أرشيف الوسم : iraq

Al-Azhar University, the most prestigious center of learning for Sunni Islam, urged Christians living in the Arab world on Thursday to stand firm in resistance and not flee in the face of extremist violence. The call comes days after Pope Francis urged Muslim leaders to criticize extremists using Islam as a crutch, especially groups like al-Qaeda and Islamic State, and …

Airstrikes launched on extremist group Islamic State (IS) by the global coalition led by the US have had no impact, Syrian President Bashar Assad said, despite members of the offensive making claims of winning the fight. “You can’t end terrorism with aerial strikes. Troops on the ground that know the land and can react are essential. That is why there …

The Canadian government is working to determine the credibility of reports about a Canadian citizen that was allegedly captured by extremists in Syria. The Jerusalem post, citing websites “known to be close” to extremist group Islamic State (IS), reported on Sunday that Canadian Gill Rosenberg, who had reportedly joined Kurdish fighters, was captured by the extremists. However, CBC reported a …

Iraqi security forces, allied with local tribesmen, battled extremist group Islamic State (IS) on Wednesday to defend the governor’s office the city of Ramadi, the capital of the Anbar province. Kurdish peshmerga forces were also engaged in battle against the IS for hours in the province of Kirkuk in northern Iraq. “We are defending and protecting the governmental complex” in …

On Monday, US President Barack Obama announced that US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel resigned from his post, with the White House coming under fire for its perceived fumbling of the response to extremist group Islamic State (IS). Hagel was at the White House during Obama’s announcement confirming his departure. The former Republican senator and 68-year-old Vietnam War veteran was on …

Extremist group Islamic State (IS) on Thursday claimed a suicide car bomb attack in the city of Arbil, the usually secure capital of the autonomous Kurdish region in Iraq. In an online statement, the IS boasted that it had “breached all the security checkpoints of the agent Kurdistan government and reached the heart of the city of Arbil”. It also …

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday forewarned against tackling the problem of violent extremism only through military means and called on government to avoid counter-terrorism measures which could lead to human rights abuses. At a special meeting of the UN Security Council on counter-terrorism, Ban said that the UN was looking at different ways in which it can address …

On Monday, a Jordanian court sentenced five people to prison for being members of extremist group Islamic State (IS) and promoting the group on the internet. Two more trials of suspected extremist supporters, including a man who is accused of working as a cook for the al-Nusra Front, were also set in motion as part of a crackdown on militants …

Extremist group Islamic State (IS) on Thursday released a defiant audio clip of Chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi after air strikes sparked rumors that he was killed or wounded. In the 17-minute clip, a man implied to be the IS leader vowed that the group will continue to expand in the region despite the international aerial campaign, and that it will …

United Nations refugee agency UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on Tuesday said that it has been forced to reduce the number of people in Iraq and Syria it provides aid to in Syria during the winter due to a lack of funds. “The whole humanitarian community is facing shortfalls. People are becoming numb”, Amin Awad, the head of the …