middle east

"Unforgivable" -- that's how the official website of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei has described the alleged crimes of opposition members who took part in mass antigovernment protests in 2009. The website has issued its verdict on a poster that shows a court file with the title "The 2009 Sedition" in green (the color of the opposition movement), on which the adjective "unforgivable" has been stamped in red. A wooden gavel is lying next to the file, which carries the logo of the Islamic republic.

Egypt's leaders condemned the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization. From now on, its members and others who participate in its activities will be treated as terrorists. The military-backed leaders of Egypt outlawed the state's strongest political movement following months of conflict with the government.

The United States announced recently that it was suspending aid to the rebels fighting to overthrow the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. This comes amidst reports that other Western countries are now gradually withdrawing their military support to the rebel forces. Should the suspension of U.S. assistance be made permanent?

A court in the United Arab Emirates sentenced eight people including an American to up to a year in prison Monday after being convicted in connection to a satirical video about youth culture in Dubai. The video they produced and uploaded to the Internet was a spoof documentary of would-be "gangsta" youth in the Gulf Arab city-state.

When Qatar’s royal family was looking for advice on charitable giving, it turned to a well-regarded professor named Abd al-Rahman al-Nu’aymi. The 59-year-old educator had a stellar résumé that included extensive fundraising experience and years of work with international human rights groups.

Maj. Gen. Ram Rothberg is in the middle of his command of the Israel Navy. Previously a commander of the elite naval commando unit Shayetet 13, Rothberg concerns himself mainly with building up naval forces in the event of a war. However, he is also responsible for the naval commandos, submarines and missile boats for dozens of undercover operations each year – more than one per week.

A year ago, Mohammed Assaf was a 23-year-old wedding singer in a Gaza refugee camp. But since he won the “Arab Idol” singing competition in June, in front of more than 100 million viewers, he has become something of a pop superstar in the Arab world. Now, Mr. Assaf is trying to conquer North America, or at least its people of Arab descent.

On December 9, 2013 at the World Bank senior officials from the Israeli, Jordanian, and Palestinian governments signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to jointly manage the shared water resources of the Red Sea, Jordan River, and the Sea of Galilee (commonly known as the Lake Tiberias or the Kineret).

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