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Record number of journalists jailed as Turkey, China, Saudi Arabia, Azerbaijan pay scant price for repression

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For the second year in a row, the number of journalists imprisoned for their work hit a historical high, as the U.S. and other Western powers failed to pressure the world’s worst jailers–Turkey, China, and Egypt–into improving the bleak climate for press freedom. A CPJ special report by Elana Beiser

The number of journalists imprisoned worldwide hit another new record in 2017, and for the second consecutive year more than half of those jailed for their work are behind bars in Turkey, China, and Egypt. The pattern reflects a dismal failure by the international community to address a global crisis in freedom of the press.

Source: https://cpj.org/reports/2017/12/journalists-prison-jail-record-number-turkey-china-egypt.php

 

Saudi Arabia plans maritime border to turn Qatar into island: Report

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Saudi Arabia turn Qatar into island

Saudi Arabia turn Qatar into island

Amid its bitter diplomatic standoff with Doha, Saudi Arabia is reportedly working on a project to construct a maritime channel along the border with Qatar, practically turning the peninsula into an island.

Saudi daily Sabq reported on Thursday that the Saudi plan is yet to receive official approval.

A consortium of nine local firms is involved in the construction of the waterway that extends from Saudi Arabia’s Salwa region to Qatar’s Khawr Al-Udayd inlet, the report said.

The channel, which is capable of handling all kinds of vessels, is 60 kilometers long, 200 meters wide and between 15-20 meters deep, it added.

The preliminary cost of the maritime channel is projected as nearly 2.8 billion Saudi riyals ($750m). Its construction is also expected to take 12 months.

Meanwhile, a one kilometer stretch of land in the Saudi territory north of the channel would become a “military zone,” according to the report.

It further claimed that the project is meant to activate tourism in the region, with the construction of five hotels and two new harbors along the waterway.

However, observers say it is part of the Riyadh regime’s attempts to further isolate Qatar.

Social media users took to Twitter to criticize the Saudi plan, with the Arabic hashtag #SalwaMaritimeChannel being the number-one trending topic in both Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

Last June, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Bahrain, and the UAE imposed a land, naval and air blockade on import-dependent Qatar, accusing Doha of supporting terrorism, an allegation strongly denied by Doha.

The Saudi-led quartet presented Qatar with a list of demands and gave it an ultimatum to comply with them or face consequences.

Doha, however, refused to meet the demands and stressed that it would not abandon its independent foreign policy.

US, UAE ‘pushing for Persian Gulf unity’

The controversial Saudi plan comes amid claims by the US and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) that they are working on a rapprochement between the Persian Gulf Arab countries.

The White House said in a statement that US President Donald Trump and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed had agreed on regional unity during a phone conversation.

The two leaders agreed that members of the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) “can and should do more to increase coordination with each other and with the United States,” the statement read.

Saudi Arabia to allocate $ 1.5 billion for Iraq reconstruction

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Iraq reconstruction

Iraq reconstruction

Saudi Arabia is ready to allocate $ 1.5 billion for the reconstruction of Iraq, said Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Adel Al-Jubeir at the Kuwait International Conference of Iraq Reconstruction, Sky News Arabia reported.

According to him, Saudi Arabia will allocate $1.5 billion for the reconstruction of Iraq and financing of the Kingdom’s exports.

The International Conference of Iraq Reconstruction and Development, which opened in Kuwait on Monday, was attended by the representatives of over 70 countries, the World Bank, the European Union, the United Nations, humanitarian and human rights organizations, as well as hundreds of companies interested in the investment potential of the Arab country.

Saudi Arabia allows women at football game for first time

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Saudi Arabia has for the first time allowed women to spectate at a football match, part of an easing of strict rules on gender separation by the ultra-conservative Muslim country.

Women fans filed into a stadium in the city of Jeddah on Friday, through family gates into family seating, BBC News reports.

But even segregated as they were, their presence in the stadium marked a significant moment for the Kingdom.

It follows a series of reforms intended to modernise the country.

Earlier on Friday, ahead of the football game, there was another small sign of change: the country’s first car showroom dedicated to female customers was opened.

For the first time, women will this June be allowed to get behind the wheel, after it was announced in September that a ban on women drivers would be lifted.

Women at the car showroom milled around inspecting vehicles that they will be allowed to take out on the road when the ban ends.

At the stadium in Jeddah, female ushers were employed to greet the women fans and their families, who loudly cheered on the local team. Both ushers and fans wore the traditional black abaya robe.

A hashtag, translated as “the people welcome the entry of women into stadiums”, was used tens of thousands of times in two hours as the match took place.

Under Saudi Arabia’s guardianship system, women must be accompanied by a male family member to travel, and work. Most restaurants and cafes have two sections, one for just men and one for families, which are for women and their husbands and families.

The recent reforms are part of a gradual process of modernisation under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is attempting to make the Kingdom more moderate.

Gayane Mahredjyan – the only women working on construction of Suadi Arabia metro

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Gayane Mahredjyan

Gayane Mahredjyan is one of a few women working on the construction of a metro in Riyadh, capital city of Saudi Arabia. She was born in Yerevan, but grew up in Beirut. In an interview with Armenian News-NEWS.am, Gayane recalled her youth in Lebanon and work in different countries.

Father left for Beirut, but we stayed because of war

My parents met in Yerevan where my father came to continue his education. They fell in love, got married, but after graduating from the university, my father failed to find a job here and was forced to return to Beirut. We had to join him, but the war broke out. This is the reason we came to Beirut two years after father’s arrival. I was six then. There was a war, and I entered the engineering department of the university. That meant my family had to sacrifice everything for my education.

I had to work in the office, but my life went differently

I was 23-24 years old, and I got a job in the construction industry. All around were men who came from all over the world. Imagine, every day I dined with 50-60 men. But, the day has come when I was fed up with this. And, I decided to do something else, I started a career in advertising and selling, but, of course, in the construction industry. I dedicated seven years to all this, I was working with13 engineers. But, in 2005 I decided to leave Lebanon, and my childhood friend helped me to do it.

I left Lebanon having only $500 in my pocket

I had obligations to my family, my father practically did not work, my brother joined the army, and I had to support my family. I was already 32 years old, I was an adult and could move to Europe. But, I went to Qatar, began to work there as an engineer at the airport. There I worked for 1.5 years.

Life sent me from Qatar to Abu Dhabi, then to Dubai

From Qatar, I went to Abu Dhabi, where the port was being built. The project was designed by us. There I worked for a year and eight months, gained experience and improved my skills. I was succeeding, and once they called me and said that there is an interesting proposal for me. As a result, I went to Dubai together with my friends. I was told that one of the best companies in the world invites me to join their team. I decided to stay and had to design a business center.

When I was 37 when I started learning French

I started working in Dubai. But in 2008 the crisis began, our client went bankrupt, the annual contract was extended for 2.5 years. I was working with the French. There was French speech all around me, and I was compelled to begin to study this language when I was 36-37 years old.

Life in Dubai was completely different, everything was fleeting. After two and a half years of work, I returned to Abu Dhabi, the project was completed.

From Dubai to Oman, it is like changing a city for a village

Oman is a very beautiful country. This experience was interesting, and the Omanis themselves are very original, friendly and hospitable. They are very happy that someone is working for them, and something new is being done for their country.

In Riyadh they are surprised that I am not married and I am working

I have been living here for 2.5 years. I am working on the design of a metro. Women here lag behind the life of 100 years, but in any case they are fighting for their rights. Women of Saudi Arabia have some other power, they are very smart. For example, 22% of ladies are economists, they are surprised that I am not married and I am working.

A woman should show her strength, and not try to be like a man

According to statistics, there are only three women of 200 engineers. When I took the first steps in this area, I had to work twice as much to gain a foothold in the team that consisted of men only. A woman should show her strength, something that she does well, and should try to become like a man. I have to love this work, to make sacrifices. There is a stereotype of women thinking: a man should take care of me, but this is an incorrect formula. Today, women are much easier, and it is not necessary that a man take her hand and lead her to a cinema … Now I have a boyfriend, I’m glad of that, I develop my professional abilities. If I stop working, I’ll become a housewife, then it will be impossible to find a person sadder than me in the entire world. I am not against marriage, but first of all you need to work on yourself.

There is more soul in Yerevan’s old building

I last visited Armenia in 2014 when I was getting my Armenian passport. This time I took a vacation and came to Yerevan. I would like to do something new here, because I see a great potential for development. I love old Yerevan. I visited many cities, but Yerevan has a special beauty, it combines old and new. However, it would be desirable, that there were no high-rise buildings, that preferences were given to 3-4 storey buildings in the French style. For example, in Dubai there are not so many beautiful buildings, there is more soul in the old buildings of Yerevan. We need to advertise our capital so that many tourists could come to visit it.

Yemeni forces fire retaliatory ballistic missile at Saudi capital: Report

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Saudi Arabia, Attack, Yemen counter Attack, none stop bloody war

Yemen’s Houthi Ansarullah movement says its forces have fired a ballistic missile towards the official residence of Saudi King Salman in the Saudi capital city, Riyadh, in retaliation for the regime’s deadly attacks, al-Masirah TV reported.

Mohammed Abdulsalam, a Houthi spokesman, said the Burkan (Volcano) H-2 missile, which has a range of 800 km, was fired toward al-Yamamah Palace in the western suburbs of the capital where the monarch receives visiting foreign dignitaries and top Saudi officials.

Yemen’s al-Masirah TV channel, citing military sources, said the missile targeted a large gathering of Saudi leaders without providing further details.

The Saudi-led coalition targeting Yemen, however, claimed that the missile had been intercepted in southern Riyadh.

“Ballistic missile intercepted over Riyadh,” the coalition said in a statement.

Saudi media claim that that there have been no reports of damage so far.

Reuters reporters, however, say they have heard a blast and seen a plume of smoke rising above the Saudi capital.

An AFP correspondent also heard a loud explosion at 1050 GMT shortly before the scheduled unveiling of the Saudi budget, which is usually announced from Yamamah Palace by the king.

Al-Alam news network cited informed Yemeni sources as saying that the explosion took place 1.5 km away from the US embassy in Riyadh.

Deputy spokesman of the Yemeni army warned that after the Saudi-led coalition targeted the country’s presidential palace in the capital city of Sana’a on December 5, none of the Saudi palaces would be safe.

The missile unit of Yemen’s Defense Ministry also said that the missile attack targeted the meeting of Saudi officials at al-Yamamah Palace, adding that all the Saudi palaces as well as the kingdom’s military and oil facilities are completely within the range of Yemeni missiles.

It was the second Houthi missile attack against Riyadh over the past two months. The first attack targeted Riyadh international airport on November 4, but Riyadh claimed that it managed to intercept the projectile.

Contrary to the claim by the Saudi military, a report by The New York Times suggested that the ballistic missile was actually not intercepted.

The second missile attack on Riyadh came on the same day that the UN human rights office verified the killings of 136 Yemeni civilians and other non-combatants in the Saudi-led airstrikes over 11 days.

The UN human rights office spokesman, Rupert Colville, said the casualties occurred between December  6-16 in four northern provinces, stressing that UN officials are “deeply concerned” over the rising number of civilian casualties in the impoverished country.

Lebanon demands Saudi Arabia return Prime Minister Saad Hariri

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Lebanon Prime Minister Saad Hariri

Lebanese officials have demanded the return of Prime Minister Saad Hariri from Saudi Arabia. The head of the militant group Hezbollah said the Saudis had “declared war” on Lebanon by holding Hariri against his will.

Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun has called on Saudi Arabia to dispel the “mystery” surrounding Hariri’s whereabouts.

In a statement released by his office on Saturday, Aoun asked Riyadh “to clarify the reasons that are preventing” Hariri from returning to Lebanon.

Aoun, who is yet to formally accept Hariri’s resignation, added that anything Hariri has said or may say “does not reflect reality” due to the “dubious and mysterious situation that he is living in the kingdom.”

Tensions are rising in what is seen as a new front line in the regional rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

A free man

Riyadh said Hariri (pictured above) is a free man and he decided to resign because Iran-allied Hezbollah had become dominant in his government.

Hariri had headed a coalition government for the best part of the last year including members of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militia.

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said in a televised speech Friday that Hariri was being detained in Saudi Arabia and that his “forced” resignation was unconstitutional because it had been made “under duress.”

“It is clear that Saudi Arabia … declared war on Lebanon,” he said. Saudi Arabia says Lebanon has declared war against it

US chips in

The United States said Hariri should be allowed to return to Lebanon. In a message aimed at the Saudis, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson warned on Friday against using Lebanon as “a venue for proxy conflicts.”

Tillerson said if Hariri wants to step down he should “go back to Lebanon” and formally resign, “so that the government of Lebanon can function properly,” adding that he had seen “no indication” that Hariri was being held against his will.

Tit for tat?

Saudi Arabia said on Friday that a Saudi citizen had been kidnapped in Lebanon.

“The embassy is in contact with the highest ranking Lebanese security authorities about securing the unconditional release of a kidnapped Saudi citizen as soon as possible,” it said in a statement quoted by the Saudi state news agency SPA.

Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain have advised their citizens against traveling to Lebanon and urged those already there to leave.

Saudi airstrike on Yemeni Defense Ministry

The other front in the war also saw action on Friday, when fighter jets from a Saudi-led coalition bombed the Houthi rebel-controlled Defense Ministry in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa late on Friday. Three civilians were reportedly wounded.

The coalition has increased attacks on Yemen since the Houthis — who control large parts of the country — fired a rocket at the Saudi capital last weekend.

Saudi Arabia and its allies shut down Yemen’s borders earlier this week after intercepting a missile fired by the Houthis near Riyadh airport on Saturday.

The UN said on Friday that the coalition is still blocking UN aid deliveries to Yemen despite the reopening of the Yemeni port of Aden and also a land border crossing.

The Houthis continue to control the capital, Sanaa, and much of Yemen’s north.

The conflict has left more than 8,650 people dead, including many civilians.

ap,jbh/jlw (dpa, AFP, Reuters, AP)

Lebanon in Crisis: Saudi Arabia tells its citizens to leave Lebanon immediately

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‘Due to the circumstances in the Lebanese Republic, the kingdom asks its citizens who are visiting or residing in the country to leave it as soon as possible’

Saudi Arabia has ordered its citizens out of Lebanon amid skyrocketing tensions between their two governments.

A brief statement carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency called on all Saudis living in or visiting Lebanon to depart, and warned against travel to the country.

“Due to the circumstances in the Lebanese Republic, the kingdom asks its citizens who are visiting or residing” in the country to leave it as soon as possible, a Saudi Foreign Ministry source quoted by the agency said.

Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri shocked his country Saturday when he announced in a televised statement out of Saudi Arabia that he was resigning. He has not been seen in Lebanon since.

He said his country had been taken hostage by the militant group Hezbollah, a partner in his coalition government and a major foe of Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia says it considers Hezbollah’s participation in the Lebanese government an “act of war” against the kingdom.

Lebanese President Michel Aoun has said he will not consider the premier’s resignation until the two meet in person.

Also on Thursday, Mr Hariri’s political party called for his immediate return to Lebanon.

Following a meeting of his Saudi-aligned Future Party in Beirut on Thursday, the party issued a statement saying it was “necessary” for Hariri to return “to restore Lebanon’s dignity and respect.”

The statement read by former Prime Minister Fuad Saniora seemed to indicate that Mr Hariri is being held in Saudi Arabia against his will.

Mr Hariri resigned his post abruptly on Saturday in a strange, pre-recorded speech.

In his absence, Lebanon has been awash with speculation the 47-year old prime minister may be held against his will in Saudi Arabia. Saudi officials have denied Mr Hariri is under house arrest.

AP and Reuters

Egypt court votes against transfer of islands to Saudi Arabia

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An Egyptian woman holds up a national flag bearing the names “Tiran” and “Sanafir,” two islands that the government has agreed to transfer to Saudi Arabia, in Cairo, January 16, 2017. (Photo by AFP)egypt

An Egyptian court has overruled a previous verdict authorizing the transfer of two strategic Egyptian islands to Saudi Arabia, something President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has agreed to in a controversial deal with Riyadh.

The administrative court ruled on Tuesday that all judicial decisions taken to date by the Urgent Matters Court would be considered invalid. The latter had previously ruled in favor of the bilateral deal enabling the transfer in 2016.

Tiran and Sanafir, as the islands are named, can be used to control access to the Israeli port of Eilat. Recent reports have indicated that Riyadh and Tel Aviv are mulling over establishing economic relations.

“The ruling (on Tuesday) signifies that the land is Egyptian,” said Khaled Ali, a lawyer who argued at the administrative court that the islands belonged to Egypt.

The verdict would affirm that any attempt to transfer the islands to Saudi Arabia would be considered unconstitutional “even if the president ratified the agreement,” he added.

Israel had captured the isles back in 1967 along with vast swathes of other Arab territory but returned them to Egypt as part of the 1979 Camp David Accords deal with Cairo.

The Egyptian parliament has endorsed the accord between Sisi and the Saudi king, Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. But the Egyptian president is yet to ratify it. However, he risks further angering the Egyptian public, who have already launched protests against the transfer of the islands to Saudi Arabia.

 

Terrorist State of Turkey rejects demands to close its military base in Qatar

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Turkey military base in QatarTurkey has rejected the demands of Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Bahrain to close the Turkish military base in Qatar. Turkish Defense Minister Fikri Isik noted that he had not seen the call, but made it clear that Ankara did not intend to revise the agreement with Qatar, which led to the creation of the base, Reuters reported.

His comments followed after four Arab states send Doha a list of 13 demands, including the closure of the Turkish base.

“If there is such a demand, it will mean interference in bilateral ties,” Isik said, suggesting instead that Turkey might continue to bolster its presence in Qatar.

According to him, the presence of Turkey in Qatar should be considered as an advantage for the entire Persian Gulf.