The New Yorker has revealed former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's role in former US President Donald Trump's push to strike Iran during his final days in office.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Netanyahu reportedly urged Trump to attack Iran
Syrian man in Netherlands convicted of war crimes for soldier's execution
A court sentenced Ahmad al Khedr to 20 years in prison for his role in the 2012 execution of a regime soldier, which was captured on film.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Syrian man in Netherlands convicted of war crimes for soldier's execution
Iraq arrests killer of respected analyst
Hisham al-Hashimi was gunned down outside his Baghdad apartment in July 2020.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Iraq arrests killer of respected analyst
Saudi PIF buys into McLaren as part of 550 mln pound equity raise
The McLaren Group announced a 550 million pound ($758 million) equity investment on Friday with much of it coming from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) and global investment firm Ares Management.McLaren Group includes the British supercar maker as well as McLaren Racing, which competes in Formula One and IndyCar in the United States and is also entering the Extreme E off-road electric series next year.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.McLaren said PIF and Ares were providing 400 million of new capital, in the form of preference shares and equity warrants.The rest will come from existing shareholders as convertible preference shares, allowing for repayment of a loan received in June last year from the National Bank of Bahrain.Bahrain’s Mumtalakat sovereign investment fund is McLaren’s majority shareholder with a 62.55 percent stake according to its website.“Following the strategic investment into Racing that we secured last year, this successful equity raise is a key element of our comprehensive financial strategy to support the Group’s sustainable growth plans,” said McLaren Group’s executive chairman Paul Walsh.“With these strong foundations now in place, we are well positioned to achieve our ambitions as a global luxury supercar and elite motorsport business, with Automotive as McLaren’s core profit driver.”McLaren had a 300-million-pound equity injection from existing shareholders in March 2020 and last April completed a 170-million-pound sale and leaseback deal on its Woking headquarters.US-based investment group MSP Sports Capital also acquired a significant minority stake in McLaren Racing last December in a deal that brought in 185 million pounds and eased pressure from the COVID-19 pandemic.Automotive revenues in the first quarter of this year were 170.5 million pounds, a rise of 145 percent on the same pandemic-affected period in 2020.PIF were involved in a proposed takeover of Premier League soccer side Newcastle United by a Saudi Arabian-backed consortium last year.Read more: Saudi Arabia to launch STC Bank, Saudi Digital Bank after necessary licenses grantedThat deal ultimately collapsed after being delayed by the Premier League’s owners and directors test.
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Saudi PIF buys into McLaren as part of 550 mln pound equity raise
Facebook hits out at US President Biden after he says platform is ‘killing people’
Facebook hit out at US President Joe Biden Friday after the latter accused the social media platform of “killing people” through allowing disinformation.Responding to a reporter’s question outside the White House, Biden was asked what his message was to platforms like Facebook.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.“They’re killing people,” the US president said. “The only pandemic we have is among the unvaccinated.”Social media platforms, including Twitter and Facebook, have come under fire in recent years for their failure to consistently curb misinformation or harmful content.These two platforms banned former President Donald Trump after his claims that the presidential election was “stolen and rigged.”But Facebook was quick to respond to Biden. “The fact is that more than 2 billion people have viewed authoritative information about COVID-19 and vaccines on Facebook, which is more than any other place on the internet,” Facebook claimed, in a statement released by a spokesperson.“We will not be distracted by accusations which aren’t supported by the facts,” Facebook said.The social media platform also said that more 3.3 million Americans had used the Facebook vaccine finder tool, which helps find out where the closest vaccine distribution center is. “The facts show that Facebook is helping save lives. Period,” the statement read.Also on Friday, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said social media platforms needed to take quick action against harmful posts and users punished for spreading misinformation.
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Facebook hits out at US President Biden after he says platform is ‘killing people’
Dissident journalist Masih Alinejad reveals new details on Iran’s plans to kidnap her
Iranian-American journalist Masih Alinejad revealed new details about Iran's attempt to kidnap her, including the use and arrest of her family members to lure her to Turkey.In an exclusive interview on Al Arabiya’s sister channel Al Hadath, Alinejad said that the FBI briefed her on the level of surveillance from Iranian intelligence officers of her and her daily movements by showing her documents and photos they had intercepted, forcing her and her immediate family in New York to move into a safe house for their safety.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.“But then the FBI came later and they told me that you're under surveillance. The intelligence service in Iran hired an investigator, private investigator in New York and they take pictures of you, your stepson, your husband, your private life. They feel your movement and they're trying to find out where you go, what you do, who you meet and that's what we have to send you to safe houses,” Alinejad told Al Hadath.Alinejad also spoke on the harassment her immediate family still in Iran receive due to her journalistic and activist work as a dissident living abroad.“My brother Ali now is in prison. Ali received eight years prison sentence just because of being my brother. So the government offered a huge amount of money to my family, and ask them that bring Masih to Turkey,” she told Al Hadath.US prosecutors on Tuesday charged four Iranians, alleged to be intelligence operatives for Tehran, with plotting to kidnap New York-based journalist and human rights activist Alinejad, according to a Justice Department indictment unsealed.Alinejad was not identified in court papers unsealed on Tuesday charging the four Iranians, but confirmed that she was the target of the plot.Although she said she felt safe in New York under FBI and police protection, the Iranian-American journalist said she fears more for Iranian dissidents living abroad, especially in Europe where the Iranian regime has had a successful track record of kidnapping and assassinating those critical of Tehran.“For me, it just breaks my heart, when I see that there are a lot of countries around the word trying to normalize such a brutal regime. That is a scary for me otherwise, to be honest, I'm not as scared of my life, I have only one life and I want to express the truth. That's my job and that's my goal,” Alinejad told Al Hadath.
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Dissident journalist Masih Alinejad reveals new details on Iran’s plans to kidnap her
One reportedly killed as protests over water crisis in Iran continue
Protesters took to the streets for a second consecutive night in Iran’s oil-rich southwest to protest water shortages, videos shared on social media showed, with reports of security forces shooting dead at least one protester.Security forces shot dead Iranian Arab citizen Mostafa Naeemawi in the city of Shadegan (al-Falahiya) in Khuzestan province during Friday night’s unrest, Al Arabiya Farsi reported, citing local sources.The protests began late on Thursday in several cities in Khuzestan province, including its capital, Ahwaz, according to videos shared online. The region is home to a large ethnic Arab population.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Several videos shared on social media showed a large crowd chanting in Arabic late on Friday in the city of Susangerd (al-Khafajiya). “The thieves robbed us in the name of religion,” protesters in Susangerd could be heard chanting in Arabic in one video, in reference to Iran’s Shia theocracy.In another video from Susangerd, a man, speaking in Persian, could be heard challenging Khuzestan’s governor Qassem Soleimani, who earlier on Friday had said videos of the protests were “fake” and that the extent of the protests had been exaggerated.Videos also showed protesters setting fires to tires to block roads while shots were heard in other videos.Activists say Iranian Arabs are deprived of decent living standards and civil rights, and face discrimination due to their Arab identity and heritage.The government sent a delegation on Friday to Ahwaz to tackle the water shortages that have sparked the protests, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported.Iran’s Energy Minister Reza Ardakanian warned in May of water shortages in the summer, saying this year was “one of the driest in 50 years.”The water shortages have also led to power outages which sparked protests in several cities earlier this month. Some of the protests turned political with chants against Iran’s highest authority, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.The protests in Khuzestan come as thousands of workers in Iran’s key energy sector have launched strikes for better wages and working conditions.Iran’s economy has been hit hard since 2018 when former US President Donald Trump withdrew Washington from the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers and reimposed sweeping sanctions on the country. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the country’s economic problems.Read more:Protesters storm streets of Iran over water shortages; police fire at crowdsDissident journalist Masih Alinejad reveals new details on Iran’s plans to kidnap her‘Death to Khamenei’: Protests erupt in Iran over power outages
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: One reportedly killed as protests over water crisis in Iran continue
Jenin becomes flashpoint for Israel-Palestinian confrontations
Armed clashes with Israeli forces have resurfaced in the West Bank city of Jenin, where they have become an almost daily occurrence.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Jenin becomes flashpoint for Israel-Palestinian confrontations
Hospital Fires Outrage Iraqis, but They See Little Hope for Change
Two catastrophic fires in coronavirus wards are symptoms of the mismanagement and corruption that have left millions of Iraqis without proper health care, reliable electricity or clean water..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Hospital Fires Outrage Iraqis, but They See Little Hope for Change
Iraq arrests suspects for murder of prominent academic
Iraq’s premier Mustafa al-Kadhimi announced Friday that suspects have been arrested for the murder last year of academic Hisham al-Hashemi, one of dozens of unpunished hits the country has suffered in recent years..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Iraq arrests suspects for murder of prominent academic