https://www.voanews.com/z/598 middle-east https://www.voanews.com/Content/responsive/VOA/en-US/img/logo.png https://www.voanews.com/z/598 en 2026 - VOA 60 Sat, 11 Apr 2026 12:21:47 -0400 Pangea CMS – VOA A Friday report by the United Nations says Iran is using advanced technology, including drones, facial recognition and a citizen-reporting app to crack down on violations of its mandatory hijab laws. A key element of the effort is the government-backed Nazer app, which enables the police and "vetted" members of the public to report alleged violations by women in vehicles, including those in ambulances, mass transit and taxis. The report describes the app as allowing users to upload the vehicle license plate, location and time of an alleged violation. It then, according to the report, alerts police. Then, according to the report, the app "triggers a text message (in real-time) to the registered owner of the vehicle, warning them that they had been found in violation of the mandatory hijab laws, and that their vehicles would be impounded for ignoring these warnings." According to the report, authorities are using drones in Tehran and the southern part of the country to monitor hijab compliance in public areas, as well as new facial recognition software said to have been installed last year at the entrance of Tehran’s Amirkabir University. The report is to go to the U.N. Human Rights Council on Tuesday. https://www.voanews.com/a/un-iran-using-drones-to-enforce-hijab-law/8011563.html https://www.voanews.com/a/un-iran-using-drones-to-enforce-hijab-law/8011563.html Sat, 15 Mar 2025 04:49:23 -0400 IranMiddle EastTechnologywebdesk@voanews.com (VOA News) Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Sudani announced that Abu Khadija was killed in an operation by Iraqi intelligence with support from coalition forces. Abu Khadija was one of ISIS’s most active leaders, responsible for operations along the Kirkuk, Diyala, and Salahaddin borders. He was seen as the driving force behind ISIS attacks on Iraqi forces. Click here for the full story in Kurdish. https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-kurdish-senior-isis-leader-killed-in-iraqi-intelligence-operation/8011284.html https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-kurdish-senior-isis-leader-killed-in-iraqi-intelligence-operation/8011284.html Sat, 15 Mar 2025 01:15:23 -0400 Middle Eastwebdesk@voanews.com (Dilshad Anwar) The case of a man whose confession was made public by Irbil security forces last month has raised questions about how the security forces in the Kurdistan Region treat people they arrest. Human rights groups and lawyers say this is not the first time something like this has happened. Click here for the full story in Kurdish. https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-kurdish-release-of-man-s-confession-sparks-legal-concerns-/8011458.html https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-kurdish-release-of-man-s-confession-sparks-legal-concerns-/8011458.html Sat, 15 Mar 2025 01:14:11 -0400 Middle Eastwebdesk@voanews.com (Diyar Jamal) Despite widespread protests, Syria’s newly signed interim constitution is raising deeper concerns about the country’s future. Experts warn that its provisions could form the basis of Syria’s permanent constitution in five years. And many fear the constitution will lead to sectarian rule and threaten Syria’s stability. Click here for the full story in Kurdish. https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-kurdish-syria-s-interim-constitution-raises-fears-of-sectarian-division-/8011267.html https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-kurdish-syria-s-interim-constitution-raises-fears-of-sectarian-division-/8011267.html Sat, 15 Mar 2025 01:13:35 -0400 Middle Eastwebdesk@voanews.com (Balen Salih) Despite numerous threats from the security institutions of the Islamic Republic of Iran in recent days, Nowroz celebrations are taking place in many cities on Friday across Kurdish regions, two Kurdish human rights groups said. Click here for the full Web story in Kurdish. https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-kurdish-kurds-in-iran-celebrate-nowruz-despite-threats-from-iranian-guards-/8011468.html https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-kurdish-kurds-in-iran-celebrate-nowruz-despite-threats-from-iranian-guards-/8011468.html Sat, 15 Mar 2025 01:13:10 -0400 Middle Eastwebdesk@voanews.com (Ozlem Yasak) The Saudi crown prince plans to discuss reducing the hours of fasting for Muslims during Ramadan. However, the Kurdistan Regional Government Fatwa Committee says it is not right to follow political decisions on fasting. On the other hand, the former director of the Ministry of Religious Affairs told VOA that if Saudi Arabia makes such a decision, others should consider following it, because Saudi Arabia is still seen as the center of important religious decisions. Click here for the full story in Kurdish. https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-kurdish-debate-grows-over-proposal-to-shorten-fasting-hours-during-ramadan-/8011485.html https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-kurdish-debate-grows-over-proposal-to-shorten-fasting-hours-during-ramadan-/8011485.html Sat, 15 Mar 2025 01:12:55 -0400 Middle Eastwebdesk@voanews.com (Snur Karim) Syria’s interim president, Ahmed al-Sharia, has signed a five-year constitution, raising concerns among Kurdish parties. Critics say it fails to represent Syria’s diverse communities. Click here for the full story in Kurdish. https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-kurdish-syria-s-interim-constitution-raises-concerns-among-kurds-observers-/8011492.html https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-kurdish-syria-s-interim-constitution-raises-concerns-among-kurds-observers-/8011492.html Sat, 15 Mar 2025 01:12:40 -0400 Middle Eastwebdesk@voanews.com (Bafraw Nuri) WASHINGTON — One of the Islamic State terror group's most senior leaders is dead, killed in what U.S. and Iraqi officials describe as a joint operation. Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani was first to share word of the successful counterterrorism strike, announcing on social media Friday that the country's intelligence service "successfully eliminated" IS deputy caliph Abdallah Makki Muslih al-Rufay'i. Sudani, posting on X, called the death a "significant security achievement." Iraqi special forces, in a subsequent post on the X social media platform, said al-Rufay’i was killed Thursday in an airstrike targeting his location in Iraq’s Anbar desert. U.S. President Donald Trump later confirmed al-Rufay’i’s killing in a post on his Truth Social platform. "Today the fugitive leader of ISIS in Iraq was killed. He was relentlessly hunted down by our intrepid warfighters," Trump wrote, using another acronym for the terror group. "His miserable life was terminated, along with another member of ISIS, in coordination with the Iraqi Government and the Kurdish Regional Government." U.S. Central Command, which oversees U.S. military operations in the Middle East, said al-Rufay’i was killed in a precision airstrike Thursday, and that his body was later positively identified using DNA recovered during a previous raid in which the IS emir escaped. Central Command also said al-Rufay’i and the second IS official had been wearing suicide vests at the time of their deaths and had been carrying multiple weapons. Iraqi officials said the strike was the result of a two-year effort to track al-Rufay’i’s location, with signifcant breakthroughs coming in the past six months. The officials also said they arrested seven additional IS members, including two women, in a follow-up operation in Anbar. Intelligence collected at the scene of the airstrike further led to the arrest of another five people in the northern Iraqi city of Irbil. Iraqi officials said that al-Rufay'i, also known as Abu Khadija, was the top IS official for Iraq and Syria, and that he also played a key role in the group's external operations. A recent United Nations report, based on intelligence from U.N. member states, said al-Rufay'i ran IS operations across Iraq, Syria, Turkey and other parts of the Middle East. Other U.N. intelligence reports have identified al-Rufay'i as a member of IS' delegated committee, viewed as the terror group's most influential executive body. U.S. officials have yet to comment on the Iraqi claims. Various intelligence estimates put the number of IS fighters across Iraq and Syria at between 1,500 and 3,000, with the majority operating out of Syria. U.S. military officials warned in July of a possible IS resurgence in the region, saying the terror group was on a pace to more than double the number of attacks it had carried out in Iraq and Syria the previous year. More recently, in December, U.S. forces carried out a series of airstrikes against IS in Syria, hitting targets in areas abandoned by counterterror forces loyal to former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad. Despite those operations, intelligence shared by the U.N. indicated IS has been trying to take advantage of the fall of the Assad regime and resulting political turmoil. The U.N. report also said IS "maintained the ability to operate and replace field commanders." Yet while Iraq and Syria are central to IS' founding ideology, there has been a growing consensus among intelligence officials and experts that the terror group no longer sees the Middle East as its base for global operations. Officials, including those from the U.S., have said there is growing confidence that the group is now being led by Abdul Qadir Mumin, who has been based in Somalia, where he rose to prominence as the emir of the group's Somali affiliate, IS-Somalia. An offensive launched by forces in Somalia's Puntland region earlier this month, in part to chase after Mumin, has met with surprising success, pushing IS-Somalia out of some of its key strongholds. But the campaign has yet to find any traces of Mumin or other top IS leaders. https://www.voanews.com/a/iraq-says-key-islamic-state-leader-is-dead/8011115.html https://www.voanews.com/a/iraq-says-key-islamic-state-leader-is-dead/8011115.html Fri, 14 Mar 2025 16:30:26 -0400 Middle Eastwebdesk@voanews.com (Jeff Seldin) WASHINGTON — Syria’s newly adopted constitution is facing criticism from legal experts and political groups arguing that its loopholes could deepen division and instability in the conflict-ridden country. Three months after the fall of former President Bashar al-Assad’s government, interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa signed a constitutional declaration Thursday that will serve as Syria’s constitution during the five-year transitional period. Al-Sharaa — leader of the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham that spearheaded the offensive against Assad’s leadership in December 2024 — said following the signing ceremony that he hoped the document would mark “the beginning of a new history for Syria, where oppression is replaced by justice, destruction by construction, ignorance by education and torture by mercy.” The Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration in north and east Syria, a de facto civilian authority affiliated with the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) that controls nearly one-third of Syria’s territory, was the first to reject the constitution, calling it exclusionary. “The so-called constitutional declaration contains a framework and articles similar to those adopted by the Baath government,” it said, referring to the ruling party that governed Syria from 1963 to late 2024. Legal experts also argue that the 53-article document fails to adequately reflect Syria’s realities, particularly its ethnic and religious diversity. “The draft speaks generally of Syrians who resisted the regime, without distinguishing between Arabs, Kurds, Assyrians and other ethnic groups,” said Jian Badrakhan, vice chairman of the Germany-based Kurdish Center for Studies and Legal Consultancy. “However, Article 1 explicitly uses the term ‘Arab’ in the country’s name, undermining the inclusive language found elsewhere in the document.” Badrakhan told VOA that “the absence of any reference to the Kurds, as the second-largest ethnic group in the country, or to the Assyrians, one of Syria’s oldest indigenous peoples, is a clear rejection of Syria’s multicultural identity.” Definition, limits The constitution defines Syria as an Arab republic and mandates that the president must be Muslim. Additionally, it limits official recognition to “heavenly religions,” referring to Abrahamic faiths like Christianity, Islam and Judaism. “This effectively denies recognition to several long-standing religious communities in Syria, including the Yazidis and Druze,” Badrakhan said. “Over time, this provision could also be interpreted as a means to exclude the Ismaili and Alawite sects [of Shiite Islam] from formal recognition.” According to the CIA World Factbook, Arabs constitute 50% of Syria’s nearly 24 million people, while Alawites, Kurds and Christians make up 35%. The remaining percentage is made up of Druze, Ismaili, and other ethnic and religious groups. There are also concerns that the temporary constitution grants vast powers to the interim president and promotes Islamist ideology. Al-Sharaa’s HTS is an Islamist group that is designated as a terrorist organization by the United States. “The constitution says there is separation between government branches, but that is clearly false,” said Sarbast Nabi, professor of political philosophy at Koya University in Iraqi Kurdistan. “Article 24 stipulates that the president gets to pick 20 percent of members of the transitional parliament, which shows there is no separation between the executive and legislative branches,” he told VOA, adding that the document “will not achieve stability in Syria.” The constitution justifies the inclusion of the clause “to ensure fair representation and efficiency.” Anwar al-Bunni, co-founder and executive director of the Syrian Center for Legal Studies and Research, says that while the constitutional declaration has some promising provisions – such as the creation of a commission for transitional justice and the establishment of political parties and associations – there are significant concerns. “The declaration oversteps its role as a constitutional declaration, functioning more like a mini-constitution by predetermining the name of the republic, designating Islam as its main source of legislation and defining presidential powers – effectively undermining the will of the Syrian people,” he said. Such matters, he told VOA, should be decided through referendums. “All ethnicities and religions in the country want constitutional guarantees,” al-Bunni said. “Since this is a temporary document, the formation of a permanent constitution must include discussions over all these points and issues.” Geir Pedersen, the U.N. special envoy for Syria, said in a statement Friday that he “hopes this [constitutional declaration] will move Syria toward restoring the rule of law and promoting an orderly inclusive transition.” Since Assad’s fall, the U.S. and other Western nations have repeatedly called for an inclusive government in Syria that protects the country’s ethnic and religious groups. This story originated in VOA’s Kurdish Service. https://www.voanews.com/a/analysts-see-flaws-in-syria-s-temporary-constitution/8011117.html https://www.voanews.com/a/analysts-see-flaws-in-syria-s-temporary-constitution/8011117.html Fri, 14 Mar 2025 16:28:39 -0400 Middle Eastwebdesk@voanews.com (Sirwan Kajjo) U.S. special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff said a Hamas statement issued Friday announcing it had agreed to release an American-Israeli soldier was, in reality, a condition of a "bridge" ceasefire proposal offered by U.S. officials earlier this week. Early Friday, the U.S.-designated terrorist group Hamas issued a statement saying it had agreed to release Edan Alexander, believed to be the last living American hostage held in Gaza, as well as the bodies of four other hostages after receiving a proposal from mediators to resume negotiations on the second phase of a Gaza ceasefire deal. The statement said the proposal had been offered by unnamed mediators as part of the work in Qatar to restart ceasefire negotiations. The United States, Egypt and host Qatar have been mediating the ceasefire talks. Hamas expressed its "complete readiness to begin negotiations and reach a comprehensive agreement on the issues of the second phase." Later Friday, in a joint statement issued along with the National Security Council, Witkoff's office explained he and National Security Council Senior Middle East Director Eric Trager had presented the bridge proposal to extend the current ceasefire beyond Ramadan and Passover and allow time to negotiate a framework for a permanent ceasefire. In the statement, Witkoff said that under the proposal, Hamas would release additional living hostages in exchange for prisoners, and that the extension of the phase-one ceasefire would allow more time for humanitarian aid to resume into Gaza. He said the U.S. had its Qatari and Egyptian mediating partners convey to Hamas "in no uncertain terms" that the new proposal would have to be implemented soon and Edan Alexander would have to be released immediately. "Unfortunately, Hamas has chosen to respond by publicly claiming flexibility," Witkoff said in the statement, "while privately making demands that are entirely impractical without a permanent ceasefire." In a statement released on the X social media platform, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said that while Israel had accepted "the Witkoff framework," Hamas "continues to wage psychological warfare against hostage families." The statement went on to say that the prime minister would convene his ministerial team Saturday evening for a detailed briefing from the negotiating team and "decide on steps to free the hostages and achieve all our war objectives." Hamas is believed to be holding 24 living hostages taken in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that triggered its war with Israel. The group also is holding the bodies of 34 others who were either killed in the initial attack or in captivity, as well as the remains of a soldier killed in 2014. In comments to FOX Business news Friday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said she was wary of taking Hamas statements at face value but emphasized that U.S. President Donald Trump was working "diligently" to bring hostages home. Witkoff told reporters at the White House early in March that gaining the release of Alexander was a "top priority." A ceasefire has been in place since January. During the first phase of the three-phase ceasefire, Hamas exchanged 33 Israeli hostages and five Thais for some 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees. Israel has been pressing Hamas to accept an extension of the first phase, which ended March 2. Hamas had said it wanted to move to the second phase of the agreement, which would involve the release of more hostages and Israel's withdrawal from Gaza. https://www.voanews.com/a/us-envoy-says-hamas-misrepresented-release-of-hostage/8011067.html https://www.voanews.com/a/us-envoy-says-hamas-misrepresented-release-of-hostage/8011067.html Fri, 14 Mar 2025 15:35:19 -0400 USAMiddle Eastwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA News) Former Kurdistan Region President Massoud Barzani spoke to Mazlum Abdi, commander-in-chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces, to discuss the recent agreement between SDF and the Syrian interim government. Barzani encouraged broader participation from other Syrian Kurdish parties, including the Kurdish National Council in Syria, to strengthen Kurdish representation beyond the SDF alone. Click here for the full story in Kurdish. https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-kurdish-barzani-urges-syrian-kurdish-unity-in-talks-with-sdf-commander/8010352.html https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-kurdish-barzani-urges-syrian-kurdish-unity-in-talks-with-sdf-commander/8010352.html Fri, 14 Mar 2025 14:53:14 -0400 Middle Eastwebdesk@voanews.com (Snur Karim) Three Kurdish and Lorestan prisoners have been told they may soon have four fingers cut off as punishment for theft. The Iranian court says they must get forgiveness from the people who accused them by next month, or the punishment will go forward. The men have spent nine years in prison. Human rights groups say this kind of punishment is like torture and goes against international laws. Click here for the full story in Kurdish. https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-kurdish-3-prisoners-face-risk-of-amputation-in-iran/8010118.html https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-kurdish-3-prisoners-face-risk-of-amputation-in-iran/8010118.html Fri, 14 Mar 2025 14:51:09 -0400 IranMiddle Eastwebdesk@voanews.com (Bafraw Nuri) The U.S. president sent a letter to Iran’s supreme leader to restart talks on Iran’s nuclear program, but Iran refused. Experts think Iran is preparing for war, as shown by its military drills. The U.S. has added new sanctions, and President Donald Trump says military action is still possible, although he hopes for a new deal. Click here for the full story in Kurdish. https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-kurdish-iran-rejects-us-talks-raising-fears-of-conflict-/8010113.html https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-kurdish-iran-rejects-us-talks-raising-fears-of-conflict-/8010113.html Fri, 14 Mar 2025 14:49:33 -0400 IranMiddle Eastwebdesk@voanews.com (Balen Saleh) The U.N. special envoy for Syria is calling for an end to violence and for the protection of civilians, as the country grapples with renewed violence three months after the fall of President Bashar al-Assad. Geir Pedersen issued his appeal Friday, which is the 14th anniversary of the start of pro-democracy protests of al-Assad that led to more than a decade of civil war. “What began as a plea for reform was met with staggering brutality, leading to one of the most harrowing conflicts of our time,” Pederson said. “The conflict exposed the darkest depths of human cruelty. Families continue to mourn the loss of loved ones, communities remain fractured, millions remain uprooted from their homes, and far too many persist in their search for the missing.” The U.N. says the conflict displaced some 12 million people in Syria, including more than 6 million refugees. Assad was ousted in December 2024 but hope for a return to stability has been shaken by deadly violence that began March 6 in Syria's coastal region, where security forces clashed with fighters loyal to the former president, leading to hundreds of deaths, including many civilians. The fighters were members of the country's Alawite minority — the same religious group of which the Assad family is a member. Syria’s transitional authorities said their forces in the sect's coastal region near the port city of Latakia came under a calculated attack from Assad loyalists in an attempted insurrection. Pedersen said Friday that recent agreements between Syria’s transitional authorities and an armed group, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), “are a positive reminder of how important it is that Syria comes together in a manner that truly restores its sovereignty, unity, independence and territorial integrity.” He called for the creation of a “credible and inclusive transitional government and legislative body; a constitutional framework and process to draft a new constitution for the long term that is credible and inclusive too; and genuine transitional justice.” Margaret Besheer contributed to this report from the United Nations. https://www.voanews.com/a/un-urges-end-to-violence-in-syria-14-years-after-arab-spring-protests-/8010694.html https://www.voanews.com/a/un-urges-end-to-violence-in-syria-14-years-after-arab-spring-protests-/8010694.html Fri, 14 Mar 2025 10:23:08 -0400 Middle Eastwebdesk@voanews.com (Aru Pande) WASHINGTON — A second Iranian ship that Western news reports have named as part of a scheme to import a missile propellant ingredient from China is heading to Iran with a major cargo load, an exclusive VOA analysis has found. Ship-tracking websites show the Iranian-flagged cargo ship Jairan departed China on Monday, a month later than the expected departure cited by one of the news reports. The Jairan was named in January and February articles by The Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal and CNN as one of two Iranian cargo ships Tehran is using to import 1,000 metric tons of sodium perchlorate from China. The three news outlets cited unnamed Western intelligence sources as saying the purported shipment could be transformed into enough ammonium perchlorate — a key solid fuel propellant component — to produce 260 midrange Iranian missiles. The other Iranian cargo ship named in the news reports, the Golbon, completed a 19-day journey from eastern China to the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas on Feb. 13. During the trip, it made a two-day stop at southern China's Zhuhai Gaolan port and delivered an unknown cargo to Iran, according to ship-tracking website MarineTraffic. Both the Golbon and the Jairan are sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department as vessels operated by the state-run Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines, which itself is sanctioned for being what the State Department has called "the preferred shipping line for Iranian proliferators and procurement agents." As the Golbon sailed from China to Iran in late January and early February, the Jairan’s automatic identification system transponder — a device that transmits positional and other data as part of an internationally mandated tracking system — reported the vessel as being docked at eastern China's Liuheng Island. In a joint review of the Jairan's AIS data on MarineTraffic and fellow ship-tracking website Seasearcher, VOA and Dubai-based intelligence analyst Martin Kelly of EOS Risk Group determined that the Jairan reported no significant draught change while docked at Liuheng Island through February and into early March. That meant the Iranian vessel was sitting at the almost same depth in the water as when it arrived in eastern China late last year, indicating it had not been loaded with any major cargo since then. The Jairan remained at Liuheng Island until March 3, when it headed south toward Zhuhai Gaolan and docked at the port on March 8. Two days later, the Jairan departed, reporting its destination as Bandar Abbas with an expected arrival of March 26. The Iranian ship also reported a significant draught change upon leaving Zhuhai Gaolan, transmitting data showing it was sitting more than 2 meters deeper in the water and indicating it had taken on a major cargo at the port, Kelly told VOA. As of Friday, local time, the Jairan was in the waters of Indonesia's Riau Archipelago, heading southwest toward the Singapore Strait. The U.S. State Department had no comment on the Jairan's departure from China when contacted by VOA. Iran's U.N. mission in New York did not respond to a similar VOA request for comment, emailed on Tuesday. Last month, the State Department told VOA it was aware of the January news reports by The Financial Times and Wall Street Journal regarding Iran's purported use of the Golbon and Jairan to import sodium perchlorate from China. A spokesperson said the State Department does not comment on intelligence matters but "remains focused on preventing the proliferation of items, equipment, and technology that could benefit Iran's missile or other weapons programs and continues to hold Iran accountable through sanctions." Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning responded to the news reports in a Jan. 23 press briefing, asserting that China abides by its own export controls and international obligations and rejects other countries' imposition of what Beijing considers illegal unilateral sanctions. In the past month, Chinese state media have made no reference to the Jairan, while China’s social media platforms also have had no observable discussion about the Iranian ship, according to a review by VOA’s Mandarin Service. In its Jan. 22 report, The Financial Times cited "security officials in two Western countries" as saying the Jairan would depart China in early February, but it did not leave until March 10. Gregory Brew, a senior Iran analyst at the Eurasia Group, a New York-based political risk consultancy, said Iran may have wanted to see if the Golbon could complete its voyage from China without being interdicted before sending the Jairan to follow it. "Ships carrying highly sensitive materials related to Iran's missile industry, which is under U.S. sanctions, are at risk of interception, and the Iranians likely are conscious of that," Brew said. Eight Republican U.S. senators led by Jim Risch and Pete Ricketts sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio about the purported Iran-China chemical scheme dated Feb. 4, urging him to work with global partners of the U.S. "to intercept and stop the shipments currently underway" if the press reports proved accurate. There was no sign of the Golbon being intercepted on its recent China to Iran voyage. Responding to VOA's query about the letter, a U.S. State Department press officer said: "We do not comment on Congressional correspondence." Ricketts' office also did not respond to a VOA inquiry about whether Rubio has responded to the senators' letter. VOA's Mandarin Service contributed to this report. https://www.voanews.com/a/exclusive-second-iranian-ship-suspected-of-carrying-missile-ingredient-leaves-china/8010476.html https://www.voanews.com/a/exclusive-second-iranian-ship-suspected-of-carrying-missile-ingredient-leaves-china/8010476.html Fri, 14 Mar 2025 01:05:35 -0400 Middle EastEast AsiaChina Newswebdesk@voanews.com (Michael Lipin) Reza Valizadeh, a dual-citizen Iranian American journalist imprisoned in Iran, ended his hunger strike after six days on Thursday out of concern for his mother, who went on the hunger strike with him. Valizadeh said family members asked him to end the strike because his mother’s physical and mental condition had severely deteriorated, and he had developed motor impairment and a weakened physical condition. Click here for the full story in Persian. https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-persian-iranian-american-journalist-ends-hunger-strike-/8010387.html https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-persian-iranian-american-journalist-ends-hunger-strike-/8010387.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 22:49:54 -0400 Middle EastIranPress Freedomwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA Persian) Tensions are rising between Turkey and Iran, with Ankara warning Tehran not to undermine efforts to end its war with a Kurdish rebel group, the PKK. As Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul, a peace deal with the Kurdish rebels would be a boost for Turkey in its race to gain influence in Syria. https://www.voanews.com/a/turkey-warns-iran-against-hindering-peace-deal-with-kurdish-rebels/8010004.html https://www.voanews.com/a/turkey-warns-iran-against-hindering-peace-deal-with-kurdish-rebels/8010004.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 17:32:21 -0400 Middle Eastwebdesk@voanews.com (Dorian Jones) DAMASCUS, SYRIA — Syria's interim president on Thursday signed a temporary constitution that leaves the country under Islamist rule for five years during a transitional phase. The country's interim rulers have struggled to exert their authority across much of the country since the Islamist former insurgent group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, led a lightning insurgency that overthrew former leader Bashar al-Assad in December. Former HTS leader Ahmad al-Sharaa is now the country's interim president — a decision that was announced after a meeting of the armed groups that took part in the offensive against Assad. At the same meeting, the groups agreed to repeal the country's old constitution and said a new one would be drafted. While many were happy to see an end to the Assad family's dictatorial rule of over 50 years in the war-torn country, religious and ethnic minorities have been skeptical of the new Islamist leaders and reluctant to allow Damascus under its new authorities to assert control of their areas. Abdulhamid al-Awak, one of the seven members of the committee al-Sharaa tasked to draft the temporary constitution, told a press conference Thursday that it will maintain some provisions from the previous one, including the stipulation that the head of state must be a Muslim and Islamic law is the main source of jurisprudence. However, al-Awak, a constitutional law expert who teaches at the Mardin Artuklu University in Turkey, also said the temporary constitution includes provisions that enshrine freedom of expression and the press. The constitution will "balance between social security and freedom" during Syria's shaky political situation, he said. A new committee to draft a permanent constitution will be formed, but it is unclear if it will be more inclusive of Syria's political, religious and ethnic groups. Al-Sharaa on Monday reached a landmark pact with the U.S.-backed Kurdish-led authorities in northeastern Syria, including a ceasefire and a merging of their armed forces with the central government's security agencies. The deal came after government forces and allied groups crushed an insurgency launched last week by gunmen loyal to Assad. Rights groups say that hundreds of civilians — mostly from the Alawite minority sect to which Assad belongs —were killed in retaliatory attacks by factions in the counteroffensive. A key goal of the interim constitution was to give a timeline for the country's political transition out of its interim phase. In December, al-Sharaa said it could take up to three years to rewrite Syria's constitution and up to five years to organize and hold elections. Al-Sharaa appointed a committee to draft the new constitution after Syria held a national dialogue conference last month, which called for announcing a temporary constitution and holding interim parliamentary elections. Critics said the hastily organized conference was not inclusive of Syria's different ethnic and sectarian groups or civil society. The United States and Europe have been hesitant to lift harsh sanctions imposed on Syria during Assad's rule until they are convinced that the new leaders will create an inclusive political system and protect minorities. Al-Sharaa and regional governments have been urging them to reconsider, fearing that the country's crumbling economy could bring further instability. https://www.voanews.com/a/syrian-leader-signs-constitution-putting-islamist-group-in-charge-for-5-years/8009335.html https://www.voanews.com/a/syrian-leader-signs-constitution-putting-islamist-group-in-charge-for-5-years/8009335.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 09:42:37 -0400 Middle Eastwebdesk@voanews.com (Associated Press) Iranian climber Elnaz Rekabi has left the country, her brother announced, expressing his sentiments with the message: “I wish Iran was a better place for you. ... Earth is your home. Go and shine!” he wrote, addressing Elnaz Rekabi as he shared news of her departure. Rekabi, Iran’s climbing champion, faced government restrictions upon returning to Iran after competing without the mandatory hijab at the Climbing World Championships event amid the 2022 nationwide protests in Iran. Click here for the full story in Persian. https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-persian-iranian-climber-elnaz-rekabi-leaves-homeland/8008743.html https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-persian-iranian-climber-elnaz-rekabi-leaves-homeland/8008743.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 02:06:00 -0400 Middle Eastwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA Persian) VOA has learned that a prisoner with cancer who was denied medical care by the authorities of Ghezel Hesar Prison on the pretext of "lack of funds" has died after being transferred to the hospital late. Click here for the full story in Persian. https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-persian-prisoner-dies-in-prison-after-medical-care-denied-/8008754.html https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-persian-prisoner-dies-in-prison-after-medical-care-denied-/8008754.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 02:05:46 -0400 Middle EastIranwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA Persian)