Tag Archives: US

Israel on Friday designated six Palestinian civil society groups as terrorist organisations and accused them of funnelling donor aid to militants, a move that drew criticism from the United Nations and human rights watchdogs. Israel’s defence ministry said the groups had ties to the Popular Front for the Liberation of …

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday threatened to expel the ambassadors of the United States, Germany and eight other Western countries after they condemned the detention of a civil society leader. Parisian-born philanthropist and activist Osman Kavala, 64, has been in jail without a conviction since 2017, becoming a …

Iran is not ready to return to talks with world powers over its nuclear programme yet and its new negotiating team wants to first meet with the EU in Brussels in the next few weeks, a senior EU official said on Friday. EU political director Enrique Mora, the chief coordinator …

G20 leaders will hold a virtual summit on Tuesday to discuss Afghanistan, with the Italy-hosted talks focused on the humanitarian and security situation following the takeover by the Taliban. Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, whose country holds the rotating G20 presidency, has been pushing to widen the global discussion on …

Chinese President Xi Jinping vowed on Saturday to achieve “peaceful reunification” with Taiwan, and did not directly mention the use of force after a week of tensions with the Chinese-claimed island that sparked international concern. Taiwan responded to Xi by calling on Beijing to abandon its coercion, reiterating that only …

A main concern of Iran in any talks to rescue the 2015 nuclear deal would be around ways to verify the lifting of U.S. sanctions, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said on Saturday. The talks, which aim to bring Washington and Tehran back into compliance with the 2015 nuclear pact …

Turkey has made a request to the U.S. to buy 40 Lockheed Martin-made F-16 fighter jets and nearly 80 modernization kits for its existing warplanes, as the NATO ally looks to modernize its Air Force after the purchase of F-35 jets fell through, sources familiar with the matter said. The …

King Abdullah of Jordan said on Monday (Oct 4) he had nothing to hide following leaks of financial documents that showed he used offshore accounts to buy expensive properties abroad. Earlier, a palace statement reacting to the leak of what major news outlets called a secret trove of documents about …

A massive leak of financial documents was published by several major news organizations on Sunday that allegedly tie world leaders to secret stores of wealth, including King Abdullah of Jordan, Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis and associates of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The dump of more than 11.9 million records, …

A new report has linked a UK Royal Air Force base with high-profile US drone strikes, including the killing of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani in January last year. The report’s release has put pressure on ministers to explain whether Yorkshire’s Menwith Hill base has been directly involved in the carrying …

Security Council members on Thursday extended once again the UN’s mandate in Libya, until the end of January 2022. But permanent members, including the US and UK, expressed dissatisfaction with the council’s inability to reach an agreement on an overhaul of the UN Support Mission in Libya that would have …

Iran on Tuesday rejected a U.S. call to grant U.N. inspectors access to a nuclear site, saying Washington was not qualified to demand inspections without condemning a sabotage attack on the facility, Iranian state media reported. “Countries that did not condemn terrorist acts against Iran’s nuclear site are not qualified …

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian held “thorough and confident” talks with Iraq’s President Barham Salih late on Thursday, wrote Le Drian on his Twitter page. “Following on from the Baghdad conference of August 28 and the ministerial meeting in New York on September 21, I reaffirmed the support of …

2 MIN READ DUBAI, Sept 23 (Reuters) – Houthi military forces are intensifying their push towards the central Yemeni city of Marib, which is held by the Saudi-backed government, and are stepping up fighting in the south, Houthi group and Yemeni military sources said on Thursday. After recent advances and …

A sovereign and democratic Palestinian state is the best way to ensure Israel’s future, US President Joe Biden said on Tuesday. “We must seek a future of greater peace and security for all people of the Middle East,” Biden said on the opening day of the UN General Assembly. “I …

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan will visit Russia later this month for talks with President Vladimir Putin about the violence in northwestern Syria, where Moscow and Ankara back opposing sides, two Turkish officials said on Friday.Turkey supports fighters who sought to topple President Bashar Assad, while Russia has helped shore up …

The United States said on Friday it was imposing sanctions on Lebanon and Kuwait-based financial conduits that fund the Lebanese Shi’ite group Hezbollah as well as financial facilitators and front companies that support the group and Iran. Among individuals designated and sanctioned, the US Treasury said the measures apply to …

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will have no access to footage captured by surveillance cameras at Iranian nuclear sites, Iran’s state-run Press TV channel said on Twitter on Saturday. The channel added that an “informed source rejects reports suggesting that Iran may reconsider (its) decision on IAEA access restrictions.” …

Taliban and opposition forces battled on Saturday to control the Panjshir Valley north of Kabul, the last Afghan province holding out against the militant group, as the top U.S. general warned of a “civil war” if the Islamists failed to consolidate power. Both sides claimed to have the upper hand …

US anti-missile defenses intercepted as many as five rockets that were fired at Kabul’s airport early on Monday morning, a US official said, as the United States rushed to complete its withdrawal from Afghanistan to end its longest war. US and allied forces are hurrying to evacuate their remaining citizens …

A US drone strike blew up a vehicle carrying “multiple suicide bombers” from Afghanistan’s Islamic State affiliate on Sunday before they could attack the ongoing military evacuation at Kabul’s international airport, American officials said. An Afghan official said three children were killed in the strike. The strike came just two …

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amirabdollahian that talks on the Iranian nuclear deal in Vienna should restart as soon as possible, the Russian foreign ministry said on Thursday. “The Iranian side perceived this signal with due seriousness,” the ministry’s statement read. Iran has accelerated its …

 The United States and allies urged people to move away from Kabul airport on Thursday due to the threat of a terror attack by Islamic State militants as Western troops hurry to evacuate as many people as possible before an Aug. 31 deadline. Pressure to complete the evacuations of thousands …

Western countries worked at a war-footing pace” on Tuesday to get people out of Afghanistan, a NATO country diplomat said, as U.S. President Joe Biden looked set to come under pressure from other G7 leaders to seek more time to complete the airlift. Widespread chaos punctuated by sporadic violence has …

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will ask US President Joe Biden to extend the evacuation deadline from Afghanistan when Group of Seven leaders discuss the crisis on Tuesday, two UK ministers said. James Heappey, minister for the armed forces, and James Cleverly, a foreign office minister, said Britain was pushing …

A shipment of Iranian fuel oil for Lebanon will set sail on Thursday (Aug 19) organised by the Lebanese Shi’ite group Hizbollah, the group said, cautioning its US and Israeli foes against any moves to halt the consignment that it said aimed to ease an acute fuel crisis. Hizbollah’s opponents …

Facebook said Tuesday it was blocking WhatsApp accounts linked to the Taliban after the radical Islamic group seized control of Afghanistan and sought to use the messaging service to help it govern. “The Taliban is sanctioned as a terrorist organization under US law and we have banned them from our …

Britain will raise a deadly tanker attack off the coast of Oman during a closed-door United Nations Security Council meeting on Friday, diplomats said, but the 15-member body is not expected to take any action. Britain told the Security Council on Tuesday it was “highly likely” that Iran used one …

The Taliban are more qualified to run a future political set-up in Afghanistan than the current Kabul government, a spokesman for the group told Arab News in an exclusive interview on Wednesday, amid a surge in violence and mounting doubts about the future of US-backed peace negotiations. Taliban officials said …

An Israeli private detective detained in New York since 2019 on charges of involvement in a hacker-for-hire scheme wants a plea deal, according to a letter filed in court by his lawyer. The unusual case has revealed the impacts of a secretive but thriving cyberespionage industry in India. Federal prosecutors …

America is back. That was the message Joe Biden wanted to drive home during his first foreign foray as US president — an eight-day Europe tour in June. The soft-power offensive has been welcomed by America’s European allies after four years of turbulence in transatlantic ties. But it has also brought …

NATO leaders on Monday agreed to step up their collective defence “against all threats, from all directions,” according to their final statement. NATO said it would adapt to climate-reated security challenges, called on Russia to drop its designation of two allies – the United States and the Czech Republic – …

British actor Riz Ahmed on Thursday launched an effort to improve the way Muslims are depicted in movies after a study showed that they are barely seen and shown in a negative light when they do appear. Ahmed, the “Sound of Metal” star and the first Muslim to get a …

When fighting erupted in Gaza last month and rockets rained on Israel, the men operating its navy submarine Leviathan knew next to nothing. Submerged for a drill, they were relayed only brief bulletins so as not to be distracted from their mission. “We are by definition clandestine and, to a …

The US and the European Union voiced concern over Nigeria’s decision to indefinitely ban Twitter after the US social media giant deleted a tweet from the president’s account for violating its rules. International human rights groups have also condemned the move, which followed previous attempts by the government of Africa’s …

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Friday that Tehran wanted action and not promises from six world powers for the revival of their 2015 nuclear deal. “I have told our negotiators that actions, not promises (by the six powers), are needed for the restoration of the nuclear deal,” …

The next phase of international diplomacy to address the Israeli-Palestinian conflict must focus on ending Israel’s occupation and establishing an independent Palestinian state, according to Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian ambassador to the UN. He told Arab News said that efforts at the UN relating to Palestine this year have fallen …

Around 4.5% of all bitcoin mining takes place in Iran, allowing the country to earn hundreds of millions of dollars in cryptocurrencies that can be used to buy imports and lessen the impact of sanctions, a new study has found. At its current level of mining, Iran’s bitcoin production would amount to …

Hundreds of Kuwaitis demonstrated on Wednesday in support of Palestinians and burned an Israeli flag to protest at the bombardment of Gaza after authorities allowed the rally to proceed despite coronavirus restrictions. Protesters, who were only granted access to a main square on foot to limit numbers, chanted “Death to …

Lebanese President Michel Aoun said on Tuesday there should be no preconditions for talks with Israel over their Mediterranean border dispute, key to Lebanon’s hopes to find gas reserves amid its worst economic crisis since its 1975-1990 civil war. Negotiations between the old foes were launched in October to try …

Saudi Cultural Minister Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin Farhan on Sunday held a virtual meeting with the chargé d’affairs of the US Embassy in the Kingdom, Martina Strong. During the meeting, they discussed aspects of cooperation in cultural fields between Saudi Arabia and the US, and the latest development in …

Negotiators trying to revive the collapsed nuclear deal with Iran are close to a draft agreement, leading envoys said on Monday. Talks are continuing in Vienna aimed at rescuing the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the deal with world powers to curb Tehran’s nuclear program in return for the …

Iran named a suspect Saturday in the attack on its Natanz nuclear facility that damaged centrifuges there, saying he had fled the country before the sabotage happened. State television named the suspect as 43-year-old Reza Karimi. It showed a passport-style photograph of a man it identified as Karimi, saying he …

Turkey’s top court sent an indictment calling for the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) to be banned back to the prosecutor on procedural grounds, state-owned Anadolu Agency said on Wednesday. The Constitutional Court ruled that the indictment had procedural omissions and returned it to the Court of Cassation, it said. …