.com | ‘Israel bias’ row enters UN rights council stage

A United Nations rights expert issued a blistering criticism of Israel’s policies on Monday, deepening a row over alleged anti-Israel bias within the UN following US pressure. In a report, the UN special rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories, Michael Lynk, charged Israel with “the subjugation of humanity” and intensifying a crackdown on human rights campaigners.

.com | Trump wants to work with Palestinians – official

US President Donald Trump sees Mahmoud Abbas as a “strategic partner” and the Palestinian leader wants to engage with him to work towards a two-state solution, a senior Palestinian official said on Monday. Jibril Rajoub, a high-ranking member of Abbas’s Fatah party seen as a possible successor to the 81-year-old president, said he believed Trump could be less beholden to certain interest groups than previous US presidents.

U.S. House Republicans to release healthcare bill changes

FILE PHOTO: House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady speaks with the media on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 14, 2017. Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives will release changes to their healthcare bill on Monday, a top lawmaker said, in hopes of winning passage for the legislation later this week, and eventually, in the Senate.

Settler leader blasts lack of new settlement construction

A settler leader vowed that there would be construction in all the West Bank settlements, and expressed frustration that limitations have not been lifted since the January inauguration of US President Donald Trump. “The decision of the leadership of the Yesha Council is that there will be construction in every settlement, we are longer in the Obama era and it can’t be that the Trump era is even worse than the Obama era,” Army Radio on Monday quoted Avi Roeh, the leader of the settler umbrella group the Yesha Council, as telling a meeting of the group.

March 20, 2017Rivlin responds to public broadcasting saga from Vietnam

Antisemitism in the US is on the rise – what do US senators and Israeli ministers have to say about it? Save your seat In Hanoi and Beijing, they’re talking about Israel’s public broadcasting crisis, or more accurately why the crisis should not be a pretext for holding new elections. Reporters traveling in Vietnam with President Reuven Rivlin and in China with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu were more inclined to report on the broadcasting dilemma and possible election crisis than on bilateral relations.

Minister opens sixth edition of Cityscape Qatar 2017

Minister of Economy and Commerce H E Sheikh Ahmed bin Jassim Al Thani along with other officials opening the sixth edition of Cityscape Qatar 2017 at the DECC, yesterday. Minister of Economy and Commerce H E Sheikh Ahmed bin Jassim Al Thani yesterday opened the sixth edition of Cityscape Qatar 2017 at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Center .

Estrangement between Europe and Turkey grows as a referendum on Erdogana s power nears

The unusually bitter dispute between European countries and Turkey over President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s attempts to hold political rallies in their cities is sharply escalating as Ankara releases its long-simmering frustration at its perceived mistreatment by its allies. After its ministers were barred from giving campaign speeches in Cologne, Rotterdam and other cities last week, the Turkish government stoked the crisis by accusing the German government of “Nazi practices,” calling the Dutch “Nazi remnants,” warning that they will “pay the price” and telling the Dutch ambassador not to return to Ankara.

Dutch PM: Red line drawn because of Turkey’s ‘blackmail’

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte says he was forced to keep two Turkish ministers from traveling within the Netherlands and to bar them from campaigning among Turkish voters because Ankara had threatened sanctions against his government. The prime minister says he was shocked to see one of the ministers try to get to a Rotterdam rally by car after the government had made clear she was not welcome.

Syrian alliance of Islamist factions says responsible for twin Damascus bombings

A Syrian alliance of Islamist jihadist groups known Tahrir al Sham said on Sunday it was responsible for two suicide attacks in the capital Damascus that killed and injured dozens of Shi’ite visitors. In a statement, the group said the attack targeted “Iranian militias” and pro-government defence militias in revenge for what it said was Iran’s role in supporting President Bashar al Assad’s “tyrannical rule,” holding them responsible for “killing and displacing” Syrians.

The Latest: Turkish minister attends France campaign rally

Turkey’s top diplomat has drawn more than a hundred people at a campaign gathering in the northern French city of Metz amid a diplomatic spat with the Netherlands. Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu was in France Sunday to whip up support for controversial constitutional reforms to expand the powers of the Turkish presidency.

Al-Qaida-linked group claims deadly attack in Syrian capital

An al-Qaida-linked group has claimed responsibility for twin blasts near holy shrines frequented by Shiites in the Syrian capital Damascus that killed at least 40 people. The Levant Liberation Committee said in a statement Sunday that the attack was carried by two of its suicide attackers, claiming that they targeted pro-Iranian and pro-government militiamen.

Qatar stock index gains 17.64 points

Doha: Qatar Stock Exchange index gained 17.64 points when the bourse closed trading at 10,484.87 points Sunday. The volume of shares traded decreased to 9,271,607 from 9,970,846 on Thursday and the value of shares increased QR352,696,354.62 from QR337,205,777.58 on Thursday.

Jordan releases soldier who killed 7 Israeli girls in 1997

In this Sunday, March 16, 1997 file photo, King Hussein of Jordan shakes the hand of members of the Badayev family in Beit Shemesh who are in mourning after their daughter Shiri was killed by a Jordanian soldier. King Hussein came to Israel to offer condolences to the seven families who had lost their daughters in an attack on a class trip.

Turkey-Dutch relations take dip after Turkish visits banned

ROTTERDAM, Netherlands – The escalating dispute between Turkey and the Netherlands spilled over into Sunday, with a Turkish minister unable to enter her consulate after the Dutch had already blocked a visit by the foreign minister, prompting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to call the Dutch fascists and “Nazi remnants.”

Avoiding the mistake of overconfidence

For weeks, Iraqi officials have sounded optimistic about the battle for Mosul, which is Iraq’s second-largest city. On Monday, they came very close to their own But by Tuesday, those troops were retreating in disorder.

With U.S. troops, Syria confident it can capture ISIS ‘capital’

This frame grab from a video provided by the Syria Democratic Forces , shows fighters from the SDF opening fire on an Islamic State group’s position, in Raqqa’s eastern countryside, Syria, Monday, March 6, 2017. The main U.S.-backed force fighting the Islamic State group in Syria has enough fighters to capture the extremists’ de facto capital of Raqqa north of the country at a time when U.S. troops are playing a bigger role on the ground in the battle to conquer the city, a spokeswoman for the force said Friday, March 10, 2017.

PA officials: Abbas is a ‘peace partner’

Palestinian Authority officials claimed on Saturday night that PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas’s conversation with U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday refutes Israel’s claim that Abbas isn’t a partner for peace. During Friday’s conversation, the first between Trump and Abbas since Trump took office, the President invited the PA leader to the White House.

The Latest: Rotterdam mayor issues emergency order in spat

The Dutch government on Saturday withdrew landing permission for the Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu’s aircraft, draw… . The Foreign Minister of Turkey Mevlut Cavusoglu speaks during a visit of the booth of Turkey at the tourism fair ITB in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, March 8, 2017.

What Happens if U.S. Catches Baghdadi?By John Batchelor

ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is reportedly on the move after coalition forces set siege to Mosul, raising the question what the U.S. should do if it ever catches him. , is no longer camped in the besieged Mosul and is somewhere along the Syrian border “between al Hajinn in Syria and al Ba’aaj in Iraq.”

Turkey-Dutch relations take dip after Turkish visit banned

ROTTERDAM, Netherlands – Turkey and the Netherlands sharply escalated a dispute between the two NATO allies on Saturday as the Dutch blocked a campaign visit by the Turkish foreign minister, prompting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to call them “fascists.” The Netherlands withdrew the landing permission for Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu because of objections to his intention to rally in Rotterdam for a Turkish referendum on constitutional reforms to expand presidential powers, which the Dutch see as a step backward from democracy.

The Latest: Pro-Turkey protest outside Rotterdam consulate

The Dutch government on Saturday withdrew landing permission for the Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu’s aircraft, draw… . The Foreign Minister of Turkey Mevlut Cavusoglu speaks during a visit of the booth of Turkey at the tourism fair ITB in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, March 8, 2017.

The Latest: Rutte calls Turkish ‘fascists’ remark ‘crazy’

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses his supporters in Istanbul, Saturday, March 11, 2017. The Dutch government on Saturday withdrew landing permission for the Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu’s aircraft, drawing the ire of the Turkish president and escalating a diplomatic dispute between the two NATO allies over campaigning for a Turkish referendum on constitutional reform.

The Latest: Organizers of canceled Dutch rally urge calm

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses his supporters in Istanbul, Saturday, March 11, 2017. The Dutch government on Saturday withdrew landing permission for the Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu’s aircraft, drawing the ire of the Turkish president and escalating a diplomatic dispute between the two NATO allies over campaigning for a Turkish referendum on constitutional reform.

Uttarakhand: Chief Minister Harish Rawat loses Haridwar seat to BJP

The people in Uttarakhand seem to have voted against Harish Rawat’s Congress government this time as the exit poll predicted a clean sweep by the BJP which is expected to get over 50 out of 71 Assembly seats. The BJP fared poorly in the last UP elections, winning only 47 out of 403 assembly seats, but it clinched 73 out of 80 parliamentary constituencies in 2014 with Modi standing in the holy city of Varanasi.

Trump invites Palestinian leader to the White House

Abbas has spent many hours on the phone and in meetings with USA presidents and secretaries of state over the past decade but he has been unsuccessful when reaching out to Trump. “President Trump has extended an official invitation to President Abbas to visit the White House soon to discuss ways to resume the political process, stressing his commitment to a peace process that will lead to a real peace between the Palestinians and the Israelis”, said Abbas spokesman Nabil Abu Rdainah.

David Miliband: Don’t pull up drawbridge after Brexit

Britain must make sure it does not pull up the drawbridge after Brexit and leave Europe to deal with the migration crisis on its own, David Miliband has said. The former British politician, who now heads up the International Rescue Committee , said it will be much harder for the UK to maintain a global role after leaving the European Union, which has seen hundreds of thousands of men, women and children seeking refuge from the civil war in Syria.

David Miliband: Don’t pull up drawbridge after Brexit

Britain must make sure it does not pull up the drawbridge after Brexit and leave Europe to deal with the migration crisis on its own, David Miliband has said. The former British politician, who now heads up the International Rescue Committee , said it will be much harder for the UK to maintain a global role after leaving the European Union, which has seen hundreds of thousands of men, women and children seeking refuge from the civil war in Syria.