BAGHDAD — Iran vowed “harsh retaliation” for a U.S. airstrike near Baghdad's airport that killed a top Iranian general who had been the architect of its interventions across the Middle East, as tensions soared in the wake of the targeted killing. The killing of Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran's elite Quds...
Esper Says Iran May Be Planning More Attacks on US Interests
WASHINGTON — Iran or its proxy forces may be planning further strikes on American interests in the Middle East, and the U.S. is prepared to take preemptive military action if it gets sufficient warning, Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Thursday. “The game has changed,” Esper said, citing a series of...
Japan OKs Divisive Plan to Send Naval Troops to Mideast
TOKYO — Japan on Friday approved a contentious plan to send its naval troops to the Middle East to ensure the safety of Japanese ships transporting oil to the energy-poor country that heavily depends on imports from the region. The Cabinet's decision reflects tensions that have escalated between Iran and...
Israel Strikes Iranian Targets in Syria After Rocket Attack
JERUSALEM — Israel said it struck dozens of Iranian targets in Syria on Wednesday in a “wide-scale” operation in response to rocket fire on the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights the day before. A Britain-based war monitoring group said the strikes killed at least 23 people, including 15 non-Syrians, some of them...
Israel Says it Has Completed Gaza Strikes After Rocket Fire
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Israel said early Friday it has completed a series of airstrikes on targets linked to the Islamic Jihad militant group in Gaza after overnight rocket fire that rattled a day-old truce. The Palestinian territory’s Hamas rulers, who kept to the sidelines of this week’s fighting,...
US Growth of Islam Creates Need for Religious Scholars
DEARBORN HEIGHTS, Mich. — Imam Mohammad Qazwini's deep understanding of Islam and his formal training at a seminary in the holy city of Qom, Iran, draws students to this suburban Detroit classroom just off the large prayer room of a mosque. But there's another attraction. The Quran, Islam's holy book,...
3 Ancient Shipwrecks Discovered off Aegean Island of Kasos
ATHENS, Greece — Greece's Culture Ministry says three shipwrecks from ancient and mediaeval times and large sections of their cargoes have been discovered off the small Aegean island of Kasos. A statement Monday said an underwater survey that ended last month also located cannons and other scattered finds — possibly...
Turkey Launches Offensive Against Kurdish Fighters in Syria
AKCAKALE, Turkey — Turkey launched a military operation Wednesday against Kurdish fighters in northeastern Syria after U.S. forces pulled back from the area, with a series of airstrikes hitting a town on Syria's northern border. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced the start of the campaign, which followed an abrupt...
Trump Defends Syria Move, Doesn't Want US Troops in Mideast
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump lashed out Wednesday over sharp criticism of his decision to pull back U.S. troops from northeastern Syria, insisting he is focused on the "BIG PICTURE" that doesn't include American involvement in "stupid endless wars" in the Middle East. "Fighting between various groups that has been...
Trump's Syria Withdrawal Announcement Draws GOP Condemnation
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump's sudden decision to pull back U.S. troops from northern Syria drew quick, strong criticism Monday from some of his closest allies in Congress. It was condemned, too, by Kurdish fighters who would be abandoned to face a likely Turkish assault after fighting alongside Americans for...