ADEN, Yemen -- Yemen's Southern Transitional Council (STC) on Wednesday accused Saudi Arabia of "arbitrarily detaining a senior delegation" sent to Riyadh for political consultations, amid a sharp escalation in southern Yemen's volatile military and political situation.
Anwar Al-Tamimi, spokesman of the Aden-based STC, told Xinhua that more than 50 STC officials and "southern political figures were detained upon arrival in Riyadh and transferred to an undisclosed location." (Yemen-Saudi Arabia-Tensions)
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TEHRAN -- Two Iranian police officers were killed and 30 others injured on Wednesday during clashes in southwestern Iran, the semi-official Fars news agency reported, as nationwide protests over economic grievances entered their 11th day.
The violence erupted in the city of Lordegan, in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province, after approximately 300 shopkeepers closed their stores and took to the streets at around 10:00 a.m. local time (0630 GMT), the report said. (Iran-Clashes-Casualties)
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DAMASCUS -- Heavy fighting between forces loyal to the interim government in Damascus and Kurdish-led fighters shook Aleppo for a second day on Wednesday, killing at least four people and sending thousands of civilians fleeing.
The violence centered on the Kurdish-majority neighborhoods of Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh, signaling a deepening rift between the Damascus authorities and the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The clashes follow the Syrian military's decision to declare the two districts "closed military zones" starting at 3:00 p.m. local time (1200 GMT), a move that triggered a panicked exodus of residents. (Syria-Aleppo-Conflicts)
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JERUSALEM -- Israel on Wednesday detonated three minefields in the Jordan Valley as part of its construction work to build a controversial separation barrier, the Ministry of Defense said on Wednesday.
About 500 old anti-tank mines, laid in the area since the late 1960s, were destroyed in the controlled blasts, the ministry said in a statement. (Israel-Jordan-Barrier) ■
