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18 Jun 2021
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Iran’s election polls open with US-sanctioned judge likely set for presidency 

June 18, 2021

Iranians voted on Friday in a presidential election likely to be won by a hardline judge subject to US sanctions, though many are expected to ignore the ballot amid economic hardship and calls for a boycott by liberals at home and abroad.With uncertainty surrounding Iran’s efforts to revive its 2015 nuclear deal with six world powers, the turnout is being viewed by analysts as a referendum on the leadership’s handling of an array of crises.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.After casting his vote in the capital Tehran, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei urged Iranians to cast ballots, saying “each vote counts ... come and vote and choose your president”.The favorite to succeed Hassan Rouhani, a pragmatist prevented under the constitution from serving a third four-year term, is hardline Ebrahim Raisi.Raisi, who like his political patron Khamenei is an implacable critic of the West, is under US sanctions for alleged involvement in executions of political prisoners decades ago.“If elected, Raisi will be the first Iranian president in recent memory to have not only been sanctioned before he has taken office, but potentially sanctioned while being in office,” said analyst Jason Brodsky.That fact could alarm Washington and liberal Iranians, analysts of Iranian politics said, especially given President Joe Biden’s sharpened focus on human rights globally.A mid-ranking figure in the hierarchy of Iran’s Shi’ite Muslim clergy, Raisi was appointed by Khamenei to the high-profile job of judiciary chief in 2019.A few months later, the United States imposed sanctions on him for alleged human rights violations, including the executions of political prisoners in 1980s and the suppression of unrest in 2009, events in which he played a part, according to human rights groups.Iran has never acknowledged the mass executions, and the 60-year-old Raisi himself has never publicly addressed allegations about his role.State television showed long queues outside polling stations in several cities. More than 59 million Iranians are eligible to vote. Polls will close at 1930 GMT but can be extended for two hours. The results are expected around midday on Saturday.A win for Raisi would confirm the political demise of pragmatist politicians like Rouhani, weakened by the US decision to quit the nuclear deal and reimpose sanctions in a move that stifled rapprochement with the West.“Elections are important despite the problems and issues ... I wish we didn’t have any of those problems since the registration day,” said Rouhani after casting his vote, a clear reference to the rejection of prominent moderate and conservative candidates from the race by a hardline election body.Official opinion polls suggest turnout could be as low as 44 percent, significantly lower than in past elections.Read more:Iran Supreme Leader casts first ballot in presidential electionIran urges voters to set aside grievances, take part in presidential electionKhamenei says Iran elections are democratic, berates media in ‘some countries’
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Iran’s election polls open with US-sanctioned judge likely set for presidency 

18 Jun 2021
News Permalink

‘Verbal ceasefire’ in place between France, Turkey amid heightened tensions: FM

June 18, 2021

A “verbal ceasefire” is in place between France and Turkey after months of rancorous exchanges that strained the relations of the NATO allies, the French foreign minister said Friday.Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron met on the sidelines of the NATO summit this week, following the rows on international crises such as Libya, Syria and Nagorno-Karabakh that led to bitter personal diatribes from the Turkish leader.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told BFM television that he welcomed the change in tone but said it had to be matched by more concrete steps from Ankara.“There is a kind of verbal ceasefire. That’s good but it’s not enough,” he said.“The verbal ceasefire does not mean acts, and we expect Turkey to act on sensitive subjects,” he said, citing Libya, Syria and also the Eastern Mediterranean, where France has backed EU members Greece and Cyprus angry over Turkish advances in the waters.Le Drian also said France was particularly eager to work with Turkey over Libya, where Ankara sent troops backed by thousands of Syrian militia forces to bolster the UN-backed government.“We will see if President Erdogan has changed more than just his words but also his actions,” Le Drian said.Macron warned earlier this year that Turkey would try to meddle in France’s 2022 presidential election.He has suggested that Ankara’s unilateral moves on the international stage and its purchase of S-400 air defense missile systems from Russia have contributed to a “brain death” of NATO, where Turkey is a key member.A new law against extremism the French government introduced after a series of attacks also aroused Erdogan’s ire, with the Turkish leader accusing France of Islamophobia.Erdogan last year said Macron needed “mental checks” and expressed hope that France would “get rid of” Macron as soon as possible.But there have been tentative signs of easing tensions in recent months, with Erdogan keen to strengthen links with Turkey’s Western partners at a time of growing economic difficulties at home compounded by the Covid-19 pandemic.In another sign of warming ties, France this week removed Turkey from its red list of countries off-limits for non-essential travel, effectively allowing fully vaccinated French tourists to holiday there.At the NATO summit in Brussels, Erdogan also held his first talks with Joe Biden as US leader, though he indicated no plans to abandon the deployment of the Russian S-400 missiles.Read more:France’s Macron says Turkey’s Erdogan wants foreign mercenaries out of LibyaTurkey says differences with France eased after new Libyan governmentTurkey, France foreign ministers meet after months of tension
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: ‘Verbal ceasefire’ in place between France, Turkey amid heightened tensions: FM