in northern Syria, while the UN Security Council plans to hold an emergency meeting to discuss the assault. Here are some of the initial comments following the start

Saudi Arabia announced Wednesday it will allow women in the ultra-conservative kingdom to serve in the armed forces as it embarks on a broad programme of economic and social reforms.

Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi on Wednesday promised a full probe into last week’s violence that left more than 100 dead in anti-government protests, as calm returned after three days of national mourning begins.

War-ravaged Yemen is on course to become the world’s poorest country if the conflict persists, the United Nations said in a report. “If fighting continues through 2022

Thousands of Iranian women fans are to attend a football match freely today for the first time in decades, after FIFA threatened to suspend the country over its controversial male-only policy.

Iraq’s military yesterday admitted for the first time it had used “excessive force” in nearly a week of deadly protests, as paramilitary units said they were ready to back the government.

The Afghan Taliban said it has freed three Indian engineers held hostage for over a year in an exchange for securing the release of 11 of its members, including some high-ranking officials of the militant group, according to a media report yesterday. The prisoner swap

The Iraqi government announced a series of reforms early yesterday after an “extraordinary” session overnight in response to sweeping anti-government rallies that have left nearly 100 dead in less than a week.

Saudi Arabia yesterday announced it would allow unmarried foreign couples to rent hotel rooms together as the ultraconservative kingdom begins offering up tourist visas for the first time.

A curfew was lifted in Baghdad yesterday following days of protests which have left nearly 100 dead, but tensions remained after firebrand cleric Moqtada Sadr demanded the government quit.

A three-man crew including an Emirati who became the first Arab to reach the International Space Station returned to Earth safely yesterday and were in good shape, the Russian space agency Roscosmos said. Hazzaa al-Mansoori of the United Arab Emirates touched

Peace talks in Afghanistan must resume as soon as possible, Pakistan and the Taliban militant group urged yesterday, after President Donald Trump broke off negotiations last month seeking to end the United States’ longest war.

Israel’s parliament was sworn yesterday without a new government formed as a deadlocked general election left Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu scrambling to find a path to extend his long tenure in power.

At least 173 civilians, including 41 children, have been killed in Syria by landmines and explosive remnants of war since the start of the year, a monitor said yesterday.

Several thousand Iraqi protesters faced off against security forces in central Baghdad on Thursday, the third day of mass rallies that have left 19 dead as they engulf the country’s south.

Taliban co-founder Mullah Baradar was due in Pakistan yesterday as US envoy Zalmay Khalilzad also visited, officials said, though it was unclear if they would meet for the first time since Donald Trump scuttled talks between Washington and the insurgents.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu began his final attempt to fend off a corruption indictment yesterday when his lawyers argued against looming charges that have combined with election stalemate to threaten his long hold on power. The pre-trial hearings, scheduled to

International human rights groups demanded justice yesterday for slain Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, saying that a year after his brutal murder, Saudi authorities had yet to provide any “meaningful accountability”.

Yemen’s Huthi rebels have freed 290 prisoners, including dozens of survivors from a Saudi-led coalition strike on a detention centre earlier this month, the ICRC said yesterday.

Afghanistan chief executive Abdullah Abdullah claimed victory yesterday over incumbent Ashraf Ghani in the weekend’s presidential election, far ahead of the release of any official results.