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BEIRUT: Car bombs killed at least eight people including three children in two separate incidents Sunday in northern Syria, a war monitor said.
One blast hit a car repair shop in Shawa, a village near the Turkish border held by pro-Ankara fighters, residents told AFP.
Five civilians including three children were killed and 10 others injured, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
Areas held by Turkiye and its Syrian proxies in northern Syria are the scene of regular targeted killings, bombings and clashes between armed groups.
In the second incident, an explosive device planted in a vehicle killed three fighters affiliated with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the city of Manbij, according to the Observatory.
Manbij is a former stronghold of the Daesh group that is now held by a military council affiliated with the US-backed SDF.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the bombings.
Syria’s war broke out in 2011 with the brutal repression of anti-government protests.
It has since evolved into a complex conflict involving jihadists and foreign powers, and has killed more than half a million people and displaced millions.
TEHRAN: Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi will embark Tuesday on a rare Africa tour in the latest diplomatic efforts to reduce the Islamic republic’s isolation by forging new alliances.
The three-day trip — which includes Kenya, Uganda, and Zimbabwe — will be the first by an Iranian president to Africa in 11 years.
Raisi will head a delegation that includes Iran’s foreign minister as well as senior businesspeople. He is scheduled to meet with presidents from the three countries, according to the official IRNA news agency.
On Monday, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani described the trip as “a new turning point” which could bolster economic and trade ties with African nations.
He also said the rapprochement is based “on common political views” between Tehran and the three African countries.
Iran has stepped up its diplomacy in recent months to reduce its isolation and offset the impact of crippling sanctions reimposed since the 2018 withdrawal of the United States from a painstakingly negotiated nuclear deal.
On Saturday, Raisi welcomed Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf in a bid to boost relations with Algiers.
Last week, the Islamic republic became a member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization which includes Russia, China, and India.
In March, Iran agreed to restore ties with its regional rival Saudi Arabia under a China-mediated deal. It has since been looking to reestablish ties with other countries in the region including Egypt and Morocco.
In June, Raisi set out on a Latin America tour that included Venezuela, Nicaragua and Cuba before a trip to Indonesia.
ADDIS ABABA: Sudan’s government refused Monday to join a regional meeting aimed at ending nearly three months of brutal fighting, accusing Kenya, which chaired the talks, of favoring the rival paramilitaries.
A power struggle between Sudanese army chief Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan and his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, commander of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), spilled into war in mid-April and has since killed thousands of people and displaced millions.
The east African regional bloc IGAD had invited the foes to a meeting in Ethiopia’s capital on Monday, while fighting still raged across Sudan.
Neither Burhan nor Daglo personally attended the talks in Addis Ababa, although the RSF sent a representative to the “quartet” meeting led by Kenya, South Sudan, Djibouti and Ethiopia.
Since April 15, around 3,000 people have been killed in the violence, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project, but the actual death toll is believed to be much higher as parts of the country remain inaccessible.
A further three million people have been displaced internally or fled across borders, according to the International Organization for Migration.
Multiple diplomatic initiatives to halt the fighting have produced only brief respites, with the UN warning on Sunday that Sudan was on “the brink of a full-scale civil war, potentially destabilising the entire region.”
Previous truce deals have been brokered by Saudi Arabia and the United States, but the east African bloc now seeks to take the lead.
However, on Monday Sudan’s foreign ministry said its delegation would not participate until its request to remove Kenya as chair of the talks was met.
The ministry had asked for “Kenyan President William Ruto (to) be replaced… in particular because of his partiality,” the statement said.
In a communique released after Monday’s meeting, the quartet noted “the regrettable absence of the delegation of the Sudanese Armed Forces in spite of the invitation and confirmation of attendance.”
Daglo had sent a political adviser to the talks in Addis Ababa, while the RSF in a statement denounced “irresponsible behavior” on the army’s part.
The quartet agreed to “mobilize and concentrate the efforts of all stakeholders toward delivering a face-to-face meeting between the leaders of the warring parties,” its statement said.
It also called on the rival generals to “immediately stop the violence and sign an unconditional and indefinite cease-fire.”
IGAD said it would request the African Union to look into possibly deploying the East Africa Standby Force — usually tasked with election observer missions — in Sudan “for the protection of civilians and… humanitarian access.”
Sudanese ex-rebel leader Mubarak Ardol, now aligned with Burhan, denounced “a plan to occupy Sudan” and moves to “promote military interference,” while praising the army for boycotting the meeting.
US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Molly Phee was also in the Ethiopian capital on Monday for meetings with Sudanese and regional officials.
In a statement on Sunday, she had called on the forces loyal to Burhan and Daglo to “immediately end the fighting.”
“We echo the call of countries in the region to prevent any external interference and military support which would only intensify and prolong the conflict,” added Phee.
Experts say that both the army and the RSF enjoy support beyond Sudan’s borders. Neighbouring Egypt backs Burhan, while the United Arab Emirates and Russia’s Wagner mercenary group support Daglo’s efforts.
On the ground, residents reported battles and air strikes in several areas of Khartoum.
“Rockets fell on houses of civilians,” one told AFP.
Witnesses also reported fighting in El-Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan and a commercial hub some 350 kilometers (220 miles) south of Khartoum.
An army source said troops “pushed back against an attack” by rebel forces in Blue Nile state near Ethiopia.
CAIRO: A court in eastern Libya sentenced five people to life in prison after they were convicted of human trafficking over the deaths of 11 migrants who were on a rickety boat trying to cross the Mediterranean to Europe, the office of Libya’s chief prosecutor said Monday.
The court in the city of Bayda also sentenced nine other defendants to 15 years in prison each, the office of General Prosecutor Al-Sediq Al-Sourr said in a statement. Another 24 others were jailed for a year, the statement added.
The defendants were part of a network smuggling migrants from Libya to Europe, it said. The statement did not say when the deadly shipwreck took place or provide further details.
The court ruling was the latest in the conflict-wracked North African nation to target traffickers. On Friday, the chief prosecutor’s office said another court in the capital, Tripoli, sentenced one defendant to life in prison and two others to 20 years each for human trafficking.
In recent years, Libya has become a major transit point for Middle Eastern and African migrants fleeing conflict and poverty to seek a better life in Europe. The oil-rich country descended into chaos following a NATO-backed uprising in 2011 that toppled and killed longtime autocrat Muammar Qaddafi.
Human traffickers have benefited from the instability in Libya, smuggling migrants across borders from six nations, including Egypt, Algeria and Sudan. They then pack desperate people into ill-equipped rubber boats and other vessels for the risky voyage across the central Mediterranean.
For years, the United Nations and rights groups have decried the inhumane conditions faced by migrants trafficked and smuggled across the Mediterranean.
In March, UN-backed human rights experts said there was evidence that crimes against humanity had been committed against Libyans and migrants in in Libya, including women being forced into sexual slavery.
NEW YORK CITY: Although a truce agreed between the Yemeni government and the Iran-backed Houthis expired more than 10 months ago, the people of Yemen continue to reap its benefits, including a decrease in the number of child deaths, and the ongoing flow of fuel shipped through Hodeidah’s port, the UN said on Monday.
It also allowed the first commercial flight in seven years carrying Hajj pilgrims from Sanaa to Saudi Arabia to take place, the organization added.
This period of relative calm has opened a window of opportunity for serious discussions between the warring parties with the aim of ending the conflict once and for all, said Hans Grundberg, the UN’s special envoy for Yemen. However, peace talks will require “a serious breakthrough” if the war is actually to end, he added.
The comments came as Grundberg briefed the Security Council on his latest efforts to mediate an agreement between Yemen’s legitimate government and the Houthis on the way forward. He expressed gratitude for the regional support for such discussions, especially from Saudi Arabia and Oman. He also thanked Jordan for hosting meetings between the two sides in the conflict to discuss the release of more detainees, building on large-scale prisoner-exchange agreements in March.
Despite the general decline in violence in Yemen, Grundberg warned that the situation on the ground remains “fragile and challenging” and “the front lines are not silent.” From Dhale, Taiz and Hodeidah to Marib, Shabwa and Ibb, he said, sparks of violence continue to “increase fears and tensions.” He called on all involved in the conflict to “stop provocative military actions and rhetoric that raise the specter of further escalation.”
In addition, economic battles continue to take a toll on civilians, Grundberg warned.
“The struggle to control revenue-generating ports, trade routes, the banking sector, currency and natural-resource wealth has become inseparable from the political and military conflict,” he said.
Freedom of movement remains another “huge” challenge.
“Conflict-related road closures force thousands of Yemenis every day to take unsafe routes and have raised the cost of transporting goods by upward of 100 per cent,” said Grundberg. “Landmines, unexploded ordnance and climate change-related extreme weather events compound the impact of freedom-of-movement restrictions on civilians.
“For women and girls, the restrictions on freedom of movement have become even more pronounced over the course of the conflict. The requirement that women and girls travel accompanied by a male relative has expanded significantly over the past year, especially in Ansar Allah-controlled areas,” he added, using the official name for the Houthi militia.
“This requirement is also often imposed by armed groups at checkpoints in different parts of the country. Such restrictions prevent women from accessing their basic needs, from engaging in economic opportunities, and from participating in politics and peace-making efforts.”
The Swedish diplomat said “we cannot afford to seek a seasonal peace” as he called on all parties to take “further, bold steps” toward a more sustainable and just peace, including agreement on a “sustainable, nationwide ceasefire, (and to reverse) antagonistic economic policies which deepen the divide between them and further fragment the country, (and to) enhance economic links among Yemenis, including by opening roads” and increasing the number of flights operating out of Sanaa International Airport.
Joyce Msuya, the UN’s deputy emergency relief coordinator, told council members that “Yemen is poised for change” but as the political process progresses “we must remain vigilant and active on the humanitarian front.”
She warned that the need for assistance “will remain high for the foreseeable future” among the 22 million people in Yemen who require aid to survive. This at a time when the international humanitarian response remains at only 29 per cent of the required funding level, resulting in drastic cuts to the provision of safe shelter and food aid for millions, including refugees and internally displaced people, she added.
“Migrants, asylum seekers and refugees are among the most vulnerable of these, and their numbers are growing,” Msuya said, adding that more than 77,000 migrants have arrived in Yemen so far this year, with the number expected to double by the end of the year.
“While not the largest vulnerable group in Yemen in terms of numbers, (migrants) face severe protection risks,” she said.
“Migrants usually arrive in Yemen en route to better opportunities elsewhere. But once in Yemen, they often face exploitation and violence, including extortion, abduction and physical abuse. (Asylum) seekers and refugees use the same routes, arrive in mixed flows with migrants and face similar threats. And women and girls are particularly at risk.”
Msuya called on all those involved in the conflict to “fulfill their obligations to meet the essential needs — such as health, food, water and shelter — of all civilians under their control.”
LEBANON: More than 43,000 students in Lebanon — including the children of Syrian and Palestinian refugees — sat the official exams for the baccalaureate certificate.
The participation rate exceeded 97 percent on the first day, and the exams — covering general sciences, life sciences, economics, sociology and humanities — will continue until Thursday.
The Ministry of Education described the successful completion of the first day of exams as “an achievement” in light of the collapse of the country and its education sector.
The first day witnessed a shortage of observers in some of the 236 centers across Lebanon.
Lebanon’s Ministry of Education described the successful completion of the first day of exams as ‘an achievement’ in light of the collapse of the country and its education sector.
This shortage was compensated for by reducing the number of observers to only one in some examination halls in the Mount Lebanon centers and by using surveillance cameras.
Arab News toured some of the examination centers in Beirut and Mount Lebanon, witnessing cases in which there was a delayed delivery of exam papers.
It was reported that unknown persons cut the cables of surveillance cameras in centers in the Bekaa region.
Exams were also delayed at some centers in North Lebanon because of power cuts.
To prevent exam questions from leaking, committees prepared them at the headquarters of the Ministry of Education on Monday morning.
The heads of the subject committees were asked to hand over their phones before entering the examination hall, and security agencies used a device to jam sound waves around the ministry to ensure that the questions were not leaked.
The exams were printed, copied immediately and distributed to the centers under security escort.
Students and observers received their admission cards just a few days before the exams to prevent cheating.
While some students talked about the leniency of the supervisors, others said that the questions were easy.
Lama, a student in life sciences and economics, said: “The questions were very easy, and we did not feel stressed because the observers were not strict with us.
They allowed us to ask questions, but they definitely did not allow any cheating. Of course, they also did not allow us to bring our mobile phones into the examination hall.”
Rabei, a student in general sciences, said: “The math questions were not easy, but they could be answered by those who studied well.
“Those of us who are taking the official exams this year were exempted from taking the intermediate certificate exam three years ago due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so we may have underestimated the official exams.
But now, I am more confident in myself, and there are still two more days of exams with a day of rest in between, and hopefully everything will go well.”
The academic year in Lebanon has been marred by setbacks due to continuous strikes by teachers in the public education sector to protest the collapse of the value of their salaries.
Public school students received fewer than 40 days of intensive education, while private school students had a relatively stable academic year.
As a result, a group of young people belonging to the Lebanese Student Union staged a protest when Education Minister Abbas Halabi visited an examination center at Shakib Arslan School in the Verdun neighborhood of Beirut.
They intercepted his car, shouted insults and attempted to throw stones at the car.
The young protesters received applause from bystanders and residents.
One protester said that political authorities were turning education into a privilege rather than a right for all students, saying: “There are students who have completed 70 percent of the curriculum, while there are public school students who have only completed 30 percent of it.”
Another protester said that the minister had announced there would be no second chance for students who did not pass exams, which he described as “a great injustice.”
He said: “We will follow the minister wherever he goes during the exams so that history will witness that there were students who struggled for education to be a right and not a privilege.”
During his visit to examination centers, the minister asked students whether the curriculum they had studied had sufficiently prepared them to answer exam questions.
According to the minister’s office, the students responded that “the exams were reasonable.”
Halabi acknowledged that students objected to the exams because they believed they were unfair as some public high schools had not completed the curriculum.
“However, we took this into consideration when designing the exam questions. Had it not been for the determination of the Ministry of Education and the concerted efforts to make this process a success, these exams would not have taken place,” he said.
The Ministry of Education reduced the number of subjects tested on the exam and made some subjects optional in order to be fair to students, said Albert Chamoun, adviser to the minister.