Several Wounded as Jordan Security Forces Raid Terrorist Cell in al-Salt

A Jordanian police officer. (AFP)
A Jordanian police officer. (AFP)
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Several Wounded as Jordan Security Forces Raid Terrorist Cell in al-Salt

A Jordanian police officer. (AFP)
A Jordanian police officer. (AFP)

Jordanian security forces carried out on Saturday a raid against a terrorist cell suspected of involvement in the al-Fuheis terrorist attack on Friday, reported the Petra news agency.

The security forces had moved in on al-Salt city to arrest the suspects behind the attack, but they refused to turn themselves over. A shootout soon ensued.

The terrorists had previously booby-trapped the building where they were fortified in and detonated it during the raid, leaving one member of the security forces dead and a number wounded.

Several civilians were also injured in the incident.

Three of the suspects were arrested.

One policeman was killed and six others wounded when a homemade explosives device went off near their van in al-Fuheis on Friday.

"This cowardly act will only increase the determination to do our job to protect people," the interior ministry statement said.



Syrian FM to Visit Iraq on Saturday

Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Al-Mokdad (AFP)
Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Al-Mokdad (AFP)
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Syrian FM to Visit Iraq on Saturday

Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Al-Mokdad (AFP)
Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Al-Mokdad (AFP)

Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Al-Mokdad is set to visit the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, on Saturday, Syria’s Al-Watan newspaper said on Thursday.

 

Quoting unnamed sources, the paper said that during his visit the Minister will meet with Iraqi officials including Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid, Prime Minister Mohamed Al-Sudani, his counterpart Fouad Hussein and Parliament Speaker Mohamed Halbusi.

 

Discussions will reportedly focus on promoting bilateral relations between the two countries, and the latest developments in the region.

 

Mokdad’s visit to Iraq comes amid “positive” developments in the region following the Arab League summit in Jeddah.

 

The Arab League member states agreed to welcome Syria back into the Arab fold earlier in May after a 12-year suspension.

 

Syrian President Bashar Assad attended the summit.

 


Hussam Edin Aala Appointed as Syria’s Ambassador to AL

Ambassador Hussam Edin Aala. (SANA) 
Ambassador Hussam Edin Aala. (SANA) 
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Hussam Edin Aala Appointed as Syria’s Ambassador to AL

Ambassador Hussam Edin Aala. (SANA) 
Ambassador Hussam Edin Aala. (SANA) 

Syria has appointed Hussam Edin Aala as its representative to the Arab League.

A presidential decree was issued few months back to appoint Aala as Assistant Foreign Minister for European Affairs and International Organizations.

Syrian state media reported on Wednesday that Aala would succeed Youssef al-Ahmad. who was the Syrian ambassador to the Arab League 11 years ago before suspending Syria’s membership.

Syria retook its seat in the AL at the beginning of May after the Arab states foreign ministers approved this step during an exceptional meeting in Cairo.

On May 19, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad attended the Arab summit that was held in Jeddah, Saud Arabia.

Aala, 56, was Syria's permanent representative to the UN in Geneva for eight years. Before that, he was Syria’s ambassador was appointed as Syria’s ambassador to Spain.

He further worked at the Permanent Mission of the Syrian Arab Republic to the United Nations between 1996-2001 and was later appointed as the director of the office of the foreign minister assistant in Damascus.


World Bank Expects Economic Growth Amid Lasting Peace in Yemen

Displaced Yemeni children in Aden (UN)
Displaced Yemeni children in Aden (UN)
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World Bank Expects Economic Growth Amid Lasting Peace in Yemen

Displaced Yemeni children in Aden (UN)
Displaced Yemeni children in Aden (UN)

The World Bank expected that a permanent peace agreement in Yemen would achieve significant economic revenues and contribute to economic growth, despite its previous assessment of Yemen's need for billions of dollars for economic recovery.

In its report entitled "The Future: Glimmers of Hope in Dark Times," the World Bank said if Yemen attains a lasting peace agreement, there could be a significant "peace dividend" for the population, a six percentage point increase in GDP growth trajectory which would result in a cumulative increase in real GDP by one third over the next five years compared to the status quo.

It noted that this would be accompanied by significant growth in public and private investment, employment, productivity, and poverty reduction.

It must be accompanied by external donor assistance at scale for accelerated reconstruction and recovery.

The conflict led to a contraction in real GDP by approximately 50 percent between 2011 and 2022. It has damaged or destroyed over one-third of the country's homes, schools, hospitals, and water and sanitation facilities.

Productivity plummeted as violence intensified, while productivity indicators were weak before the conflict.

The war severely disrupted oil production, which is crucial to the economy, undermined the government's ability to support the population by providing essential services, and affected public employment.

Many civil servants have been paid only partially or not regularly.

- A glimmer of hope

The report's in-depth political economy analysis and innovative data analytics suggest that Yemen's de facto decentralization could help support its future growth, corroborating a perspective consistently voiced in informant interviews.

The report cited other reasons for guarded optimism about potential recoveries, such as the strong entrepreneurial spirit of the Yemeni people, including, notably, women, the proximity of the high-income adjacent markets of the Gulf states, and Yemen's economic potential for agricultural, agro-processing and light manufacturing production, and exports.

World Bank Country Manager for Yemen, Tania Meyer, said that peace must enable inclusive growth, foster sustainable development, and improve the living conditions for the people of Yemen.

Meyer cautioned: “We must remain clear-eyed about the realities on the ground – the hardships faced by the Yemeni people are immense," noting that "high inflation, poor job quality, and an unstable public sector persist as major hurdles."

Earlier, the World Bank announced that nearly 17 million Yemenis suffer from food insecurity because of the wars and deteriorating economic conditions.

It warned that hunger, food insecurity, and malnutrition were among the most pressing challenges, exacerbated by the protracted conflict in the country.

Last March, the World Bank approved a second additional financing of $207 million for the Emergency Social Protection Enhancement and COVID-19 Response Project (ESPECRP) in Yemen to address chronic food insecurity and malnutrition.

However, a month later, it announced that Yemen needed between $11.82 and $16 billion in 2023 and between $11 and $22 billion next year to rebuild the local economy.

Ahead of the World Bank report, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) allocated $18 million for the urgent needs of people affected by humanitarian crises in Yemen to prevent famine and address rising levels of food insecurity driven by conflict, economic shocks, and climate change.

The Office warned in its statement that the humanitarian crisis would affect 17.3 million people in 2023.

By the end of May 2023, the Yemen Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) was only 23.5 percent funded. In February, the Response Plan seeking $4.34 billion to assist 17.9 million people was only 10.4 percent funded, forcing aid organizations to reduce or close critical assistance programs.

- Development is the solution

The report indicated that relief agencies in Yemen are facing a significant funding shortfall amidst increasing humanitarian needs, which endangers the life-saving response of millions of people.

The UN repeatedly cautioned about a lack of funding compared to the proposed plans to finance the humanitarian crisis in Yemen, considered the worst in modern times.

A previous donor conference fell far short of the needed humanitarian aid, as world leaders pledged less than $1.2 billion in February for the humanitarian response that requires more than $4.3 billion.

The advisor to the Yemeni Minister of Local Administration and Coordinator of the Relief Committee, Jamal Balfaqih, wondered if the international organization could conduct accurate statistics on the numbers of needy families and those threatened with starvation.

Balfagih told Asharq Al-Awsat that he doubts the UN can reach all regions.

He added that relief work and aid provision are based on predictions of the numbers of those targeted without actual statistics and surveys.

The official presented his point of view to provide practical solutions to save Yemeni families from famine by defining targeted areas and supporting families with an integrated program that links food with production.

He noted that food in exchange for production in agriculture, livestock trade, or other medium-sized income-generating projects are viable solutions.


African Road Map to Solve Sudanese Crisis

 Mohamed El Hassan Ould Labat, spokesperson for the African Union, during a press conference in Addis Ababa on Wednesday (AFP)
 Mohamed El Hassan Ould Labat, spokesperson for the African Union, during a press conference in Addis Ababa on Wednesday (AFP)
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African Road Map to Solve Sudanese Crisis

 Mohamed El Hassan Ould Labat, spokesperson for the African Union, during a press conference in Addis Ababa on Wednesday (AFP)
 Mohamed El Hassan Ould Labat, spokesperson for the African Union, during a press conference in Addis Ababa on Wednesday (AFP)

The African Union announced on Wednesday a road map to resolve the Sudanese crisis, which included a set of measures to settle the conflict, and an immediate and permanent ceasefire.

In a statement following the third meeting of the Expanded Mechanism on the Sudan Crisis, the AU said that the road map consisted of six items, including the need to coordinate support to Sudan and secure an immediate, permanent, inclusive and unconditional cessation of hostilities.

According to the statement of the Expanded Mechanism, which is composed of 21 countries, along with the African and European Unions, the United Nations and IGAD, the roadmap underlined the need strengthen the humanitarian response, ensure the protection of civilians, civilian infrastructure and compliance with international humanitarian law, give impetus to the agency of neighboring states, and promote the resumption of an inclusive, fully representative political process.

The Expanded Mechanism on the Sudan Crisis was established at the Ministerial Special Session on Sudan, convened by the AU Commission Chairperson, Moussa Faki Mahamat, on April 20.

The Mechanism aims to coordinate and harmonize regional, continental and international efforts in support of a peaceful resolution of the conflict to end the suffering of the Sudanese people. The second meeting of the Expanded Mechanism was held in Addis Ababa on May 2.

Meanwhile, violent clashes renewed between the two warring parties, in Khartoum and North Kordofan, on the second day of a 5-day truce agreement sponsored by Saudi Arabia and the US.

On Wednesday, the Sudanese army announced the suspension of talks with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Jeddah, “for the [group’s] failure to implement the terms of the truce agreement.”

Also, the RSF leadership accused the Sudanese Army of attempting to thwart the mediation efforts and resorting to a military solution.

Eyewitnesses told Asharq Al-Awsat that they heard the sound of artillery shelling and heavy weapons in many areas of Khartoum.


US Says Ready to Resume Sudan Mediation Once Parties 'Serious'

A man has a drink of water as buses wait for passengers fleeing violence to depart from al-Sittin (sixty) road in the south of Khartoum on May 30, 2023. (Photo by AFP)
A man has a drink of water as buses wait for passengers fleeing violence to depart from al-Sittin (sixty) road in the south of Khartoum on May 30, 2023. (Photo by AFP)
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US Says Ready to Resume Sudan Mediation Once Parties 'Serious'

A man has a drink of water as buses wait for passengers fleeing violence to depart from al-Sittin (sixty) road in the south of Khartoum on May 30, 2023. (Photo by AFP)
A man has a drink of water as buses wait for passengers fleeing violence to depart from al-Sittin (sixty) road in the south of Khartoum on May 30, 2023. (Photo by AFP)

The United States said Thursday it will only be ready to mediate a truce between Sudan's warring parties when they get "serious", after the army left negotiations and the latest ceasefire unraveled.

The army on Wednesday blasted bases of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) after pulling out of the truce talks in the Saudi city of Jeddah, accusing its rival of breaching the ceasefire meant to bring in aid.

The United States said there had been "serious violations of the ceasefire by both sides".

"Once the forces make clear by their actions that they are serious about complying with the ceasefire, the United States and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia are prepared to resume facilitation of the suspended discussions to find a negotiated solution to this conflict," a State Department spokesperson said.

"These violations have led us as a facilitator of these talks to seriously question whether the parties are ready to take the actions needed to meet the obligations they have undertaken on behalf of the Sudanese people," he said.

In both north and south Khartoum on Wednesday, troops loyal to army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan attacked key bases of the RSF led by commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, residents told AFP.

One witness said there was "heavy artillery fire from army camps" in the capital's north, on the 47th day of a war that researchers said has claimed 1,800 lives.

Another reported "artillery blasts on the RSF camp in Al-Salha" in southern Khartoum -- the largest paramilitary base and arsenal in the city.

The attacks came two days after Saudi and US mediators said the warring parties had agreed to extend by five days the initial week-long humanitarian truce.


France Faces Crisis of Presidential Candidates in Lebanon

Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros Al-Rai is pictured in Bkerke, Lebanon October 30, 2021. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir/File Photo
Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros Al-Rai is pictured in Bkerke, Lebanon October 30, 2021. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir/File Photo
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France Faces Crisis of Presidential Candidates in Lebanon

Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros Al-Rai is pictured in Bkerke, Lebanon October 30, 2021. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir/File Photo
Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros Al-Rai is pictured in Bkerke, Lebanon October 30, 2021. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir/File Photo

French President Emmanuel Macron met on Tuesday with Lebanon’s Patriarch Beshara Rai at the Elysee Palace and showed “remarkable hospitality” in a bid to assure the Lebanese, mainly the Maronite Christians, that France will always be their “caring mother”.

Through the distinguished reception of Rai in the courtyard of the Elysée Palace, Macron wanted to display a message to Lebanon’s Christians that his country is still committed to support them, despite the divergence with the majority of the Christian forces over the presidential file.

French diplomats are often criticized at events and meetings for the mismanagement of the Lebanese file. Some speak of “disregard” and others of French “neglect” of the Christians, while some go so far as to describe the French proposal to elect former minister Sleiman Franjieh as “treason.”

A senior French diplomat acknowledges this reality, but describes it differently.

He said: “Their primary concern is to fill the vacuum at the top state post."

According to the diplomat, France believes that the election of a president is the first step to revive the country’s constitutional and government work, which has been disrupted since Nov. 1, 2022, when President Michel Aoun left office without the political parties being able to agree on a successor.

The diplomat went on to say that the French chose Franjieh over the vacuum at the top state post, but were not insisting on him.

“We will work with any president that [the Lebanese] agree upon, because the next stage is the most important,” he underlined, pointing to the need to launch political reform and work with the World Bank to develop a road map that would help the country to overcome its financial crisis.

The French are aware of the importance of the opposition forces reaching an agreement over the name of a candidate. They consider the election of the president an absolute priority.

The French diplomat continued: “The most important matter is to preserve the institutions, and the presidency is the key.”

During their meeting, Macron and Rai agreed that the “political and constitutional impasse was the biggest obstacle facing the country.”

They both stressed the need for Lebanon to elect a new president as quickly as possible.

There was also an agreement, according to the French diplomat, that France continues to support the Lebanese educational sector, which is essential to preserve the country.

Since 2020, France has offered about 90 million euros for Francophone Christian schools, where the majority of students are Muslims.

Other points that Macron and Rai emphasized include the necessity of preserving “the health system and food security for the Lebanese, strengthening the judiciary, and expediting the investigations into the Beirut port explosion,” the French diplomat told Asharq Al-Awsat.

 


US Considers Imposing Sanctions on Lebanese Officials

File Photo. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf. (AFP)
File Photo. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf. (AFP)
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US Considers Imposing Sanctions on Lebanese Officials

File Photo. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf. (AFP)
File Photo. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf. (AFP)

Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf has said the US was considering the possibility of imposing sanctions on some Lebanese officials over the failure to elect a new president.

During a Senate committee hearing on the Middle East, the top US diplomat for the region expressed the Biden Administration’s “enormous frustration” over the current situation in Lebanon.

Leaf said Washington was “working collaboratively with several regional partners, European partners, to push the Lebanese Parliament to do its job.”

“The elected representatives of the Lebanese people have failed to do their jobs. The Speaker of the Parliament has failed to hold a session since January to allow members to put candidates forward for the presidency, to vote on them up or down, and to get a choice to get to elect a president,” according to Leaf.

Leaf responded to a question by Sen. Cynthia Chaheen on whether sanctions should be contemplated, saying, “We are looking at it. Yes, we are.”

She further affirmed, “We are engaging with the diaspora. I meet regularly with members of the Lebanese Parliament who come through town.”

“In the face of growing instability, Lebanon’s political class must urgently overcome their differences and commit to advancing the interests of Lebanon’s people,” Congressmen Mike McCaul and Gregory Meeks said in a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

“We also call on the Administration to use all available authorities, including additional targeted sanctions on specific individuals contributing to corruption and impeding progress in the country.”

They called on the Lebanese Parliament to “break through months of intransigence to urgently elect a new president who is free from corruption and undue external influence.”


Lebanon Judge Questions Central Bank Chief Over Munich Arrest Warrant

Lebanon's Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh speaks during a news conference at Central Bank in Beirut, Lebanon, November 11, 2019. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir/File Photo
Lebanon's Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh speaks during a news conference at Central Bank in Beirut, Lebanon, November 11, 2019. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir/File Photo
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Lebanon Judge Questions Central Bank Chief Over Munich Arrest Warrant

Lebanon's Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh speaks during a news conference at Central Bank in Beirut, Lebanon, November 11, 2019. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir/File Photo
Lebanon's Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh speaks during a news conference at Central Bank in Beirut, Lebanon, November 11, 2019. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir/File Photo

A Lebanese judge questioned central bank chief Riad Salameh on Wednesday after Beirut received a second Interpol Red Notice targeting him, this time following an arrest warrant from Munich, a judicial official said.

Salameh has been the subject of a series of judicial probes both at home and abroad into the fortune he has amassed during some three decades in the job.

France earlier this month issued an arrest warrant for Salameh after he failed to appear for questioning in Paris.

On Wednesday, Lebanese judge Imad Qabalan questioned Salameh over accusations of "money laundering, fraud, embezzlement and illicit enrichment", the judicial official said, requesting anonymity as they were not authorized to speak to the media, AFP reported.

Two days earlier, Lebanon received an Interpol Red Notice pursuant to the arrest warrant issued in absentia by Munich's public prosecutor, according to the judicial official.

Last week Qabalan had questioned Salameh, banned him from travelling, confiscated his French and Lebanese passports and released him pending investigation, after receiving the first Interpol Red Notice, issued following the French arrest warrant.

An Interpol Red Notice is not an international arrest warrant but asks authorities worldwide to provisionally detain people pending possible extradition or other legal actions.

Lebanon does not extradite its nationals but Salameh could go on trial in Lebanon if local judicial authorities decide the accusations against him are founded, an official previously told AFP.

Qabalan on Wednesday again banned Salameh from travel and released him pending investigation, the judicial official said.

He also requested Salameh's file from the judiciary in Munich and noted that "only the Lebanese judiciary has the authority to try him", the official added.

In March 2022, France, Germany and Luxembourg seized assets worth 120 million euros ($130 million) in a move linked to a probe into Salameh's wealth.

In February, Lebanon charged Salameh with embezzlement, money laundering and tax evasion as part of its own investigations.

The domestic probe was opened following a request for assistance from Switzerland's public prosecutor looking into more than $300 million in fund movements by Salameh and his brother.

Salameh, who was questioned for more than an hour on Wednesday, again "denied all charges against him" and said wealth came from private sources, the official added.

Salameh continues to serve as central bank governor. His mandate ends in July.

Activists say the travel ban helps shield him from being brought to justice abroad -- and from potentially bringing down others in the entrenched political class, which is widely blamed for endemic corruption in the crisis-hit country.

His brother Raja was due to appear for questioning in France on Wednesday, but his lawyer said he was unable to attend due to medical reasons and the judge postponed the session for two months, the official added.


Tunisia: Judge Opens New Probe Into Political Figures

The Justice Palace in Tunis. Photo: Social Media
The Justice Palace in Tunis. Photo: Social Media
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Tunisia: Judge Opens New Probe Into Political Figures

The Justice Palace in Tunis. Photo: Social Media
The Justice Palace in Tunis. Photo: Social Media

A Tunisian judge has opened a new investigation into political figures in the case known as “the conspiracy against state security.”

The 20 people accused in the new case include the main opposition leader Rached Ghannouchi, who is already in prison, former prime minister Youssef Chahed and President Kais Saied's ex-chief of staff Nadia Akacha.

The list also reportedly includes a former mayor of a Tunis district, a former military officer and a freelance journalist.

Akacha was seen as Saied's closest confidante until she left the role of chief of staff last year and moved to France before leaked audio recordings emerged of her voicing strong criticisms of Saied.

Tunisia's opposition accuses Saied of a coup for shutting down the parliament in 2021, moving to rule by decree and passing a new constitution through a referendum with low turnout, giving himself nearly unchecked powers.

Rights groups have also accused him of undermining judicial independence by replacing main figures on Tunisia's top judiciary committee and warning that judges who freed those arrested this year would be considered as abetting them.

Akacha has recently announced that she would return to Tunisia’s political scene and would divulge information “so that Tunisians find out who’s the traitor and who has conspired” against the state.


UN Technical Vessel Arrives at Rusting Oil Tanker off Yemen’s Coast as Salvage Operation Begins

This handout picture released on May 30, 2023 courtesy of Boskalis shows the first photos of the FSO Safer taken from the salvage vessel Ndeavor near the coast of Yemen. (Handout / Boskalis / AFP)
This handout picture released on May 30, 2023 courtesy of Boskalis shows the first photos of the FSO Safer taken from the salvage vessel Ndeavor near the coast of Yemen. (Handout / Boskalis / AFP)
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UN Technical Vessel Arrives at Rusting Oil Tanker off Yemen’s Coast as Salvage Operation Begins

This handout picture released on May 30, 2023 courtesy of Boskalis shows the first photos of the FSO Safer taken from the salvage vessel Ndeavor near the coast of Yemen. (Handout / Boskalis / AFP)
This handout picture released on May 30, 2023 courtesy of Boskalis shows the first photos of the FSO Safer taken from the salvage vessel Ndeavor near the coast of Yemen. (Handout / Boskalis / AFP)

The first technical salvage vessel arrived Tuesday near the rusting Safer oil tanker floating off the coast of Yemen, the United Nations said.

The arrival of Ndeavor, which set off from neighboring Djibouti on Monday, marks the first step of an estimated four- to six-week UN operation aiming to avert a major oil spill from the tanker, representatives from the international body announced.

Experts say the tanker poses a major environmental threat.

A team of experts on the Cypriot-flagged Ndeavor are expected to begin pumping inert gas to remove atmospheric oxygen from the oil chambers of the Safer on Wednesday, said David Gressly, the United Nations humanitarian coordinator for Yemen.

Transferring the estimated 1.14 million barrels of oil to a different tanker could start in around two weeks, he said from aboard the Ndeavor. After the transfer is complete, the Japan-made oil tanker will eventually be towed away and scrapped, he said.

The Safer was built in the 1970s and sold to the Yemeni government in the 1980s to store up to 3 million barrels of oil pumped from fields in Marib, a province in central Yemen. But the nation has been engulfed for years in war and no annual maintenance has been carried out on the ship, which is 360 meters (1,181 feet) long with 34 storage tanks, since 2015.

The Safer is anchored around 30 kilometers (19 miles) northwest of the port city of Hodeidah, which is controlled by the Iran-backed Houthi militias.