Arab World News

Syria Starts Evacuating ISIS-linked Al-Hol Camp

Arab World TOPSHOT - Members of Syrian security forces march through the entrance of the Al-Hol camp in the desert region of Hasakeh province on January 21, 2026. (Photo by OMAR HAJ KADOUR / AFP)

Syria Starts Evacuating ISIS-linked Al-Hol Camp

Syrian authorities began evacuating remaining residents of the ISIS group-linked Al-Hol camp in the country's northeast on Tuesday, as they empty the formerly…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World Taxi drivers, foreground, block a main highway with their cars during a protest against the increased taxes and gasoline prices issued by the Lebanese Cabinet on Monday, in Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Protesters Block Beirut Roads after Cabinet Approves New Taxes that Raise Fuel Prices

Protesters blocked main roads in and around Beirut on Tuesday after Lebanon’s Cabinet approved new taxes that raise fuel prices and other products to fund…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World A group of women wait for news as Palestinian civil defense teams work to recover the remains of 67 members of the Abu Nasr family from beneath the rubble of their home after it was destroyed in an Israeli airstrike in Beit Lahiya, north of Gaza City, 15 February 2026. (EPA)

Under Israeli Cover, Gaza Gangs Kill and Abduct Palestinians in Hamas-Controlled Areas 

Amid heavy Israeli airstrikes across Gaza, armed gangs carried out kidnappings and executions of Palestinians on Monday in areas controlled by Hamas, west of…

Asharq Al Awsat (Gaza)
Arab World Part of previous consultative meetings for Yemeni lawyers in Sanaa (Facebook)

Lawyers in Sanaa Under Houthi Repression

In areas controlled by the Houthi group in Yemen, there is an increasing number of violations targeting lawyers, raising widespread concerns about the future…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stands outside the entrance to his office at Parliament House in Canberra on February 11, 2026. (AFP)

Australia Won’t Repatriate 34 Women and Children from Syria 

The Australian government will not repatriate from Syria a group of 34 women and children with alleged ties to the ISIS group, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese…


Arab World Syrian Democratic Forces members stand by vehicles, as they withdraw from the front lines, following an agreement between the Syrian government and the Syrian Democratic Forces, in Hasakah, Syria, February 10, 2026. REUTERS/Orhan Qereman

Syria Says Has Taken Over Another Base from US Forces

Syria's defense ministry said on Sunday it had taken over the Al-Shaddadi base in the northeast from US forces, days after assuming control of a facility near…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World Al-Alimi presents Yemen’s vision for maritime security during a panel discussion in Munich (SABA).

Al-Alimi Calls from Munich for a New Regional Security Framework

Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council Chairman Rashad Al-Alimi has called for a fundamental rethinking of the international approach to regional security,…

Asharq Al Awsat (Aden)
Arab World Former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri greets supporters during his visit to the grave of his father, late Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, on the 21st anniversary of his assassination, in Downtown Beirut, Lebanon, 14 February 2026. (EPA)

Lebanon Marks 21st Anniversary of Rafik Hariri Assassination

Lebanon commemorated on Saturday the 21st anniversary of the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, with a popular rally and pointed political…

Asharq Al Awsat (Beirut)
Arab World Displaced Sudanese people who left el-Fasher after its fall, sit in the shade in Tawila amid the remains of a fire that broke out in the camp on February 11, 2026. (AFP)

At Least 6,000 Killed Over 3 Days During RSF Attack on Sudan’s El-Fasher, UN Says

More than 6,000 people were killed in over three days when a Sudanese paramilitary group unleashed “a wave of intense violence ... shocking in its scale and…

Arab World FILE PHOTO: A view of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) logo at its headquarters in Washington, D.C., US, November 24, 2024. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier//File Photo

IMF Mission in Lebanon Discussed Improving Draft Funding Shortfall Law

An International Monetary Fund mission to Lebanon this week ​discussed improvements needed to a draft law aimed at addressing huge losses in the country's…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar. (EPA)

Israeli FM Saar to Attend Trump’s First Board of Peace Meeting on Thursday, Officials Say

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar will attend U.S. President Donald Trump's first formal Board of Peace meeting on February 19, two Israeli officials said…

Arab World Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. SANA

Rubio Meets with Shaibani, Abdi in Munich to Consolidate Damascus-SDF Ties

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani and Commander-in-Chief of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) Mazloum Abdi at…

Souad Jarous (Damascus)
Arab World A Palestinian war-wounded man waits at the entrance, hoping to receive medical treatment, at a clinic run by medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF), amid shortages of medical supplies, in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, December 31, 2025. REUTERS/Ramadan Abed

MSF Suspends Some Work at Gaza's Nasser Hospital due to Presence of Armed Men

Doctors Without Borders has announced the suspension of some operations at one of Gaza 's largest functioning hospitals after patients and staff reported…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World US soldiers patrol the countryside of Rumaylan in Syria's northeastern Hasakeh province on June 7, 2023. (AFP)

US Military Says Struck More than 30 ISIS Targets in Syria

The US military said Saturday that its forces had struck more than 30 ISIS group targets in Syria this month, maintaining pressure on the militants after a…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World A photograph shows tents and makeshift shelters at a camp for displaced Palestinians in Khan Yunis, in the southern Gaza Strip, on a foggy day on February 14, 2026. (Photo by Bashar Taleb / AFP)

Abbas Urges Removal of Israeli 'Obstacles' on Gaza Ceasefire

Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas called on Saturday for the removal of "all obstacles" he said Israel has imposed on the implementation of the second phase…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World Zubayar al-Bakoush before arriving in the US last week. Photo: FBI Director Kash Patel on X

US Moves to Pursue Benghazi Consulate Attack Suspects

Many Libyan figures have begun looking over their shoulders after their names were cited in a US indictment accusing them of involvement in the 2012 attack on…

Jamal Jawhar (Cairo)
Arab World A Hamas banner reading “We Are the Flood… We Are the Day After” during the handover of a group of Israeli hostages (file photo – AFP)

After Two Years of War, Tally of Israel-Hamas Prisoner Swaps

Israel’s military on Friday released new footage of the rescue of two hostages, Fernando Simon Marman and Norberto Louis Har, Israeli nationals who also hold…

Asharq Al Awsat (Gaza)
Arab World Syrian Democratic Forces members stand by vehicles, as they withdraw from the front lines, following an agreement between the Syrian government and the Syrian Democratic Forces, in Hasakah, Syria, February 10, 2026. REUTERS/Orhan Qereman

European Parliament Says Parties Encouraged to Uphold Existing Ceasefire Deal in Northeast Syria

The European Parliament on Friday strongly condemned all acts of violence against civilians in northeast Syria and called upon the government and the Syrian…

Asharq Al Awsat (Strasbourg)
Arab World Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, speaks as Mahmoud Ali Youssouf (R), Chairperson of the African Union Commission listens on during the closing press conference of the Second Italy-Africa Summit at the Addis International Convention Center (AICC) in Addis Ababa on February 13, 2026. (Photo by Marco Simoncelli / AFP)

African Union Chair: ‘Extermination' of Palestinians Must Stop

The "extermination" of the Palestinian people must end, the chairman of the African Union Commission, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, said on Saturday as he launched the…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World Saudi support for Yemen as part of the economic stability programs (X)

International Report Sees Improvement in Yemeni Liberated Areas Thanks to Saudi Support

The food insecurity crisis in Yemen continues to worsen, especially in Houthi controlled areas, despite relative stabilized conditions in regions controlled by…

Mohammed Nasser (Aden)
Arab World People fill water tanks from a mobile tanker in the Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza (AFP)

Hamas Bid to Join Gaza Administration Faces Rejection

Hamas has repeatedly declared its readiness to hand over authority to the Gaza Administration Committee immediately. However, the transfer has yet to…

Mohamed Mahmoud (Cairo)
Arab World Members of Lebanon’s Internal Security Forces during earlier security measures at the start of the year (File Photo– ISF)

Lebanon Moves to Curb Illegal Weapons Sources

Lebanon’s Internal Security Forces (ISF) said on Friday they carried out a raid as part of efforts to combat the illicit trade in military-grade weapons,…

Asharq Al Awsat (Beirut)
Arab World  Flames rise from a building that was hit by an Israeli airstrike in Ain Qana village, south Lebanon, on Feb. 2, 2026. (AP)

Lebanon Detains 41 Since War on Suspicion of Collaborating with Israel

Lebanon’s State Security agency has arrested a Syrian national suspected of communicating with Israelis for commercial purposes, just two days after entering…

Youssef Diab (Beirut)
Arab World Trump and leaders and representatives of participating states sign the founding charter of the Board of Peace in Davos on Jan. 22, 2026. (AFP)

Egypt Rallies Support on Gaza Before ‘Board of Peace’ Meeting

Egypt intensified contacts with Arab and Islamic countries to align positions on Gaza ahead of a planned Board of Peace meeting, pressing for the “full and non…

Waleed Abdulrahman (Cairo)
Arab World Remnants of a shell that targeted the refugee center, in El Fasher, Sudan, October 7, 2025. REUTERS/Mohyaldeen M Abdallah

War crimes committed in Sudan's El-Fasher: UN report

The UN rights office on Friday accused Sudan's Rapid Support Forces of war crimes and possible crimes against humanity during the capture of El-Fasher, saying…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World US military vehicles move ahead of buses transporting ISIS detainees from Syria to Iraq, according to a security source from the Syrian Democratic Forces, in Qamishli, Syria. REUTERS/Orhan Qereman

US Military Completes Transfer of 5,700 ISIS Detainees from Syria to Iraq

The US military has completed the transfer of thousands of ISIS group detainees from Syria to Iraq, where they are expected to stand trial in the future, the…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World Farmers in the North African kingdom have for the past few years endured severe drought © - / AFP

Floods Wreak Havoc in Morocco Farmlands after Severe Drought

In the Moroccan village of Ouled Salama, 63-year-old farmer Mohamed Reouani waded through his crops, now submerged by floodwaters after days of heavy downpours…

Asharq Al Awsat
Arab World A street in Moroccan capital Rabat (File photo/AFP)

Maroc Telecom Reports $760 Million Profit in 2025

Maroc Telecom, Morocco's largest telecoms operator, said on Friday its net profit soared to 6.969 billion dirhams ($760 million) in 2025, distorted by a very…

Asharq Al Awsat