Bolton: Sanctions Meant to Harm Iran, Not US Friends

WASHINGTON — 

U.S. national security adviser John Bolton said Wednesday the Trump administration wants sanctions on Iran’s crude exports to strain Tehran, but does not want to harm countries that depend on the oil.

The United States is preparing to impose the new sanctions on Iran’s oil industry after Washington withdrew from a nuclear deal between Tehran and other global powers earlier this year, but is also considering offering waivers to some allies that rely on Iranian supplies.

“We want to achieve maximum pressure but we don’t want to harm friends and allies either,” Bolton said in a talk at the Hamilton Society.

Conciliatory tone

Bolton said the administration understands that a number of countries, some close geographically to Iran, which he visited last week, and others “may not be able to go all the way, all the way to zero immediately.” It was a more conciliatory tone about the sanctions from Bolton, a proponent of being tough on Iran and winding down its crude exports to zero.

Still, Bolton said that consequences can already be seen in Iran including the collapse of the rial, its currency.

“I think it’s important that we not relax in the effort,” he said.

In a presidential memorandum addressed to secretaries of State, Treasury and Energy, Trump said he determined there was sufficient supply of petroleum and petroleum products elsewhere than Iran to permit a reduction in purchases from the Islamic Republic.

Under the law, the U.S. president must periodically issue a “determination” on whether there is sufficient supply in the market from non-Iranian sources for countries to significantly cut their Iranian purchases.

Sanctions renew soon

The administration’s renewed sanctions are set to come into effect Nov. 5. Under U.S. law, Washington can sanction the financial institutions of foreign countries that fail to significantly reduce their purchases of Iranian oil and petroleum products.

The purpose of the law, which came into effect during the Obama administration, was to put pressure on Iran to curtail its nuclear program by forcing its major oil customers to reduce their purchases.

Three of Iran’s five largest buyers of crude, China, India and Turkey, have resisted calls by Washington to end their oil purchases outright.

This week South Korea asked Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for “maximum flexibility” on its request for a waiver to prevent companies there from being hit by the sanctions. Other countries, including Iraq and Afghanistan, depend on some imports from Iran.

The administration has said it is considering waivers on a case-by-case basis.

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State Department: Now Is Time for Peace Talks in Yemen

Kurds in Syria: We Have Right to Respond to Turkish Attacks

UN Welcomes Moves to Restart Negotiations on Western Sahara

UNITED NATIONS — 

The U.N. Security Council has approved a resolution welcoming stepped up efforts to try to restart negotiations to end the 42-year conflict over the mineral-rich Western Sahara between Morocco and the Polisario Front.

Morocco annexed Western Sahara in 1975 and fought the Polisario Front until the U.N. brokered a cease-fire in 1991. A peacekeeping mission established to monitor it was also mandated to help prepare a referendum on the territory's future that has never taken place.

Wednesday's vote on the U.S.-sponsored resolution extending the mission's mandate until April 30, 2019, was 12-0 with Russia, Ethiopia and Bolivia abstaining.

Bolivia's U.N. Ambassador Sasha Llorentty Soliz welcomed an upcoming roundtable of key parties but complained that the resolution neglected the crucial issue of self-determination of the people of Western Sahara.

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FIFA Asks Qatar Emir About Sharing World Cup With Bitter Foes

DOHA, QATAR — 

Adding 16 teams to the 2022 World Cup is about far more than sports. The head of world soccer thinks the proposal can help solve the bitter diplomatic fight between host Qatar and a Saudi Arabian-led coalition trying to isolate the tiny nation.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino has visions of the World Cup uniting the region. He says the World Cup should expand from 32 to 48 teams by playing some of the matches in stadiums in the very nations who have cut ties with Qatar and closed land, air and sea passage to and from the oil-rich nation of 2.6 million people, all but about 300,000 of them foreign workers.

Qatar will have eight stadiums to host 64 games in an already-congested 28-day window. The World Cup was moved from June-July to November-December because of the extreme heat in the Persian Gulf, and the tournament schedule was condensed to minimize the disruption to the top leagues around the world.

Adding 16 more nations would mean 80 games, and that would require more stadiums. Infantino asked the emir of Qatar if he would consider allowing matches to be held in other nations, including Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, all are part of an economic and travel boycott against his country.

"This is something that would probably be a nice message," Infantino said.

When the joint bid from the United States, Canada and Mexico won the right to host the 2026 World Cup in June, a trade fight was rumbling between the North American nations. Eventually, a new trade pact was negotiated.

At the time of the 2026 vote, "the relations were a little bit tense right between these countries," Infantino said. "It's something that's comparable with the Gulf region. But for me, you know if there is a possibility [of sharing games], if there is a chance at least to even discuss, we should try."

With travel to Qatar currently blocked by its neighbors, Infantino cautions that "maybe it will never happen." He says he brought it up with Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani of Qatar, and the emir was open to the idea.

"When we speak it remains between us of course," Infantino said. "What is, I think, important is that he told us, `Let's continue the discussions together and see if this can (work)."'

Qatar's World Cup organizing committee is wary about changing plans almost a decade in the making, and having already irritated European soccer leagues with the FIFA-imposed switch to start in November.

"We need to know pretty soon," said Nasser Al Khater, deputy secretary general of the organizing committee. "So we need to understand basically we're looking to change the format, increase the number of days. Can we do it with eight [stadiums] and increasing the number of days?"

The FIFA membership has already voted on expanding its showpiece even to 48 teams in 2026. Infantino has been saying since March he is considering fast-tracking those plans by four years and acknowledged there has been little progress since then.

"Obviously we cannot even start discussing anything like that in a serious way without Qatar," Infantino said. "I was discussing with [Qatar] federation officials and also with the Emir of Qatar and they want to look at it together with us and what kind of options ... sharing some matches with some other countries or not ... and these kind of things. These are topics that first, of course, the Qataris, of course, have to be comfortable with. Could they do it on their own? No."

Infantino hopes to have resolved the number of finalists by March, with the qualifying draw scheduled for next year. If new conditions are added to the 2022 schedule, a bidding process for the extra games might be necessary.

"This is all will all be part of their studies and the discussions," Infantino said. "We'll study it we have to make sure that we have a proper process in place."

The decision to award the tournament to Qatar in a 2010 vote forced FIFA to deal with concerns about labor conditions for migrant workers, many building the stadiums. The bidding process for the 2026 World Cup was the first where FIFA assessed the human rights records of countries.

If Qatar's neighbors joined in hosting games in 2022, human rights conditions would come into focus again.

"This will obviously be part of discussions," Infantino said. "Without the decision to go to Qatar would anything have changed? Who knows?But certainly, the fact that there was a World Cup in the spotlight for everyone has contributed to the fact that we are going, we're speaking to them and we're trying to tell them, `Guys try at least to change and so on."'

The United Arab Emirates already has close ties to FIFA, hosting the Club World Cup again in Abu Dhabi in December.

Saudi Arabia would be keen on joining the 2022 World Cup but it has angered soccer federations by hosting a television network that has allegedly been pirating Qatar's beIN Sports since the boycott of Doha began in 2017.

A partnership with the Saudis could also be problematic in the fallout from the killing of Saudi writer Jamal Khashoggi after he entered the country's consulate in Istanbul on October 2.

"There are other countries in the region as well," Infantino said, when asked about Saudi Arabia.

Qatar is still waiting for a proper consultation process to begin.

"Right now, as of today, we're hosting a 32 team World Cup," Al Khater said. "Our infrastructure, our stadiums are all based on the 32-team World Cup. That's as much as we know and that's as much as it's confirmed by now."

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UN Chief Names Veteran Norwegian Diplomat as His New Syria Envoy

UNITED NATIONS — 

U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres announced Wednesday that Norwegian veteran diplomat Geir Pedersen will be his new special envoy for Syria.

Pedersen was widely rumored to be the top choice for the post. He succeeds Italian-Swedish envoy Staffan de Mistura who held the challenging job for more than four years.

Guterres wrote to the Security Council on Tuesday to inform them of his choice and thanked de Mistura for his work and "contributions to the search for peace in Syria."

Pedersen, 63, is no stranger to either the United Nations or the region. He was Norway's U.N. ambassador from 2012-2017. Since last year, he has been Oslo's envoy in Beijing.

In the Middle East, he was the U.N.'s representative in Lebanon from April 2007 to February 2008 and Norway's representative to the Palestinian Authority from 1998 to 2003. In 1993, he was a member of the Norwegian team to the secret Oslo negotiations that led to the signing of the Declaration of Principles and the mutual recognition between the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and Israel.

Pedersen is set to be the fourth U.N. envoy to try to bring a close to the Syrian conflict that began in 2011. In addition to de Mistura, the late Kofi Annan and Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi have both held the post.

De Mistura, 71, recently remarried and said he is leaving the post for personal reasons.

During his tenure, de Mistura worked to make the peace process more inclusive and had a role in facilitating some short-term cease-fires. He has been working intensively during his final weeks in office to solidify the creation of a constitutional committee, which is seen as a crucial step toward a credible and inclusive political process for ending the civil war.

"There is, in my opinion, still a clear window of opportunity that needs to be urgently seized," de Mistura told members of the U.N. Security Council last Friday during his most recent briefing.

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Pressure Mounts on Saudi Crown Prince

Turkey: Khashoggi Was Strangled Immediately After Entering Saudi Consulate

A Turkish prosecutor says Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi was killed by strangulation immediately after entering Riyadh's consulate in Istanbul before his body was ‘cut into pieces.’

The statement by chief Istanbul prosecutor Ifran Fidan comes as Turkey pressures Saudi Arabia to extradite the 18 people detained it for their role in the killing of Khashoggi. His October 2 disappearance at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul created an international firestorm of controversy threatening the already complicated relations between Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the U.S.

Turkey has steadily ramped up pressure on Saudi Arabia to provide answers amid its shifting official explanations on Khashoggi’s fate. Weeks after the fact, Riyadh admitted that the journalist had been killed in the consulate by a team of 15 Saudi agents. Tuesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan urged Riyadh to reveal who ordered Khashoggi killed.

Turkish officials, including Erdogan, have repeatedly complained that Saudi Arabia has obstructed the investigation by refusing to reveal key pieces of evidence like the location of Khashoggi’s body.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, often criticized by Khashoggi in his Washington Post columns, had hailed the “unique” cooperation between the two countries only days before.

International backlash to the suspected assassination has been swift and severe. Germany has suspended export licenses to the kingdom, while U.S. President Donald Trump has been backed into a corner over his support for a country that is key to U.S. strategies in the Middle East.

Trump has called Khashoggi's disappearance and death "one of the worst cover-ups in the history of cover-ups," but has also said the U.S. should not be too critical of the regime because of a pending multi-billion dollar arms deal with Riyadh.

Khashoggi had gone into the Saudi consulate in the Turkish capital on October 2 to obtain paperwork he needed for his planned marriage to Turkish national Hatice Cengiz -- who waited for him outside the consulate -- but was never seen again.

Saudi Arabia has arrested 18 officials in connection with the plot to kill Khashoggi, while U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has revoked the visas of Saudi officials believed to have taken part in the killing.

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Iran Summons Danish Envoy Over Alleged Deadly Tehran Plot

TEHRAN — 

Iran has summoned the Danish ambassador to Tehran over Copenhagen's allegations about an Iranian plot to kill an opposition activist in Denmark.

The official IRNA news agency reported on Wednesday that Iran expressed a "strong protest" over what it described as the Danish officials' "hasty, political" and "uncalculated actions" in the case.

Denmark's intelligence agency said on Tuesday that a police operation last month that briefly cut off Copenhagen from the rest of Denmark stemmed from an alleged Iranian plot to kill an opposition activist. It said a suspect in the case, a Norwegian citizen of Iranian descent, has denied wrongdoing and is being held in pre-trial custody until Nov. 8.

Iran's Foreign Ministry strongly denied the plot allegation, calling it part of enemy plans aimed at damaging Iran-EU relations.

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Rouhani Anticipates Difficult Months Ahead for Iranians

TEHRAN — 

President Hassan Rouhani says Iranians may face more difficulties in the months ahead after the U.S. imposes new sanctions on Monday.

Speaking in a televised Cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Rouhani said: "The situation was hard for people in the recent months, and it may be hard in the next several months, too."

The U.S. has been re-imposing sanctions on Iran since President Donald Trump's withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear accord with Western powers in May.

On Monday, the U.S. plans to impose sanctions on Iran's oil and gas industry.

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With Green Mosques and Schools, Amman Pushes for Zero Emissions

Mattis Calls for Yemen Ceasefire, Peace Talks within 'Next 30 Days'

WASHINGTON — 

U.S. Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis called Tuesday for a ceasefire in Yemen and for parties to come to the negotiating table within the next 30 days.

The Pentagon chief said the U.S. had been watching the conflict "for long enough" and said he believes Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, who are in a US-backed coalition fighting Shiite Houthi rebels, are ready for talks.

"We have got to move toward a peace effort here, and we can't say we are going to do it some time in the future," Mattis said at the U.S. Institute of Peace in Washington.

"We need to be doing this in the next 30 days."

He said the U.S. is calling for all warring parties to meet with United Nations special envoy Martin Griffiths in Sweden in November and "come to a solution."

Saudi Arabia and its allies intervened in the conflict between embattled Yemeni President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, whose government is recognized by the United Nations, and the Houthis in 2015.

Nearly 10,000 people have since been killed and the country now stands at the brink of famine.

The United States has faced fierce international criticism for its role in supporting the Saudi-led coalition, especially after a series of strikes killed scores of civilians.

Mattis said U.S. support is based primarily on teaching the Saudi air force to improve targeting and to not drop bombs when there is any doubt about what they might hit.

"Our goal right now is to achieve a level of capability by those forces fighting against the Houthis that they are not killing innocent people," he said.

"The longer term solution, and by longer term I mean 30 days from now, we want to see everybody around a peace table based on a ceasefire, based on a pull back (of Houthis) from the border and then based on a ceasing dropping of bombs that will permit the special envoy Martin Griffiths... to get them together in Sweden and end this war. That is the only way we are going to really solve this."

Last month, U.N.-led peace talks failed to take off after Houthi rebels refused to fly to Geneva over what they said was the U.N.'s failure to guarantee a safe return to the capital Sanaa, which the group has controlled since 2014.

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Artists Emerge From Ruins of Mosul to Reclaim Iraqi City's Cultural Life

Tehran Courts Ankara in Effort to Ease US Sanctions

Egyptian Pollution Plan Helps Combat 'Black Cloud'

CAIRO — 

An Egyptian government program to pay traders to buy rice straw from farmers at the end of harvest has helped to combat one of Cairo's ugliest features — a huge black cloud that hangs over the capital during the burning season.

Cairo is the world's second most polluted megacity, the World Health Organization says, and the government is pursuing several initiatives to cut back greenhouse gas emissions.

One of the biggest contributors to the thick layer of smog has been the annual burning of rice straw by farmers who have no other means to dispose of it.

To tackle the problem, the government offered an incentive to traders to buy the straw from farmers amounting to 50 Egyptian pounds ($3) per ton, said Mohamed Salah, head of the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency (EEAA). They can then sell it as animal feed or for other uses.

The program appears to be bearing results.

"Today, the dark cloud season is over and all citizens in Egypt are saying that they have not sensed any significant problem relating to this, unlike what had happened in previous years," Salah said.

An industrial boom in Egypt has also contributed to pollution, Salah said.

"We have some small industries that are deregulated and are not in line with environmental standards. We have worked hard on these," he said.

The World Health Organization is holding its first global air pollution conference in Geneva this week.

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Report Says Saudi-hired Lobbyists Give Millions to Influence US Congress

Denmark Recalls Envoy to Iran After Failed Murder Plot

Denmark recalled its ambassador to Iran Tuesday after accusing Iran of planning to kill three of its citizens who were living in Denmark.

"Denmark can in no way accept that people with ties to Iran's intelligence service plot attacks against people in Denmark," Danish Foreign Minister Anders Samuelsen told reporters in Copenhagen.

Danish intelligence agency PET accused Tehran of plotting the attack in Denmark on three Iranians who were suspected of being members of the separatist group Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation of Ahvaz, said Danish security service chief Finn Borch Andersen. Andersen said the plot was planned in retaliation for a deadly attack in Iran in late September.

A Norwegian citizen of Iranian descent was arrested on October 21 on suspicion of helping an unnamed Iranian intelligence service "to act in Denmark," Andersen said. Anderson also said the suspect was allegedly involved in the plot.

That suspect, whose name was not disclosed, has denied wrongdoing, as has Iran's Foreign Ministry. The suspect was detained in Sweden, according to the Swedish security service SAPO.

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Yemeni Teacher Turns His Home Into School for 700

Tunisia's Most Prominent Street Back to Normal a Day After Suicide Bombing

TUNIS — 

Shops and cafes in the center of the Tunisian capital reopened on Tuesday amid heightened security and crowds returned to the street where a suicide bomber wounded 10 police officers and five others a day earlier.

The bombing on Habib Bourguiba avenue was the first such violence in the capital since late 2015 when militants killed dozens of people in attacks that targeted the country's vital tourism sector.

"We will stay here and will continue to live normally... we will shake them off [extremists]," said Lamia Ben Omar, who was sitting with a friend in a cafe. Police cars increased patrols and officers searched some pedestrians, witnesses said.

A security source told Reuters the bomber detonated a grenade rather than an explosives belt. Her family said she was likely radicalized online.

Tunisia is one of the few Arab democracies and the only country to throw off an autocratic leader during the Arab Spring in 2011 without triggering large scale unrest or civil war.

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Turkey Pressing Saudi Arabia to Reveal Who Sent Journalist's Killers

Red Cross: Over 100,000 Missing People is a Global Crisis

UNITED NATIONS — 

Over 100,000 people around the world are missing, which has created a global "crisis,'' the International Committee of the Red Cross said Monday.

Agnes Coutou, the organization's protection adviser, told the U.N. General Assembly's human rights committee that "this is the highest number we have ever had.''

"We know that this is the tip of the iceberg and that it represents only a fraction of those estimated to be missing because of past and ongoing conflicts,'' she said.

The International Committee of the Red Cross works with the families of missing persons and authorities in over 40 countries affected by past and current conflicts. It also chairs five bodies trying to resolve cases of missing persons.

Coutou said three factors driving the crisis are the scale of armed conflicts responsible for a substantial number of missing; the "intergenerational impact'' of people missing for decades on their families; and the increased internationalization of the problem.

"Missing persons shape the history of families, communities and societies profoundly,'' she said. "Such unresolved consequences of conflict that stretch over decades can hamper the prospects of peace.''

Coutou said today's wars involve individuals and groups from a variety of countries, which multiplies the number of people affected and involved in missing person cases.

"The transnational dimension of the question of missing persons is particularly clear in its overlap with migration, as thousands and thousands of people fleeing conflict also go missing in transit and destination countries,'' she said.

Coutou said the International Committee of the Red Cross is calling for "early and preventive action'' to keep people from going missing, "whether they are alive or dead.'' This means registering all people who are detained, enabling them to contact their families, registering and centralizing information on all those missing, ensuring identification of human remains, and protecting gravesites, she said.

Coutou said the organization is also calling for upholding families' right to know the fate and whereabouts of missing relatives and exchanging good practices and tapping into expertise on the missing.

She expressed hope that many U.N. member nations will respond and "help some of those who so desperately wait for news of their loved ones.''

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Pro Wrestling Proves a Hit with Egyptian Crowds

Lebanon Closer to Government as Economic Pressures Loom

BEIRUT — 

Lebanese Prime Minister-designate Saad al-Hariri looked closer to forming a new national unity government as a major Christian party declared on Monday it would take part despite being offered an "unjust" share of cabinet seats.

Hariri has been trying to form the new government since a May parliamentary election, with rivalry between the Lebanese Forces (LF) and President Michel Aoun's Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) - both Christian groups - seen as the main obstacle.

The delay has held up economic reforms that have been put off for years but are now seen as more pressing than ever.

Lebanon is wrestling with the world's third largest public debt-to-GDP ratio, stagnant growth and what the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said are increasing vulnerabilities within its financial system.

LF leader Samir Geagea said the ministerial portfolios offered to his party represented a "very big injustice" when compared with the size of its enlarged parliamentary bloc and the ministries offered to other groups.

But the LF had nevertheless decided to take part "to continue to work from inside the government to achieve our goals," he told a news conference.

A government formed on this basis would be seen as a political victory for Aoun, an ally of the Iran-backed Shi'ite group Hezbollah, over his old adversary Geagea, Hezbollah's most prominent opponent in Lebanon.

The election produced a parliament tilted in favor of Hezbollah. Together, Hezbollah and its political allies secured more than 70 of the 128 seats. The group is proscribed as a terrorist movement by the United States.

The LF nearly doubled its number of MPs, winning 15 seats.

Government posts in Lebanon are filled according to a strict sectarian system: the president must be a Maronite Christian, the prime minister a Sunni Muslim and the speaker of parliament a Shi'ite Muslim. Posts in the cabinet of 30 ministers must be split equally between Christian and Muslims.

Hezbollah Demands

Hezbollah is expected to take control of the health ministry, the most significant cabinet post it has held, and to increase its number of ministers to three from two in the outgoing cabinet.

The group also wants to see one of its Sunni allies installed as a minister in the new government of 30 ministers, two senior officials familiar with the matter said.

Hariri, Lebanon's main Sunni politician, has so far resisted this demand. He lost more than one third of his seats in the election, several to Sunni allies of Hezbollah and its regional allies Syria and Iran.

One of the officials said the Sunni issue may hold up a final agreement but would not derail it. A second political source familiar with Hezbollah's demands said there would be no government unless one of its Sunni allies became a minister.

Hezbollah hopes the formation will be soon.

"We are in the last phase and the period of serious anticipation," Mohammad Raad, a leading member of the group, said in televised remarks.

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Fiancée of Slain Saudi Journalist Calls on Saudis to Reveal Whereabouts of his Body

UN Rights Experts Urge Saudi Arabia to Halt Six Imminent Executions

GENEVA — 

United Nations human rights experts called on Saudi Arabia on Monday to halt the imminent execution of six men sentenced to death for activities related to the 2011 Arab Spring.

They said that since the Saudis were all under age 18 at the time, imposing the death penalty on them would violate international law, including a treaty protecting children ratified by the kingdom.

Riyadh's human rights record has been in the spotlight since the death of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi at its Istanbul consulate this month. There has also been growing international criticism of the Saudi-led coalition's airstrikes in Yemen that have caused heavy civilian casualties, including children.

The charges against the six men are based on "criminalisation of the exercise of fundamental rights, including freedom of assembly and expression," the U.N. experts said in a joint statement which gave scant details.

"They were allegedly tortured and ill-treated, forced to confess, denied adequate legal assistance during trial and never had access to an effective complaint mechanism," it added.

The men were tried in a Riyadh specialized court that handles terrorism-related issues and there is no known appeals process, a U.N. human rights official told Reuters.

A Saudi source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters that his understanding was that the men would not be executed, in line with recent changes to Saudi law.

However, the U.N. experts said that the revised law still allows for the death penalty to be imposed on defendants who committed crimes as juveniles between ages 15 and 18.

Death penalty sentences and executions for crimes committed by people under the age of 18 run contrary to international law and standards, they said. Saudi Arabia has ratified the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child, which forbids capital punishment in such cases.

"In these circumstances, the execution of these six individuals would constitute arbitrary executions," the experts said.

The U.N. statement named the six as: Ali al-Nimr, Dawood al-Marhoon, Abdullah al-Zaher, Mujtaba al-Sweikat, Salman Qureish and Abdulkarim al-Hawaj.

The five independent experts, who include the U.N. investigator on arbitrary executions Agnes Callamard, said they were in contact with Saudi authorities regarding the cases.

Saudi Arabia is the world's third biggest executioner, following China and Iran, Amnesty International said in its latest annual report issued in April.

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WHO: Air Pollution a Health Risk for Children

GENEVA — 

The World Health Organization says air pollution kills hundreds of thousands of children every year and puts the physical health and neurological development of hundreds of millions of other youngsters at serious risk. The WHO is issuing a report titled “Air pollution and child health: Prescribing clean air” on the eve of the U.N. agency's first-ever Global Conference on Air pollution and Health.

The World Health Organization reports more than 90 percent, or nearly 2 billion children under the age of 15, breathe toxic air every day. The WHO says debilitating problems associated with air pollution begin at conception and continue until adolescence.

The report notes pregnant women exposed to polluted air are likely to give birth prematurely and have low-weight babies. A WHO scientist and expert on air pollution, Marie Noel Brune Drisse, warns that many babies will have neurodevelopment problems, resulting in lower IQs.

“The fact is that air pollution is stunting our brains, even before we are born," said Drisse. "The fact that it is leading to diseases that we may not be able to see immediately but look at much later in life like adult diseases. Our lung function and our respiratory systems are being altered during our development.”

Drisse says this can lead to chronic respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, as well as certain types of cancers later in life. In 2016, the report estimated that 600,000 children died from acute lower respiratory infections caused by polluted air. It said the heaviest toll is paid by children in low- and middle-income countries. The report found that the highest death rates among children between the ages of 5 and 14 from both ambient and household air pollution occur in the African region.

The report says switching to clean cooking and heating fuels and technologies could save the lives of many children. It says other measures for reducing the toxic impact of air pollution include moving away from fossil fuels.

The report recommends the use of cleaner, renewable energy sources, less dependence on private cars in favor of public transportation, and better waste management systems. WHO officials say the benefits from implementing such measures will be felt almost immediately.

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Death Toll in Iran Alcohol Poisoning Jumps to 84

TEHRAN — 

Iran's health ministry said Monday a total of 84 people have died and nearly 1,000 been poisoned from consuming bootleg alcohol over the past six weeks, ISNA news agency reported.

Despite tough penalties against alcohol consumption since the Islamic revolution of 1979, the use of smuggled or bootleg liquor remains widespread.

Multiple cases of poisoning by a deadly batch of moonshine were first reported in late September and have spread across the country.

Iraj Harirchi, spokesman for the health ministry, said 959 people had been treated for poisoning, describing the wave of cases as "very unusual", according to the semi-official agency ISNA.

As well as 84 deaths, 305 have been treated for kidney damage and 27 suffered eye damage, he added.

Harirchi said the main cause was the use of toxic methanol in place of the ethanol found in properly distilled spirits.

"Some have been arrested in this regard and people should know that even alcohol packed and sealed in foreign packages can easily be fake," Harirchi said.

The most poisoning cases were reported in Alborz province north of Tehran and Hormozgan on the south coast.

Only members of state-recognized religious minorities have the right to produce or purchase alcoholic drinks in Iran.

Those who break Iran's alcohol laws can be fined, lashed or jailed, but bootleg liquor is widely available through illegal dealers.

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Woman Blows Herself up in Central Tunis: State Radio

TUNIS — 

A woman blew herself up in the center of the Tunisian capital Tunis on Monday, state radio said.

A witness reported an explosion on the central Habib Bourguiba avenue where police were cordoning off the area near the capital’s landmark Municipal Theatre.

Ambulances could be heard rushing to the scene.

“I was in front of the theater and heard a huge explosion and saw people fleeing,” witness Mohamed Ekbal bin Rajib told

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Turkey Strikes Kurdish Positions in Northern Syria

ISTANBUL, TURKEY — 

The Turkish army struck Kurdish targets in northern Syria east of the Euphrates River on Sunday.

Turkey's official Anadolu news agency said that artillery strikes hit positions belonging to the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units, or YPG, in Zor Moghar.

The village in northern Aleppo's countryside is across the Euphrates that separates Turkey-backed Syrian opposition forces and the YPG, which Turkey considers a terror organization linked to an insurgency within its own borders.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and Kurdish Hawar news agency also reported the shelling, saying Turkish artillery targeted other villages east of the Euphrates as well. Hawar said there were no reports of casualties.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly warned of expanding military operations along the Syrian border to clear it of "terror."

The Observatory said the rare shelling in the villages near Kobani, a stronghold of the Kurdish fighters, came while Kurdish fighters were on high alert following Turkish threats.

The United States backs the Kurdish fighters who combat the Islamic State group in Syria. That support has driven a wedge between the two NATO allies.

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Mattis Stresses Need for 'Transparent' Probe into Khashoggi Killing

Yazidi Mothers of Children by IS Face Heartbreaking Choices

China to Give Pakistan 'Grant' as UAE Mulls $6B in Aid

Trump Faces Complaints That New Iran Sanctions Are Too Weak

Iran's Rouhani Reshuffles Economic Team

DUBAI, UAE — 

Iran's parliament approved a government economic reshuffle Saturday, days before new U.S. sanctions on Tehran's oil exports take effect, after President Hassan Rouhani said Washington was isolated among its allies in its confrontation with Iran.

"It does not happen often that the U.S. makes a decision and its traditional allies abandon it," Rouhani told parliament before the vote to approve the new appointments.

Academic Farhad Dejpasand, widely seen as a technocrat, received a vote of confidence by a wide margin as the new minister of economics and finance.

The reshuffle, approved in a parliamentary session carried live on state TV, also brought in new industry, labor and roads ministers.

Washington reintroduced sanctions against Iran's currency trade, metals and auto sectors in August after it pulled out from a multinational 2015 deal that lifted sanctions in return for limits on Iran's nuclear program.

European countries have criticized the United States for withdrawing from the accord and have been putting together a package of economic measures to help offset the impact of U.S. pressures on Tehran's economy.

Payments system

Diplomats told Reuters that a new European Union mechanism to facilitate payments for Iranian exports should be legally in place by Nov. 4, when the next phase of U.S. sanctions targeting Iran's vital oil exports take effect, although it will not be operational until early next year.

"Our main enemy, America, faces us with a drawn sword and we have to fight it and we have to unite. Regardless of factions ... we are all part of the Iranian nation," Rouhani said earlier, urging MPs to vote for his proposed ministers.

"Part of our economic problems has to do with the [high] rate of exchange of hard currencies, but our foreign exchange reserves are better than in any of the past five years," he said, without giving figures.

The cabinet changes came as the government faces intense pressure over the economic instability mostly caused by the U.S. sanctions.

The economy has markedly deteriorated in the past year, with rising inflation and unemployment, a 70 percent fall in the value of the rial currency so far this year, and state corruption.

"A year ago no one would have believed ... that Europe would stand with Iran and against America," Rouhani said.

"Russia, China, India, the European Union, and some African and Latin American countries are our friends. We have to work with them and attract investments," he added.

Mohammad Shariatmadari, the outgoing industries minister, was approved to head the Labor, Cooperatives and Social Affairs Ministry.

Parliament also approved the appointment of Mohammad Eslami to head the Urban Development and Roads Ministry, while Reza Rahmani, who previously headed a parliamentary commission on mining and industry, became the new industry, mines and trade minister.

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Analysts: Turkey Plots Risky Strategy to Damage Saudis

Turkey is continuing to heap pressure on Saudi Arabia over the killing earlier this month of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, as further details of the alleged murder continue to emerge. Analysts say the slow drip of information is part of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s strategy to inflict maximum damage on Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman – and to disrupt Western backing for Riyadh, as Henry Ridgwell reports from London.

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Campaign Contributions Coincide With Pro-Saudi Lobbying in Washington

Cash Grants Seen as Life-Line for Yemeni Displaced

GENEVA — 

The U.N. refugee agency (UNHCR) says it is giving millions of dollars in cash to more than 150,000 of the most vulnerable people displaced by more than three years of civil war in Yemen.

UNHCR says in doing so it is stepping up its efforts to ease the plight of tens of thousands of Yemeni civilians caught up in a war that shows no sign of winding down.

UNHCR spokesman Andrej Mahecic said his agency is providing vulnerable people displaced by the war with money they can use as they see fit as the best way to help them meet their immediate survival needs.

“This allows UNHCR to provide assistance to families in hard to reach and remote areas. Cash assistance is the most cost-efficient way to offer a flexible and dignified form of support. Those benefiting say it helps them to avoid resorting to desperate coping mechanisms, such as child labor and forced marriages,” Mahecic said.

The United Nations calls the situation in Yemen the worst humanitarian crisis in the world. The price of food and fuel has skyrocketed since March 2015. That is when Saudi Arabia began its bombing campaign against Houthi rebels in support of the government. The United Nations says more than 22 million people need international assistance and more than eight million are on the brink of famine.

Mahecic said many of the estimated 2.7 million displaced people have depleted all their resources. He said UNHCR’s cash grants are providing a critical lifeline to some of them.

“The selected families receive cash to cover their immediate protection needs, for example life-saving medical treatments and subsidies that help families avoid evictions and secure a roof over their heads. This assistance is benefiting the local economy, as families buy essential goods in local stores and pay for the local services,” he said.

Mahecic said the UNHCR has distributed almost $33 million in cash assistance. He said the agency aims to distribute a total of more than $41 million before the end of the year. This, he said, will end up benefiting 830,000 IDPs, returnees and conflict-affected host communities, refugees and asylum seekers across Yemen.

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Oman Says It's Time to Accept Israel in Region

MANAMA — 

Oman described Israel as an accepted Middle East state on Saturday, a day after hosting a surprise visit by its prime minister that Washington said could help regional peace efforts.

Oman is offering ideas to help Israel and the Palestinians to come together but is not acting as mediator, Yousuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah, the sultanate’s minister responsible for foreign affairs, told a security summit in Bahrain.

“Israel is a state present in the region, and we all understand this,” bin Alawi said.

“The world is also aware of this fact. Maybe it is time for Israel to be treated the same [as others states] and also bear the same obligations.”

His comments followed a rare visit to Oman by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu which came days after Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas paid a three-day visit to the Gulf country. Both leaders met with Oman’s Sultan Qaboos.

“We are not saying that the road is now easy and paved with flowers, but our priority is to put an end to the conflict and move to a new world,” bin Alawi told the summit.

Oman is relying on the United States and efforts by President Donald Trump in working toward the “deal of the century” (Middle East peace), he added.

Bahrain’s foreign minister, Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, voiced support for Oman over the sultanate’s role in trying to secure Israeli-Palestinian peace, while Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister Adel al-Jubeir said the kingdom believes the key to normalizing relations with Israel was the peace process.

The three-day summit was attended by Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, and his counterparts in Italy and Germany also participated, but Jordan’s King Abdullah canceled his appearance after a flood that hit the Dead Sea region killed 21 people.

‘Warming ties’

Trump’s Middle East envoy Jason Greenblatt welcomed the “warming ties & growing cooperation between our regional friends” in a tweet late on Friday.

“This is a helpful step for our peace efforts & essential to create an atmosphere of stability, security & prosperity between Israelis, Palestinians & their neighbors. Looking forward to seeing more meetings like this!” Greenblatt said.

Israel and some Gulf states share an interest in curbing Iran’s influence in the region.

Oman has long been to the Middle East what neutral Switzerland is to global diplomacy. The country helped to mediate secret U.S.-Iran talks in 2013 that led to the historic nuclear deal signed in Geneva two years later.

Earlier this year, bin Alawi visited Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque and Netanyahu has on several occasions hinted at warmer ties with Gulf states.

He told Israel’s parliament last week that due to fears of a nuclear threat from Iran, “Israel and other Arab countries are closer than they ever were before.”

Though uncommon, Israeli leaders have previously visited the Gulf state.

In 1996, the late Shimon Peres went to Oman and Qatar when he was prime minister and opened Israel trade representative offices in both Gulf countries.

His predecessor, the late Yitzhak Rabin, made the first trip to Oman in 1994.

On his visit on Friday, Netanyahu was accompanied by senior officials, including the head of the Mossad intelligence agency and his national security adviser.

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After Bloody Protest, Rockets Fly and Israel Pounds Gaza

Mattis: Killing of Saudi Journalist a Threat to Regional Stability

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At Least 4 Dead in Israel-Palestinian Border Violence

Aid Group: Yemen Fighting Kills 575 Civilians Since August

SANAA, YEMEN — 

An international aid organization says some 575 Yemenis have been killed in fighting between a Saudi-led coalition and the Shiite rebels in Yemen between Aug. 1 and Oct. 15.

Friday's statement by United Kingdom-based OXFAM says fighting has killed about one civilian every three hours since August and reported suspected cholera cases surpassed 1.1 million over the past 18 months, including over 2,000 fatal cases.

The group reiterated its calls for the U.S., UK and other governments to halt arms supplies to Saudi Arabia, which has led a coalition into Yemen more than three years ago to fight the Iran-aligned rebels, known as Houthis, and reinstate an internationally recognized government.

The war has exacerbated Yemen’s economic crisis and spawned what the U.N. says is the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

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UN Says Syria Blocking Efforts to Draft New Constitution

UNITED NATIONS — 

The U.N. envoy for Syria is urging Russia and world leaders to overcome the Damascus government’s opposition to forming a committee which will draft a new constitution that is key to ending the country's civil war.

Staffan de Mistura told the Security Council on Friday that he hopes high-level meetings planned in the coming weeks will enable him to announce the establishment of a 150-member committee before he steps down at the end of November.

Syria strongly objects to a 50-member delegation to the committee that de Mistura put together.

De Mistura welcomed an invitation to brief the leaders of Russia, France, Germany and Turkey in Istanbul on Saturday and said he will ask them to “seize the opportunity” of relative calm in rebel-held Idlib to move on the constitution.

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Report: Syrian Troops Shell Northern Villages, Kill 7

BEIRUT — 

Syrian government forces shelled rebel-held villages in the country's northwest on Friday, killing seven people in violation of a truce reached by Russia and Turkey last month, opposition activists said.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said seven people, including three women and three children, were killed in the shelling of Umm Jalal and Rafa villages in Idlib province, the last major rebel stronghold in the country. The villages are part of a demilitarization zone that was agreed upon between Russia and Turkey.

The Smart News, an opposition activist collective, also reported casualties in Rafa without giving a breakdown.

The violence comes a day before the leaders of Turkey, France, Germany and Russia are scheduled to hold a meeting on Syria in Turkey.

The Sept. 17 agreement to set up a demilitarized zone 15-20 kilometers (9-12 miles) deep and stretching along the front lines around Idlib, including parts of the provinces of Latakia, Hama and Aleppo, aimed to avert a government offensive on the area. It also called on jihadi fighters to evacuate the demilitarized zone, but activists say many of them did not pull out.

On Thursday night rebels hit with heavy machine gun fire the Jamiat al-Zahraa neighborhood in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria's largest city and former commercial center, state news agency SANA said. It said the fire caused material damage.

Rebels shelled three neighborhoods in Aleppo the night before wounding 10 people, SANA said.

Both sides have been accusing each other of violating the truce.

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European, Russian Leaders Join Erdogan at Summit on Syrian Civil War

Sources: France Expels Iranian Diplomat Over Failed Bomb Plot

PARIS — 

France has expelled an Iranian diplomat in response to a failed plot to carry out a bomb attack at a rally near Paris organized by an exiled Iranian opposition group, diplomatic and security sources say.

France's foreign ministry said on October 2 there was no doubt the Iranian intelligence ministry had been behind the plot against the June 30 rally. It subsequently froze assets belonging to Tehran's intelligence services and two Iranian nationals.

About a month ago it went a step further, expelling an Iranian diplomat based in Paris, five sources said. Two of the sources said the diplomat was an Iranian intelligence operative under diplomatic cover.

A spokesman at the Iranian embassy in Paris did not respond when asked about the diplomat's expulsion. Iran has previously said it had nothing to do with the attempt to carry out a bomb attack at the rally. One Iranian official, who declined to be identified, denied there had been any expulsion.

French President Emmanuel Macron's office referred all inquiries to the foreign ministry, which said it would not comment.

The fallout from the failed plot has further strained ties between Paris and Tehran, especially as France has been one of the strongest advocates of salvaging the nuclear deal between Iran and world powers, which U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew from in May.

The initial move by France to impose asset freeze was deemed relatively symbolic since neither diplomat targeted was based in France or had assets in the country.

French officials at the time said Paris considered the matter closed, although they were still trying to determine how high up the hierarchy the order to carry out the attack came from.

The decision to expel a suspected intelligence operative raises attention to the issue again.

"Yes, it's true," one diplomat said of the expulsion, declining to give further details because of the sensitivity of the issue.

The two sides agreed not to divulge details of the expulsion fearing it could undermine talks between the remaining parties to the nuclear deal — France, Britain, Germany, Russia, China — who are working on ways to continue trading with Iran, two diplomats said.

Intelligence operation

Two diplomats and one Western security source said the move was directly linked to the plot, which targeted a meeting of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI).

A co-ordinated intelligence operation between French, German and Belgian services thwarted the planned attack in the days prior to the rally which attracted many VIPs, including Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani and several former European and Arab ministers.

Belgium on October 10 charged an Iranian diplomat, who was one of the two sanctioned by Paris, and three other individuals with planning to bomb the gathering.

Any hardening of relations with France could have wider implications for Tehran as a new round of even tougher U.S. sanctions targeting the oil sector and financial transactions come into effect from November 4.

France had warned Tehran to expect a robust response to the thwarted bomb plot. Macron and Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian spoke to their Iranian counterparts about the issue at the U.N. General Assembly meeting after demanding explanations over Iran's role.

An internal French foreign ministry memo in August told diplomats not to travel to Iran, Reuters reported, citing the bomb plot and a toughening of Iran's position towards the West.

Paris has suspended appointing a new ambassador to Iran and has not responded to Tehran's nomination of a new envoy in France, underscoring how sensitive the issue is.

No appointments are expected until France receives more detailed information on who was behind the bombing attempt, two senior French diplomats said.

"We are still following up with Tehran on the Villepinte affair to draw all the necessary consequences, but the political and diplomatic dialogue between Iran and France continues," said one senior French diplomat.

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European, Russian Leaders Join Erdogan at Summit on Syrian Civil War

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is set to host the French, German and Russian leaders at a summit Saturday on the Syrian civil war. The inclusion of Europe's top leaders with their deep financial pockets is seen as giving new impetus to efforts to end the conflict. But already all sides are warning against any breakthrough. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul.

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Israel's Netanyahu Pays Surprise Visit to Oman

JERUSALEM — 

Benjamin Netanyahu's office says the Israeli prime minister has returned from a visit to the Gulf state of Oman.

Netanyahu's office said in a statement Friday that Netanyahu had been invited by Oman's Sultan Qaboos bin Said after lengthy communications.

Israel and Oman do not have diplomatic relations. The meeting was the first of its kind between leaders of the two countries since 1996.

The two leaders issued a joint statement saying the two sides "discussed ways to advance the Middle East peace process and discussed a number of issues of mutual interest to achieve peace and stability in the Middle East."

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Death Toll in Jordan Flood Rises to 20, Mostly Children

DEAD SEA, JORDAN — 

The death toll from flash floods near Jordan's shore of the Dead Sea rose to 20 on Friday, in what Civil Defense officials said was one of the deadliest incidents in the kingdom involving schoolchildren.

The search for survivors continued after daybreak, with helicopters and teams with sniffer dogs scouring the rocky slopes near the Dead Sea in the Jordan Valley.

The body of a 12-year-old girl was found early on Friday and several more people were still feared missing, said the director general of the Civil Defense, Mustafa al-Basaiah.

Thirteen of the dead and 26 of about three dozen people wounded in Thursday's flash floods were middle school children, officials said. They said three of those killed, including two students, were Iraqis living in Amman.

The incident began early Thursday afternoon when 37 students from an Amman private school, along with seven adult chaperones, as well as other visitors were taking a break at hot springs several kilometers from the Dead Sea shores. Sudden heavy rains sent flash floods surging toward them from higher ground, sweeping them away, some as far as the Dead Sea, officials said.

A complex rescue operation involving helicopters, divers, sniffer dogs and hundreds of searchers continued into the night Thursday and resumed Friday. Israel's military said it also dispatched a rescue team at the request of the Jordanian government.

Brig. Gen. Farid al-Sharaa, a Civil Defense spokesman, said Friday that the flooding was one of the deadliest incidents in recent memory involving schoolchildren.

Jordan's King Abdullah II canceled a planned working visit to Bahrain, initially scheduled for Friday. He was to have been the keynote speaker at a security conference. In a message on his Twitter account, the monarch said that "the pain of each father, mother and family is my pain." He also expressed anger toward those who he said "failed to take measures that could have prevented this painful incident," but stopped short of assigning specific blame.

The king ordered the Jordanian flag at the palace's main entrance to fly at half-staff for three days in mourning for the victims of the flood.

The U.N. secretary general and several regional leaders sent condolences.
The low-lying Dead Sea area is prone to flash flooding when rain water rushes down from adjacent hills. In April, 10 Israeli students were killed in a flash flood while on a hiking trip near the Dead Sea.

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France to Take in 100 Yazidi Women Stranded in Iraqi Kurdistan

French President Emmanuel Macron has pledged to bring to France 100 Yazidi women who were victims of assault by Islamic State fighters in northern Iraq beginning in 2014, his office said Thursday.

Macron's offer came after a meeting in Paris with Nadia Murad, who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize this month for her campaign to end sexual violence as a weapon of war.

Murad was one of thousands of Yazidi women captured by IS jihadists before they were driven out of Sinjar and other parts of Iraq, starting with campaigns by Kurdish forces backed by US-led coalition forces.

Macron said that in response to Murad's request, 20 of the refugees being held without access to care in Iraqi Kurdistan would come to France by the end of this year, and the remainder in 2019.

He said he would also back Murad's launch of a reconstruction fund for Sinjar to build hospitals and schools, hopefully encouraging Yazidis who had fled to return to their bastion.

Murad was in Paris to present a report from the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) on the brutalities inflicted on Yazidi women during the IS siege, in particular those by foreign fighters who had joined the IS jihadists.

More than 6,800 Yazidis were kidnapped, of which 4,300 either escaped or were bought as slaves, while 2,500 remain missing, the report said.

The federation called on governments to pursue its citizens who fought alongside IS for participating in genocide and crimes against humanity.

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UN Chief Decries Failure to Bring Women into Peacemaking

At Least 14 Schoolchildren Die in Jordan Flash Flood

DEAD SEA, JORDAN — 

At least 14 schoolchildren and teachers on an outing died in a flash flood near Jordan's Dead Sea on Thursday, rescuers and hospital workers said.

A witness said a bus with the children and teachers was on a trip to a resort area when floodwaters swept them into a valley. Thirty-four people were rescued in an operation involving helicopters and army troops, police chief Brig. Gen. Farid al Sharaa told state television. Some of those rescued were in serious condition.

Hundreds of families and relatives converged on Shounah hospital a few kilometers from the resort area. Relatives sobbed and searched for missing children, a witness said.

Israel sent search-and-rescue helicopters to assist, an Israeli military statement said, adding that the team dispatched at Amman's request was operating on the Jordanian side of the Dead Sea.

Civil defense spokesman Capt. Iyad al Omar told Reuters the number of casualties was expected to rise.

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Saudi Arabia: Killing of Khashoggi Was 'Premeditated'

Japanese Journalist Says 3-Year Captivity in Syria Was 'Hell'

A Japanese freelance journalist has arrived home in Tokyo after more than three years in captivity in Syria.

Onlookers watched through airport terminal windows as a Turkish Airlines flight carrying Jumpei Yasuda touched down at Tokyo airport Thursday, and as Yasuda disembarked, walked towards a waiting van and was driven away.

The 44-year-old journalist walked into an immigration office in the southern Turkish city of Antakya on Tuesday. Japanese diplomats confirmed his identity Wednesday.

Yasuda was abducted in 2015 by an al-Qaida-affiliated group after arriving in Syria to cover that country's civil war.

During an earlier trip from Antakya to Istanbul, Yasuda told Japanese reporters that his 40 months in captivity was "hell," both physically and mentally, and even started to believe he would never be released.

He said he was happy to finally be going home, but expressed concerns about his future: "I don't know what will happen from here or what I should do," he told reporters.

Yasuda also said he had not spoken Japanese in more than three years.

The circumstances of Yasuda's release are unclear. But a senior Japanese government spokesman said Qatar and Turkey negotiated his freedom. The spokesman denied a ransom was paid.

This is the second time Yasuda was kidnapped while covering the Middle East, having been held hostage for a brief period in Baghdad in 2004.

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Saudi Crown Prince Condemns Journalist's Murder

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has described the killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi as a "heinous" crime in his first public comments since the journalist's disappearance from the Saudi consulate in Turkey. Saudi Arabia recently admitted that Khashoggi was killed Oct. 2 in its Istanbul consulate. Eighteen people were arrested in the case, including an official close to the crown prince, who spoke about the case for the first time Wednesday. VOA's Zlatica Hoke has more.

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Saudi Crown Prince Expects Economic Growth of 2.5 Percent in 2018

RIYADH — 

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said on Wednesday the kingdom will continue with reforms and spending on infrastructure, predicting the economy will grow by 2.5 percent this year.

Speaking at an investment conference in Riyadh, the crown prince also said he expected economic growth next year to be higher.

Higher oil prices has helped Saudi Arabia's economy grow in the second quarter at its fastest pace for over a year, according to official data.

Gross domestic product, adjusted for inflation, expanded 1.6 percent from a year earlier in the April-June quarter. That was up from 1.2 percent in the first quarter and the fastest growth since the fourth quarter of 2016.

The pick-up was mainly due to the government sector, where growth jumped to 4.0 percent from 2.7 percent as authorities boosted spending, the data showed.

The crown prince also said the kingdom would press ahead with a war on terrorism.

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Algerian Lawmakers 0ust parliament Speaker, Elect Youthful Replacement

ALGIERS — 

Algeria's governing coalition elected a relatively youthful new parliamentary speaker on Wednesday to replace Said Bouhadja whom it accused of mismanagement.

The new speaker, Mouad Bouchared, is aged 47 – unusually young for a country where many senior officials are in their 70s and above.

His election may be a sign that the ruling National Liberation Front seeks to rejuvenate a political elite which is dominated by figures from the war of independence against France which ended in 1962.

Lawmakers of the FLN and its coalition partner, the Democratic National Rally, accused Bouhadja, who is around 80, of mismanagement in the job of speaker.

But opposition lawmakers boycotted the parliamentary session in solidarity with Bouhadja who described his ousting as illegal and was quoted by the private Echorouk TV channel as saying: "I will not resign."

President Abdelaziz Bouteflika's office did not comment.

Bouteflika, 81, who has rarely been seen in public since he suffered a stroke in 2013, has not yet said whether he will seek a fifth term in next April's election but his supporters have repeatedly urged him to stand.

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Trump: Saudi Crown Prince Bears Ultimate Responsibility for Dissident's Killing

Netanyahu: If Not For Israel, Hamas Would Topple Abbas

TEL AVIV, ISRAEL — 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed on Wednesday to maintain a permanent Israeli military force in the West Bank, saying that if it weren't for Israeli troops stationed there Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas would be "overrun in two minutes" by Hamas militants.

Netanyahu told a major Jewish conference that Israel doesn't have the liberty to repeat its mistake in Gaza, where Hamas violently seized control from Abbas after Israeli forces withdrew from the coastal strip. Asked about his vision for the West Bank, Netanyahu said he preferred to avoid labels such as "Palestinian state." But he did make clear his view that Abbas, known by his nickname Abu Mazen, and his Palestinian Authority owe their very existence to Israel's protection, and directly benefit from the presence of Israeli troops.

"They'd be overrun in two minutes. A couple of years ago we uncovered a plot of 100 Hamas men to overthrow Abu Mazen. Overthrow? Kill him. Not kill him politically. Kill him. So, if we weren't there, they'd not be there, which is exactly what happened when we left Gaza," Netanyahu told an assembly of the Jewish Federation of North America.

Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip in 2005, evacuating its settlements there and pulling back all its troops. The following year, Hamas won parliamentary elections and a year after that, it violently overthrew forces loyal to Abbas and has since ruled the territory with an iron fist.

As part of interim peace deals in the 1990s, the West Bank was carved up into autonomous and semi-autonomous Palestinian areas, known as Areas A and B, and Area C, which is under exclusive Israeli control and home to dozens of Israeli settlements.

Previous peace talks have come to a deadlock over how much of the territory would become part of the future Palestinian state.

Nabil Abu Rdeneh, an Abbas spokesman, said the only way to achieve peace and stability was through a Palestinian state on the entire West Bank, with east Jerusalem as its capital.

"Other than that, it is just excuses to keep the occupation," he said, adding that continued occupation and settlements "will only lead to instability and violence."

After years of rejecting the concept, Netanyahu ultimately agreed to the idea of a demilitarized Palestinian state in 2009. But he has since walked it back some, faced with pressure from his more hard-line coalition partners.

Maintaining security control of the West Bank is a longstanding position of Netanyahu. Israel continues security cooperation with Palestinian forces even though there haven't been serious peace talks since Netanyahu took office in 2009. President Donald Trump, however, has promised to present a far-reaching and much-awaited peace plan of his own at some time.

Netanyahu's comments appeared to indicate how far he'd be willing to go if forced to compromise in the West Bank.

"They [Abbas' authority] were there in Gaza, they had 15,000 armed men, Hamas had 3,000. Within a few days they kicked him out and we can't afford that happening in Judea, Samaria, the West Bank,'' he said, referring to the area by its biblical name. "We left Gaza. What happened? This tiny thumb became a position of radical Islam supported by Iran and they fired 4,000 missiles on us."

While Israel and Hamas have waged three wars in Gaza over the past decade, the West Bank has remained relatively calm.

Since 2015, Palestinians have killed over 50 Israelis in stabbings, shootings and car-ramming attacks and Israeli forces have killed over 260 Palestinians in that same period. Israel has described most of the Palestinians killed as attackers, but occasional clashes have also turned deadly.

The Palestinian Health Ministry said Israeli troops shot and killed a 21-year-old Palestinian who threw stones at soldiers during clashes Wednesday in the West Bank. The ministry said five other rioters were wounded by live fire during confrontations with Israeli soldiers in the village of Tamoun.

The Israeli military said some 50 Palestinians instigated a riot during a routine Israeli search for illegal weapons, hurling rocks and fireworks at the troops. The troops responded with riot dispersal means and live fire. The military said its searches resulted in confiscating two improvised weapons.

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UN Official Warns of Imminent Great Hunger in Yemen

A United Nations official is warning that Yemen is in imminent danger of being engulfed by unprecedented famine. Mark Lowcock, U.N. undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs, advised the U.N. Security Council Tuesday that the war-torn Arab country is facing greater famine than any professional in the field has ever seen. VOA's Zlatica Hoke reports the U.N. official called for efforts to stop violence and increase humanitarian aid.

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US Identifies Some Saudis Responsible for Khashoggi’s Death, Revokes Visas

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says the United States has already identified some of the Saudis suspected of involvement in the killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi and is revoking their visas and exploring additional measures. VOA Diplomatic Correspondent Cindy Saine reports from the State Department.

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Factbox: Who Are 15 Saudis Who Traveled to Turkey Ahead of Khashoggi's Killing?

US to Revoke Visas of Saudis Implicated in Khashoggi's Death

UN: 14 Million Yemenis Could Soon Be at Risk of Starvation

Iraq: Blast at Market Near Mosul Kills 6, Including 2 Troops

BAGHDAD — 

An Iraqi official says a bomb blast at a market in a town south of the city of Mosul has killed at least six people, including two soldiers.

The official says the bombing happened on a street in the market of Qayyara, a town in northern Ninevah province.

The officer says at least 40 people have been wounded. The officer spoke anonymously, under government regulations.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.

Qayyara is about 70 kilometers (45 miles) south of Mosul, Iraq's second largest city. Both Mosul and Qayyara were ruled by Islamic State militants from 2014 until 2017, when Iraqi forces recaptured the area after heavy fighting.

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US Tech Companies Reconsider Saudi Investment

Palestinians: Israelis Fatally Shot Teen at Gaza Protest

GAZA CITY, GAZA STRIP — 

Gaza's Health Ministry says a 17-year-old Palestinian was killed by Israeli fire during a protest along the perimeter fence with Israel.

The ministry said Montaser al-Baz was shot in the head Tuesday and died hours later at a hospital.

The Israeli military said 200 protesters burned tires and threw explosive devices toward the fence. It said Israeli troops opened fire at one protester who approached the fence and lobbed an explosive device.

Hamas has held weekly protests along the frontier for six months, aimed at easing a crippling Israeli-Egyptian blockade. Recently, Hamas has appeared to be scaling back the protests amid renewed Egyptian efforts to broker a cease-fire with Israel.

Israeli fire has killed 157 Palestinians during the protests. An Israeli soldier was shot dead in July.

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Saudis to Give Pakistan $6 Billion Worth Cash, Defer Oil Payments Relief

Syria's Food Production Hits 29-Year Low

GENEVA — 

A report by the Food and Agriculture Organization and World Food Program finds extreme weather conditions in Syria have caused the lowest production of wheat and barley for nearly three decades in this war-torn country.

Still, the Syrian government has managed to pacify most of country after more than seven years of brutal, murderous conflict that has reportedly killed more than 350,000 people. Because of improved security, more people are returning to their places of origin.

But the report says despite improved access to agricultural land in some areas, erratic weather has caused a sharp decline in crop production this year, compared to last. It says large areas of rainfed cereals have failed because of a long dry period early in the season. This was followed by unseasonably late heavy rains and high temperatures, which seriously diminished irrigated cereal yields.

Spokesman for the World Food Program, Herve Verhoosel, told VOA this extremely bad harvest will impact badly upon a population that already is short of food.

“We are talking about a third of the production compared to three years ago, then probably everybody will be affected either by the higher price of cereals on the market or by lack of cereal. Then that will probably affect everybody because they will not have the cereal, or they will need to pay more to have them,” Verhoosel said.

The report finds market access and trade has improved considerably throughout the country. It says humanitarian access to people in hard to reach places is much better. And, with the military gains made by Syrian forces, there no longer are any besieged areas.

Though access to food has generally improved, the report finds about one-quarter of households still suffer from chronic hunger. Data show about 44 percent of households have reduced the number of meals they eat each day and when food is scarce, 35 percent of adults will first feed their children.

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Saudi, Bahrain Add Iran's Revolutionary Guards to Terror Lists

DUBAI — 

Saudi Arabia said on Tuesday it and Bahrain had added Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps and senior officers of its Quds Force to their lists of people and organizations suspected of involvement in terrorism.

The Saudi state news agency SPA quoted a statement from the security services saying Qassem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force, and the force's Hamed Abdollahi and Abdul Reza Shahlai were named on the list.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury in 2011 alleged that Soleimani, Abdollahi and Shahlai were linked to a plot to assassinate Saudi Arabia's former ambassador to the United States, Adel Al-Jubeir, and imposed sanctions on them.

Iran at the time dismissed the accusations as false and demanded an apology from the U.S. government.

The office of the Revolutionary Guards and Iran's foreign ministry were not immediately available for comment Tuesday.

The Quds Force is the extraterritorial branch of the Revolutionary Guards.

The SPA also said the Terrorist Financing Targeting Center (TFTC), a U.S.-Gulf initiative to stem finance to militant groups, had designated as terrorist-linked several people associated with the Afghan Taliban, some of whom were Iranians.

The center was established in May 2017 during U.S. President Donald Trump's trip to Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia and the United States co-chair the group and Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates are also members.

The Trump administration aims to create a security and political alliance with the Sunni Gulf Arab states to counter Shi'ite Iran's influence in the region, especially in Syria and Iraq.

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US, Gulf Countries Issue Joint Sanctions Against Taliban Figures

A coalition of the United States and six Persian Gulf countries including Saudi Arabia announced sanctions Tuesday on nine individuals belonging to or supporting the Taliban.

The Terrorist Financing Targeting Center (TFTC) said they included two members of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard on the list to highlight the country’s “regionally destabilizing behavior,” furthering the “U.S. maximum pressure campaign against Iran.”

“Iran’s provision of military training, financing, and weapons to the Taliban is yet another example of Tehran’s blatant regional meddling and support for terrorism," U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said.

The list also featured prominent Taliban actors, several of whom helped coordinate shipments of weapons from Iran to the terror organization.

Individuals sanctioned by the U.S. government typically have any bank accounts or assets in the U.S. frozen and are hit with travel restrictions. The Treasury Department, representing the U.S. in the coalition, did not say specifically what form the sanctions would take in this case.

The TFTC was created in 2017 to identify and disrupt terrorist finance networks and is co-chaired by the U.S. and Saudi Arabia.

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Stock Markets Tumble Gripped by Geopolitical Fears

LONDON — 

Stock markets slumped Tuesday on geopolitical risks stretching from US tensions with Russia and Saudi Arabia to trade issues and Italy's budget stand-off with the European Union.

European stocks picked up where Asia left off, with Frankfurt closing over two percent down, after Hong Kong closed down more than three percent.

Wall Street also saw sharp falls in the early hours of trading, although the Dow and Nasdaq held above the morning's worst levels approaching midday in New York.

Mixed US corporate earnings, prompting sharp falls in Dow members Caterpillar and 3M, added to geopolitical angst among investors, dealers reported.

'Turning chicken'

"US equity markets turned sharply lower as investors turned chicken to the tune of some very risk-off mood music," said Neil Wilson at Markets.com.

The dollar was down versus the euro, yen and pound.

The price of gold, which is typically in demand in times of unertainty, rose by around one percent on the day.

Participating in Frankfurt's plunge was a share price drop in chemicals and pharmaceuticals giant Bayer after a San Francisco judge on Monday upheld a jury verdict that found Bayer-owned Monsanto liable for not warning a groundskeeper that its weed killer product Roundup might cause cancer.

Judge Suzanne Bolanos denied Monsanto's request for a new trial but cut the $289 million damages award to $78 million to comply with the law regarding how punitive damages awards must be calculated.

Bayer said it would appeal the latest ruling.

There is growing unease meanwhile about Italy's row with the EU over its purse-busting budget, which Brussels said breaks the bloc's financial rules.

'Collision course'

The populist government in Rome has refused to back down and cut its spending promises despite warnings about the country's economic outlook.

On Tuesday, the EU Commission rejected Italy's draft budget, the first time the EU executive has ever sent a member state back to the drawing board over spending plans.

"We doubt that the Italian government will alter its budget sufficiently to placate the Commission, suggesting that the two remain on a collision course," Capital Economics said in a note to clients.

Pressure is also growing on Saudi Arabia after it admitted that a journalist critical of Riyadh had been killed at its Istanbul consulate.

'Savage murder'

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday said that the "savage murder" of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul was meticulously planned, demanding that all those linked to the killing face punishment.

Oil prices slid Tuesday as the market discounted concerns about potential supply disruptions in the Middle East.

Saudi Arabia said Monday it had no plans to repeat its harsh 1973 oil embargo, even as relations with the West sour following the death of Khashoggi.

Earlier in Asia, sharp equity losses brought an end to a rally in previous sessions fuelled by China's top brass issuing coordinated statements of support for the country's markets and officials unveiling tax cut plans.

Elsewhere, nerves have been tested by US President Donald Trump's warning that he will pull out of a nuclear treaty with Russia and bolster America's arsenal.

Key figures around 1540 GMT

London - FTSE 100: DOWN 1.2 percent at 6,955.21 points (close)

Frankfurt - DAX 30: DOWN 2.2 percent at 11,274.28 (close)

Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 1.7 percent at 4,967.69 (close)

EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 1.5 percent at 3,140.94

New York - Dow: DOWN 1.7 percent at 24,890.49

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 2.7 percent at 22,010.78 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 2.3 percent at 2,594.83 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng: DOWN 3.1 percent at 25,346.55 (close)

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1479 from $1.1466 at 2100 GMT

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2978 from $1.2967

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 112.17 from 112.81 yen

Oil - Brent Crude: DOWN $2.33 at $77.50 per barrel

Oil - West Texas Intermediate: DOWN $2.03 cents at $67.33

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Japan: Man Believed to Be Missing Journalist in Syria Freed

TOKYO — 

Japan's government said Tuesday that a man believed to be a Japanese freelance journalist who went missing three years ago while in Syria has been released and is now in Turkey.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told a hastily arranged news conference late Tuesday that Japan was informed by Qatar that the man, believed to be journalist Jumpei Yasuda, has been released.

Yasuda was last heard from in Syria in 2015.

Suga said Qatar's government told Japanese officials that the man is being protected by the Turkish authorities and is being identified, and that he is most likely Yasuda.

Suga said he has notified Yasuda's family of the news.

Yasuda started reporting on the Middle East in early 2000s. He was taken hostage in Iraq in 2004 with three other Japanese, but was freed after Islamic clerics negotiated his release.

His most recent trip to Syria was in 2015 to report on his journalist friend Kenji Goto, who was taken hostage and killed by the Islamic State group.

Contact was lost with Yasuda after he sent a message to another Japanese freelancer on June 23, 2015. In his last tweet two days earlier, Yasuda said his reporting was often obstructed and that he would stop tweeting his whereabouts and activities.

Several videos showing a man believed to be Yasuda have been released in the past year.

In one video released in July, the bearded man believed to be Yasuda said he was in a harsh environment and needed to be rescued immediately.

Syria has been one of the most dangerous places for journalists since the conflict there began in March 2011, with dozens killed or kidnapped.

Several journalists are still missing in Syria and their fate is unknown.

Those missing include Austin Tice of Houston, Texas, who disappeared in August 2012 while covering the conflict, which has killed some 400,000 people. A video released a month later showed him blindfolded and held by armed men, saying ``Oh, Jesus.'' He has not been heard from since.

Tice is a former Marine who has reported for The Washington Post, McClatchy Newspapers, CBS and other outlets, and disappeared shortly after his 31st birthday.

Another is British photojournalist John Cantlie, who appeared in Islamic State group propaganda videos. Cantlie has worked for several publications, including The Sunday Times, The Sun and The Sunday Telegraph. He was kidnapped with American journalist James Foley in November 2012. The IS beheaded Foley in August 2014.

Lebanese journalist Samir Kassab, who worked for Sky News, was kidnapped on Oct. 14, 2013, along with a colleague from Mauritania Ishak Moctar and a Syrian driver while on a trip in northern Syria.

In March 2014, two Spanish journalists — correspondent Javier Espinosa and photographer Ricardo Garcia Vilanova — were released six months after being kidnapped by an al-Qaida-linked group.

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