Middle East & North Africa

TEHRAN, July 18 (Xinhua) -- Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has welcomed Iraq's efforts in promoting regional dialogue aimed at enhancing security and stability, according to a report by the Iranian Foreign Ministry website on Monday.

Iraq's "constructive" role in facilitating regional dialogue is appreciated, Amir-Abdollahian said in a phone conversation with his Iraqi counterpart Fuad Hussein on Sunday night, the report noted.

Both sides exchanged views on bilateral relations and some regional issues, including the talks between Iran and Saudi Arabia.

TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) — The leader of Tunisia’s main opposition party is due to be questioned by the country’s anti-terrorism unit on Tuesday on suspicion of money laundering and terrorist financing through an association charity.

The accused, Rached Ghannouchi, was among a dozen top Ennahdha party officials whose bank accounts the north African country’s central bank froze earlier this month. Ennahdha vehemently disputes the accusations of money laundering and terrorism financing.

ANKARA, July 17. /TASS/. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan plans to attend an Astana-format meeting during his visit to Iran on July 18-19 and to have talks with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, the Turkish presidential office said on Sunday.

RIYADH, Jul 17 (NNN-SPA) – A statement was announced yesterday, following the “Jeddah Summit for Security and Development,” emphasising the importance of taking the required measures, to protect the security and stability of the Middle East.

Hosted by Saudi Arabia, the summit was attended by leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan and the United States.

The summit reviewed global challenges and regional affairs, while the leaders reaffirmed their commitment to guarantee the region’s security and stability.

JERUSALEM, Jul 17 (NNN-PNA) – Israel decided yesterday, to cancel a just recently increased quota of work permits for Palestinian labourers from Gaza, in response to rocket attacks earlier in the day.

The decision was announced by the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), Israel’s military liaison to the Palestinians.

“Hamas takes responsibility for everything that happens in the Gaza Strip,” read the statement from COGAT.

DAMASCUS, Jul 17 (NNN-SANA) – The U.S. forces smuggled 40 truckloads of stolen Syrian oil from north-eastern Syria into Iraq, yesterday.

The oil was taken from the Rmailan area in the north-eastern Syrian province of Hasaka, said the report.

The U.S. convoy, escorted by armoured vehicles, also transported truckloads of weaponry from Hasakah into Iraq, through an illegal crossing.

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia, July 16 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden told Arab leaders on Saturday that the United States would remain an active partner in the Middle East, but he failed to secure commitments to a regional security axis that would include Israel or an immediate oil output rise.

"The United States is invested in building a positive future of the region, in partnership with all of you—and the United States is not going anywhere," he said, according to a transcript of his speech.

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia, July 16 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman took a step to mending their troubled relationship with a fist bump, but the U.S. leader left the kingdom on Saturday with few big successes and doubts as to whether the visit was worth it.

Biden's four-day trip to Israel and Saudi Arabia, his first to the Middle East as president, aimed to reset ties with the Gulf Arab oil giant, demonstrate U.S. commitment to the region and counter the rising influence of Iran, Russia and China.

DUBAI, July 17 (Reuters) - Iran is technically capable of making a nuclear bomb but has not decided whether to build one, a senior adviser to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told Qatar's al Jazeera TV on Sunday.

Kamal Kharrazi spoke a day after U.S. President Joe Biden ended his four-day trip to Israel and Saudi Arabia, vowing to stop Iran from "acquiring a nuclear weapon." 

Kharrazi's comments were a rare suggestion that Iran might have an interest in nuclear weapons, which it has long denied seeking.

TEHRAN, July 17 (Xinhua) -- The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman on Sunday dismissed the U.S. president's recent claims over Iran's nuclear activity as a "failed policy of promoting Iranophobia," which seeks to cause tensions and crises in the region.

Joe Biden's anti-Iran remarks, which were made during his Middle East visit, are "part of Washington's policy of inciting sedition and fomenting tensions in the region," Nasser Kanaani said.