BAGHDAD — Iraq said the Iranian forces had crossed into Iraq and seized an oil well, confirming that the Iraqi government is diplomatically moving to contain the tension between the two countries, the state-run newspaper of al-Sabah reported Saturday.
According to the report, the Iraqi Security Council on Friday held an emergency meeting to discuss the Iranian troops’ seizure of Iraqi oil well No. 4 from the al-Fakkah oilfield in Maysan province, 370 km southeast of Baghdad.
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GAZA — Palestinian militants on Saturday engaged Israeli troops that rolled in northern Gaza Strip town of Beit Lahiya, according to a statement.
In the statement to local press, the military wing of the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC) said its gunmen exchanged fire with an Israeli army force after spotting it entering the northwest parts of the town.
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TEHRAN — Iran on Saturday rejected the reports that an Iraqi oil well was taken over by Iranian armed forces as an attempt to harm the relations between the two neighboring countries, the official IRNA news agency reported.
“Foreign media made unfounded allegation … and attempted to disrupt friendly relations between Iran and Iraq by propaganda campaign,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast was quoted as saying.
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DAMASCUS — Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Saturday afternoon met with visiting Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri at Tishreen Presidential Palace in Damascus.
The visit will last for around five hours and will be concluded by a dinner hosted by the Syrian president in honor of Hariri, the local media reported.
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SANAA — The Yemeni government have arrested 29 al-Qaida members in crackdowns against the extremist group since Thursday, the ruling General People’s Congress reported on its website Saturday.
Almotamar net said those extremists were arrested during the operation launched by security authorities against the hideouts of al-Qaida militants in southern Yemen. Among them, 13 were captured in the capital city of Sanaa.
