Latest news with #Shiite-majority
New York Times
4 days ago
- Politics
- New York Times
Live Updates: Trump Says He Hasn't Made Up His Mind on Iran Strikes
Al Asad Air Base Many of the approximately 2,500 U.S. troops in Iraq are located at this Iraqi base. Al Asad Air Base Many of the approximately 2,500 U.S. troops in Iraq are located at this Iraqi base. Al Asad Air Base Many of the approximately 2,500 U.S. troops in Iraq are located at this Iraqi base. Al Asad Air Base Many of the approximately 2,500 U.S. troops in Iraq are located at this Iraqi base. Kuwait Five installations are located here. They can hold more than 13,500 troops. Kuwait Five installations are located here. They can hold more than 13,500 troops. Thousands of American troops could be in Iran's direct line of fire if President Trump joins Israel in attacking Tehran's nuclear program and military, as he said on Wednesday that he may or may not do. Many would have only minutes to take cover from an incoming Iranian missile. Experts expect that if Mr. Trump orders the American military to directly participate in Israel's bombing campaign, Iran will quickly retaliate against U.S. troops stationed across the Middle East. 'The Americans should know that any U.S. military intervention will undoubtedly be accompanied by irreparable damage,' Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, warned on Wednesday, according to state news media. More than 40,000 U.S. active-duty troops and civilians are working for the Pentagon in the Middle East, and billions of dollars in weapons and military equipment are stored there. Over decades, both during and after war, the American military has fortified its defenses in the region, said Dana Stroul, the Pentagon's top official for Middle East policy during the Biden administration. The United States further strengthened those defenses, she said, after Hamas's brutal attacks on Israel in October 2023, which set off a broader conflict between Israel and Iran's regional allies. 'In some ways, the U.S. military has absolutely set the theater to respond to Iranian attacks, should the regime choose to turn its missiles or activate its militias against U.S. forces,' Ms. Stroul said on Wednesday. She added, 'The tipping point in whether this expands, is what decisions the United States makes in the coming days, with respect to partnering with Israel in offensive operations.' Hundreds of, if not a few thousand, American troops are stationed elsewhere in the Middle East, including in Jordan, Syria and Oman, on bases run by those countries. The precise numbers weren't available as the Trump administration looks to trim its footprint in some places, like Syria. Adel Abdel Ghafar, a senior analyst at the Middle East Council on Global Affairs in Doha, Qatar, predicted that American troops stationed in Iraq, Bahrain and Kuwait would be Iran's first targets. Nonessential American personnel and family have already been withdrawn from the embassies in those three countries. Iran's proxy fighters in neighboring Shiite-majority Iraq and elsewhere pose a formidable ground threat to American military and diplomatic outposts, Mr. Abdel Ghafar said. And it would take only three or four minutes for a ballistic missile fired from Iran to hit bases in Gulf countries housing U.S. troops, he said. 'This gives much less time for air defenses' to intercept incoming missiles, he said, 'so it would be disastrous.' Here is where American troops in the Middle East might be most vulnerable. Iraq As many as 2,500 American troops and military contractors are in Iraq, based in the capital, Baghdad, as well as in the northern Kurdish region and in the western desert. The Al Asad desert base, which is controlled by the Iraqi military, was targeted by Shiite forces backed by Iran earlier this week in drone strikes. American forces stationed there shot down the weapons. The American military has a fraught relationship with the Iraqis, after the eight-year war and the occupation that ended in 2011, but U.S. troops were welcomed back just a few years later to fight Islamic State militants who had seized control of areas in the country's north and west. In 2020, the Trump administration ordered an airstrike that killed the commander of Iran's elite Quds Force, Maj. Gen. Qassim Suleimani, as he arrived in Baghdad to meet with Iraq's prime minister. The strike escalated tensions between Washington and Tehran. Bahrain The headquarters of the Navy's Fifth Fleet are in Manama, Bahrain, and host about 9,000 U.S. military and civilian personnel. Part of its mission is to ensure safe passage for commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz, where 20 percent of the world's oil supply flows through. Iran has threatened to seed the strait with as many as 6,000 naval mines, a tactic meant to pin American warships in the Persian Gulf. It would also disrupt global oil trade, especially for Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which ship a lot of oil through the strait, as well as energy buyers like China and India. Kuwait Five bases in Kuwait, where about 13,500 American troops are stationed, have served for decades as an essential staging point for forces, weapons and military equipment on their way to battlefields around the world. Military ties between Kuwait and the United States have remained strong since the Persian Gulf war of 1991. After Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990, the United States led a coalition to contain Saddam Hussein's forces in the region and keep him from seizing Saudi Arabia. Within months, U.S. forces had chased Saddam's troops back into Iraq, liberating Kuwait. American troops have been based in Kuwait ever since. More than a decade later, in 2003, U.S. and international troops used Kuwait as a launchpad to invade Iraq and oust Saddam. Qatar The Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar is the largest U.S. military site in the Middle East and is the regional headquarters for the U.S. Central Command, which oversees forces in the region. About 10,000 troops are stationed there. The U.S. military has been using Al Udeid since the days after the Sept. 11 attacks, when it positioned planes there to target the Taliban and Al Qaeda in Afghanistan. Two years later, Al Udeid became the main U.S. air operations hub in the region. U.S. commanders used it to coordinate a wide variety of missions during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as strikes against ISIS in Syria. The Air Force has deployed a wide variety of aircraft there, from advanced fighters and long-range bombers to drones, transport planes and in-flight refueling tankers. It also became the central evacuation point for tens of thousands of Afghans and Americans who fled Afghanistan in 2021 when the U.S. military withdrew. United Arab Emirates About 3,500 U.S. military personnel are at the Al Dhafra Air Base, outside Abu Dhabi, where the United States has deployed F-22 fighter jets in recent years, including to protect Emirati fuel tankers that were attacked by Iran-linked Houthi fighters in 2022. The 380th Air Expeditionary Wing of the U.S. Air Force is based at Al Dhafra, from where it has launched combat operations against the Islamic State and the Houthis, and in Afghanistan. It also has been used as an intelligence-gathering and surveillance unit during the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as for aerial refueling. Graphic by Daniel Wood .
NDTV
5 days ago
- Business
- NDTV
Pakistan Shuts Border With Iran As Tehran Trades Strikes With Israel
Islamabad: Pakistan has closed all its border crossings with neighbouring Iran for an indefinite period, provincial officials said on Monday, as Israel and Iran trade intense strikes and threaten further attacks. "Border facilities in all five districts -- Chaghi, Washuk, Panjgur, Kech and Gwadar -- have been suspended," Qadir Bakhsh Pirkani, a senior official in Balochistan province, which borders Iran, told AFP. Crossing into Iran "has been suspended until further notice", said Atta ul Munim, an official at one of the crossings in Chaghi district. However, there was "no ban on trade" activities at the border and Pakistani nationals needing to return to their the country from Iran can cross, he added. "We're expecting around 200 Pakistani students coming today," Atta said. On Sunday, Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said 450 Pakistani pilgrims were evacuated from Iran, with more to follow, as well as from Iraq -- the two countries hosting the holiest sites in Shiite Islam. Pakistan, the only Muslim-majority country with nuclear weapons, said on Friday it "stands in solidarity with the Government and the people of Iran" against strikes by Israel, which both Islamabad and Tehran do not recognise. Pakistani Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Monday warned that the world "should be wary and apprehensive about Israel's nuclear prowess" and accused it of lacking "any international nuclear discipline". Israel is the Middle East's only nuclear power, although undeclared. Media reports have said Pakistan may support Tehran if the conflict was to widen, but officials in Islamabad have reiterated that their country is only showing "moral and diplomatic solidarity". Predominantly Sunni Pakistan shares a more than 900-kilometre (560-mile) border with Shiite-majority Iran. The relationship between the two neighbours has been complex, with Pakistan often wary of US-led sanctions on Tehran and also mindful of its ties with Riyadh, which has repeatedly helped rescue its economy by rolling over overdue debts. Bilateral trade between the two countries stands at around $3 billion and officials have vowed to boost it to $10 billion in the coming years.
The Hindu
6 days ago
- Business
- The Hindu
Pakistan shuts border with Iran as Tehran trades strikes with Israel
Pakistan has closed all its border crossings with neighbouring Iran for an indefinite period, provincial officials said on Monday, as Israel and Iran trade intense strikes and threaten further attacks. "Border facilities in all five districts -- Chaghi, Washuk, Panjgur, Kech and Gwadar -- have been suspended," Qadir Bakhsh Pirkani, a senior official in Balochistan province, which borders Iran, told AFP. Crossing into Iran "has been suspended until further notice", said Atta ul Munim, an official at one of the crossings in Chaghi district. However, there was "no ban on trade" activities at the border and Pakistani nationals needing to return to their the country from Iran can cross, he added. "We're expecting around 200 Pakistani students coming today," Atta said. On Sunday, Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said 450 Pakistani pilgrims were evacuated from Iran, with more to follow, as well as from Iraq -- the two countries hosting the holiest sites in Shiite Islam. Pakistan, the only Muslim-majority country with nuclear weapons, said on Friday it "stands in solidarity with the Government and the people of Iran" against strikes by Israel, which both Islamabad and Tehran do not recognise. Pakistani Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Monday warned that the world "should be wary and apprehensive about Israel's nuclear prowess" and accused it of lacking "any international nuclear discipline". Israel is the Middle East's only nuclear power, although undeclared. Media reports have said Pakistan may support Tehran if the conflict was to widen, but officials in Islamabad have reiterated that their country is only showing "moral and diplomatic solidarity". Predominantly Sunni Pakistan shares a more than 900-kilometre (560-mile) border with Shiite-majority Iran. The relationship between the two neighbours has been complex, with Pakistan often wary of US-led sanctions on Tehran and also mindful of its ties with Riyadh, which has repeatedly helped rescue its economy by rolling over overdue debts. Bilateral trade between the two countries stands at around $3 billion, and officials have vowed to boost it to $10 billion in the coming years.
MTV Lebanon
01-06-2025
- Politics
- MTV Lebanon
Iraq suspends licenses of 10 satellite channels for "fomenting sectarianism and violence"
Iraq suspended the licenses of 10 satellite television channels, including Qatar-based Al-Jazeera, for promoting violence and sectarianism, a senior official at the country's media watchdog said on Sunday. "We took a decision to suspend the license of some satellite channels that adopted language encouraging violence and sectarianism," Mujahid Abu al-Hail of the Communications and Media Commission told AFP. "It means stopping their work in Iraq and their activities, so they cannot cover events in Iraq or move around," Hail said. The suspended channels included pan-Arab network Al-Jazeera and Sharqiya, a leading channel in Iraq. The move comes after a wave of violence that began on Tuesday with clashes between security forces and Sunni Arab protesters in northern Iraq that has killed a total of more than 215 people. The violence is the deadliest so far linked to demonstrations that broke out in Sunni areas of the Shiite-majority country more than four months ago. The Sunni protesters have called for the resignation of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and railed against authorities for allegedly targeting their community, including what they say are wrongful detentions and accusations of involvement in terrorism.
Rudaw Net
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Rudaw Net
Syrian president sends FM to Arab League summit in Baghdad
Also in Middle East Turkey says its anti-PKK operations continue despite progress in peace process Iraq, Jordan, Egypt discuss tripartite cooperation mechanisms Trump to end US sanctions on Damascus, greet Syria's Sharaa in Saudi Arabia Iran calls PKK decision to disband 'important step' A+ A- ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani arrived in Baghdad on Friday for the Arab League summit. He is attending instead of interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa whose invitation to the event was opposed by many in Iraq. On arriving in the Iraqi capital, Shaibani told Iraqi state media that 'Syrian security is shared with Iraq, and we want coordination in various fields." He added that during the summit he will emphasize the end of 'foreign interventions' in Syria. The gathering of Arab leaders will be held on Saturday. Several high-profile figures, including United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, have already arrived in Baghdad to attend the 34th edition of the annual event. Sharaa's office confirmed on Monday that Shaibani would represent Syria at the summit, ending weeks of speculation over whether Sharaa would attend. Sharaa's decision to skip the summit follows controversy over his participation. On Monday night, protesters took to the streets in Iraq's Shiite-majority southern province of Basra, chanting slogans against Sharaa using his nom de guerre 'Jolani.' Demonstrators shouted, 'No, no to Jolani. No, no to terrorism.' The new Syrian leader has jihadist roots. He was elected interim president in late January after a coalition of opposition groups led by Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) - which he commanded before its dissolution and merger into the Syrian defense ministry - toppled the regime of longtime dictator Bashar al-Assad. While most Arab countries congratulated Sharaa on his appointment as president, Iraq withheld formal recognition, reflecting Baghdad's cautious stance toward the new leadership that has historic ties to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State (ISIS).
