WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - Acting US Defence Secretary Christopher Miller will visit the Middle East this week to discuss with commanders and regional partners a range of issues such as combating "malign activities" in the region, the Pentagon said in a press release on Wednesday.

Tensions with Iran under the Trump administration came to a head after the US withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) in 2018 and began to reimpose sanctions previously lifted under the nuclear deal. Relations worsened even further after US strikes in January killed Quds Force commander Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani.

The Israeli prime minister reportedly fears that Aviv Kochavi might repeat the path of his former Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman, who became one of Netanyahu's main political opponents, or at least leak information to his coalition partner Benny Gantz, who is slated to be the next prime minister.

In 2019, at least six tankers suffered non-critical damage to their hulls as a result of explosions of unknown origin while sailing through the Gulf of Oman. Although an investigation into one of the incidents by the UAE concluded that it had been carried out by a state actor, it fell short of naming which one.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The global energy sector may prove more vulnerable to cyberattacks next year as companies are switching to 5G technologies, which will connect a large number of devices to global networks, increasing the attack surface, Group-IB, a Singapore-based cybersecurity firm, said in a report on Wednesday.

MOSCOW Sputnik) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is predicted to stand down in his row with the European Union should the bloc's member states show unity and mount a convincing challenge, a source in Brussels told the EURACTIV portal on Wednesday.

US sanctions imposed on Iran were meant to shake the country's economy and apply maximum pressure on Tehran, claims an Israeli expert. And given that they have been effective in achieving that goal, doubts run high as to whether they will be lifted that easily.

The reports follow last week's airstrikes conducted by the Israeli military, which, the IDF said, targeted Iranian Quds and Syrian Army objects in Syria. The attack resulted in three soldiers killed and one injured, Syrian media said, citing a military source.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, discussed the implementation of the agreements on Nagorno-Karabakh by phone, the Kremlin said in a statement on Tuesday.

Photos uploaded on social media show parts of the plane scattered on the ground. According to local media, two military search and rescue helicopters have arrived at the crash site. Police have cordoned off the area.

Iran committed to reducing the scope of its nuclear activities under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), signed in 2015. After President Trump withdrew the US from the deal in 2018, Iran scaled back on its commitments under the JCPOA by increasing its uranium enrichment levels and stockpiles.

Shamima Begum was 15 when she left her home in east London in February 2015 and travelled to Syria with two other British schoolgirls. She married a Dutch jihadist, who was killed, and is currently in a camp for former Daesh* families in Syria.

Saudi state media on Monday confirmed that the Yemeni Houthi rebel group had earlier in the day targeted a Saudi Aramco Distribution station in the city of Jeddah.

After Israel announced that it had signed a number of agreements with leading pharmaceutical companies to provide the country with a large portion of COVID-19 vaccines, many in the Jewish state heaved a sigh of relief. But an expert is warning that it is too early to celebrate.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Saudi-led Arab coalition fighting rebels in Yemen argued Monday that the Houthis’ missile strike at a Saudi Aramco oil facility in Jeddah was an attack on global energy security.

Saudi state media reported Monday that a fire had broken out in North Jeddah after a terrorist attack at a Saudi Aramco petroleum distribution station.

This is not the first time that a Turkish ship has been suspected by EU maritime forces of attempting to smuggle weapons to the civil war-torn state in violation of a UN Security Council ban on arms shipments to the country. Ankara, which has pledged to help the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord, condemns such inspections.

The acquisition of the Russian air defence systems by Turkey met with severe opposition from Washington, which threatened to impose sanctions on Ankara. This, however, did not stop Turkey from buying them and reportedly testing their functionality recently.

Protesters have been demanding Israeli PM Netanyahu's resignation since he was indicted on corruption charges in 2019 over alleged breach of trust, fraud, and bribery. The prime minister denies being guilty of any of the charges, calling them a coup attempt against him.

Shamima Begum was 15 when she left her home in Bethnal Green, east London, in February 2015 and travelled to Syria with two other British schoolgirls. She married a jihadist and lived in the Daesh’s self-declared Caliphate until last year.