Middle East & North Africa

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq’s military denied on Saturday an air strike had taken place on a medical convoy in Taji, north of Baghdad.

Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces umbrella grouping of paramilitary groups had said earlier on Saturday said that an air strike targeting its fighters hit a convoy of medics.

However, the PMF later issued another statement saying that no medical convoys were targeted in Taji.

TRIPOLI, Jan 4 (NNN-Xinhua) — The commander of the east-based Libyan rebel army on Friday declared military mobilization against Turkey’s plan to send troops to Libya to support the UN-backed government.

General Khalifa Haftar declared the mobilization in a televised speech, saying the ongoing fighting will intensify, and the battle “is no longer for the liberation of the capital.”

The Turkish parliament passed a motion in an emergency session on Thursday, authorizing the government to deploy troops in Libya for a one-year period.

DAMASCUS, Jan 4 (NNN-SANA) – Syrian President, Bashar al-Assad, said that, his country will not forget the stance of Iranian Quds Force Leader, Qasem Soleimani, in supporting the Syrian army and defending Syria against terrorism.

Assad made the comments in a letter to Iranian top leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, following the assassination of the top military leader, Qasem Soleimani, on Thursday, by a U.S. strike.

“The Syrian people will not forget Soleimani and his standing by the side of Syrian army, defending Syria against terrorism and its backers,” Assad said.

ANKARA, Jan. 3 (Xinhua) -- Turkey on Friday called on Iran and the United States to avoid unilateral steps that would jeopardize regional stability over the killing of Qasem Soleimani, a commander of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC).

"We are deeply concerned about the escalating of the U.S.-Iranian tension in the region. We strongly re-emphasize the warning that turning Iraq into a conflict zone will harm the peace and stability of both Iraq and our region," the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a written statement.

TRIPOLI, Jan. 4 (Xinhua) -- The commander of the east-based Libyan rebel army on Friday declared military mobilization against Turkey's plan to send troops to Libya to support the UN-backed government.

General Khalifa Haftar declared the mobilization in a televised speech, saying the ongoing fighting will intensify, and the battle "is no longer for the liberation of the capital."

The Turkish parliament passed a motion in an emergency session on Thursday, authorizing the government to deploy troops in Libya for a one-year period.

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iran promised to seek revenge for a U.S. airstrike near Baghdad’s airport that killed the mastermind of its interventions across the Middle East, and the U.S. said Friday that it was sending thousands more troops to the region as tensions soared in the wake of the targeted killing.

03 Jan 2019; MEMO: The Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, has condemned the US assassination of senior Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani. Islamic Jihad in Palestine also condemned the killing in an air raid carried out by the US in Iraq.

03 Jan 2019; MEMO: The Egyptian National Action Group (ENAG) has condemned attempts of the Egyptian regime, under Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, to involve the Egyptian army into the ongoing battles in Libya, according to a statement released by the group.

03 Jan 2019; MEMO: Dozens of Lebanese protesters yesterday took to streets in the country’s capital city of Beirut port and the northern city of Tripoli, resuming their protests following the conclusion of the New Year holidays.

In a demonstration at the Beirut port that had lasted for an hour, protesters told Anadolu Agency that they were considering the port as a “symbol of corruption.”

03 Jan 2019; MEMO: Bahrain’s King Hamad Bin Isa Al Khalifa has appointed the Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Abdul Latif Al-Zayani, as the kingdom’s new minister of foreign affairs replacing Sheikh Khalid Bin Ahmed Al Khalifa.

The Bahrain News Agency (BNA) reported that Crown Prince Salman Bin Hamad Al Khalifa made the announcement during a meeting with Al-Zayani.