Category Archives: Middle East and North Africa

Iranian security forces shoot dead at least two demonstrators

Posted on by

Forces opened fire as protests sparked by Mahsa Amini’s death swelled on anniversary of bloody 2019 crackdown

Iranian security forces have shot dead at least two protesters, as demonstrations sparked by Mahsa Amini’s death swelled on the anniversary of a bloody 2019 crackdown.

The protesters were responding to a call to commemorate those slain in the 2019 crackdown, giving new momentum to the demonstrations sparked by the death of 22-year-old Amini in mid-September this year, after her arrest for allegedly flouting Iran’s strict dress code for women.

Continue reading...

Syrian amnesties freed less than 6% of detainees, report reveals

Posted on by

Freeing of prisoners hailed as acts of benevolence by Assad regime still leave estimated 136,000 people in jail

Prisoner amnesties decreed by the Syrian leader, Bashar al-Assad, during the country’s 10-year war have freed less than 6% of detainees, with an estimated 136,000 people remaining in state prisons, a report has revealed.

The amnesties, which were hailed as acts of benevolence by officials and Assad, have put barely a dent in the huge numbers still held in the regime’s infamous prison systems, some for years after their sentences had expired.

Continue reading...

Palestinian man kills two Israelis in West Bank settlement

Posted on by

Authorities shoot 18-year-old dead after knife and car attack in territory occupied by Israel

A Palestinian man killed two Israeli people and wounded four others in an attack at a settlement in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday before he was shot and killed by Israeli security personnel, Israeli paramedics and Palestinian officials said.

The Magen David Adom paramedic service said the two were killed in the settlement of Ariel. The four wounded were taken to hospital in a serious condition.

Continue reading...

The Egyptian human rights activists unable to attend Cop27

Posted on by

Conference in Sharm el-Sheikh follows decade-long crackdown on civil society in Egypt

“Honestly, what I want is to be in Sharm el-Sheikh and just scream,” said Amr Magdi of Human Rights Watch. Like dozens of other prominent human rights defenders, researchers and environmentalists, Magdi has been unable to attend Cop27 as he is exiled from Egypt because of his work.

“I just want to tell everyone about the injustice happening in Egypt. I can’t do it personally and I’m trying to do it with my work. I’m even helping others who are able to travel there to do this,” he said.

Continue reading...

Israel will not cooperate with FBI inquiry into killing of Palestinian American journalist

Posted on by

Defence minister calls investigation into Shireen Abu Akleh’s killing by Israeli army ‘interference in internal affairs’

Israel has said it will not cooperate with an FBI investigation into the killing of the Palestinian American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh by the Israeli army.

Israel’s defence minister, Benny Gantz, denounced the inquiry as “interference in Israel’s internal affairs” and said he “made it clear to the American representatives that we stand behind the IDF [Israel defence forces] soldiers, that we will not cooperate with any external investigation”.

Continue reading...

James Cleverly says LGBTQ+ World Cup fans should ‘respect law’ of Qatar

Posted on by

UK foreign secretary says it is his job to ensure UK visitors stay safe as he defends attending the tournament

James Cleverly has told LGBTQ+ football fans travelling to Qatar for the World Cup to “respect the law” of the host country, as the foreign secretary defended attending the tournament himself.

While Cleverly said he understood why some people were uncomfortable with Qatar holding the event, which begins on 20 November, he said it was “my job to make sure those people who do visit stay safe”.

Continue reading...

Fish fossils show first cooking may have been 600,000 years earlier than thought

Posted on by

After examining carp remains, researchers claim people who lived 780,000 years ago liked their fish well done

Early human ancestors living 780,000 years ago liked their fish well done, Israeli researchers have revealed, in what they said was the earliest evidence of fire being used to cook.

Exactly when our ancestors started cooking has been a matter of controversy among archaeologists because it is difficult to prove that an ancient fireplace was used to prepare food, and not just for warmth.

Continue reading...

‘This could be the Cop where we lose 1.5C,’ warns Alok Sharma – as it happened

Posted on by

As negotiations develop, some countries pushed to weaken the goal of keeping a global temperature increase to 1.5C

This liveblog is now closed

We’ve been reporting a lot on the lack of food at Cop (it’s been on our reporters’ minds for obvious reasons).

But my colleague Damian Carrington has found that vegan campaigners have capitalised on the burger shortage.

Continue reading...

Iran issues first death sentence over protests

Posted on by

Unnamed person faces execution for alleged arson as part of crackdown on unrest triggered by death of Mahsa Amini

Iran has issued a first death sentence over protests that have mounted a fierce challenge to four decades of hardline clerical rule, as rights groups warn that a wave of executions may follow as leaders try to end nearly two months of sustained nationwide dissent.

The execution was ordered for an unidentified person for allegedly setting fire to a government building. It followed 272 of Iran’s 290 lawmakers voting earlier this month to implement the death penalty for serious crimes against the state, and repeated demands by some officials to take a harder line against unrest that shows little sign of abating.

Continue reading...

Alaa Abd el-Fattah: family of activist jailed in Egypt say he is alive

Posted on by

‘Proof of life’ note says writer, who has been on hunger strike, is drinking water again

The family of the jailed British-Egyptian democracy activist Alaa Abd el-Fattah say they have received proof of life, in the form of a letter in which he says he has ended his water strike after six days but will continue his hunger strike.

“I’m sure you’re really worried about me,” Abd el-Fattah wrote to his mother, in a cautiously worded letter as his communications are heavily monitored by the Egyptian authorities.

Continue reading...

Kurdish militants deny Turkish claims they carried out Istanbul attack

Posted on by

Armed wing of PKK party says it would not target civilians after bomb leaves six dead and 81 injured

The armed wing of the Kurdistan Workers’ party (PKK) has denied any role in an attack on a main Istanbul shopping street, shortly after Turkish officials blamed Kurdish militants for the deadly blast.

Six people died and 81 were injured when a bomb struck Istanbul’s popular pedestrian thoroughfare İstiklal Avenue, timed to strike when it was most crowded. Turkey’s justice minister, Bekir Bozdağ, said that “a woman sat on a bench there for 45 minutes”, and that the explosion occurred moments after she left.

Continue reading...

Istanbul bombing: 46 detained as Turkey minister blames Kurdish separatists

Posted on by

Six people died and 81 were injured when Istanbul’s popular pedestrian thoroughfare İstiklal Avenue was hit by a bomb attack

Turkey’s interior minister has accused Kurdish militants in northern Syria of responsibility for a bombing in a busy Istanbul shopping thoroughfare that killed six people, and said that a suspect had been arrested.

Six people died and 81 were injured when a bomb struck Istanbul’s popular pedestrian thoroughfare İstiklal Avenue, timed to strike when it was most crowded. Turkey’s justice minister, Bekir Bozdağ, said that “a woman sat on a bench there for 45 minutes”, and that the explosion occurred moments after she left.

Continue reading...

Scottish engineer held in Iraqi prison facing extradition to Qatar released

Posted on by

Brian Glendinning, 43, was contracted to work for BP in Iraq when arrested over an alleged debt owed to the Qatari National Bank

A Scottish engineer who was held in an Iraqi prison facing extradition to Qatar over a bank debt has been released, according to a human rights charity that had been campaigning for his freedom.

Brian Glendinning, 43, who had been contracted to work at a BP oil refinery in Iraq, was arrested on an Interpol red notice at Baghdad airport on 12 September.

Continue reading...

Bahrain holds election without opposition candidates

Posted on by

Rights groups say whatever the outcome of election, no real change will follow despite record number of female candidates

Bahrainis headed to the polls on Saturday but a ban on opposition candidates meant the election will bring no meaningful change despite a record number of people vying for seats, rights groups said.

More than 330 candidates, including a record 73 women, are competing to join the 40-seat council of representatives – the lower house of parliament that advises King Hamad, who has ruled since his father died in March 1999.

Continue reading...

Cop27: US ‘totally supportive’ of moves to address loss and damage, says Kerry – as it happened

Posted on by

US climate envoy John Kerry has said his country is ready to discuss the loss and damage at Cop27

After six years as the big cheese of UN climate negotiations, Patricia Espinosa has been enjoying walking the halls of power not quite as an ordinary Joe and apparently isn’t closely following the negotiations. “It has felt just amazing. I knew that as the [UNFCCC] executive secretary that I was missing so much, and it’s been a really wonderful experience.”

Espinosa might not be paying close attention, but we’re starting to see developed countries push back against this year’s hot topic, loss and damage, after developing nations laid out a unified case for why a funding mechanism separate to climate adaptation and mitigation is needed to address the climate catastrophes that can’t be averted. The US in particular has been accused of being a “bad faith actor” due to its long track record of disrupting and delaying progress on the issue.

Continue reading...

Russian oligarchs and companies under sanctions are among lobbyists at Cop27

Posted on by

The heavy presence of lobbyists from Moscow suggests Russia is using the climate talks to drum up business

Russian oligarchs and executives from multiple companies under international sanctions are among the lobbyists currently attending Cop27 in Sharm el-Sheikh.

Among those at the pivotal climate talks are the billionaire and former aluminium magnate Oleg Deripaska, who is under UK sanctions, and the billionaire Andrey Melnichenko, the former head of the Russian fertiliser company the EuroChem group, who has been targeted with individual sanctions by the European Union which he disputed, calling them “absurd and nonsensical”.

Continue reading...

Germans ‘disgusted’ by Iran protest crackdown, says chancellor

Posted on by

Olaf Scholz says responsibility for violence lies solely with regime and pledges new sanctions

The German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, has strongly criticised the Iranian government for its brutal crackdown on protests and said Germany stood “shoulder to shoulder with the Iranian people”.

Scholz said the protests sparked by the death on 16 September of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini after her detention by Iran’s morality police were no longer “merely a question of dress codes” but had evolved into a fight for freedom and justice.

Continue reading...

Revealed: UK local councils deposit taxpayers’ cash in Qatar state bank

Posted on by

Town halls and finance firms say they support LGBT rights but send money to World Cup host where homosexuality is illegal

The rainbow flag flew above the Bourne Corn Exchange as South Kesteven council embraced LGBT history month.

A year after voting against such a gesture the Lincolnshire local authority declared itself pleased “to celebrate and recognise the […] rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people”, hoisting the flag outside its headquarters in 2019.

Continue reading...

Thousands of Iranians protest in south-east to mark ‘Bloody Friday’

Posted on by

Video apparently shows crowds marching in Zahedan to condemn 30 September massacre of activists

Thousands of Iranians protested in the restive south-east to mark a 30 September crackdown by security forces known as “Bloody Friday” as the country’s rulers faced persistent nationwide unrest.

Amnesty International said security forces unlawfully killed at least 66 people in September after firing at protesters in Zahedan, capital of flashpoint Sistan and Baluchistan province. Authorities said dissidents had provoked the clashes.

Continue reading...

Foreign Office asks Iran to explain alleged death threats to UK-based reporters

Posted on by

Deputy ambassador summoned after Met police warns of credible threats to journalists reporting on Iran protests

The Foreign Office has summoned the Iranian deputy ambassador over allegations that two London-based journalists have faced death threats from Tehran-backed agents over the reporting of the country’s protests.

The news channel Iran International took precautionary steps to protect its reporters after being informed by the Metropolitan police earlier this week that it believes there were credible threats to the journalists’ lives. The two reporters have not been named nor the precise threats detailed.

Continue reading...