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Iran's Ambassador to Baghdad Discusses Roadmap for Iranian-Saudi Talks

Iran's ambassador to Iraq Iraj Masjedi (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Iran's ambassador to Iraq Iraj Masjedi (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Iran's Ambassador to Baghdad Discusses Roadmap for Iranian-Saudi Talks

Iran's ambassador to Iraq Iraj Masjedi (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Iran's ambassador to Iraq Iraj Masjedi (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Iran's outgoing ambassador to Iraq Iraj Masjedi discussed at the end of his term the latest stages of the talks between his country and Saudi Arabia.

For a year and a half, Baghdad has hosted five rounds of talks between Saudi Arabia and Iran shortly after the outgoing prime minister, Mustafa Kadhimi, assumed his duties.

During an interview in Baghdad, Masjedi revealed the details of the recent talks between Tehran and Riyadh.

He indicated that during the fifth round held last Thursday, the delegations discussed a roadmap for the future.

"Both sides had some suggestions which were agreed upon after the Thursday meeting and turned into a roadmap for the future."

In response to whether the two countries will reopen their embassies, Masjedi stated that the course of talks would determine whether there will be an exchange of missions, and it depends on the next negotiations.

He added, "In the last round of negotiations, it was important that the two sides have an agreed framework for the future, which came to fruition. And this is per se a positive point that will pave the future way for both sides."

The diplomat pointed out that the "confidence-building" measure is one of the most critical features of the agreement between Iran and Saudi Arabia.

He explained that other issues include bilateral cooperation and measures such as the Hajj, the exchange of embassies, and "regional and international matters."

Kadhimi ensured that Iraq restored its previous regional and international status and became an important regional and global actor. He reestablished and reorganized Baghdad's relations with Washington and held four rounds of strategic dialogue that resulted in the withdrawal of all US forces from Iraq at the end of 2021.

The PM also relayed messages between Tehran and Washington ahead of the Vienna negotiations. Iraq increased its cooperation with Saudi Arabia in all fields by activating the Economic and Political Council, which held several meetings in Baghdad and Riyadh.

Kadhimi's security reform advisor Hussein Allawi told Asharq Al-Awsat that the Prime Minister focused his government program on foreign policy and restoring Iraq's regional role, which requires a new strategic approach.

Allawi added that one of the strategic issues was the Saudi-Iranian dialogue under the auspices of the Iraqi government.

Allawi believes that Kadhimi succeeded in reaching the first point through the arrival of the two countries' delegations last year and the start of the dialogue with its four rounds.

He indicated that the last round held in April 2022 was an excellent achievement for the two countries.

The expert noted that Iraq transferred its post-2016 relations from stagnation to openness, dialogue, and exchange of views, leading to a roadmap for normalizing the relationship by activating the Iranian diplomats' visa membership in the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the ceasefire in Yemen.

Allawi asserts that Kadhimi realizes that the country's national security will only be achieved by regional diplomatic action, adding that the establishment of peace is a significant opportunity to create an appropriate climate for cooperation and development among all.

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World

Japan PM to Visit France, Brazil, Paraguay 

Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (C) attends the spring garden party at the Akasaka Palace imperial garden in Tokyo on April 23, 2024. (AFP)
Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (C) attends the spring garden party at the Akasaka Palace imperial garden in Tokyo on April 23, 2024. (AFP)
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Japan PM to Visit France, Brazil, Paraguay 

Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (C) attends the spring garden party at the Akasaka Palace imperial garden in Tokyo on April 23, 2024. (AFP)
Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (C) attends the spring garden party at the Akasaka Palace imperial garden in Tokyo on April 23, 2024. (AFP)

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will visit France, Brazil and Paraguay next week as his nation seeks to boost ties with Latin America.

The six-day itinerary will see Kishida meet French President Emmanuel Macron as well as Brazilian leader Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, the Japanese prime minister's office said.

"This year, Brazil is chairing the G20 and Peru is chairing APEC. This is the year of Latin America, and it is the focus of the world's attention," government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi told a regular briefing.

"Japan would like to seize this opportunity to strengthen ties with Latin American countries," he said.

In his meeting with Lula, Kishida is expected to sign a deal on bilateral cooperation in areas from climate change to decarbonization and other environmental issues, Japanese news agency Kyodo News reported.

Kishida will also bring a delegation representing at least 40 companies, eyeing greater Japanese investments in Brazil to bolster bilateral cooperation on green technologies, the Nikkei daily reported.

Japanese auto giant Toyota said last month that it plans to invest 11 billion reais ($2.2 billion) to beef up production of hybrid vehicles in Brazil.

Prior to his trek to Brazil, Kishida will attend an OECD meeting in France to "lead the discussions on solutions to various economic and social issues", his office added.

World

Ukraine Pulls US-Provided Abrams Tanks from the Front Lines Over Russian Drone Threats 

A trench is seen in the field of grain farmer Oleksandr Klepach, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Snihurivka, southeast Ukraine, February 20, 2023. (Reuters)
A trench is seen in the field of grain farmer Oleksandr Klepach, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Snihurivka, southeast Ukraine, February 20, 2023. (Reuters)
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Ukraine Pulls US-Provided Abrams Tanks from the Front Lines Over Russian Drone Threats 

A trench is seen in the field of grain farmer Oleksandr Klepach, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Snihurivka, southeast Ukraine, February 20, 2023. (Reuters)
A trench is seen in the field of grain farmer Oleksandr Klepach, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Snihurivka, southeast Ukraine, February 20, 2023. (Reuters)

Ukraine has sidelined US-provided Abrams M1A1 battle tanks for now in its fight against Russia, in part because Russian drone warfare has made it too difficult for them to operate without detection or coming under attack, two US military officials told The Associated Press.

The US agreed to send 31 Abrams to Ukraine in January 2023 after an aggressive monthslong campaign by Kyiv arguing that the tanks, which cost about $10 million apiece, were vital to its ability to breach Russian lines.

But the battlefield has changed substantially since then, notably by the ubiquitous use of Russian surveillance drones and hunter-killer drones. Those weapons have made it more difficult for Ukraine to protect the tanks when they are quickly detected and hunted by Russian drones or rounds.

Five of the 31 tanks have already been lost to Russian attacks.

The proliferation of drones on the Ukrainian battlefield means “there isn’t open ground that you can just drive across without fear of detection,” a senior defense official told reporters Thursday.

The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to provide an update on US weapons support for Ukraine before Friday's Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting.

For now, the tanks have been moved from the front lines, and the US will work with the Ukrainians to reset tactics, said Joint Chiefs of Staff Vice Chairman Adm. Christopher Grady and a third defense official who confirmed the move on the condition of anonymity.

“When you think about the way the fight has evolved, massed armor in an environment where unmanned aerial systems are ubiquitous can be at risk," Grady told the AP in an interview this week, adding that tanks are still important.

“Now, there is a way to do it," he said. "We’ll work with our Ukrainian partners, and other partners on the ground, to help them think through how they might use that, in that kind of changed environment now, where everything is seen immediately.”

News of the sidelined tanks comes as the US marks the two-year anniversary of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, a coalition of about 50 countries that meets monthly to assess Ukraine's battlefield needs and identify where to find needed ammunition, weapons or maintenance to keep Ukraine's troops equipped.

Recent aid packages, including the $1 billion military assistance package signed by President Joe Biden on Wednesday, also reflect a wider reset for Ukrainian forces in the evolving fight.

The US is expected to announce Friday that it also will provide about $6 billion in long-term military aid to Ukraine, US officials said, adding that it will include much sought after munitions for Patriot air defense systems. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details not yet made public.

The $1 billion package emphasized counter-drone capabilities, including .50-caliber rounds specifically modified to counter drone systems; additional air defenses and ammunition; and a host of alternative, and cheaper, vehicles, including Humvees, Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles and Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicles.

The US also confirmed for the first time that it is providing long-range ballistic missiles known as ATACMs, which allow Ukraine to strike deep into Russian-occupied areas without having to advance and be further exposed to either drone detection or fortified Russian defenses.

While drones are a significant threat, the Ukrainians also have not adopted tactics that could have made the tanks more effective, one of the US defense officials said.

After announcing it would provide Ukraine the Abrams tanks in January 2023, the US began training Ukrainians at Grafenwoehr Army base in Germany that spring on how to maintain and operate them. They also taught the Ukrainians how to use them in combined arms warfare — where the tanks operate as part of a system of advancing armored forces, coordinating movements with overhead offensive fires, infantry troops and air assets.

As the spring progressed and Ukraine's highly anticipated counteroffensive stalled, shifting from tank training in Germany to getting Abrams on the battlefield was seen as an imperative to breach fortified Russian lines. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced on his Telegram channel in September that the Abrams had arrived in Ukraine.

Since then, however, Ukraine has only employed them in a limited fashion and has not made combined arms warfare part of its operations, the defense official said.

During its recent withdrawal from Avdiivka, a city in eastern Ukraine that was the focus of intense fighting for months, several tanks were lost to Russian attacks, the official said.

A long delay by Congress in passing new funding for Ukraine meant its forces had to ration ammunition, and in some cases they were only able to shoot back once for every five or more times they were targeted by Russian forces.

In Avdiivka, Ukrainian forces were badly outgunned and fighting back against Russian glide bombs and hunter-killer drones with whatever ammunition they had left.

World

Spain to Send Patriot Missiles to Ukraine, El Pais Reports 

Patriot missiles are seen at the Rzeszow-Jasionka Airport, Friday, March 25, 2022, in Jasionka, Poland. (AP)
Patriot missiles are seen at the Rzeszow-Jasionka Airport, Friday, March 25, 2022, in Jasionka, Poland. (AP)
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Spain to Send Patriot Missiles to Ukraine, El Pais Reports 

Patriot missiles are seen at the Rzeszow-Jasionka Airport, Friday, March 25, 2022, in Jasionka, Poland. (AP)
Patriot missiles are seen at the Rzeszow-Jasionka Airport, Friday, March 25, 2022, in Jasionka, Poland. (AP)

Spain will send a small number of Patriot missiles to Ukraine, El Pais newspaper reported on Friday, quoting unidentified sources.

Spain ruled out delivering anti-aircraft launchers, but will give Kyiv shells, the paper said. The defense ministry did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Spain has three batteries which it purchased second-hand from Germany in 2004 and 2014, El Pais said.

"We need to step up our commitment to Ukraine," a Spanish diplomatic source told foreign reporters on Thursday.

Earlier this month, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told NATO members that Ukraine needed a minimum of seven Patriot or other high-end air defense systems to counter Russian air strikes, urging them to step up their military assistance for Kyiv.

On Monday, European Union ministers said they were looking at how to provide more air defenses to Ukraine, but they stopped short of concrete pledges of the Patriot systems that Kyiv values most.

World

US-China Talks Start with Warnings about Misunderstandings and Miscalculations

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks during a meeting with China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, April 26, 2024, in Beijing, China. Mark Schiefelbein/Pool via REUTERS
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks during a meeting with China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, April 26, 2024, in Beijing, China. Mark Schiefelbein/Pool via REUTERS
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US-China Talks Start with Warnings about Misunderstandings and Miscalculations

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks during a meeting with China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, April 26, 2024, in Beijing, China. Mark Schiefelbein/Pool via REUTERS
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks during a meeting with China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, April 26, 2024, in Beijing, China. Mark Schiefelbein/Pool via REUTERS

The United States and China butted heads over a number of contentious bilateral, regional and global issues as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Friday with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and both men warned of the dangers of misunderstandings and miscalculations.
The meeting, on the final day of Blinken's second visit to China in the past year, came as talks between the countries have expanded in recent months even as differences have grown and become more serious, raising concerns about the potential for conflict between the world's two largest economies, The Associated Press said.
Blinken and Wang each underscored the importance of keeping lines of communication open but they also lamented persistent and deepening divisions that threaten global security. Those divisions were highlighted earlier this week when US President Joe Biden signed a massive foreign aid bill that contains several elements that the Chinese see as problematic.
“Overall, the China-US relationship is beginning to stabilize,” Wang told Blinken. “But at the same time, the negative factors in the relationship are still increasing and building and the relationship is facing all kinds of disruptions.”
“Should China and the United States keep to the right direction of moving forward with stability or return to a downward spiral?” he asked. “This is a major question before our two countries and tests our sincerity and ability.”
Wang also outlined, without being specific, well-known Chinese complaints about US policies and positions on the South China Sea, Taiwan, human rights and China’s right to conduct relations with countries it deems fit.
“China’s legitimate development rights have been unreasonably suppressed and our core interests are facing challenges,” he said, demanding the U.S. refrain from interfering in China’s internal affairs.
Blinken responded by saying that the Biden administration places a premium on US-China dialogue even on issues of dispute. He noted there had been some progress in the past year but suggested that talks would continue to be difficult.
“I look forward to these discussions being very clear, very direct about the areas where we have differences and where the United States stands, and I have no doubt you will do the same on behalf of China,” Blinken told Wang.
“There is no substitute in our judgment for face-to-face diplomacy in order to try to move forward, but also to make sure we’re as clear as possible about the areas where we have differences at the very least to avoid misunderstandings, to avoid miscalculations,” he said.
Blinken arrived in China on Wednesday, visiting Shanghai shortly before Biden signed the $95 billion foreign aid package that has several elements likely to anger Beijing, including $8 billion to counter China’s growing aggressiveness toward Taiwan and in the South China Sea. It also seeks to force TikTok’s China-based parent company to sell the social media platform.
China and the United States are the major players in the Indo-Pacific. Washington has become increasingly alarmed by Beijing’s growing aggressiveness in recent years toward Taiwan and its smaller Southeast Asian neighbors with which it has significant territorial and maritime disputes in the South China Sea.
China has railed against US assistance to Taiwan and immediately condemned the aid as a dangerous provocation. It also strongly opposes efforts to force TikTok’s sale.
The bill also allotted $61 billion for Ukraine to defend itself from Russia’s invasion. The Biden administration has complained loudly that Chinese support for Russia’s military-industrial sector has allowed Moscow to subvert western sanctions and ramp up attacks on Ukraine.
US officials have said China’s ties with Russia would be a primary topic of conversation during Blinken’s visit, and just before Friday’s meetings began, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced he would visit China in May.

World

Key Moments from Landmark Supreme Court Arguments on Trump's Immunity Claims

Former US President Donald Trump (AP)
Former US President Donald Trump (AP)
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Key Moments from Landmark Supreme Court Arguments on Trump's Immunity Claims

Former US President Donald Trump (AP)
Former US President Donald Trump (AP)

There was talk of drone strikes and presidential bribes, of a potential ruling “for the ages” and of the Founding Fathers, too. The presidential race went unmentioned but was not far from mind.
The Supreme Court heard more than 2 1/2 hours worth of arguments on the landmark question of whether former President Donald Trump is immune from prosecution in a case charging him with plotting to overturn the 2020 presidential election, the Associated Press said.
Though the justices appeared likely to reject Trump's absolute immunity claim, it seemed possible he could still benefit from a lengthy trial delay, possibly beyond November’s election.
A look at some of the many notable moments:
‘A RULE FOR THE AGES’
Justice Neil Gorsuch conveyed concern that prosecutors, or political opponents, could have bad motives in pursuing political rivals. Michael Dreeben, a lawyer for special counsel Jack Smith's team, responded that this fear was inapplicable in this case.
“I appreciate that,” Gorsuch said. “But you also appreciate that we’re writing a rule for the ages.”
Other justices were no less lofty in describing the historic stakes of the case and the potential for precedent that will stand the test of time far beyond Trump. For conservative justices, that approach seemed a way to set aside the facts of the Trump indictment and the brazen abuse of power it alleges and focus instead on the implication of a court ruling on cases that have yet to be charged — but theoretically could be.
“This case has huge implications for the presidency, for the future of the presidency, for the future of the country, in my view,” said Justice Brett Kavanaugh, a Trump appointee who served in the George W. Bush White House and is generally seen as a staunch protector of presidential power.
All in all, the court seemed more interested in the future than the present as it contemplated the ruling ahead. There were plenty of historic callbacks, too, with frequent invocations of the nation's Founding Fathers.
WORDS NOT SPOKEN
There was no reference in the arguments to “November.” Nor to “2024.” Even Trump's name was barely uttered, and mostly in the context of the formal title of court cases.
Yet there's no question that the 2024 election was the proverbial elephant in the room, and in that sense, the words not spoken were almost as loud as those that were.
Hovering in the background of Thursday's session was the tacit acknowledgment that the court is helping decide not only whether Trump is immune from prosecution but also whether he can stand trial before the vote.
The uncomfortable reality for an institution loath to be thought of as a political actor is that a decision that takes until late June or early July to write, or that directs a lower court to do additional analysis about which acts Trump could conceivably be entitled to immunity for, could delay the trial until after the election.
Dreeben took care not to note the consequences of the court's ruling on the election or to urge a speedy ruling for political purposes.
The closest, albeit still oblique, reference to the election came from Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who at one point said to Dreeben: “The special counsel has expressed some concern for speed and wanting to move forward."
MORE WORK AHEAD?
While the court seemed highly skeptical of Trump’s bid to dismiss the case, several justices suggested it may have to be sent back for more legal wrangling before the case could go to trial.
Such a ruling would almost certainly delay the trial until after the election. That would be a victory for Trump because, if he defeats President Joe Biden in November, he could presumably order his new attorney general to dismiss the case, or issue a pardon for himself.
Barrett and others repeatedly tried to pin down Trump’s lawyer and Smith’s team on whether the acts alleged in the indictment were official acts — and, therefore, potentially shielded from prosecution — versus private acts.
And even as Chief Justice John Roberts made clear his resistance to Trump’s sweeping absolute immunity claims, he also said he had “concerns” about an earlier appeals court ruling that rejected Trump's immunity arguments but that did not provide a detailed analysis of whether the acts in the indictment were official or private ones.
The lower court, Roberts said, appears to be saying simply that “a former president can be prosecuted because he’s being prosecuted.”
“Why shouldn’t we either send it back to the Court of Appeals or issue an opinion making clear that that’s not the law?” Roberts asked Dreeben.
Smith’s team has told the court that even if it finds that some level of immunity exists for official acts, there are enough private actions alleged in the indictment — like scheming to submit slates of fake electors — for the case to proceed to trial immediately.
“The president has no functions with respect to the certification of the winner of the presidential election,” Dreeben said. “So it’s difficult for me to understand how there could be a serious constitutional question about saying ‘you can’t use fraud to defeat that function, you can’t obstruct it through deception, you can’t deprive millions of voters of their right to have their vote counted for the candidate who they chose.’”
THE JUSTICES TO WATCH
The liberal justices appeared likely to side with Smith’s team in ruling that the trial should move forward, suggesting that Trump’s argument turned the Constitution on its head.
“The Framers did not put an immunity clause into the Constitution. They knew how to,” Justice Elena Kagan said. “And, you know, not so surprising, they were reacting against a monarch who claimed to be above the law. Wasn’t the whole point that the president was not a monarch and the president was not supposed to be above the law?”
Meanwhile, Kavanaugh and fellow conservative Samuel Alito seemed more receptive to Trump’s claims, particularly the suggestion that not granting immunity could open the door to former presidents being prosecuted for political reasons.
But ultimately, the matter may come down to Roberts, who at one point questioned whether the case would be able to move forward if official acts were removed from the indictment, saying that doing so could create a “one-legged stool.”
Barrett’s nuanced questioning suggested that she’s another one to watch.
Barrett, who was appointed by Trump, got Trump’s attorney, D. John Sauer, to concede that former presidents could be prosecuted for private actions. And Sauer acknowledged that some of Trump’s alleged conduct surrounding the 2020 election was not the official act of a president.
Trump “turned to a private attorney, he was willing to spread knowingly false claims of election fraud to spearhead his challenges to the election results. Private?” Barrett asked Sauer.
“That sounds private to me,” he replied.
HYPOTHETICALS GALORE
Sure, the justices pressed the lawyers about the actual acts in the indictment, wanting to know which of the steps Trump took in his failed but frantic bid to remain in power might deserve legal protection.
But there were plenty of hypothetical scenarios, too, which is hardly surprising given how the justices and courts in general enjoy testing the outer boundaries of lawyers' arguments as they determine where to draw a line.
Sauer opened the door by saying that, without immunity, President George W. Bush could have been prosecuted for “allegedly lying to Congress to induce war in Iraq” and Biden for “unlawfully inducing immigrants to enter the country illegally for his border policies.”
Roberts picked it up from there, asking whether a president who accepted a bribe for an ambassador appointment could be prosecuted.
And so it went. What about selling nuclear secrets to a foreign adversary? Kagan wanted to know. A drone strike on a US citizen abroad authorized by then-President Barack Obama? asked Kavanaugh.
One particularly notable hypothetical came from Alito, who raised the prospect that an outgoing president who loses a closely contested race but fears indictment upon leaving office might try to remain in power, creating “a cycle that destabilizes the functioning of our country as a democracy."

World

Wave of Pro-Palestinian Protests on US Campus Meets Forceful Response 

People rally on the campus of Northwestern University to show support for residents of Gaza on April 25, 2024 in Evanston, Illinois. (Getty Images/AFP)
People rally on the campus of Northwestern University to show support for residents of Gaza on April 25, 2024 in Evanston, Illinois. (Getty Images/AFP)
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Wave of Pro-Palestinian Protests on US Campus Meets Forceful Response 

People rally on the campus of Northwestern University to show support for residents of Gaza on April 25, 2024 in Evanston, Illinois. (Getty Images/AFP)
People rally on the campus of Northwestern University to show support for residents of Gaza on April 25, 2024 in Evanston, Illinois. (Getty Images/AFP)

Renewed clashes between police and students opposed to Israel's war in Gaza broke out on Thursday, raising questions about forceful methods being used to shut down protests that have intensified since mass arrests at Columbia University last week.

Over the past two days, law enforcement at the behest of college administrators have deployed Tasers and tear gas against students protesters at Atlanta's Emory University, activists say, while officers clad in riot gear and mounted on horseback have swept away demonstrations at the University of Texas in Austin.

Prosecutors on Thursday dropped charges against 46 of the 60 people taken into custody at the University of Texas, citing "deficiencies in the probable cause affidavits."

At Columbia, the epicenter of the US protest movement, university officials are locked in a stalemate with students over the removal of a tent encampment set up two weeks ago as a protest against the Israeli offensive.

The administration, which has already allowed an initial deadline for an agreement with students to lapse, has given protesters until Friday to strike a deal.

Other universities appear determined to prevent similar, long-running demonstrations to take root, opting to work with police to shut them down quickly and in some cases, with force.

Overall, nearly 550 arrests have been made in the last week across major US universities in relation to protests over Gaza, according to a Reuters tally. University authorities have said the demonstrations are often unauthorized and called on police to clear them.

At Emory, police detained 28 people on its Atlanta campus, the university said, after protesters began erecting a tent encampment in an attempt to emulate a symbol of vigilance employed by protesters at Columbia and elsewhere.

The local chapter of the activist group Jewish Voice for Peace said officers used tear gas and Tasers to dispense the demonstration and take some protesters into custody. Atlanta police acknowledged using "chemical irritants" but denied using rubber bullets.

Video aired on FOX 5 Atlanta showed a melee breaking out between officers and some protesters, with officers using what appeared to be a stun gun to subdue a person and others wrestling other protesters to the ground and leading them away.

"Our primary goal today was clearing the Quad of a disruptive encampment while holding individuals accountable to the law," Cheryl Elliott, Emory's vice president for public safety, said in a statement.

The Georgia office of the NAACP questioned what it called the "apparent use of excessive force" against people exercising free speech.

"The use of force should only be considered as an absolute last resort and must be proportionate to the threat posed," Georgia NAACP President Griggs said in a letter.

Similar scenarios unfolded on the New Jersey campus of Princeton University where officers swarmed a newly formed encampment, video footage on social media showed.

Boston police earlier forcibly removed a pro-Palestinian encampment set up by Emerson College, arresting more than 100 people, media accounts and police said.

At the University of Southern California, where 93 people were arrested at the Los Angeles campus on Wednesday, administrators canceled the main May 10 graduation ceremony, saying newly required security measures would have placed excessive delays on crowd control.

'Alarming reports'

Human Rights Watch and the American Civil Liberties Union have condemned the arrest of protesters and urged authorities to respect their free speech rights.

But some Republicans in Congress have accused university administrators of allowing Jewish students to be harassed, putting increasing pressure on schools to tightly control any demonstrations and to block any semi-permanent encampment.

US Education Secretary Miguel Cardona on Thursday said his department was closely monitoring the protests, including what he called "very alarming reports of antisemitism."

In response, activist groups have strongly denied that the protests are antisemitic. Their aim is to pressure universities from divesting from companies that contribute to the Israeli military actions in Gaza, they say.

Even so, protest leaders have acknowledged that hateful rhetoric has been directed at Jewish students, but insist that people who tried to infiltrate and malign their movement are responsible for any harassment.

Outside Columbia, hundreds of conservative pro-Israel demonstrators staged a counterprotest to the students, marching on the streets circling the campus, waving and draped in Israeli and US flags.

University officials have given protesters until 4 a.m. on Friday to reach an agreement with the university on dismantling dozens of tents set up on the New York City campus in a protest that started a week ago.

The university already tried to shut the protest down by force. On April 18, Columbia President Minouche Shafik took the unusual move of asking police to enter the campus, angering many rights groups, students and faculty.

More than 100 people were arrested and the tents were removed from the main lawn. But within a few days, the encampment was back in place.

World

Macron Outlines Vision for Europe to Become Assertive Global Power

French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech on Europe in the amphitheater of the Sorbonne University in Paris, France, 25 April 2024. EPA/CHRISTOPHE PETIT TESSON / POOL
French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech on Europe in the amphitheater of the Sorbonne University in Paris, France, 25 April 2024. EPA/CHRISTOPHE PETIT TESSON / POOL
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Macron Outlines Vision for Europe to Become Assertive Global Power

French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech on Europe in the amphitheater of the Sorbonne University in Paris, France, 25 April 2024. EPA/CHRISTOPHE PETIT TESSON / POOL
French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech on Europe in the amphitheater of the Sorbonne University in Paris, France, 25 April 2024. EPA/CHRISTOPHE PETIT TESSON / POOL

French President Emmanuel Macron warned Thursday that Europe could “die” if it fails to build its own robust defense as Russia’s war in Ukraine rages on, or if it fails to undertake major trade and economic reforms to compete with China and the US.

In a nearly two-hour speech at Sorbonne University in Paris, Macron said that the continent is divided and “too slow and lacks ambition” at a time when the 27-member European Union needs to become a superpower, defend its own borders and speak with one voice if it wants to survive and thrive.

“Our Europe today is mortal,” Macron said. “It can die and that depends solely on our choices,” he added. He called on people to make those choices now because, “it’s today that Europe is between war and peace.”

Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, now in its third year, is an existential threat and Europe isn't armed enough to defend itself when “confronted by a power like Russia that has no inhibitions, no limits,” Macron said.

‘Our ability to ensure our security is at stake," Macron said. “Russia mustn’t be allowed to win.”

Europe now has the “good fortune” of having the Biden administration’s commitment to supporting Ukraine, Macron said. But, in a year of key elections around Europe, in the US and elsewhere, support may fragment or disappear entirely, he added.

“Europe must become capable of defending its interests, with its allies by our side whenever they are willing, and alone if necessary,” Macron said.

Strong armies, a European rapid intervention program and force, tanks, a missile shield and other weapons, produced in Europe, will need the support of “a joint diplomatic force that will speak with one voice and build bridges with Africa and Latin America,” the French leader said.

“Only then will Europe show that it's not a United States’ lap dog, and that it also knows how to talk to other regions of the world,” he said.

Macron has long called for European "strategic autonomy" involving less reliance on the US, a stance that has gained greater resonance in the face of Donald Trump's bid to return to the White House.

Referring to trade practices of China and the US, Macron said “the two world powers have decided not to respect the rules of global trade” by shoring up protections and subsides while Europe’s industry remains open and is stuck in overregulation.

“Let’s do the same, we are in competition,” Macron said.

“We must buy faster, we must produce more and we must buy more that is made in Europe. That is key,” Macron said.

Thursday's speech came less than two months before a pivotal European Parliament election.

Thursday's speech was billed by Macron's advisers as France's contribution to the EU's strategic agenda for the next five years. The agenda is due to be decided after the European elections.

World

UK Sanctions Target Iran Drone Industry

People drive past a wall painting of Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei (Top-L) and late supreme leader Ruhollah Khomeini (Top-R) in Tehran, Iran, 25 April 2024. EPA/ABEDIN TAHERKENAREH
People drive past a wall painting of Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei (Top-L) and late supreme leader Ruhollah Khomeini (Top-R) in Tehran, Iran, 25 April 2024. EPA/ABEDIN TAHERKENAREH
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UK Sanctions Target Iran Drone Industry

People drive past a wall painting of Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei (Top-L) and late supreme leader Ruhollah Khomeini (Top-R) in Tehran, Iran, 25 April 2024. EPA/ABEDIN TAHERKENAREH
People drive past a wall painting of Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei (Top-L) and late supreme leader Ruhollah Khomeini (Top-R) in Tehran, Iran, 25 April 2024. EPA/ABEDIN TAHERKENAREH

Britain on Thursday announced new sanctions targeting Iran's military drone industry, in response to Iran's drone and missile attack on Israel earlier this month.

The measures, taken in co-ordination with the US and Canada, target four businesses and two directors at a network of drone companies with the aim of limiting Iran's ability to launch drones.

"The Iranian regime's dangerous attack on Israel risked thousands of civilian casualties and wider escalation in the region," British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said in a statement.

"Today the UK and our partners have sent a clear message – we will hold those responsible for Iran's destabilizing behavior to account," Reuters quoted Cameron as saying.

Britain also said it would introduce new bans on the export of drone and missile components to Iran, seeking to limit its military capabilities.

Last week, Britain imposed sanctions on Iranian military figures and organizations, in another coordinated move with the United States, following Iran's action against Israel.
Iran launched drones and fired missiles at Israel on April 13 as a retaliatory strike for the attack on its embassy compound in Damascus two weeks prior, raising the risk of further escalation in conflict in the Middle East.

World

US Issues Sanctions on Iran, Targets Drones

Motorists drive under a billboard of an Iranian missile hanging on a pedestrian bridge in Tehran, Iran, 25 April 2024. EPA/ABEDIN TAHERKENAREH
Motorists drive under a billboard of an Iranian missile hanging on a pedestrian bridge in Tehran, Iran, 25 April 2024. EPA/ABEDIN TAHERKENAREH
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US Issues Sanctions on Iran, Targets Drones

Motorists drive under a billboard of an Iranian missile hanging on a pedestrian bridge in Tehran, Iran, 25 April 2024. EPA/ABEDIN TAHERKENAREH
Motorists drive under a billboard of an Iranian missile hanging on a pedestrian bridge in Tehran, Iran, 25 April 2024. EPA/ABEDIN TAHERKENAREH

The United States on Thursday issued further sanctions on Iran, targeting Iranian drones, including their use by Russia in the war in Ukraine, as Washington seeks to ratchet up pressure on Tehran.

The US Treasury Department in a statement said the action, taken in coordination with the United Kingdom and Canada, targets over one dozen entities, individuals and vessels it accused of playing a key role in facilitating and financing the clandestine sale of Iranian unmanned aerial vehicles to Iran's Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics (MODAFL).

MODAFL in turn supports Iran's Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) and Russia's war in Ukraine, the Treasury said.

“Iran’s Ministry of Defense continues to destabilize the region and world with its support to Russia’s war in Ukraine, unprecedented attack on Israel, and proliferation of UAVs and other dangerous military hardware to terrorist proxies,” Treasury's Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Brian Nelson, said.

Washington also targeted two companies and a vessel involved in the shipment of Iranian commodities, Reuters quoted the Treasury as saying.

“The United States, in close coordination with our British and Canadian partners, will continue to use all means available to combat those who would finance Iran’s destabilizing activities," Nelson said.
The Treasury said it targeted Sahara Thunder, accusing it of being a main front company that oversees MODAFL's commercial activities in support of the IRGC and Russia's war in Ukraine.

It said the company plays a key role in Iran's design, development, manufacture and sale of thousands of drones, many of them ultimately transferred to Russia for use against Ukraine.

As of 2022, Russian officials were negotiating a deal for Sahara Thunder to deliver and produce thousands of drones per year at a facility in Russia under US sanctions, the Treasury said.

Sahara Thunder's leadership and shipping network, which the Treasury said the company relied on for the sale and shipment of Iranian commodities on behalf of MODAFL to jurisdictions including China, Russia and Venezuela, were also targeted.

An Iran-based company involved in the procurement and development of unmanned aerial vehicles, its leadership and an Iranian cargo airline were also among those hit with sanctions.

World

Trump's Hush Money Trial Set to Resume with 3rd Day of Witness Testimony

Former US President Donald Trump leaves Manhattan Supreme Court on the 6th day of the hush money trial against him on April 23 2024. Curtis Means/Pool via REUTERS
Former US President Donald Trump leaves Manhattan Supreme Court on the 6th day of the hush money trial against him on April 23 2024. Curtis Means/Pool via REUTERS
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Trump's Hush Money Trial Set to Resume with 3rd Day of Witness Testimony

Former US President Donald Trump leaves Manhattan Supreme Court on the 6th day of the hush money trial against him on April 23 2024. Curtis Means/Pool via REUTERS
Former US President Donald Trump leaves Manhattan Supreme Court on the 6th day of the hush money trial against him on April 23 2024. Curtis Means/Pool via REUTERS

Donald Trump was expected to return to court Thursday morning as witness testimony in his hush money trial enters a third day.
The trial resumes at the same time that the US Supreme Court hears arguments in Washington over whether he should be immune from prosecution for actions he took during his time as president, The Associated Press said.
At his trial in Manhattan, veteran tabloid publisher David Pecker took the stand earlier in the week, testifying about his longtime friendship with the former president and a pledge he made to be the “eyes and ears” of Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign.
Pecker, the National Enquirer’s former publisher, said the pledge culminated in an agreement to warn Trump’s personal lawyer about potentially damaging stories and help quash them. Pecker said the tabloid ultimately ran negative stories about Trump’s political opponents and even paid $30,000 for a doorman’s silence.
Pecker was expected to return to the stand Thursday.
The testimony was sought to bolster prosecutors’ premise that Trump sought to illegally influence the 2016 election through a “catch-and-kill” strategy to buy up and then spike negative stories. Key to that premise are so-called hush money payments that were paid to porn actor Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal, along with the doorman.
Prosecutors say Trump obscured the true nature of those payments and falsely recorded them as legal expenses.
He has pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records.
The case is the first-ever criminal trial of a former US president and the first of four prosecutions of Trump to reach a jury.