(2020-10-20). Bahrain's Mounting Anger over the Monarchy's Official Formalization of Ties with Tel Aviv. thealtworld.com 
A joint delegation, head by US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, headed to Manama on Sunday, hoping to ink a communique that officially bolster the US-brokered normalization deal and establish the embassies in the two capitals. | According to the US Treasury, the trip focused on inking memorandums of understanding that cover trade, aviation services, telecommunications, finance as well as economic cooperation, tourism, science and technology. | Public Outrage: | Streams of citizens, from different backgrounds and affiliations, flood the streets across Bahrain in huge peaceful push to vehemently denounce the visit…
(2020-10-20). Bread crisis deepens in regions under Assad control. yenisafak.com The Bashar al-Assad regime, which is incapable of meeting the basic needs of the people living in the regions it controls in Syria, cannot prevent a bread crisis from worsening.The bread crisis has deepened in the last two weeks and turned into an endless ordeal to the people in regime-held areas.Due to the ongoing fuel crisis, some bakeries in crowded cities such as the capital Damascus, Aleppo, Homs and Hama have come to a standstill.The regime, which is trying to maintain its power by killing hundreds of thousands of civilians in the country, cannot provide flour for bakeries in the regions under its control.F…
(2020-10-19). White House official went to Syria seeking Americans' release. middleeasteye.net 
White House official went to Syria seeking Americans' release | Trump wrote to Assad in March proposing 'direct dialogue' over the release of one of the US citizens, reports WSJ | Mon, 10/19/2020 – 09: 30 | A White House official travelled to Damascus earlier this year for secret meetings with the Syrian government, a Trump administration official said on Sunday (Reuters) | A White House o…
(2020-10-19). EXCLUSIVE: Turkey to abandon some observation stations in Syria's Idlib. middleeasteye.net 
EXCLUSIVE: Turkey to abandon some observation stations in Syria's Idlib | Withdrawal comes as Russians hinder resupply efforts and Damascus stokes protests against Turkish presence | Mon, 10/19/2020 – 08: 53 | A Syrian army soldier looks at a Turkish military observation post in al-Rashidin district, in Aleppo's southwestern countryside in January (AFP) | Turkey has decided to abandon some of its militar…
(2020-10-19). Lebanon: "The Political Game" globalresearch.ca French President Emmanuel Macron does not want his
(2020-10-19). Antiwar Forces Need to Challenge Trudeau Government, Not Praise It. globalresearch.ca Should antiwar forces challenge power or praise government officials in the hopes of getting some crumbs for their pet issue? | Douglas Roche's recent Hill Times column suggests the latter. In an article extolling Canada's new ambassador to the UN Roche …
(2020-10-19). Two Deep Mysteries of the 1973 Arab-Israeli War. strategic-culture.org Eric S. MARGOLIS | Forty-seven years ago, Egypt and Syria launched a massive surprise attack on Israeli forces dug into fortifications along the Suez Canal and Golan Heights. The 'limited' Arab objective was to recapture both strategic areas that had been seized from the two Arab states in Israel's victorious 1967 War. | Re-armed with modern — but by no means top drawer — Soviet weapons, Egypt and Syria sought to drive the Israelis back, then wait for the great powers to impose a truce. It was a badly flawed strategy, which assured the heavily armed Israelis would control the military initiative with…
(2020-10-19). Iran-Syria keen of development of trade transactions. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Oct. 20 (MNA) — In a Monday meeting with the Syrian envoy to Tehran, the ICIAMA head said the implementation of the free trade agreement between Iran and Syria will bring good days in mutual trade, which is what the two countries want.
(2020-10-19). Envoy submits credentials to president of Equatorial Guinea. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Oct. 20 (MNA) — The accredited ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Equatorial Guinea submitted his credentials to the country's president.
(2020-10-19). Headlines for October 19, 2020. 18.224.45.15 U.S. COVID-19 Cases Surge as Trump Continues Unmasked Campaign Rallies, Cases Mounting Across Europe as New Restrictions Enacted, Top Palestinian Official Saeb Erekat in Critical Condition with COVID-19, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer Accuses Trump of Inspiring, Incentivizing and Inciting Terrorism, White Supremacists Indicted for Arms Trafficking, Murder and Plotting to Bomb Synagogue, Death Toll in Nagorno-Karabakh Fighting Mounts as New Ceasefire Falls Apart, Kyrgyzstan Installs New President, Who Will Also Serve as Prime Minister, Alexei Navalny Calls on Trump to Denounce Use of Chemical Weapons, Car Bomb in…
(2020-10-18). Ex-OPCW chief defends Syria whistleblowers and reveals he was spied on before Iraq war. thegrayzone.com Exclusive: former OPCW chief José Bustani defends the whistleblowers who challenged a cover-up of their Syria probe; reacts to the US and allies recently blocking his UN testimony; and reveals he was spied on before the Bush administration ousted him over the Iraq war. In a Grayzone exclusive, José Bustani, the former head of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, speaks out in support of two veteran OPCW inspectors who challenged a US-backed cover-up of their investigation in …
(2020-10-18). Canada's Anti-War Movement needs to Challenge Government. dissidentvoice.org 
Should antiwar forces challenge power or praise government officials in the hopes of getting some crumbs for their pet issue? Douglas Roche's recent Hill Times column suggests the latter. In an article extolling Canada's new ambassador to the UN Roche writes: "When Canada lost its bid for a seat on the UN Security Council the …
(2020-10-18). Will the Mediterranean Sea Save Lebanon from Drowning in Debt? globalresearch.ca The Lebanese population faces between six to twelve hours of electricity cuts per day, and in some rural areas, there is simply no electricity provided by the government grid. Amid the backdrop of decrepit infrastructure, government corruption, devalued currency, and …
(2020-10-18). Iran to export, import weapons based on its defense policy. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Oct. 18 (MNA) — Iranian Ambassador to UK Hamid Baeedinejad said that as of today, Iran will export and import weapons based on its defense policy principles.
(2020-10-17). Beirut protests mark a year since Lebanon's mass uprising. middleeasteye.net 
Beirut protests mark a year since Lebanon's mass uprising | Amid the crippling economic crisis and Covid-19 pandemic, and with no functioning government, there is little optimism change in Lebanon will happen anytime soon | Sat, 10/17/2020 – 16: 55 | Protesters take to the streets of Beirut on 17 October to mark the first anniversary of the Lebanon uprising (Kareem Chehayeb) | Over a thousand…
(2020-10-17). War in Nagorno-Karabakh Is a Gamechanger in Russian-Turkish Relations. globalresearch.ca After Turkey downed a Russian jet operating in Syria in late 2015, there was a major risk that the Syrian War could explode into a greater conflict between the two Eurasian countries. The Turkish attack resulted in the death of …
(2020-10-17). This is what happens when Sunnis and Shiites agree in Lebanon. thealtworld.com French President Emmanuel Macron does not want his
(2020-10-17). Colombia: New Scandal Links Politicians With Narcotraffic. telesurenglish.net The Colombian Prosecutor's Office Saturday withdrew a pre-agreement reached with Laureano Martinez, former butler of the farm owned by the family of Colombian ex-ambassador to Uruguay Fernando Sanclemente, where authorities found a narcotics processing laboratory. | RELATED: | This statement comes after it became known that Sanclemente did know about the drug business and tried to get his employee to plead guilt…
(2020-10-17). Why Conflict in Caucasus Is Erdogan's Revenge for Syria. strategic-culture.org Turkey's outsize role in fueling the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan is becoming more apparent. That's why a peace deal will be hard to cut and indeed the conflict may blow up further into a protracted regional war. A war that could drag Russia into battling in the Caucasus on its southern periphery against NATO proxies. | In a phone call this week with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan
(2020-10-17). Iran's new envoy arrives in Yemen. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Oct. 17 (MNA) — The spokesman of the Iranian foreign ministry informed on Saturday that the country's new ambassador to Yemen has arrived in Sana'a.
(2020-10-17). Russia to Respond to US Deployment of Missiles in Asia-Pacific Region, Ambassador Says. sputniknews.com MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Moscow will adequately respond to Washington's deployment of intermediate and short-range missiles in the Asia-Pacific region (APAC), Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov said.
(2020-10-16). Israel bans Palestinian singer Mohammed Assaf from entering Jerusalem, Gaza. middleeasteye.net 
Israel bans Palestinian singer Mohammed Assaf from entering Jerusalem, Gaza | Israel has imposed a travel ban on Assaf, revoking his entry permit, which he earned as an UNRWA ambassador | Fri, 10/16/2020 – 12: 12 | Palestinian "Arab Idol" winner Mohammed Assaf described the Israeli travel ban as "a continuation of the policies of oppression" (AFP/file photo) | Israel has imposed an entry ban on Mohammed Assaf,…
(2020-10-16). Syria: Humanitarians 'very concerned' for thousands still living in Al Hol camp. news.un.org Humanitarians are "very concerned" about the plight of more than 64,000 people living in the restive Al Hol camp in northeast Syria, the UN Spokesperson told journalists on Friday.
(2020-10-16). 2016 Plot to Install Biden Plus a Tale of Two Town Halls. sputniknews.com On today's episode of The Backstory, host Lee Stranahan discussed current events, including the Democrats' plot to install Biden, the beheading of a teacher in Paris, Savannah Guthrie's town hall performance, the desecration of an altar in Louisiana, a drone strike in Idlib, and the latest on the START nuclear treaty.
(2020-10-16). Abraham Accords exclude key players in Mideast: expert. yenisafak.com Washington relied on the success of "autocratic leadership while neglecting the Palestinians," a former CIA officer said Friday, citing US-brokered Israel-United Arab Emirates (UAE)- Bahrain normalization deals, also known as Abraham Accords. Douglas London said in an opinion piece penned for the Atlantic Council that he reacted to the normalization moves with "trepidation more than celebration."London said that it reminded him of the US-backed agreement signed by Lebanon and Israel in 1983, which shattered following the Lebanese government's 1984 collapse, leading "unprecedented acts of terrorism against US Mari…