Egypt sentences activist Sanaa Seif to 18 months in prison Seif, who had been in pretrial detention since June, was convicted Wednesday of spreading false news and misusing social media. Egypt
Ukraine rejects Iran's final report on downed passenger plane The Iranian government said last year's shooting down of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 was the result of a human error. Iran
Iran operating new advanced centrifuges, nuclear watchdog finds According to an International Atomic Energy Agency report, Iran is now using IR-4 centrifuges to enrich uranium in violation of the nuclear accord. Iran
UN says Libya arms embargo 'totally ineffective' A United Nations panel of experts accused several member states, including Turkey and Russia, of fueling the Libyan conflict. Libya
How Will Terror List Decision Affect EU-Hezbollah Ties? The European Union’s decision to add Hezbollah’s military wing to the list of terrorist organizations could compromise key security coordination between the two sides. Lebanon
Is the Middle East Rejecting Radicalism? The world should not miss the opportunity for stablility and progress offered by the Middle East's rejection of radicalism. Qatar
Iraqi Ambassador Says Iraq Willing To Help Bridge US-Iran Divide Lukman Faily, Iraq’s Ambassador to Washington, says his country is ready to help, if asked, to mend US-Iran ties. Iraq
Al-Qaeda Militants Raid Iraq's Abu Ghraib, Taji Prisons Tenuous official accounts of what really transpired during the Abu Ghraib and Taji prison breaks leave many questions about the incident unanswered. Iraq
Iraqi Kurdistan Fails to Address Violence Against Women Violence, self-immolation and suicide continue to plague the Iraqi Kurdistan Region’s women, with a shortage of civic institutions to deal with these issues. Iraq
Dempsey on Syria: Think Before You Shoot In a Washington overrun by interventionists, Joint Chiefs Chairman Martin Dempsey presses the consequences of heightened US involvement in Syria. Syria
Erdogan’s Assad Problem Could Syrian President Bashar al-Assad outlast Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in office? Syria
Netanyahu Blesses and Curses Europe's Role in the Middle East Decisions by the European Union have the Netanyahu government criticizing it for intervening with sanctions in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, while praising it for blacklisting Hezbollah. Israel
Islamic Clerics Oppose Lebanese Law Protecting Abused Women The death of Roula Yaacoub, a Lebanese mother of five who was beaten to death by her husband, has drawn attention to Lebanese activists’ fight to ensure women’s rights in the face of religious conservatives. Lebanon
Kurdish Security Forces Shield RegionFrom Iraq's Security Woes The Kurdistan Regional Government's sophisticated intelligence network has ensured relative peace in contrast to the rest of Iraq. Iraq
EU Boycott Contributes To Israeli Decision on Peace Talks In an Al-Monitor interview, Peace Now chair Yariv Oppenheimer says the Israeli public must force Netanyahu ''to take a historic step forward" and implement the vision of a two-state solution. Israel
The Kerry Talks: Blood, Sweat, Tears and Martin Indyk Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Chairman Abu Mazen must each realize that the other side is unable to fulfill the expected demands. Palestine
