Category: Middle East

Israeli police question Hollywood mogul in Netanyahu probe

An Israeli police official says Israeli investigators questioned Hollywood producer Arnon Milchan in the U.S. last week as part of a corruption investigation into Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The investigation, dubbed “File 1000,” reportedly concerns claims that Netanyahu improperly accepted lavish gifts from wealthy supporters, including Milchan and Australian billionaire James Packer.

German court rejects injunction for Facebook in Syrian selfie case

A German court on Tuesday rejected a temporary injunction against Facebook in a case brought by a Syrian refugee who sued the social networking site for failing to remove faked posts linking him to crimes and militant attacks. The Wuerzburg district court said in a preliminary ruling that Facebook is neither a “perpetrator nor a participant” in what it said was “undisputable defamation” by Facebook users, but simply acting as a hosting provider which is not responsible for pre-emptively blocking offensive content under European law.

Turkish Stream, Akkuyu NPP high on agenda at Moskow-Ankara talks

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan will discuss the implementation of projects on building the first Turkish nuclear power plant Akkuyu and the construction of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline during the meeting in Moscow scheduled for March 10. “The agenda, in particular, includes the implementation of joint projects to build the first Turkish nuclear power plant Akkuyu and the construction of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline,” RIA Novosti reported with reference to the Kremlin statement. In addition, the leaders of the countries “will discuss the entire complex of issues of Russian-Turkish relations with an emphasis on further restoring mutually beneficial trade and economic ties.”

Avigdor Liberman Heads To Washington For Talks With Team Trump

Palestinian laborers work at a construction site in a new housing project in the Israeli settlement of Maale Adumim near Jerusalem Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman, addressing a Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee meeting on Monday, expressed opposition to the efforts of some other coalition members to incorporate Judea and Samaria into Israel. Lieberman said Israeli annexation would mean “an immediate crisis” in US-Israeli relations, and was too risky even before considering the ramifications under worldwide law for extending Israeli sovereignty to include 2.7 million occupied Palestinians.

Israel makes it official: Cannabis is not a crime

Israel’s Cabinet decriminalized the recreational use of cannabis, or marijuana, at its weekly meeting on Sunday March 6, 2017 in a move hailed by politicians from across the spectrum. Israel’s Cabinet decriminalized the recreational use of cannabis, or marijuana, at its weekly meeting on Sunday March 6, 2017 in a move hailed by politicians from across the spectrum.

New travel ban order draws mix of reactions in Minnesota

Syrian immigrants Oter Alkhattab, left, and Zuhir Alsaman say the order delays the arrival of their son and his family in the U.S. For Mounaf Alsamman, a Syrian-born Twin Cities physician, President Donald Trump’s executive order Monday brought mixed news: His brother’s family, in the final stage of the resettlement process, faces another four months of waiting. But unlike the January version, this order doesn’t single out Syrian refugees for an indefinite suspension.

Islamic State dislodged from last major city stronghold in Iraq

Elite Iraqi security forces dislodged Islamic State militants from the main government building in Mosul on Tuesday, their last major city stronghold in Iraq, an Iraqi spokesman said. A special Rapid Response team stormed the Nineveh governorate building and the surrounding government complex in an overnight operation, Lieutenant Colonel Abdel Amir al-Mohammadawi, a spokesman for the elite interior ministry unit, told Reuters.

Top 25 winners of the love campaign

During the last month of February, Monitor Publications ran a love campaign dubbed, “Just the 2 of Us” recognising couples who have been married for the last 25 years and more. Last Friday, the top 25 couples were rewarded with a number of gifts and getaway prices.

Syrian government forces take over positions from U.S.-backed militia in northern Syria

News selected on topics and regions – oil and gas, business, politics, IT, the South Caucasus, the Caspian Sea region, Central Asia Ranking of the Azerbaijani banking sector Syrian government forces have taken over positions from a U.S.-backed militia in the northern city of Manbij on part of a frontline with Turkish-backed rebel forces, in line with a deal brokered by Russia, the militia’s spokesman said on Monday, Reuters reported. “The handover has taken place..,” Sharfan Darwish, the spokesman for the Manbij Military Council, told Reuters.

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President Donald Trump has signed a revised travel ban that temporarily halts entry to the U.S. for people from six Muslim-majority nations who are seeking new visas and suspends the country’s refugee program. The new directive aims to address legal issues with the original order, which caused confusion at airports, sparked protests around the country and was ultimately blocked by federal courts.

Oman Ministry of Manpower reports shows 477 arrested between February 26 and March 3

Muscat: In its weekly report, the Ministry of Manpower’s joint inspection team pointed out that the number of workers violating the Labour Law during February 26th till March 3 stood at 477 including 377 commercial workers, 53 farm workers and 47 housemaids and their equivalents. The inspection teams caught 443 workers including 258 absconding workers, 176 astray workers and 9 workers with other violations.

Rep. DeSantis visits Israel, tours possible US embassy sites

While President Trump has backed away from moving the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a ranking Republican Congressman visited the country Sunday, pushing for the controversial move. Ron DeSantis, the chair of the Subcommittee on National Security, met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and toured four possible sites for the embassy relocation, including the two current U.S. consulates in West Jerusalem.

Andrew Cuomo in Israel for whirlwind trip

The Governor of New York Andrew M. Cuomo lays a wreath at the Hall of Remembrance at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial, in Jerusalem, Sunday, March 5, 2017. ORG XMIT: DB109 The Governor of New York Andrew M. Cuomo lays a wreath at the Hall of Remembrance at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial, in Jerusalem, Sunday, March 5, 2017.

Under pressure, Cabinet braces for discussion on border-jumpers that…

Federal cabinet ministers are set for an in-depth discussion this week of the practical and political pressures being placed on the Liberal government by a rising number of asylum seekers in Canada. Border security, RCMP and immigration officials have been running scenarios to prepare for the possibility that a relative winter trickle of illegal immigration into Canada could turn into a spring flood.

Who shares Cyprus’ growing air travel market ?

Some 9.3 million travellers are expected to use the airports at Larnaca and Paphos this year, a 3.6% increase on 2016, which had in turn been a record-breaking year. Last year saw an 18% increase, translating to 1.37 million passengers using the airports, an 18% rise in comparison to 2015.

Cuomo calls anti-Semitic attack in New York ‘reprehensible’

Visiting New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Sunday that a recent rash of anti-Semitic acts in the United States was “reprehensible” and his state would have no tolerance for them. In a visit to Israel, Cuomo made his first comments following the toppling of headstones at a Jewish cemetery this weekend in Brooklyn.

Report: Israeli leader briefly offered pro-peace government

An Israeli newspaper is reporting that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offered the country’s opposition leader a unity government late last year that would promote a regional peace initiative – before backing out. Haaretz reports Sunday that Netanyahu sent a document to Isaac Herzog detailing a willingness to make compromises for the creation of a Palestinian state and to rein in West Bank Jewish settlement construction.

At least two killed in new drone strikes on al Qaeda in Yemen: residents

Drones fired missiles at suspected al Qaeda targets in two separate attacks in Yemen on Saturday, local sources said, in what appeared to be a third successive day of U.S. strikes against militants in the Arab country. Tribal sources and residents said one of the pilotless aircraft unleashed its missiles on a vehicle traveling on the outskirts of the southern city of Ahwar, killing two suspected al Qaeda members inside.

Turkey plans more pro-Erdogan rallies, German concerns mount

Turkey said on Saturday it would keep holding rallies in Germany and the Netherlands to urge Turks living there to back a vote to boost President Tayyip Erdogan’s powers, despite opposition from authorities in both countries. Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu criticised German and Dutch restrictions on such gatherings as undemocratic, and said Turkey would press on with them in the run-up to the April 16 referendum.

Regular checks ensure cooking gas cylinder safety in Oman

Inspection includes checking of rust, base, leaks and bulging, as well as the hydraulic testing to ensure that the cylinders meets the specifications. Photo-ONA Inspection includes checking of rust, base, leaks and bulging, as well as the hydraulic testing to ensure that the cylinders meets the specifications.

UN: If confirmed, chemical attacks in Mosul a war crime

Victims of a possible IS chemical attack civilians Ekhlas Meshal, 30, holds her injured two-month old child Rami, as she sits next to her injured two-year old daughter Dima, receive treatment in a hospital in Irbil, Iraq, Saturday, March 4, 2017. A doctor in western Irbil said on Saturday that 10 people with injuries caused by chemicals have been admitted to his hospital over the last two days.

11 civilians killed by air strikes in Syria

BEIRUT: At least 11 civilians were killed and dozens more wounded on Saturday in air strikes on a central Syrian village that a monitor said were likely carried out by Russia. “The raids targeted a livestock market in the village of Oqayrabat, held by the IS group in Hama province,” said Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Jordan hangs 10 for attacks, some tied to Islamic extremism

Jordan on Saturday executed 10 men convicted in a series of bombings and shooting attacks since 2003 that killed a British tourist, an outspoken critic of Islamic extremism and members of the Jordanian security forces, the government spokesman said. It was the largest round of executions in recent memory, and the first since pro-Western Jordan launched a crackdown on Islamic extremists two years ago, after the killing of a captured Jordanian fighter pilot by the Islamic State group.

Jewish event a proud moment

Congratulations to Las Vegas’ Jewish University for the Feb. 15 Night of Tolerance, a tribute to eminent Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Elie Wiesel. Wiesel died last year at the age of 87. He was a Holocaust survivor of the Nazi death camps.

German Justice Minister pens letter to Bozdag over meeting ban

German Justice Minister has penned a letter to Turkish Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag over Berlin’s decision to ban Turkish ministers from holding events in two German cities ahead of the April 16 constitutional referendum that will decide whether the current parliamentary system should be shifted to an executive presidency. Maas sent the sharply worded letter after bozdag canceled their scheduled meeting for March 9. “When journalists, judges and attorneys are arrested simply because they are doing their jobs, simply because they are fulfilling their role in a constitutional state, then each arrest marks a degradation of the rule of law,” he wrote.

Grandpa Wolcott

Shouldn’t James Wolcott retire? I read his latest spew in VANITY FAIR — online — and who needs it? Grandpa doesn’t like the left. We get it.

Iranians celebrate 2nd Oscars win for Farhadi

Hundreds of Iranians gathered Friday at Tehran Cinema Museum to celebrate Asghar Farhadi’s recent Academy Awards win for best foreign language film. In his short speech, Farhadi said the film was not a pre-planned project but, he added, ” was not supposed to be made at all.

Rail freight service to connect India with Iran, Turkey12 min ago

New Delhi, Mar 3 In an ambitious move, Indian Railways is exploring the possibility of a transcontinental rail freight service connecting India with Iran and Turkey. Considered to be a major boost for trade and economic development of the Asia Pacific region, a trans-container goods train from Dhaka to Istanbul covering Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran and Turkey.

Why Trump won’t tear up Iran nuclear deal

He was referring, of course, to the Iran agreement that is meant to keep nuclear weapons out of the hands of the ayatollahs for at least a decade. Candidate Trump boasted he would rip up the agreement, then renegotiate a much better document.