عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Arab World

Thousands of US Sailors, Marines Reach Middle East after Iran Tensions 

A US Navy sailor from USS Bataan (LHD 5) stands watch as the amphibious assault ship transits the Suez Canal, Egypt, with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), deployed to the US 5th Fleet area of operations to help ensure maritime security and stability in the Middle East region, in this photo taken on August 6, 2023. (US Naval Forces Central Command/US 5th Fleet/Handout via Reuters)
A US Navy sailor from USS Bataan (LHD 5) stands watch as the amphibious assault ship transits the Suez Canal, Egypt, with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), deployed to the US 5th Fleet area of operations to help ensure maritime security and stability in the Middle East region, in this photo taken on August 6, 2023. (US Naval Forces Central Command/US 5th Fleet/Handout via Reuters)
TT
TT

Thousands of US Sailors, Marines Reach Middle East after Iran Tensions 

A US Navy sailor from USS Bataan (LHD 5) stands watch as the amphibious assault ship transits the Suez Canal, Egypt, with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), deployed to the US 5th Fleet area of operations to help ensure maritime security and stability in the Middle East region, in this photo taken on August 6, 2023. (US Naval Forces Central Command/US 5th Fleet/Handout via Reuters)
A US Navy sailor from USS Bataan (LHD 5) stands watch as the amphibious assault ship transits the Suez Canal, Egypt, with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), deployed to the US 5th Fleet area of operations to help ensure maritime security and stability in the Middle East region, in this photo taken on August 6, 2023. (US Naval Forces Central Command/US 5th Fleet/Handout via Reuters)

More than 3,000 US military personnel have arrived in the Red Sea aboard two warships, as part of increased deployments after tanker seizures by Iran, the US Navy said Monday.

The US sailors and Marines entered the Red Sea on Sunday after transiting through the Suez Canal in a pre-announced deployment, the US Navy's Fifth Fleet said in a statement.

They arrived on board the USS Bataan and USS Carter Hall warships, providing "greater flexibility and maritime capability" to the Fifth Fleet, the statement added.

The US military says Iran has either seized or attempted to take control of nearly 20 internationally flagged ships in the region over the past two years.

USS Bataan is an amphibious assault ship which can carry fixed-wing and rotary aircraft as well as landing craft. The USS Carter Hall, a dock landing ship, transports Marines, their gear, and lands them ashore.

"These units add significant operational flexibility and capability as we work... to deter destabilizing activity and deescalate regional tensions caused by Iran's harassment and seizures of merchant vessels," Fifth Fleet spokesman Commander Tim Hawkins told AFP.

The deployment comes after Washington said its forces blocked two attempts by Iran to seize commercial tankers in international waters off Oman on July 5.

The maritime services in Iran said one of the two tankers, the Bahamian-flagged Richmond Voyager, had collided with an Iranian vessel, seriously injuring five crew members, according to state news agency IRNA.

In April and early May, Iran seized two oil tankers within a week in regional waters.

Those incidents came after Israel and the United States blamed Iran in November for what they said was a drone strike against a tanker operated by an Israeli-owned firm carrying gas oil off the coast of Oman.

The US announced last month that it would deploy a destroyer, F-35 and F-16 warplanes, along with the Amphibious Readiness Group/Marine Expeditionary Unit, to the Middle East to deter Iran from seizing ships in the Gulf.

Last week, a US official told AFP that Washington is also preparing to deploy Marines and Navy personnel aboard commercial tankers transiting the Gulf as an added layer of defense.

Most Viewed

 
 
Arab World

Libya Says UK to Analyze Black Box from Crash That Killed General

Military personnel carry portraits of the Libyan chief of staff, General Mohamed al-Haddad (2-R), and his four advisers, who were killed in a plane crash in Türkiye, during an official repatriation ceremony at the Ministry of Defense headquarters in Tripoli, Libya, 27 December 2025. (EPA)
Military personnel carry portraits of the Libyan chief of staff, General Mohamed al-Haddad (2-R), and his four advisers, who were killed in a plane crash in Türkiye, during an official repatriation ceremony at the Ministry of Defense headquarters in Tripoli, Libya, 27 December 2025. (EPA)
TT
TT

Libya Says UK to Analyze Black Box from Crash That Killed General

Military personnel carry portraits of the Libyan chief of staff, General Mohamed al-Haddad (2-R), and his four advisers, who were killed in a plane crash in Türkiye, during an official repatriation ceremony at the Ministry of Defense headquarters in Tripoli, Libya, 27 December 2025. (EPA)
Military personnel carry portraits of the Libyan chief of staff, General Mohamed al-Haddad (2-R), and his four advisers, who were killed in a plane crash in Türkiye, during an official repatriation ceremony at the Ministry of Defense headquarters in Tripoli, Libya, 27 December 2025. (EPA)

Libya said on Thursday that Britain had agreed to analyze the black box from a plane crash in Türkiye on December 23 that killed a Libyan military delegation, including the head of its army.

General Mohammed al-Haddad and four aides died after a visit to Ankara, with Turkish officials saying an electrical failure caused their Falcon 50 jet to crash shortly after takeoff.

Three crew members, two of them French, were also killed.

The aircraft's black box flight recorder was found on farmland near the crash site.

"We coordinated directly with Britain for the analysis" of the black box, Mohamed al-Chahoubi, transport minister in the Government of National Unity (GNU), said at a press conference in Tripoli.

Haddad was very popular in Libya despite deep divisions between west and east.

Haddad was chief of staff for the Tripoli-based GNU.

Chahoubi told AFP a request for the analysis was "made to Germany, which demanded France's assistance" to examine the aircraft's flight recorders.

"However, the Chicago Convention stipulates that the country analyzing the black box must be neutral," he said.

"Since France is a manufacturer of the aircraft and the crew was French, it is not qualified to participate. The United Kingdom, on the other hand, was accepted by Libya and Turkey."

After meeting the British ambassador to Tripoli on Tuesday, Foreign Minister Taher al-Baour said a joint request had been submitted by Libya and Türkiye to Britain "to obtain technical and legal support for the analysis of the black box".

Chahoubi told Thursday's press briefing that Britain "announced its agreement, in coordination with the Libyan Ministry of Transport and the Turkish authorities".

He said it was not yet possible to say how long it would take to retrieve the flight data, as this depended on the state of the black box.

"The findings will be made public once they are known," Chahoubi said, warning against "false information" and urging the public not to pay attention to rumors.

Arab World

STC Says Handing over Positions to National Shield Forces in Yemen's Hadhramaut, Mahra

National Shield forces in Hadhramaut. (National Shield forces)
National Shield forces in Hadhramaut. (National Shield forces)
TT
TT

STC Says Handing over Positions to National Shield Forces in Yemen's Hadhramaut, Mahra

National Shield forces in Hadhramaut. (National Shield forces)
National Shield forces in Hadhramaut. (National Shield forces)

Southern Transitional Council (STC) forces in Yemen began on Thursday handing over military positions to the government’s National Shield forces in the Hadhramaut and al-Mahra provinces in eastern Yemen.

Local sources in Hadhramaut confirmed to Asharq Al-Awsat that the handover kicked off after meetings were held between the two sides.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, the sources said the National Shield commanders met with STC leaderships to discuss future arrangements. The sourced did not elaborate, but they confirmed that Emirati armored vehicles, which had entered Balhaf port in Shabwah were seen departing on a UAE vessel, in line with a Yemeni government request.

The National Shield is overseen by Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) Chairman Dr. Rashad al-Alimi.

A Yemeni official described Thursday’s developments as “positive” step towards uniting ranks and legitimacy against a common enemy – the Houthi groups.

The official, also speaking on condition of anonymity, underscored to Asharq Al-Awsat the importance of “partnership between components of the legitimacy and of dialogue to resolve any future differences.”

Meanwhile, on the ground, Yemeni military sources revealed that some STC forces had refused to quit their positions, prompting the forces to dispatch an official to Hadhramaut’s Seiyun city to negotiate the situation.

Arab World

One Dead as Israeli Forces Open Fire on West Bank Stone-Throwers

Israeli troops during a military operation in the Palestinian village of Qabatiya, near the West Bank city of Jenin, 27 December 2025. (EPA)
Israeli troops during a military operation in the Palestinian village of Qabatiya, near the West Bank city of Jenin, 27 December 2025. (EPA)
TT
TT

One Dead as Israeli Forces Open Fire on West Bank Stone-Throwers

Israeli troops during a military operation in the Palestinian village of Qabatiya, near the West Bank city of Jenin, 27 December 2025. (EPA)
Israeli troops during a military operation in the Palestinian village of Qabatiya, near the West Bank city of Jenin, 27 December 2025. (EPA)

The Israeli military said its forces killed a Palestinian in the occupied West Bank in the early hours on Thursday as they opened fire on people who were throwing stones at soldiers.

Two other people were hit on a main ‌road near the ‌village of Luban ‌al-Sharqiya ⁠in Nablus, ‌the military statement added. It described the people as militants and said the stone-throwing was part of an ambush.

Palestinian authorities in the West Bank said ⁠a 26-year-old man they named as ‌Khattab Al Sarhan was ‍killed and ‍another person wounded.

Israeli forces had ‍closed the main entrance to the village of Luban al-Sharqiya, in Nablus, and blocked several secondary roads on Wednesday, the Palestinian Authority's official news agency WAFA reported.

More ⁠than a thousand Palestinians were killed in the West Bank between October 2023 and October 2025, mostly in operations by security forces and some by settler violence, the UN has said.

Over the same period, 57 Israelis were killed ‌in Palestinian attacks.