Biden Informs Congress About Airstrike Against Iranian Militias in Syria

Arab World

March 1st, 7:36am

Washington - Ali Barada

US President Joe Biden ordered an airstrike on Iran-backed militias in Syria in his first overt use of military force since taking office. AFP

President Joe Biden demanded Congress to support his first use of military force in Syria last week, stressing that the decision was consistent with the US right to self-defense. The US military launched an airstrike on facilities in eastern Syria used by Iran-backed militias Thursday, the Pentagon said. Some Democrats have criticized the Biden administration for the strike and demanded a briefing after saying that military action without congressional approval is not constitutional. In his letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Patrick Leahy, president pro tempore of the Senate, Biden said non-state militia groups were involved in recent attacks against US and Coalition personnel in Iraq. “I directed this military action to protect and defend our personnel and our partners against these attacks and future such attacks,” he wrote in the letter. The orders came under his constitutional authority to conduct US foreign policy and as commander-in-chief. “The United States took this action pursuant to the United States' inherent right of self-defense as reflected in Article 51 of the United Nations Charter," Biden added. Biden said the US strikes were in response to the Feb. 15 "attack in Erbil, Iraq, which wounded one United States service member, wounded four United States contractors, including one critically, and killed one Filipino contractor. " He wrote that the United States always stands ready to take necessary and proportionate action in self-defense, including when, as is the case here, the government of the state where the threat is located is unwilling or unable to prevent the use of its territory by non-state militia groups responsible for such attacks. The US President concluded by saying that he was "providing this report as part of my efforts to keep the Congress fully informed, consistent with the War Powers Resolution." Iran on Saturday condemned the US strike in Syria, and denied responsibility for attacks on US targets. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif called the strike “illegal and a violation of Syria’s sovereignty.”

from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/2834076/biden-informs-congress-about-airstrike-against-iranian-militias-syria

Saudi Arabia Sees Drop in Coronavirus Cases for 3rd Consecutive Day

Gulf

March 1st, 7:26am

Jeddah- Asma Al-Ghabri

Citizen receiving coronavirus vaccine in Jazan Vaccination center, Saudi Arabia (SPA)

Coronavirus cases continued to drop in Saudi Arabia for the third consecutive day, recording 322 new cases on Sunday, compared to 338 on Saturday. Health Ministry spokesman, Mohammed al-Abdulaali confirmed that the fluctuation of the infections curve is being monitored and observed continuously, indicating that the commitment to health measures is a baseline for protecting society. Abdulaali asserted that individual immunity is an important step and helps in reaching community immunity and overcoming the pandemic. The Health Ministry announced that over 780,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered, explaining that Pfizer-BioNtech and the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines, approved by the Food and Drug Authority, are both safe and do not reduce or weaken immunity. Abdulaali explained, during a press conference, that it is necessary to receive both doses from the same vaccine, indicating the studies and research are inconclusive on the possibility of receiving different kinds of vaccines. The total number of infections in the Kingdom reached 377,383 cases since the outbreak of the pandemic in March 2020, according to the daily report of the Ministry of Health. The data of the Ministry showed that the number of active cases currently stands at 2,584 cases, of which 481 are critical. The Riyadh region continued to record the highest number of infections with 167 cases, followed by the Eastern region with 66 and the Makkah region with 37 new infections. The Ministry recorded 294 new recoveries, bringing the total to 368,305 cases, with a total recovery rate of 97.59 percent. It also announced six more deaths from complications caused by COVID-19, bringing the total virus-related fatalities to 6,494, compared to 6,488 on Saturday. Meanwhile, Saudi authorities recorded in one week, 43,428 violations of the precautionary measures imposed to curb the spread of the coronavirus, according to recent statistics from the Ministry of Interior. Ministry spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Talal al-Shalhoub said that the Riyadh region topped the list with 17,789 violations, followed by the Makkah region with 10,388, then the eastern region with 4,819. Najran region maintained first place with the fewest number of violations, recording 155 violations. The ministry called on citizens and residents to abide by the preventive measures and the instructions issued by authorities in this regard, urging them to maintain following precautions and wearing the mask even after receiving the health passport. The Health Ministry continues to open vaccination centers to include all regions of the Kingdom in its efforts to preserve the health and safety of citizens and residents and limit the spread of the coronavirus, urging everyone to register via the “Sehatty” application to obtain the vaccine. Furthermore, the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Dawah, and Guidance shut down temporarily two mosques in Makkah and Madina after two cases of coronavirus were confirmed among worshippers. The authorities shut 168 mosques temporarily in the past 21 days, with 153 reopening after precautionary measures were completed.

from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/2834066/saudi-arabia-sees-drop-coronavirus-cases-3rd-consecutive-day

UN Seeks Generous Aid at Yemen Donor Conference

Arab World

March 1st, 7:02am

Washington - Ali Barada

Displaced Yemeni kids, Yemen March 29, 2018. REUTERS/Ali Owidha/Files

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said Yemen is now in imminent danger of the worst famine the world has seen for decades, calling for immediate action to save the lives of millions of its people. His warning came ahead of Monday’s virtual donor conference for Yemen, co-hosted by the UN and the governments of Switzerland and Sweden. “We must end it now and start dealing with its enormous consequences immediately. This is not the moment to step back from Yemen,” the UN chief said, calling on the international community to contribute generously to the UN on aid to Yemen during the high-level pledging event for the humanitarian crisis in the country. More than 100 governments and donors will take part in the meeting. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has announced he will lead the US delegation to the virtual donor conference and will be joined by US Agency for International Development (USAID) Acting Administrator Gloria Steele, US Special Envoy for Yemen Tim Lenderking, and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Richard Albright. Guterres is calling for $3.85 billion in relief aid for Yemen this year. Aid funding for Yemen dropped in 2020 amid the coronavirus downturn, resulting in the closure of many humanitarian programs. The UN and NGO partners received $1.9 billion, or around half of what they received the year before and half of what was needed. On Sunday, the UN office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs warned that more than 16 million people in Yemen would go hungry this year, with already some half a million living in famine-like condition in the conflict-wrecked country. It said the risk of large-scale famine “has never been more acute.” This year, nearly half of Yemen’s children under five will suffer from acute malnutrition, including 400,000 who could die without urgent treatment, the UN agency added. “We are at a crossroads with Yemen. We can choose the path to peace or let Yemenis slide into the world’s worst famine for decades. An adequately funded aid operation will prevent the spread of famine and create the conditions for lasting peace. If you’re not feeding the people, you’re feeding the war,” Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Mark Lowcock warned.

from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/2834041/un-seeks-generous-aid-yemen-donor-conference

Report: King Abdullah Held Talks with Gantz but Refused to Meet Netanyahu

Arab World

March 1st, 6:50am

Ramallah - Kifah Zboun

King Abdullah II on a visit to Al-Ghamr in November 2019, after the agreement to lease the area to Israel was terminated. File photo

Israel's Defense Minister Benny Gantz met secretly with King Abdullah II in Jordan on Friday, Ynet has learned. Gantz told Blue & White members in a zoom call that he hoped relations with the neighboring country would improve and that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was an unwelcomed figure in the kingdom. "The ties with Jordan are a huge asset and could be a thousand times better," Gantz said, claiming that he has an ongoing relationship with the king and senior Jordanian officials. "Unfortunately, Netanyahu is unwelcome in Jordan," he added. “I believe that it’s possible to do one or two civilian projects each year with Jordan, and within 10 years up to 20 or 30 projects” to improve relations with the neighboring country, Gantz said. Jordan is an ally to the US and Israel, and a supporter to the two-state solution and the resumption of peace talks. King Abdullah reportedly refused to take phone calls from Netanyahu last year as he seethed over the annexation push, according to The Times of Israel. The King said in 2019 that relations between Israel and Jordan were “at an all-time low,” after a series of incidents that prompted Amman to recall its ambassador to Israel. That year, Jordan terminated special arrangements that allowed Israeli farmers to easily access plots of land inside Jordan, and the two countries did not hold a joint ceremony marking the quarter-century anniversary of their peace agreement. Israel’s arrest of two Jordanian citizens for suspected terrorism also caused a minor diplomatic spat. Jordan and Israel have been at peace since 1994 and have full diplomatic relations.

from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/2834021/report-king-abdullah-held-talks-gantz-refused-meet-netanyahu

Prince Harry Tells Oprah he Worried History Would Repeat Itself

Varieties

March 1st, 6:39am

Asharq Al-Awsat

FILE PHOTO: Britain's Prince Harry and his wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, leave Canada House in London, Britain January 7, 2020. REUTERS/Toby Melville/File Photo

Prince Harry, who shocked Britain last year when he and his wife Meghan stepped back from royal duties, told US interviewer Oprah Winfrey that he had worried about history repeating itself, according to excerpts released on Sunday. The CBS broadcast network released two brief clips from Winfrey's interview of the couple, which is scheduled to air on March 7. It is the first TV interview the couple, formally known as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, have given since making their homes in California last year. "My biggest concern was history repeating itself," Harry said, apparently referring to his mother Princess Diana, who was hounded by the British press and died at age 36 in a car crash in Paris after her divorce from Prince Charles. Harry, 36, was seated next to Meghan, 39, and holding her hand. The couple announced this month that they are expecting their second child. "I'm just really relieved and happy to be sitting her talking to you with my wife by my side," Harry said. "Because I can't imagine what it must have been like for her (Diana), going through this process by herself all those years ago. "It's been unbelievably tough for the two of us, but at least we had each other," Harry added. In the clips, Winfrey said that no subject was off limits and at one point tells the couple "you have said some pretty shocking things here," including that their situation had been "almost unsurvivable." Before they moved to California, the couple had complained about the British tabloids' treatment of Meghan, whose father is white and mother is African-American, some of which they said amounted to bullying or racism. Earlier this month, Buckingham Palace announced that the couple would not be returning to their lives as working members of the royal family. Last week, Harry said in a rare one-on-one interview that he left royal life because the British press was "destroying" his mental health. Harry gave an intimate insight into his young family's new life in Los Angeles during an open-top bus tour of the city with "The Late Late Show" host James Corden. "We all know what the British press can be like, and it was destroying my mental health," said Harry. "I was, like, this is toxic. So I did what any husband and what any father would do. I need to get my family out of here."

from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/2834001/prince-harry-tells-oprah-he-worried-history-would-repeat-itself

Facebook to Pay $650mn Settlement over US Privacy Dispute

Technology

March 1st, 6:28am

Asharq Al-Awsat

A Facebook logo is displayed on a smartphone. Reuters file photo

A US federal judge has given final approval to Facebook's $650 million payment to settle a privacy dispute between the social media giant and 1.6 million users in the state of Illinois. "We are pleased to have reached a settlement so we can move past this matter, which is in the best interest of our community and our shareholders," a Facebook spokesperson said in a statement to AFP. The decision was issued on Friday, according to documents seen by AFP on Sunday. Chicago attorney Jay Edelson sued Facebook in 2015, alleging it illegally collected biometric data to identify faces in violation of a 2008 Illinois privacy law. At the end of January 2020, Facebook agreed to pay $550 million after it failed to get the lawsuit -- filed as a class action in 2018 -- dismissed. But in July 2020, the judge in the case, James Donato, ruled that the amount was insufficient. During the trial, it emerged that Facebook was violating Illinois law by storing biometric data -- digital scans of people's faces, in support of its face-tagging feature -- without users' consent. In 2019, Facebook proposed that the facial recognition feature be optional only. According to Donato, the regulation is "a landmark result" and represents a "major win for consumers in the hotly contested area of digital privacy." "It is one the largest settlements ever for a privacy violation," he commented, noting that plaintiffs will receive at least $345 each in compensation.

from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/2833966/facebook-pay-650mn-settlement-over-us-privacy-dispute

Netanyahu Says Iran 'Clearly' behind Blast on Israeli-Owned Ship

Iran

March 1st, 6:19am

Asharq Al-Awsat

The Israeli-owned cargo ship, Helios Ray, sits docked in port in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Feb. 28, 2021. (AP)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blamed Iran on Monday for a blast aboard an Israeli-owned ship in the Gulf of Oman last week but sidestepped a question on whether Israel would retaliate. The MV Helios Ray, a vehicle-carrier ship, was hit overnight by a blast above the water line that a USofficial said ripped holes in both sides of its hull. “This was indeed an operation by Iran. That is clear,” Netanyahu told Kan radio. Asked if Israel would retaliate, he repeated previous statements about his determination to prevent Iran from developing nuclear capacity and added: “We are striking at it (Iran) all over the region.” Kan said the interview was recorded on Sunday night, before Syria accused Israel of carrying out missile strikes around southern Damascus. Israel did not confirm that, but has previously said it was launching frequent military actions against Iranian deployment or arms handovers within Syria.

from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/2833946/netanyahu-says-iran-clearly-behind-blast-israeli-owned-ship