*News and analysis

Comedians say that the art of telling jokes relies on “timing.” Israeli’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the world’s top comic politician, seemed to be proving the point with his “timely” claims about seizing Iranian rockets aboard a cargo ship in the Red Sea. Standing in front of 40 pointed missiles, …

The New York Times US daily revealed that Hizbullah’s participation in Syria war has been a source of foreboding to the Zionist entity. Quoting “Israeli” officials and experts, the newspaper stated: “Hizbullah is acquiring battlefield experience, and the only way for al- Assad, a longtime Hizbullah ally, to repay the …

Christian leaders in South Africa have thrown their full support behind Israeli Apartheid Week (IAW), a global campaign to educate and mobilize the public against Israeli violations of Palestinian rights. On Sunday, Anglican Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town Desmond Tutu reiterated his support for IAW and for the Palestinian-led campaign of boycott, divestment and sanctions(BDS) on Israel. …

Malaysian authorities arrested 114 people in Perak on Saturday on the basis of their Shia faith, in what is the latest crackdown against followers of the Shia Muslim faith, the second largest school of Islamic thought. The arrest took place while they were attending a celebration to commemorate the birth …

MP Hassan al-Yasseri said on Saturday that the main objective behind the move is to show to the world that the Shia school of Islam is fiercely opposed to sectarianism and takfiri thought and that it seeks peace and dialogue among religious denominations.  Al-Yasseri said the move can highlight the …

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has accused Saudi Arabia and Qatar of openly funding the insurgents his troops are battling in western Anbar province, in his strongest such statement since fighting started there early this year. Security forces have been fighting insurgents from the al Qaeda-affiliated Islamic State of Iraq …

For over a decade, Mecca – the holiest city in Islam – has been undergoing an unprecedented level of reconstruction to accommodate millions of pilgrims arriving year round. However, critics argue the massive expansion efforts have mercilessly destroyed invaluable historical and cultural sites, substituting them for crass commercialization and symbols …

Saudi Arabia has called on its citizens waging insurgency wars abroad to return back to the kingdom within 15 days or face imprisonment. The Friday ultimatum was an extension of a month-long deadline given to Saudis fighting outside the country to return home, the interior ministry said. Those failing to …

Cairo Misdemeanors Court has sentenced a Shia activist to five years in jail with hard labour for attempting to storm Al-Hussein Mosque and insulting the companions of Prophet Muhammad (saw). Shia activist Amr Abdullah was arrested in November 2013 during a fight with Salafists at Al-Hussein Mosque during the commemoration …

The United States has denied visa requests from hundreds of Israeli military and intelligence officials over the past year, a report in an Israeli newspaper says. According to the report published in the Hebrew-language daily Maariv, Washington is also giving short-term visas to Israeli army officials who are already in …