Category: Foreign

Western officials warned Tehran yesterday that negotiations to revive its nuclear deal could not continue indefinitely, after the sides announced a break following the election of a new hardline president in Iran.

Negotiations have been ongoing in Vienna since April to work out how Iran and the United States can both return to compliance with the nuclear pact, which Washington abandoned in 2018 under then-President Donald Trump, and Iran subsequently violated.

Yesterday’s pause in the talks came after Ebrahim Raisi, a hardliner and fierce critic of the West, won Iran’s presidential election on Friday. Two diplomats said they expected a break of around 10 days.

Raisi will take office in early August, replacing pragmatist Hassan Rouhani, under whom Tehran struck the deal agreeing to curbs to its nuclear programme in return for the lifting of international sanctions.

Iranian and Western officials alike say Raisi’s rise is unlikely to alter Iran’s negotiating position: Iran’s hardline Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei already has final say on all major policy.

Still, some Iranian officials have suggested that Tehran could have an interest in pushing through an agreement before the new president takes office in August, to give Raisi a clean slate.

An Iranian government official close to the talks told Reuters that if a deal is finalised before Raisi takes office, the new president will be able to deflect blame for any concessions onto his predecessor: “Rouhani, not Raisi, will be blamed for any future problems regarding the deal,” he said.

Britain, France and Germany, the European “E3”, have effectively been acting as mediators, shuttling between the Iranian delegation and a U.S. team that – Washington having quit the pact – is not a formal participant.

The Western countries say the longer Iran violates the deal and produces banned nuclear material, the harder it becomes to restore the pact.

“As we have stated before, time is on nobody’s side. These talks cannot be open ended,” E3 diplomats said in a note sent to reporters, adding that the most difficult issues still need to be resolved.

U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan echoed those comments telling broadcaster ABC News that there was still “a fair distance to travel”, including on sanctions and on the nuclear commitments that Iran has to make. read more

With the talks on pause, attention will now turn to extending a separate accord between Iran and the U.N. nuclear watchdog IAEA, which expires on June 24. Iran has ended extra monitoring measures that were introduced under the 2015 deal.

EU political director Enrique Mora, who is coordinating the nuclear talks, said he expected an extension that would let data continue to be collected while placing limits on the IAEA’s access to it for now. read more

While the rise of a hardliner to succeed Rouhani was expected, it could play into the hands of the deal’s opponents on the right in the United States, and in Israel and Arab countries, who say Iran is not reforming and not trustworthy.

Yesterday Israel’s new Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said a Raisi government would be a “regime of brutal hangmen” with which world powers should not negotiate a new nuclear accord.

Raisi is under U.S. sanctions over a past which includes what the United States and human rights groups say was the extrajudicial killing of thousands of political prisoners in 1988. He has never publicly addressed such allegations.

Raisi, like Khamenei, has supported the nuclear talks as a route to cancelling U.S. sanctions that have wrecked Iran’s economy. Several Iranian officials said the current negotiating team would remain intact for the next few months.

Agency Reporter

A 15-year old girl is to face trial in Britain on terror charges after she was allegedly caught with a bomb-making video and instructions on how to build a homemade gun using a 3D printer.

The schoolgirl, who could not be identified because of her age, appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Thursday by video link for a case management hearing.

She was charged with five counts of possessing information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism on dates in August and September 2020.

The charges relate to a bomb-making video as well as digital documents named Improvised Munitions Handbook, Expedient Homemade Firearms, Kitchen Improvised Fertiliser Explosives and Making Plastic Explosives from Bleach.

READ ALSO: British police arrest six on neo-Nazi terrorism charges

She was further charged with a count of possessing an article in circumstances that gave rise to a reasonable suspicion that it was for a purpose connected with the commission, preparation, or instigation of an act of terrorism on August 22, 2020.

The article is a zip file alleged to contain instructions on how to make a homemade firearm using a 3D printer.

The girl, who is from Derbyshire, denied all of the charges and will face a four-day trial at Nottingham Youth Court on August 24.

Wearing a grey sweater, she sat sipping from a mug during Thursday’s hearing.

The Chief Magistrate, Paul Goldspring, remanded her into a local authority accommodation until her next appearance on July 15. (dpa/NAN)

The field of candidates in Iran’s presidential election thinned out yesterday, two days before the vote in which a victory by ultraconservative cleric Ebrahim Raisi is widely seen as a foregone conclusion.

Three of the seven men who had been approved to enter the lacklustre race pulled out, further bolstering the position of Raisi, 60, in a vote expected to see record low turnout.

Reformist Mohsen Mehralizadeh was first to leave the race, followed by two ultraconservatives, Alireza Zakani and Saeed Jalili, who both pledged their support for the frontrunner.

The election comes as economically ailing and pandemic-hit Iran holds talks with world powers to revive the battered 2015 nuclear deal and seeks to end a punishing U.S. sanctions regime imposed under former President Donald Trump.

The vote will choose a successor to Iran’s moderate President Hassan Rouhani, whose administration had agreed the deal. This year, he cannot run again, having served two consecutive four-year terms, and leaves office in August.

Ultimate power in Iran, where a revolution toppled the monarchy in 1979, lies with the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, but the president has significant influence on issues from industrial policy to foreign affairs.

The expected winner, Raisi — the country’s judiciary chief and a cleric sporting a black turban and religious robe — has been mentioned in Iranian media as a possible successor to Khamenei.

Raisi belongs to the ultraconservative camp that most deeply distrusts the United States, labelled the “Great Satan” or the “Global Arrogance” in the Islamic republic, and which has harshly criticised Rouhani since the nuclear deal started to unravel.

The supreme leader, in a televised speech, urged voters to come out in droves to elect “a powerful president” — warning that “the Satanic power centres of the world” are trying to undermine the ballot.

 

 

Israeli airstrikes hit militant sites in the Gaza Strip early yesterday and Palestinians responded by sending a series of fire-carrying balloons back across the border for a second straight day — further testing a fragile cease-fire that ended last month’s war between Israel and Hamas.

The latest round of violence was prompted by a parade of Israeli ultranationalists through contested east Jerusalem on Tuesday.

Palestinians saw the march as a provocation and sent balloons into southern Israel, causing several blazes in parched farmland. Israel then carried out the airstrikes — the first such raids since a May 21 cease-fire ended 11 days of fighting — and more balloons followed.

The airstrikes targeted facilities used by Hamas militants for meetings to plan attacks, the army said. There were no reports of injuries.

“The Hamas terror organisation is responsible for all events transpiring in the Gaza Strip, and will bear the consequences for its actions,” the army said. It added that it was prepared for any scenario, “including a resumption of hostilities.”

By yesterday afternoon, masked Palestinians sent a number of balloons, laden with fuses and flaming rags, into Israel.

The unrest has provided the first test of the cease-fire at a time when Egyptian mediators have been working to reach a longer-term agreement. It comes as tensions have risen again in Jerusalem, as they did before the recent war, leading Gaza’s Hamas rulers to fire a barrage of rockets at the holy city on May 10. The fighting claimed more than 250 Palestinian lives and killed 13 people in Israel.

The flare-up also has created a test for Israel’s new government, which took office early this week. The diverse coalition includes several hard-line parties as well as dovish and centrist parties, along with the first Arab faction ever to be part of an Israeli government.

Keeping the delicate coalition intact will be a difficult task for the new Prime Minister, Naftali Bennett.

In Tuesday’s parade, hundreds of Israeli ultranationalists, some chanting “death to Arabs,” paraded in east Jerusalem in a show of force. Hamas called on Palestinians to “resist” the parade, which is meant to celebrate Israel’s capture of east Jerusalem in 1967. Palestinians consider it a provocation.

 

Russian President Vladimir Putin said yesterday that he and United States (U.S.) President Joe Biden agreed in a “constructive” summit to return ambassadors to their posts, lowering tensions and beginning consultations to replace the last remaining treaty between the two countries limiting nuclear weapons.

Putin said after the summit meeting that there was “no hostility” during the talks that wrapped up more quickly than expected.

The two sides had said they expected to meet for four to five hours but spent less than three hours together, including an opening meeting with just the two presidents and each one’s top foreign aide.

When it was over, Putin had first crack at describing the results at a solo news conference, with Biden to follow with his own session with reporters.

The Russian president said there was an agreement between the leaders to return their ambassadors to their respective postings. Both countries had pulled back their top envoys to Washington and Moscow as relations chilled in recent months.

Russia’s ambassador to the U.S., Anatoly Antonov, was recalled from Washington about three months ago after Biden called Putin a killer. U.S. Ambassador to Russia John Sullivan left Moscow almost two months ago, after Russia suggested he return to Washington for consultations. Putin said the ambassadors were expected to return to their posts in the coming days.

Putin also said the two sides agreed in principle to begin consultations on cyber security issues, though he continued to deny U.S. allegations that Russian government was responsible for a spate of recent high-profile hacks against business and government agencies in the United States and around the globe.

Biden and Putin plunged into the face-to-face talks yesterday at a lush lakeside Swiss mansion, a highly anticipated summit at a time when both leaders say relations between their countries are at a low point.

As the two leaders appeared briefly before media at the start of the meeting, Biden called it a discussion between “two great powers” and said it was “always better to meet face-to-face.” Putin said he hoped the talks would be “productive”.

The meeting in a book-lined room had a somewhat awkward beginning — both men appeared to avoid looking directly at each other during a brief and chaotic photo opportunity before a scrum of jostling reporters.

Biden nodded when a reporter asked if Putin could be trusted, but the White House quickly sent out a tweet insisting that the president was “very clearly not responding to any one question, but nodding in acknowledgment to the press generally.”

The two leaders did shake hands — Biden extended his hand first and smiled at the stoic Russian leader — moments earlier when they posed with Swiss President Guy Parmelin, who welcomed them to Switzerland for the summit.

 

Agency Reporter

Tech giants like Facebook could soon be facing a host of cases after the top EU court ruled on Tuesday.

The court ruled that national watchdogs of any member state can enforce the bloc’s privacy laws, under certain circumstances.

Under EU law, so-called lead authorities primarily bring cases against companies when they consider citizens’ privacy rights to be breached.

But national data protection bodies can under certain circumstances take tech giants to court even if they are not considered the lead authority, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled on Tuesday.

The Belgian privacy commission since 2018 called the Belgian Data Protection Authority to bring a case against Facebook in 2015 for collecting data through internet plug-ins and cookies from people who have an account on the platform and those who do not.

The commission argued that this violates Belgian law.

However, Facebook contended that the Belgian data watchdog did not have a case, referring to the EU privacy rules that only a so-called lead authority can sue.

In this instance, this would be the Irish data protection authority, as the company’s EU headquarters are in Ireland and its data are being processed there.

But the ECJ found that data protection authorities from other countries do have the right to sue, “provided that the object of the legal proceedings is a processing of data carried out in the context of the activities of that establishment,’’ the court said in a statement. (dpa/NAN)

Agency Reporter

China would step up efforts to further promote 5G applications in the energy industry.

This is according to an implementation plan recently co-issued by China’s National Development and Reform Commission, National Energy Administration, Office of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

The plan placed 5G as an important strategic resource and new infrastructure to support energy transformation with high speed, low latency and large connection capabilities.

The integration of 5G with various areas in the energy field would drive innovation in energy production and consumption modes, thus injecting vitality into the energy revolution.

According to the plan, in the following three to five years, efforts will be made to expand the number of 5G application scenarios around the smart power plant, smart grid, smart coal mine, smart oil and gas, comprehensive energy, intelligent manufacturing and construction and to explore the building of replicable business models that can be easily rolled out.

Specifically, in terms of smart power plant plus 5G, the implementation plan proposed to conduct research on 5G networking and access schemes specific for intelligent power plan to achieve 5G wireless network coverage in power plants.

READ ALSO: NCC intensifies push for 5G deployment

Use technologies such as Internet of Things (IoT) big data, artificial intelligence, cloud computing and edge computing to build an industrial IoT and data transmission network suitable for the complex environment of power plants.

Concerning intelligent manufacturing and construction plus 5G, the plan said that priorities should be given to applying 5G in typical business scenarios such as intelligent manufacturing of energy equipment, information collection at construction sites.

Also, on-site operation, remote supervision and on-site safety, so as to make energy equipment manufacturing smarter and engineering construction more efficient.

According to the plan, with financial funds from the central government playing a leading role in driving investment, more private capital will be brought in to promote 5G applications and innovation in the energy field.

The implementation plan also encourages qualified regions and enterprises to take the lead in piloting 5G use in technology innovation, supporting products, business models, development formats, systems and mechanisms and other areas in the energy industry. (Xinhua/NAN)

Agency Reporter

Two inspectors appointed by Pope Francis have completed their investigation into the archdiocese of Cologne in relation to a long-running sex abuse scandal.

A spokeswoman for one of the inspectors told dpa on Tuesday.

Hans van den Hende, bishop of Rotterdam, and Cardinal Anders Arborelius of Stockholm were appointed to investigate possible errors made by Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki, the archbishop of Cologne, in handling the claims of sexual misconduct by priests in the archdiocese.

“The findings made during the apostolic visitation will be presented to Pope Francis,’’ Hende’s spokeswoman said.

Hende and Arborelius had already left the city, she added.

READ ALSO: Shock as Pope quits

Germany’s largest diocese has been in the throes of a deep crisis of confidence for several months, evident in part in a wave of resignations of church membership.

The inspection began on Tuesday last week when victims of sexual abuse were interviewed.

“There were further meetings with laypeople, the representatives of various bodies, as well as with priests and bishops,’’ the spokeswoman said.

Woelki, who has rejected suggestions that he resign, was one of those interviewed.

“At the end of the visitation, the inspectors thank all those who were prepared to come to a discussion,’’ the spokeswoman said.

They also thanked those who responded by mail or email.

At the beginning of June, Cardinal Reinhard Marx, the archbishop of the Bavarian capital Munich and one of the most influential leaders of the German Catholic Church, offered his resignation over the sexual abuse scandal.

Pope Francis rejected the offer. (dpa/NAN)

Israel’s longest-serving leader, Benjamin Netanyahu, has been ousted from office by a loose coalition of rivals from across the political spectrum, united by their wish to end his 12-year run in power.

The opposition leader, Yair Lapid, a centrist former TV news anchor, won a confidence vote in the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, by 60-59 seats.

Lapid will not initially become prime minister. Instead, under a power-sharing agreement, his former foe and far-right advocate for the settler movement in the Palestinian territories, Naftali Bennett, is to be installed as the country’s leader.

Bennett, who has ruled out a Palestinian state and wants Israel to maintain ultimate control over all the lands it occupies, will be prime minister for the first two years of a four-year term before handing over to Lapid.

The self-described “government of change” – a mix of ideologically opposed politicians from hardline Jewish religious nationalists to a small Arab Islamist party – was expected to be sworn in later yesterday.

Ahead of the Knesset vote, Bennett attempted to give a conciliatory speech, even as Netanyahu’s allies heckled him from their seats. The 49-year-old prime minister-designate thanked the outgoing leader for his “lengthy and achievement filled service”.

Speaking after Bennett, Netanyahu struck a different tone, first boosting that he had transformed Israel “from a marginal country to a rising force” and then slamming Bennett as weak in comparison.

Netanyahu said he would work in the opposition to “topple this dangerous government” and return to power.

Installing the new administration breaks a political deadlock that has seen four snap elections since 2019. During that time, Netanyahu, who is famed for his political skills, managed to keep his rivals bickering and divided while he clung to power, even after he was indicted in three criminal corruption cases on charges he denies.

However, in the process, the 71-year-old isolated allies on the right, including Bennett, who was Netanyahu’s former chief of staff and served in his governments.

Sever Plocker, a columnist for Israel’s leading daily newspaper, Yedioth Ahronoth, wrote that Netanyahu was ultimately responsible for his own downfall.

“Over the past few years, he became his own greatest enemy: his egocentrism, his personal and public paranoia, his avarice, his ongoing incitement and his hubris unified the opposition to him from across the political spectrum to the point that they joined forces to successfully bring him down.”

Anti-Netanyahu protesters, who have held rallies outside the prime minister’s residence in Jerusalem for months calling for his ousting, gathered again on Saturday night to celebrate. A black banner stretched across a wall read: “Bye Bye, Bibi, Bye bye.”

Bennett will lead an unlikely assortment of eight parties, including the anti-occupation and dovish Meretz but also parties led by other hawkish figures on the right, such as Avigdor Lieberman, a Moldova-born settler.

Critically, the coalition includes Arab Islamist members of parliament, who joined for the shared aim of dethroning “King Bibi”, as Netanyahu is known. In doing so, the United Arab List, which is made up of Palestinian citizens of Israel, will become the first party from the country’s sizeable Arab minority ever to join a government.

The party’s leader, Mansour Abbas, is seen as a pragmatist and said he had secured guarantees from hard-right coalition partners for greater rights for Palestinian citizens of Israel, including on discriminatory housing policies, as well as several billions of pounds for infrastructure in Arab areas.

Other Arab politicians in Israel have accused Abbas of abandoning his principles.

Among Palestinians in the occupied territories, including blockaded Gaza, Netanyahu’s departure has been welcomed. But there is little optimism around the new government.

Meanwhile, Bennett has been branded a traitor by some politicians on the religious right, who accused him of abandoning his ideology in order to join Jewish “leftists” and Arab politicians.

Bennett’s speech to the Knesset was repeatedly delayed on Yesterday as rightwing politicians screamed “Crook!” and “Liar!” Two were dragged out by security.

Published coalition agreements showed the new government would focus mostly on economic and social issues, such as passing a state budget and building new hospitals, rather than risk an internal fight by trying to address the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. However, Bennett will have executive powers as prime minister to further solidify the occupation.

In power for a total of 15 years – from 1996 to 1999, and then since 2009 – Netanyahu faces threats not only his political life but possibly his freedom.

His corruption cases include charges of fraud, bribery and breach of trust and could lead to a decade in prison. Now in opposition, Netanyahu might be denied parliamentary immunity.

Facing such an outcome, Netanyahu has sought to break up the coalition by persuading lawmakers to defect – efforts that he will continue in the coming days and weeks. If the government loses its razor-thin advantage and collapses, it could trigger another snap election and potentially save Netanyahu’s career.

The government’s first major test will be on Tuesday when a parade attended by far-right Jewish nationalists is set to march through Palestinian neighbourhoods of Jerusalem.

Israeli police had changed the route to avoid the Muslim quarter of the Old City after a similar march last month played a key role in building the tensions that led to the latest Gaza conflict. However, the planned march will still pass through Arab areas and is seen as deeply provocative.

No fewer than 12 people have been killed and 39 seriously injured after a gas line explosion tore through a residential neighbourhood in central China.

Responders to the early yesterday morning blast in the city of Shiyan in Hubei province sent more than 150 people to the hospital, according to officials quoted by state media.

The cause of the explosion remains under investigation.

Stall keepers and customers buying breakfast and fresh vegetables at a food market were the majority of victims when the explosion hit shortly after 6am, according to the reports.

This morning, a deadly gas explosion ripped through a residential area in the central Chinese city of Shiyan.

The blast struck a two-storey building built in the early 1990s, which includes pharmacies, restaurants and other businesses. More than 900 people were evacuated from the area.

Chinese President Xi Jinping called for a thorough probe into the cause of the blast in order to create a “good atmosphere” for the 100th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Communist Party on July 1.