#TODAYS 5 TOP STORIES
![Civilians pass by a tank belonging to President Bashar al-Assad in Deraa in July 2018 [Omar Sanadiki/Reuters]](https://i2.wp.com/middleeastaffairs.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/dcecf2fdca224439b456d19624af4e48_18.jpg?resize=350%2C250&ssl=1)
India claims new first for world’s fastest cruise missile
India said the world’s fastest cruise missile passed another key test Wednesday when it successfully hit a land target after...
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![Some 800,000 Palestinians were forcefully expelled from their homes and land when Israel was founded in 1948 [File: Reuters/Ali Hashisho]](https://i0.wp.com/middleeastaffairs.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/8afd88f7bb7942deb4d37938ca3f10ad_18.jpg?resize=350%2C250&ssl=1)
The return of Palestinian refugees is quite possible
Еvery year, a day after Israel marks its independence day on May 14, we commemorate with sadness and nostalgia the Nakba...
How Hezbollah evades sanctions in Venezuela and partakes in Maduro’s drug trade
The international media has been rife with analysis about the events of April 30th and May 1st, when Venezuelan Interim...
Getting the most out of Saudi Arabia’s new residency permit
Saudi Arabia’s Shoura Council just approved a special residency permit for entrepreneurs, investors, and skilled expatriates. This is a potentially...
The scramble for Jerusalem
Recent foreign policy decisions by the United Stateshave opened yet another chapter in the long history of the competition for the...
![Shia Muslims prepare graves during a mass funeral for victims of a suicide attack on a mosque in Qatif on May 25, 2015 [File: Reuters]](https://i0.wp.com/middleeastaffairs.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/4828232644f0434185c84a97ad323f5a_18.jpg?resize=350%2C250&ssl=1)
The Saudi Shia: Between an Iranian rock and a Saudi hard place
Last month, Saudi Arabia quietly beheaded 37 people, mostly Shia men from the country's Eastern Province. They had all been sentenced in what international human...
UAE says joint probe into tanker attack ensures impartiality
DUBAI: The United Arab Emirates said on Wednesday that the participation of several countries in an investigation into last week’s...
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Russia urges shutdown of US, YPG-held camps in Syria
Moscow urged Washington on Wednesday to shut down two refugee camps located in Syrian territories currently under the control of...
Read moreAir raids kill 12 civilians in militant-held Syrian town: monitor
BEIRUT: Air strikes by Damascus or its ally Moscow killed 12 civilians in a market in Syria’s Idlib province, a...
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Turkey says it will not withdraw posts in Syria after government attacks
Turkey will not evacuate its military observation post in northern Syria’s Idlib, the last rebel stronghold in the region, after...
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![Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during their meeting in Moscow on April 8, 2019 [Reuters/Maxim Shipenkov]](https://i1.wp.com/middleeastaffairs.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/cebe3219b4a248098f567febefe7a970_18.jpg?resize=120%2C86&ssl=1)
![Some 800,000 Palestinians were forcefully expelled from their homes and land when Israel was founded in 1948 [File: Reuters/Ali Hashisho]](https://i0.wp.com/middleeastaffairs.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/8afd88f7bb7942deb4d37938ca3f10ad_18.jpg?resize=120%2C86&ssl=1)
