Orientul Mijlociu

Dozens of Iranian people arrested at recent protests either have been sentenced to death or have faced charges such as “armed insurrection against the regime (Baghi)”, “enmity against God (Moharebeh)”, or “spreading corruption on the earth”. Charges which may result in death penalty. At the time of this writing, 2 protestors have been executed, 11 others have been sentenced to death and 47 others are facing charges that could lead to death sentences. This report provides the legal case details of 58 of these individuals.

Two soldiers were killed and three were injured in an explosion in northern Iraq, Iraqi state news said Thursday.

The soldiers were traveling in an army vehicle a day earlier in the Makhmour district when an explosive device detonated, the state Iraqi News Agency reported.

Introduction

Iran’s mullahs’ regime may be toppled and replaced with a secular setup, but the repression in the country won’t end if minorities in Iran are not given their rights. The people of Balochistan are demanding not just regime change but independence. The solution to Balochistan’s problems is to break the chains of slavery for which its people have paid enormous sacrifices over decades. This position is shared by the people of Kurdistan and Ahwaz as well. For these reasons, it is the minorities in Iran that are most committed to the uprising against the Islamic Republic and they who are suffering the harshest consequences from the regime’s crackdown.

On November 29, 2022, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei met with Iraqi Prime Minister Muhammad Shia’ Al-Sudani, who was on his first visit to Tehran since assuming office. Al-Sudani was elected on October 27, 2022 by the pro-Iranian majority in the Iraqi parliament. In their meeting Khamenei instructed him on how to promote Iran’s interests, and warned, for the first time, that if Baghdad fails to impose its authority in Kurdistan – which, according to Tehran, is a source of terror against Iran, especially in the form of encouraging civil protests by Kurds within Iran – Iranian forces will “defend Iraq.” Khamenei added that ” Iraq’s security is Iran’s security, just as Iran’s security affects Iraq’s. He also called on Al-Sudani to “make maximum use of young and motivated Iraqi forces,” namely the Shi’ite militias established by Iran in Iraq, apparently as a counterweight to the public influence of Muqtada Al-Sadr, who has declared his opposition to the Iranian order promoted by Tehran in Iraq.

The Islamic State continues to carry out attacks in northern Iraq, creating serious security challenges for the country.

At least nine members of the Iraqi security forces were killed and three others were wounded on Sunday in a bomb attack targeting their convoy in the Kirkuk governorate of northern Iraq.

The Islamic State (IS) immediately claimed responsibility via its Telegram account. The attack took place near Safra, a village about 20 miles south of Kirkuk in the Kurdistan Region.

The Islamic State’s third caliph has been killed in southern Syria as Iraqis retain control of the organization amid concerns and confusion about identities, fighter whereabouts and security gaps.

The killing of the third ‘caliph’ of the Islamic State (IS) was announced over a month after it happened, in an area where few expected. He is the second top leader of the international terrorist organization to be killed this year.

Les suspects rassemblaient des informations sur des Palestiniens.

Les services turcs des renseignements ont démantelé dans la mi-décembre 2022 un réseau de 44 espions qui activent pour le Mossad israélien, a informé l’agence médiatique turque. Les suspects devaient récolter semble-t-il des informations sur des Palestiniens présents sur le territoire turc. Une opération conjointe de la police d’Istanbul et des services de renseignement du MIT (Millî İstihbarat Teşkilat) a mené à l’arrestation de 44 suspects travaillant pour le compte du Mossad. Ils sont accusés d’avoir espionné des individus, des institutions et des organisations palestiniennes présentes sur le territoire turc.

The Syrian Observer sits with Bassam al-Kuwatli, one of the co-founders of Ahrar, a liberal political party.

The Syrian opposition’s story after the revolution was a story of coalitions. A countless number of coalitions have been formed. No one claimed that they own a platform that leads them in the right direction for a future Syria. 

Israel claimed responsibility for a recent airstrike on a convoy that had entered Syria from Iraq, according to al-Araby al-Jadeed.

The chief of Israel’s armed forces on Wednesday claimed responsibility for a recent airstrike on a convoy that had entered Syria from Iraq, claiming the target was a truck carrying weaponry.

The fighters were killed in the past five days on the fronts of Hama, Idleb and Aleppo, according to Orient News.

Loyalists mourned several members of Assad’s militia, including officers, who were killed over the past few days on the northern Syrian fronts. The victims died during attacks carried out by local factions of the Al-Fatah al-Mubin Operations Room, which were perceived as a response to massacres carried out in camps in Idleb governorate.