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Middle East

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Iran Threatens to Quit Syria Talks Due to ‘Negative Role’ of Saudi Arabia

The 17-nation talks held in Vienna on Friday were meant to begin an international dialogue about bringing an end to the Syrian civil war. The project has already run into significant trouble due to the longstanding animosity between two of the most important regional powers, Iran and Saudi Arabia. Iran has begun threatening to quit the talks over what they describe as the “negative role” of the Saudis.

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Obama: U.S. Special Forces in Syria Are Not ‘Boots on the Ground’

President Obama struggled to keep his “no boots on the ground” talking point alive on Monday, saying in an interview with NBC News that U.S. special forces about to be deployed in Syria do not count, because they are not supposed to fight front-line combat operations against ISIS, and smaller units of special operations troops have been working in Syria for some time.

Nizar Ahmad Zakka (Twitter)

Iran: Newly-Arrested Californian Is ‘Treasure Trove’

Iran has taken another American citizen captive. On Tuesday, Iran’s state-owned IRIB news network announced that the regime had arrested Nizar Ahmad Zakka, a Lebanese-American from Riverside, California with alleged “deep ties” to the U.S. military and intelligence services on suspicion of espionage.

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UN Report: Iran’s Human Rights Record Worse Under Rouhani than Ahmadinejad

A report released this month on “The Situation of Human Rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran” reveals that Iranians are worse off under “moderate” President Hassan Rouhani than his more conservative predecessor Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and that, based on their current trajectory, they are expected to exceed well over 1,000 executions by year’s end.

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Syrian Rebels Use Caged Hostages as Human Shields to Deter Airstrikes

Caged prisoners believed to be former army officers from dictator Bashar al-Assad’s Alawite sect were paraded through streets of a rebel-held suburb of the Syrian capital Damascus, apparently used as human shields to deter further bombardments in the area, according to video clips and images posted on social media.

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Report: Mike Honda Took Turkey Trip From Islamist Group

Rep. Mike Honda (D-CA) faces new accusations after a report by the House Ethics Committee this week revealed that he was among a group of lawmakers who accepted trips to Turkey that were secretly funded by a Turkish Islamic movement connected to the exiled Fethullah Gülen.

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Dershowitz Wins Oxford Union Debate on Boycott Israel Movement

Alan Dershowitz, a famed Harvard Law School professor and Middle East expert, won over Oxford University’s Oxford Union on Sunday in a debate over the Boycott Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement against the state of Israel, defeating his opponent 137-101 in the heart of liberal academia.

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Graham: ‘Iran is Just Slapping Obama and Kerry in the Face’

On this week’s broadcast of “Fox News Sunday,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) discussed President Barack Obama’s plan to send 50 special forces troops to assist Syrian rebels in their fight against President Bashar Al-Assad and predicted Secretary of State John Kerry will cut