Iran wants to expand its ruthless model throughout region
Khaled Abou Zahr
French citizen Benjamin Briere was arrested in Iran in 2020 on espionage charges. (AFP)
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A French tourist by the name of Benjamin Briere, who has been held in an Iranian prison for the past year, is set to be prosecuted for espionage and propaganda against the regime, along with other charges.
Briere had been on the adventure of a lifetime. He fitted out his van and in 2018 began a long journey across Europe, the Balkans, Turkey, Iraq’s Kurdistan, and Iran. This adventure came to a brutal end in May 2020. While he was in a desert area close to the Turkmenistan border, the Iranian authorities arrested him and he has since then been held in a prison in the northeastern city of Mashhad. The court filed the charges against him this week.
(Bloomberg) Turkey has discovered further deposits of natural gas in the Black Sea, according to people familiar with the matter, and is likely to make an announcement soon.
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Fashion Commission has launched the “100 Saudi Brands” program, which aims to support the business development of 100 Saudi designers and luxury brands, providing Saudi fashion products with international competitive standards. The authority invited those wishing to take part in the program to register via the website https://saudi100brands.com before
US should quickly recognize Rohingya genocide
Dr. Azeem Ibrahim
June 03, 2021 22:26
An exhausted Rohingya refugee woman touches the shore after crossing the Bay of Bengal, Shah Porir Dwip, Bangladesh, Sept. 11, 2017. (Reuters)
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After the Trump presidency, the Biden administration has had to work overtime to reshape America’s image in the world. To that end, the State Department under Secretary of State Antony Blinken has done some pretty remarkable things. Joe Biden was, for example, the first US President to recognize the Armenian genocide, despite staunch opposition from Turkey, an important US regional ally.
But recognizing historical crimes is relatively easy. National prides may be hurt and official protests lodged, but otherwise nothing needs to change. Turkey remains a member of NATO, just as begrudgingly as before.
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia is seeking to raise $55 billion from a privatization plan, the Kingdom’s finance minister said on Thursday. Mohammed Al-Jadaan said the Kingdom had recently announced a privatization plan that includes identifying 160 projects in 16 sectors, including asset sales and public-private partnerships.