https://arab.news/2vd6n
DUBAI: Sultan Haitham of Oman will visit the UAE on Monday for talks with President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, state news agency WAM reported.
During the visit, both leaders will discuss “the deep-rooted, historical relations between the UAE and Oman and cooperation in various fields,” the agency said.
The two leaders will also discuss a number of regional and international issues of common interest.
BEIRUT: Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan has congratulated Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on his election as president on behalf of King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Following his meeting with Aoun at the Presidential Palace, which lasted about half an hour, Prince Faisal said that they discussed “developments in the region; I conveyed to him the Kingdom’s support for Lebanon and its brotherly people in all fields.”
He emphasized “the importance of adhering to the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Lebanon and the importance of implementing Resolution 1701.”
Prince Faisal said that Saudi Arabia was “optimistic about Lebanon’s future, in light of the reformist approach outlined in the president’s inaugural address.”
He added: “We have great confidence in the president and the prime minister-designate to implement the required reforms in Lebanon, which will enhance the world’s confidence in Lebanon and contribute to stabilizing the political and economic situation in the country.
“We are optimistic that Lebanese leaders will seize the opportunity and work earnestly for Lebanon.”
The Kingdom, Prince Faisal said, “will continue to provide full support to Lebanon to achieve stability and development in various fields.”
He stressed the “necessity of continuous coordination between the two countries to achieve their shared goals.”
His visit marked a turning point in years of strained relations between Lebanon and Saudi Arabia.
The tension was caused by Hezbollah’s dominance over Lebanon’s political decisions over the past years, and the use of illegal crossings for drug smuggling, particularly Captagon, to Gulf states.
The Saudi minister emphasized from Davos that the election of Aoun as Lebanon’s president was a “very positive development.”
Prince Faisal welcomed the “formation of the government,” but emphasized the need for “real reforms and a forward-looking approach to ensure sustainable progress.”
He also reiterated that “the future of Lebanon rests in the hands of its people to make decisions that steer the country in a new direction.”
Meanwhile, Qatar’s ambassador to Lebanon, Saud bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, expressed hope for “the formation of the new government in Lebanon, allowing it to focus on accomplishing its awaited tasks, which would foster stability and ensure the flow of aid for Lebanon’s reconstruction.”
He highlighted “the Gulf’s interest in Lebanon, illustrated by the visits of the Saudi and Kuwaiti ministers of foreign affairs, along with the Gulf Cooperation Council’s secretary-general, to Beirut.
“I believe Israel will withdraw from the territories it recently occupied in southern Lebanon. The international ceasefire monitoring committee is fulfilling its role, with the US and France supporting this outcome.”
The ambassador also said that “Gulf nationals, including Qataris, are expected to return to Lebanon for the summer season.”
Meanwhile, Emirati businessman Khalaf Al-Habtoor said that he plans to invest in a “large and ambitious project in Lebanon once the new government is formed. The project has a vision to contribute to the economic renaissance and provide thousands of jobs, to be a real addition to support the Lebanese economy and restore confidence in it.”
However, Al-Habtoor stressed that any new investment would be contingent on the formation of a properly constituted government.
“The new government must be free of subordination and quotas, and it must not include those who ruined Lebanon, caused the collapse of the economy and instigated its wars,” he said.
“This phase requires trustworthy leaders and a Cabinet of experienced and qualified individuals who are committed to prioritizing Lebanon’s interests. Security and stability are the foundation of any recovery, and these can only be achieved through a strong and independent government capable of restoring the confidence of Lebanese, Arab and international investors.”
Al-Habtoor also cautioned that “any leniency in the formation process or acceptance of subordination will only lead to the continuation of the crisis and will close the doors of investment and renaissance to Lebanon and its people.”
BAGHDAD: The Iraqi parliament has passed an amnesty law that could lead to the release of thousands of prisoners, including Iraqis convicted of attacks on US soldiers and people who fought for Islamic State, lawmakers said on Thursday.
A copy of the law seen by Reuters shows that those found guilty of terrorism leading to murder or disability, manslaughter, vandalising government institutions, and recruiting for or joining terrorist organizations can request a retrial if they allege a confession was extracted under duress.
Judicial sources and lawmakers confirmed that those convicted of attacks against American forces in Iraq could benefit from the law.
Sunni blocs in the Iraqi parliament have been pushing for the law as many of those in prison on such charges are Sunni Muslims, with most convicted of membership of Al Qaeda and Islamic State and carrying out attacks against Iraqi forces and civilians, mostly between 2004 and 2018.
Sunni lawmakers estimate that at least 30,000 Sunni prisoners will have the chance for a retrial.
Judicial sources say around 700 members of Shiite militias are also in prison convicted of terrorism, having been arrested by US forces between 2004 and 2008, for attacks on US soldiers.
Abul Karim Al-Mohammedawi, the Shiite head of parliament’s security and defense committee, said the top priority of the law should be releasing detainees who fought American forces in Iraq because “they are heroes and should be rewarded for their sacrifices, not left behind bars for the crime of defending their country.”
Sunni lawmaker Raad Al-Dahlaki said: “This law will not lead to the immediate release of prisoners. We, the Sunni bloc in parliament, demanded the retrial and review of all the prisoners’ investigations, and the courts will decide their fate.”
The law applies to all convicted Iraqis and those accused of crimes still under investigation or on trial. It also allows for the review of death sentences.
Government officials and judicial sources say the new law will alleviate pressure on overcrowded prisons, which currently house around 67,000 prisoners, far exceeding their capacity of 25,000.
Tuesday’s session also passed an amendment to the Iraqi personal status law, which was submitted by the majority Shiite blocs in parliament, that would allow Iraqi Muslims to choose either Sunni or Shi’ite sharia laws for personal status matters, instead of one standard regardless of sect or religion.
Critics say amendments that allow sect-based jurisprudence to govern personal matters, such as marriage, divorce, and inheritance, could institutionalize legal divisions between Sunni and Shiite Iraqis, further entrenching sectarian divides.
“This amendment could change the social fabric of the country at a time when sectarian tensions run high and stability remains precarious”, said Sarah Sanbar, Iraq researcher at Human Rights Watch.
The parliament also approved a law, which was pressed by the Kurds, allowing the return of farmlands confiscated before 2003 to their original owners, mainly Kurds.
LONDON: The Jordanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday condemned the Israeli military campaign in the city of Jenin in the north of the occupied West Bank.
Sufian Al-Qudah, the spokesperson for the ministry, said that Jordan opposed and condemned the aggression of Israeli occupation forces in Jenin, which violated international humanitarian law.
He urged the international community to act to compel Israel to halt the escalation in action in the occupied West Bank, the Jordan News Agency reported.
The Governor of Jenin Kamal Abu Al-Rub told WAFA News Agency that Israeli forces had cut off electricity to the Jenin camp and surrounding areas on Thursday. This had resulted in a power outage at the Jenin Government and Ibn Sina hospitals.
The Israeli operation, which was launched just after a ceasefire in Gaza, has left at least 10 Palestinians dead, according to health authorities.
DUBAI: More than 300 million people around the world will need humanitarian assistance and protection in 2025, according to the Global Humanitarian Overview.
The conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine have dominated international attention, while other crises — such as those in Sudan, Myanmar and Venezuela — continue to affect millions.
The World Economic Forum in Davos drew attention to these crises, bringing together Comfort Ero, the president and CEO of International Crisis Group; Catherine Russell, the executive director of UNICEF; and Ricardo Hausmann, founder and director of the Growth Lab at Harvard University. The panel they attended was titled “Crises Beneath the Headlines” and moderated by Ishaan Tharoor, the foreign affairs columnist at The Washington Post.
Ero said that it was the first time in the group’s 30 years of operations where its work was dominated by “big power rivalry and major power competition,” which “infects” and influences many conflicts.
Although there are fewer conflicts, particularly in Africa, it does not mean there are not any conflicts, she added.
Ero said: “I do not necessarily think that these conflicts are off the radar; they have been deprioritized because of the bandwidth and the capacity, and because there’s just an inordinate amount of conflicts on the rise at the same time.”
Russell said that UNICEF, too, was struggling to respond to the sheer number and scale of crises.
She said: “We estimate that more than 213 million children live in 146 countries and territories and will need humanitarian assistance. The numbers are just overwhelming.”
Crises in Haiti, Myanmar, Sudan and Syria are also on UNICEF’s agenda, but the organization faces funding issues with 50 percent of the humanitarian funding it receives going to only five emergencies, Russell said.
She spoke about the massive numbers of children affected in Haiti and Sudan.
Some 700,000 people, including 365,000 children, are displaced because of violence perpetrated by armed gangs, and 6 million people need humanitarian assistance, with serious food insecurity an added issue in Haiti.
In Sudan, 19 million children are school-aged and 17 million of them are out of school and have been for more than a year.
While Syria has had a recent moment of triumph, its infrastructure has completely collapsed and millions of children are out of school and living in areas with landmines, which have become a leading cause of death and injury, she added.
“Attention draws resources, and so not having a lot of attention (drawn to these issues) is a problem,” Russell said.
Latin America is not free of issues either, with Venezuela being in the midst of a political and humanitarian crisis exacerbated by Nicolas Maduro, its president, remaining in office despite a six-month-long election dispute, international calls for him to stand aside, and an increase in the US reward offered for his capture.
Hausmann described the country’s downfall as “poetic in some dark sense.”
Despite Venezuela sitting on top of the largest oil reserves in the world, its gross domestic product has collapsed by 75 percent — “that’s three Great Depressions” — and 8 million people have left the country, he said.
Hausmann added that “Venezuela’s biggest obstacle is the government,” which has become an “international criminal organization” involved in “narco trafficking, money laundering, (and) the finance of terrorism.”
He said: “We have a situation where you have a government that has a deep internal sense of illegitimacy, and in the process of trying to survive it has destroyed the legitimacy of all other organizations (such as) the National Assembly, the Supreme Court, the attorney general, the army, etc.”
Looking to the future, he said, Venezuela was receiving mixed messages from the US with some people, like Secretary of State Marco Rubio and National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, “showing a willingness to be helpful in re-establishing democratic order,” while others, like Ohio Sen. Bernie Moreno, were “more or less normalizing Maduro.”
Tharoor asked the panel how the work of international groups had been affected at a time when countries were shaping their messaging for a “Trumpist world” and becoming more “nation-first.”
Ero said that we “can’t divorce ourselves” from the nation-first approach or from “national interest.”
But, she added: “There is a serious question mark about the crisis of the crisis management system itself, where it’s very hard now to see who the key mediators are that have the influence and leverage to change the dynamics in a country like Sudan. We are in a crisis of peacemaking.”
Organizations like UNICEF and other humanitarian aid agencies are doing what they can but Russell described them as a “band-aid” that arrives due to political failures.
She said: “We save millions and millions of lives, but we’re not the answer. The answer is to stop the conflict in the first place. We have no power to do that, and so we are at the mercy of this really dysfunctional political system.”
She added that the countries that make up the UN Security Council “have to come together and decide that they’re going to put their own interests aside, hopefully, and try to look out for what’s best for their countries and their regions and the world at large.”
LONDON: The Israel Defense Forces’ reliance on Microsoft cloud technology deepened at the height of its invasion of Gaza, an investigation has revealed.
Leaked documents viewed by The Guardian, Israeli-Palestinian publication +972 Magazine and Hebrew-language outlet Local Call show that Microsoft’s business ties with the IDF surged after Oct. 7, 2023.
The US tech giant supplied the IDF with greater computing and cloud services, artificial-intelligence technologies and thousands of hours of technical support.
The Gaza offensive brought new demands for data storage and computing power, with several sources in the Israeli defense community saying the IDF had become dependent on Microsoft, Amazon and Google.
Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform was used by Israeli units across air, sea and ground forces to support combat and intelligence activities.
Staff from the tech giant also worked closely with members of Unit 8200, an IDF intelligence unit that develops cutting-edge espionage technology.
Microsoft’s technology was also used by the IDF to operate Rolling Stone, a system used to manage the population registry of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza. The system is capable of tracking the movement of its subjects.
Ofek, an Israeli air force unit, also used Microsoft services to develop “target banks.” The large databases included potential airstrike targets in Gaza, and were used by IDF personnel during the height of the bombing campaign.
Between October 2023 and June 2024, the Israeli Defense Ministry bought 19,000 hours of engineering support and consultancy services from Microsoft, which was awarded about $10 million in fees as a result of the sales.
The leaked documents reportedly show that the IDF’s average monthly consumption of Azure cloud services in the first six months of the war was 60 percent higher than in the four months preceding it.
The IDF also used technologies from Microsoft’s competitors. Google’s cloud division provided the Israeli military with access to AI-based services, the Washington Post reported on Wednesday.
Use of OpenAI’s GPT-4 also surged during the first six months of the war, though the service was made available through Microsoft’s Azure.
