Middle East Experience

Country tops 600 coronavirus patients in serious condition
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: Coronavirus cabinet to convene Monday, police issue 3,000 tickets

Lebanon confirms record 1,006 COVID-19 cases, 11 deaths..
Source: Albawaba
Full Article: Lebanon confirms record 1,006 COVID-19 cases, 11 deaths

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Saturday that the US "expects all UN Member States to comply” with snapback sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
Source: Jerusalem Post
Full Article: US reimposes sanctions on Iran

The United Arab Emirates detected 679 new cases of the novel coronavirus in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of confirmed infections in the country to 85,595, the Ministry of Health and Prevention announced on Monday.For more coronavirus news, visit our dedicated page.One person died due to complications caused by COVID-19, which raises the virus-related death toll in the UAE to 405.Meanwhile, the total number of recoveries in the country rose to 75,086 after 85,595 people recovered from the coronavirus in the past 24 hours.The UAE has been cracking down on individuals and establishments that have failed to adhere to precautionary measures, and has recently issued new restrictions on large gatherings and celebrations.Nine fitness centers and sports clubs in Dubai have been fined or asked to close for violating the United Arab Emirates’ coronavirus guidelines, the Dubai Sports Council (DSC) and Dubai Economy announced on Sunday.Three facilities – including a rented playground, a swimming pool at a sports club, and a sports academy – were asked to close, according to a statement from the DSC.Six other facilities were fined for non-compliance to COVID-19 countermeasures, the statement added.Read more:Coronavirus: Dubai closes, fines nine fitness centers for violating COVID-19 measuresCoronavirus: Dubai Police arrest Arab actress for hosting public birthday parties
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Coronavirus: UAE reports 679 new COVID-19 cases, one death in 24 hours

At press briefing after meeting a Kuwaiti delegation, US President Donald Trump said that "seven or eight countries" may be in line for normalization with Israel.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Trump awards rare honor to emir of Kuwait

Jordan reopened its airport to international flights this month after delays related to COVID-19.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Qatar Airways resumes Amman flights

A woman who offered to pay a conscript's train fare has been celebrated as a national hero in Egypt, but skeptics suggest the incident was staged to deflect attention from bigger challenges faced by the country.
Source: Al Monitor
Full Article: Many Egyptians unmoved by heroic 'train lady' story

Turkish authorities are increasingly abducting opponents of the government, inside and outside of the country, and often torture dissidents after moving them to hidden locations, according to a new report published by the Turkey Tribunal.Human rights in Turkey have deteriorated since a coup attempt in 2016 failed to oust President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, with arbitrary arrests, expulsion from academic and government posts, and reports of disappearances becoming more common.While Turkey denies state involvement in domestic abductions, “there is extensive objective evidence and testimonies confirming that these abductions and subsequent disappearances are organized” by Turkish National Intelligence officials, said the report by the Turkey Tribunal, a nonprofit organization based in Belgium.Partly based on an Ankara Bar Association report, the analysis focused on abductions that occurred after the failed coup attempt to overthrow Erdogan’s government on July 15, 2016, as “the tendency to abduct Turkish citizens has been dramatically increasing” since then.The new report, published this month, listed 25 cases of internal abductions “supported by camera footages, witness statements, investigations of NGOs and other matching sources.”All those abducted were considered political opponents by the government, with alleged involvement with the religious Gulen movement or the Kurdish Workers Party (PKK), both of which Ankara considers terrorist organizations.Read more: Why is Turkey’s Erdogan persecuting the Gulen movement?While the PKK is considered a terrorist group by the US as well, the leader of the Gulen movement, Fethullah Gulen, has sought refuge in the US and now lives in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania.US officials have refused Ankara’s demands to extradite Gulen.Elaborate kidnappingsThe majority of the abductions were part of elaborate kidnapping operations and often occurred in the middle of the day, with the opponent being pushed into a black van in crowded places including in front of shopping malls, according to the report.After being abducted, the opponents “disappear from the radar…their whereabouts are completely unknown for their relatives,” for a time frame ranging from one month to two years.Most “tend to reappear,” resurfacing in a Turkish prison.Read more: Turkish magazine calls for founding Islamic caliphate after Hagia Sophia conversionHowever 10 of the 25 abductees listed are still missing since their disappearances between 2016 and 2019, including Fatih Kilic, a teacher with suspected Gulen links who was abducted on May 14, 2017 and never resurfaced.Supporters of the religious Gulen movement follow the leadership of 81-year-old Gulen, a Turkish Islamic cleric who was once allied with Erdogan.Erdogan accuses Gulen of being behind the 2016 failed coup.External abductionsWhile abductions inside the country are increasing, Turkey has also ramped up abductions of individuals outside the country.The Turkish government has admitted publicly to abducting over 100 people outside the country, with the UN confirming this in a letter in July.In 2018, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Turkish intelligence had “facilitated the return of more than 100 alleged members from 18 countries,” according to a 2018 US State Department report on human rights in Turkey.“Turkey has never denied its involvement” in international abductions, according to the report, which said these abductions typically take place at foreign border crossings when a Turkish citizen finds out their passport has been cancelled by the government.“These passport cancellations allow Turkey to swiftly identify where and when political opponents are traveling and to launch an international operation,” according to the report.One example is NBA star and Gulen supporter Enes Kanter, who was detained in a Romanian airport in 2017 after authorities told him his passport was invalid.Turkey had revoked his passport because of his public criticism of Erdogan. Kanter escaped the fate of abduction, but has refrained from traveling outside the US where he currently resides, due to safety concerns.Other Turkish citizens have also been spared abduction due to the intervention of host countries, such as the Swiss secret service foiling a plan by Ankara to abduct a Turkish-Swiss businessman in 2018 due to his alleged activity within the Gulen movement.‘Ankara resorts to abductions’The lack of adequate investigation into complaints of abductions “supports the strong involvement of the Turkish State with these crimes,” the Turkey Tribunal report said.The Turkey Tribunal, established earlier this year, highlights human rights violations through special reports, witness testimony, and verdicts of judges – half of whom have previously served in the European Court of Human Rights.In July, the United Nations revealed that Turkey signed secret agreements with Azerbaijan, Albania, Cambodia, and Gabon to conduct extraterritorial abductions of alleged dissidents.The abductees “are often subjected to coercion, torture and degrading treatment aimed at obtaining their consent on voluntary return and at extracting confessions that would inform criminal prosecution upon arrival in Turkey,” the UN said in a letter.There is a “systematic nature of torture and ill-treatment of detainees in Turkey,” according to former Turkish parliament member Aykan Erdemir.“Since such severe shortcomings in Turkey’s rule of law and due process preclude legal extraditions, Ankara resorts to abductions as a last resort,” Erdemir, who is now the Senior Director of the Turkey Program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Al Arabiya English.Turkey, which denied the UN claims at the time, has not yet responded to the Turkey Tribunal report.Read more:After Israel deal, Bahrain’s Jews seek to revive community with new rabbi, synagogueTurkey arrests journalist for ‘insulting’ Turkish sultan on Twitter‘Big shame’: Turkey’s Erdogan, European Court of Human Rights meeting under fire
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Turkey increasingly abducts political opponents inside, outside country: Report

Students in Saudi Arabia may still be required to attend online classes a few days per week even after the coronavirus pandemic, the Kingdom’s Minister of Education Hamad bin Mohammed al-Asheikh said in an interview on al-Ekhbariyah TV.For more coronavirus news, visit our dedicated page.Certain subjects will continue to be taught online rather than in-person, he added.“Even if students return to school, there will still be some health requirements. A teacher might have to teach a class from a distance one day a week, so that cases don’t rise,” the minister said.Distance learning will also make attending school easier for students who have to travel during the academic year because it will allow them to join classes remotely, al-Asheikh said.The curriculums will be structured in an organized and efficient way to ensure students receive the best possible education through distance learning and in-person classes, he added.In early March, Saudi Arabia suspended all schools, universities, and educational institutions, and moved classrooms online in an effort to contain the novel coronavirus.The Kingdom started the current academic year in late August with thousands of students and teachers signing up to use the new Madrasati (My School) online platform.The platform allows teachers to set up virtual classes and offers students the ability to create presentations, view educational videos, and access textbooks and courses online.A 24-hour hotline and artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot was also set up for students, parents, and teachers, in order to facilitate the learning process.Several TV channels were designated for students who have poor internet connection.Read more:Coronavirus: Saudi Arabian boy takes distance learning to new heights English classes to begin from first grade in Saudi Arabia in 2021, says minister
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Distance learning in Saudi Arabia may continue even after coronavirus: Minister

The Trump administration on Monday announced new sanctions against Iran’s defense ministry and others involved in Tehran’s nuclear and weapons program to support US assertion that all UN sanctions against Tehran are now restored, a move key allies such as the Europeans dispute.US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, flanked by other top members of President Donald Trump’s national security team, also told reporters Washington had imposed new sanctions on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who has forged closer ties between Caracas and Tehran.For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.“For nearly two years corrupt officials in Tehran have worked with the illegitimate regime in Venezuela to flout the UN arms embargo,” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told reporters.“Our actions today are a warning that should be heard worldwide.” Pompeo said that President Donald Trump has issued an executive order “that is a new and powerful tool to enforce the UN arms embargo.”Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, appearing with Pompeo, also announced separate sanctions on the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran.The Trump administration argues that it is enforcing a UN arms embargo that Iran has violated, including through an attack on Saudi oil facilities.But it is using a UN resolution that blessed a 2015 nuclear accord with Iran negotiated by former president Barack Obama.Trump pulled out of the resolution with fanfare in 2018 but argues that the United States is still a “participant” in the accord as it was listed in the 2015 resolution.The legal argument has been rejected by virtually all nations on the UN Security Council, including US allies.Read more:Khamenei says 1980-88 war with Iraq proved Iran can defend itselfTrump is a target of Iran for ‘life’ for Soleimani killing: Supreme leader Rep.Pompeo accuses European leaders of inaction over Iran arms
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Pompeo says US imposes sanctions on Iran’s defense ministry, Maduro