Middle East Experience

In an open letter, over 150 signatories have called for an….
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Scores demand UN probe of 1988 Iran dissident killings

Gunfire and explosions were heard for several hours with a live feed of the incident playing out on Facebook.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Manhunt continues for Tapuah Junction terrorist

After helping thousands of individual patients in their decision-making process, sometimes in a matter of hours, the company has started to work also with hospitals and governments.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Israeli start-up aims to be ‘intelligence unit’ for health issues, COVID

The rationale was that Israel refused to allow residents of East Jerusalem to participate.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Palestinian president decides — on his own — to postpone elections

The US embassy in Moscow said on Friday it would reduce the number of consular services it provides from May 12 after Russia imposed restrictions on the hiring of local staff.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Russian President Vladimir Putin last week signed a law to limit the number of local staff working at foreign diplomatic missions and other agencies, and ordered the government to draw up a list of “unfriendly” states that will be subject to the restrictions.Russia-US ties are at a post-Cold War low.“Effective May 12, US Embassy Moscow will reduce consular services offered to include only emergency US citizen services and a very limited number of age-out and life or death emergency immigrant visas,” the embassy said in a statement.“Non-immigrant visa processing for non-diplomatic travel will cease.”The embassy said the Russian government’s actions had forced it to reduce its consular work force by 75 percent and that the provision of emergency services in Russia may be delayed or limited because the ability of staff to travel outside Russia had been constrained.It also urged US citizens in Russia to heed a June 15 deadline set by the Russian government when a temporary extension to visas, residence permits and immigration documents expires.Read more:Washington DC police personnel files accessed by hackers in ransomware attack: CNNRussia fines Apple $12 mln for alleged app market abuseRussia expels seven diplomats from Baltic nations over ‘solidarity’ with Czechs
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: US Embassy in Russia to reduce number of consular services: Ifax

The Pentagon is preparing for possible Taliban attacks on US and coalition forces as they withdraw from Afghanistan, a prospect that complicates the outlook for winding down America’s longest war.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.May 1 was the date all US and other foreign forces were to have departed Afghanistan under a February 2020 deal between the Taliban and the Trump administration. As part of that agreement, the Taliban halted attacks on US troops, and none has been killed since then. But the Taliban said it will consider the United States to be in violation of the agreement for missing the deadline for full withdrawal. Their representatives have been vague about whether they intend to attack starting May 1.President Joe Biden’s decision to proceed with a final but delayed withdrawal adds a new element of security risk as the remaining 2,500 to 3,500 American troops, along with about 7,000 coalition troops and thousands of contractors, begin departing. Biden has said all will be gone by Sept. 11, the date of the 2001 terrorist attacks that prompted the US to invade Afghanistan in the first place.“We have to assume that this drawdown will be opposed,” Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said Tuesday in explaining why Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin decided to keep an aircraft carrier in the Middle East and to move at least four B-52 bombers and portions of an Army Ranger task force to the region as a precaution.“It would be irresponsible for us not to assume that this drawdown and forces drawing down — both American and from our NATO allies — could be attacked by the Taliban,” Kirby added.Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters traveling with him Thursday that the pullout is “complex and not without risk.”The military typically plans for worst-case scenarios to try to avoid being caught by surprise. The withdrawal from Afghanistan involves ground and air movements of troops, supplies and equipment that could be vulnerable to attack. For security reasons, withdrawal details are not being made public, but the White House and several defense officials confirmed Thursday that the drawdown has begun. Defense officials, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive movements, said that in recent days some troops — described as “dozens” — and military equipment have left the country.The State Department also is taking precautions. On Tuesday, it instructed all embassy personnel in Kabul to depart unless their jobs require them to be in Afghanistan. The order went well beyond the usual curtailment of staffers for security and safety reasons.Even the most seasoned American analysts of the Afghan conflict are unsure what to expect of the Taliban. Bruce Riedel, a Middle East analyst at the Brookings Institution and former CIA analyst, wrote this week that it’s unclear whether the insurgents will attempt to disrupt the withdrawal, but he says they may escalate the war.Seth Jones, a counterterrorism and Afghanistan expert as director of the international security program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the Pentagon is wise to prepare for attacks, although he thinks the Taliban is likely to show restraint.“They just want us to go,” he said in an interview. “And anything that starts to complicate that at least runs the risk of backfiring.” Among other things, killing Americans could prompt the Biden administration to rethink the withdrawal, which already is highly unpopular among many Republicans.The possibility of resuming conflict with the Taliban is one of several uncertain aspects of the US withdrawal — beyond the key question of whether the pullout will lead to the collapse of the Afghan government. The US intends to continue counterterrorism operations, as needed, against al-Qaida and potentially other extremist groups in Afghanistan, but it’s not yet clear where those forces will be positioned. Also unclear is the extent to which American and coalition forces will continue to provide air and other military support for Afghan security forces during and after the withdrawal.Gen. Frank McKenzie, who as head of US Central Command is responsible for US military operations in Afghanistan, has said little publicly about the likelihood of facing Taliban resistance.“I would advise the Taliban that we will be well prepared to defend ourselves throughout the withdrawal process,” he said at a Pentagon press conference last week.The extent to which the Taliban continue attacking Afghan government forces during the US withdrawal also is a Pentagon concern. Milley said Wednesday that Afghan security forces form “an outer layer” of security for American and coalition forces.“As we withdraw, that will be a critical component that we’re going to watch very, very carefully — the level of attacks that the Taliban conduct on the Afghan security forces,” Milley said during a McCain Institute Sedona Forum appearance. The recent trend is worrisome, he said, with the Taliban conducting anywhere from a few dozen to 100 or more attacks a day despite hopes for a cease-fire leading to a peace deal.The US military ended its ground combat operations against the Taliban in 2014 and transitioned to training, advising and supporting Afghan forces, including providing air cover for them against the Taliban. The hope was that Afghan government forces could hold their own against the Taliban and that a political settlement could be reached. The departure of US and coalition forces will test the Afghan government’s resolve in unpredictable ways, Milley said.“In the worst-case analysis, you have a potential collapse of the government, a potential collapse of the military, you have a civil war, and you have all the humanitarian catastrophe that goes with it,” he said. On the other hand, the Afghan military has a lot of experience in countering the insurgents. “So it’s not a foregone conclusion that there will be an automatic fall of Kabul, so to speak,” he added.Read more:Deadly insider attacks surge against Afghan army as US, NATO troops prepare to leaveUS tells government employees to leave Afghanistan if they canAs American troops leave Afghanistan, US lawmakers fear dark future for women
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Pentagon prepares for possible Taliban attacks during US withdrawal

A US-based YouTuber and a Russian influencer were ordered off Indonesia’s resort island of Bali on Friday after recording themselves defying mandatory mask-wearing with some imaginative makeup.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Clips of the video created by Josh Paler Lin and Leia Se and posted two weeks ago show the two duping supermarket guards with a painted surgical mask after they were refused entry because Se was unmasked.“Did you notice like no one’s actually looking at you?” Paler exclaimed. “I can’t believe it worked!” he said in the video that appears to have been taken down from his social media accounts but has since been reposted elsewhere.Paler is a Taiwanese passport holder whose YouTube channel specializes in prank videos and is followed by 3.4 million fans. Se has over 25,000 Instagram followers.Although first-time violators of Bali’s mask-wearing rule face fines of 1 million rupiah ($70) for foreigners and deportation after a second offense, the police wanted them removed off the island immediately.“It’s only proper to sanction them more severely, not just with a fine but also deportation,” said Bali’s civil service police unit head Dewa Nyoman Rai Dharmadi. “They are not only violating, but deliberately provoking in public to defy health guidelines.”The pair had shown remorse and apologized through Lin’s Instagram video.“I made this video to entertain people because I’m a content creator and it’s my job to entertain people,” Lin said, “However, I did not realize that what I did could actually bring a lot of negative comments,” he said, advising people to always wear masks and invite everyone to help Bali regain its tourism.Jamaruli Manihuruk, who heads the Bali regional office for the Justice and Human Rights Ministry, said that Lin and Se to be deported as soon as possible after they are tested for COVID-19.“Foreigners who don’t respect the laws and regulations in Indonesia are facing deportation sanctions,” Manihuruk said. He said Lin and Se will be placed in a detention cell at the immigration office while waiting for their flight.In January, authorities in Bali deported Sergei Kosenko, a Russian social media celebrity, after he posted a video of himself driving a motorcycle with a female passenger on the back off a pier into the sea. The stunt was condemned by many Indonesians as reckless and a potentially hazardous to the environment.Read more:Russia expels seven diplomats from Baltic nations over ‘solidarity’ with CzechsUS Embassy in Russia to reduce number of consular services: IfaxWashington DC police personnel files accessed by hackers in ransomware attack: CNN
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Influencers Josh Paler Lin, Leia Se kicked off Bali island after fake mask prank

Egypt and Sudan agreed to establish an Egyptian-Sudanese joint stock company on agricultural and animal production and food industries, as they face a threat of shortage of Nile water amid the faltering negotiations on Ethiopia’s controversial Nile dam.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Egypt, Sudan seek greater cooperation in agriculture, food industries

Tons of dead fish have washed up on the banks of a lake on Lebanon’s Litani river, engulfing a nearby village in a pungent smell, in a disaster blamed on polluted waters.For all the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Volunteers collected rotting fish carcasses near the Qaraoun lake on Lebanon’s longest river, the Litani, where activists have warned for years of water pollution caused by sewage and waste.Piles of garbage drifted in the lake near the dead fish. Swarms of flies spread near the reservoir and thousands of fish were decomposing in already dirty waters.“This phenomenon appeared on the shore of the lake several days ago,” said Ahmad Askar, a local activist. “The fish started floating up, and in abnormal quantities...It’s unacceptable.”At least 40 tons have turned up dead in a few days, numbers which Askar and fishermen in Qaraoun described as unprecedented. They called on the Litani river authority to find the cause and go after anyone dumping wastewater into the lake.The river authority said this week that the fish were toxic and carried a virus, urging people to avoid fishing all along the Litani due to “an aggravated disaster that threatens public health”.The pollution prompted a ban since 2018 on fishing in the reservoir, which was created in 1959 with a large dam to collect water for hydropower and irrigation.Last month, volunteers removed clumps of sticky tar from some beaches along the Lebanese coast after an oil spill which environmentalists warned would harm marine life.Ecological disasters are the last thing Lebanon needs as it suffers through an alarming financial collapse and the aftermath of a huge explosion that devastated Beirut port last August.Read more:Lebanese clear tar pollution from turtle beach in southern city of TyreAnother battle to fight: Lebanon's environmental disasterBlame game for Beirut blasts begins among Lebanon officials
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Tons of dead fish wash up on shore of polluted Lebanon lake near Litani river

Despite years of warnings that the site was unsafe for such large events, thousands of worshipers gathered at Mount Meron for a celebration that turned into a nightmare.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Warnings foreshadowed deadly stampede in Israel