Middle East

Over the past eight months, the United States has poured more than 20,000 additional troops into the Middle East to counter the escalating threat from Iran.

The slain commander, Abdolhossein Mojaddami, was gunned down in front of his home in southern Iran by unknown assailants. The Basij, the paramilitary wing of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, was recently involved in violently suppressing civilian protests in the area.

"Both sides are Iraqis. So why are you killing your brothers?" says one woman protester in Baghdad.

Security forces fire tear gas, water cannons and rubber bullets in clashes Sunday with hundreds of anti-government protesters outside parliament. Hundreds of protesters wounded since Saturday.

Iran must allow International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors access to declared nuclear sites. Walking back that pledge could be in violation of nuclear deal and UN Security Council resolution.

Jordanian security forces prevent hundreds of demonstrators from rioting during a protest against the gas deal. Israel is expected to begin pumping natural gas to the kingdom later this year.

Jordan's King Abdullah II tells EU lawmakers, meanwhile, that if Israel succeeds in imposing "an unthinkable solution" by annexing parts of Judea and Samaria, hopes for a two-state solution and a Palestinian state would quickly come to an end.

"He understands what needs to be done to get the Israelis and the Palestinians closer together," King Abdullah says.

As Saudi Arabia opens its doors to tourists for the first time, i24NEWS correspondent Henrique Cymerman visits the kingdom and reports back on how it is changing.