Tag Archives: Middle East

Minnesota man faces terror cost for allegedly becoming a member of IS

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A Minnesota man who’s accused of becoming a member of the Islamic State group in Syria has been returned to america to face terrorism expenses

Al-Madioum was lately in a jail in northern Syria with alleged IS fighters, based on information studies.

A search warrant affidavit unsealed in 2017 says Al-Madioum, who was 18 when he left for Syria, is a local of Morocco and a naturalized U.S. citizen. He started learning pc science at Normandale Neighborhood Faculty in Bloomington in 2014.

In June 2015, Al-Madioum and his household traveled to Morocco for a two-month trip to go to family. However on July 7, 2015, Al-Madioum skipped dinner saying he wasn’t feeling nicely, and the following day, he was gone. He left the whole lot behind aside from his cellphone and passport, based on the search warrant affidavit.

Al-Madioum’s household instructed the FBI that he referred to as them shortly after they returned to the U.S. and stated he was working in a hospital in Mosul, Iraq, which was then beneath IS management. However a member of the FBI’s joint terrorism job drive wrote within the affidavit that new recruits generally misinform family members about their precise places and actions in order to not trigger misery.

The FBI searched Al-Madioum’s dwelling in 2015 and located handwritten notes that indicated he had been planning to go to Syria, together with how he may route cash via numerous accounts, a rehearsed backstory in case he was stopped and various journey concepts if his plans to go to Istanbul had been thwarted. The notes additionally contained a sketch of a picture that seems on a flag related to IS, with the Arabic phrase for “allegiance” written subsequent to it.

Chatting with CBS Information from the Syrian jail in 2019, Al-Madioum stated he was recruited to IS via a Twitter contact and had watched propaganda movies that confirmed IS members serving to Muslims. He stated he by no means fought for the group however had hopes of turning into a health care provider.

“They gave me a clean examine to purchase no matter I wished,” stated Al-Madioum, who claimed to have misplaced his arm in a U.S. airstrike.

Al-Madioum is amongst a number of Minnesotans suspected of leaving the U.S. to affix the Islamic State group. In whole, roughly three dozen individuals have left Minnesota to affix militant teams in Somalia or Syria. In 2016, 9 Minnesota males had been sentenced on federal expenses of conspiring to affix the Islamic State group.

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Observe Amy Forliti on Twitter: https://twitter.com/amyforliti



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Oil clambers larger as OPEC, allies transfer nearer to deeper

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SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Oil costs jumped 1.5% on Wednesday on hopes that main producers have made progress in direction of sealing an settlement to implement deeper output cuts aimed toward offsetting the droop in demand brought on by the worldwide coronavirus outbreak.

FILE PHOTO: Pump jacks function at sundown in Midland, Texas, U.S., February 11, 2019. REUTERS/Nick Oxford

Brent crude LCOc1 rose by 78 cents, or 1.50%, to $52.64 a barrel at 0502 GMT, after settling down four cents within the earlier session. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures CLc1 rose by 72 cents, or 1.53%, to $47.90 a barrel, up for a 3rd session.

A panel of the Group of Petroleum Exporting International locations (OPEC) and its allies, a grouping often known as OPEC+, advisable reducing oil output by an additional 1 million barrels per day (bpd) on Tuesday. The advice might imply that Russia and Saudi Arabia, the 2 greatest producers within the OPEC+ group, are near a deal to assist costs.

That will be along with 2.1 million bpd in present output cuts that embody a 1.7 million bpd in curbs by OPEC+ and different voluntary reductions by Saudi Arabia, the world’s greatest exporter. The group is ready to fulfill formally in Vienna on March 5-6.

“That is no time for warning for OPEC+. Second-quarter oversupply wanted some heavy lifting from the group to offset even earlier than the COVID-19 (coronavirus illness) outbreak, however now it’s a should,” Barclays analysts mentioned in a analysis notice.

Brent and WTI have every fallen about 27% from their 2020-peak reached in January.

The anticipated 1 million bpd extra minimize by OPEC+ would nonetheless fall effectively in need of the newly elevated 2.1 million bpd anticipated world demand loss within the first half alone, Goldman Sachs analysts (GS.N) wrote in a analysis notice.

U.S. crude oil inventories rose in the newest week, whereas gasoline and distillate shares fell, knowledge from trade group the American Petroleum Institute confirmed on Tuesday.

Crude inventories rose by 1.7 million barrels within the week to Feb. 28 to 446.6 million barrels, in contrast with analysts’ expectations for a construct of two.6 million barrels.

Goldman has once more minimize its Brent value forecast to $45 a barrel in April, whereas anticipating Brent regularly recovering to $60 a barrel by year-end.

Morgan Stanley on Tuesday additionally minimize its second-quarter 2020 Brent value forecast to $55 per barrel and its WTI outlook to $50 on expectations that China’s 2020 oil demand development can be near zero and that demand elsewhere might weaken due to the virus.

Elsewhere, the U.S. Federal Reserve minimize rates of interest on Tuesday in a bid to protect the world’s largest economic system from the influence of the coronavirus.

“(The) Fed’s emergency fee minimize underscores fragility of financial fundamentals, and this urges OPEC+ to expedite a deeper output minimize to shore up vitality costs,” mentioned Margaret Yang, market analyst at CMC Markets.

Yang mentioned from a technical evaluation perspective, Brent has discovered sturdy assist at round $50-52, whereas quick resistance will be discovered at $54.70.

Reporting by Shu Zhang; Modifying by Christian Schmollinger and Kenneth Maxwell

Our Requirements:The Thomson Reuters Belief Rules.

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Carlos Ghosn’s Japanese lawyers quit after former Nissan chief absconds

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TOKYO (Reuters) – Japanese attorneys representing Carlos Ghosn, including lead lawyer Junichiro Hironaka, quit on Thursday following the former Nissan chief’s flight to Lebanon from Japan, where he had been fighting financial misconduct charges.

In an emailed statement, Hironaka said everyone involved in the case at his practice had resigned. A spokeswoman there declined to give a reason.

A second lawyer in Ghosn’s three-person legal team, Takashi Takano, also quit on Thursday, according to an official at his office.

A person who answered the telephone at the office of the third lawyer, Hiroshi Kawatsu, said she did not know if he still represented the former automotive executive.

Ghosn, who fled Tokyo last month, told Reuters in an interview in Beirut with his wife Carole that he was happy to stay in Lebanon for the rest of his life and claimed he was treated with “brutality” during his detention and bail in Japan.

Carole said she was “done with Japan”.

Japan has issued international wanted notices for the couple, which means the two will live in Lebanon as fugitives and could be arrested if they leave their country.

Hironaka, who earlier expressed disappointment at his client’s decision to abscond, had said he would quit once Ghosn had settled his account.

The case has cast a harsh light on Japan’s justice system, igniting a fierce publicity battle between the former businessman and Justice Minister Masako Mori, who has described Ghosn’s criticism as “absolutely intolerable.”

Ghosn spent more than 120 days in a Tokyo detention center and was interrogated on most days, often for more than seven hours without his lawyers, Takano has said.

Prosecutors questioned him for the first 43 days without a break, including Christmas and New Year’s Day.

On Thursday, Ghosn found an ally in another foreigner, Australian sports journalist Scott McIntyre, who was detained for 44 days for trespassing in a bid to get information on his missing children. He pleaded guilty to the charge and was freed on Wednesday with a six-month suspended sentence.

Slideshow (3 Images)

Speaking at a news conference, McIntyre, who was held at the same detention center as Ghosn in western Tokyo for part of his detention, described the conditions there as “torture”.

Japanese officials reject such criticism, saying the justice system is humane and protects human rights.

McIntyre said the lights were on 24 hours a day, making it impossible to sleep more than an hour at night, and that several of his fellow detainees told him they would confess to crimes they had not committed in order to shorten their time there.

Reporting by Sam Nussey, Tim Kelly and Chang-Ran Kim; Editing by David Dolan and Clarence Fernandez

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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Japan orders tighter immigration procedures after Ghosn flees country

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FILE PHOTO: Carlos Ghosn, President and Chief Executive Officer of Renault, attends the company’s annual shareholders meeting in La Defense business district, near Paris, April 29, 2008. French carmaker Renault sticks to its target of a 2008 operating profit margin of 4.5 percent, despite a weaker dollar and pound and a faster than forecast rise in raw material prices, Ghosn told the annual general meeting. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/File Photo

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan ordered stricter immigration procedures on Sunday in response to the daring escape of ousted Nissan Motor Co (7201.T) boss Carlos Ghosn, the first official response to an episode that has rocked the nation’s legal system.

“I have instructed the Immigration Services Agency to coordinate with related agencies to further tighten departure procedures,” Justice Minister Masako Mori said in a statement.

Ghosn’s “apparently illegal” departure was very regrettable, she said, promising a thorough investigation to uncover truth and adding that there was no record of his leaving Japan.

Mori said that Ghosn’s skipping bail cannot be justified and that the court has revoked his bail. Ghosn is facing four charges of financial irregularities from his time at Japan’s No. 2 carmaker, all of which he denies.

Ghosn became an international fugitive after he revealed on Tuesday he had fled to Lebanon to escape what he called a “rigged” justice system in Japan, where he faces charges relating to alleged financial crimes.

Tokyo prosecutors, in a separate statement, sought to justify Japan’s criminal-justice system, where long detention times before indictment and questioning without lawyers have been criticized as “hostage justice” meant to extract confessions.

Japan’s legal system guarantees all defendants a prompt, open and fair trial, the prosecutors said, defending Ghosn’s more than 100 days of detention on the grounds that he “had an extensive domestic and overseas network and that he could deploy his considerable influence to conceal evidence.”

Reporting by Tim Kelly and Junko Fujita.; Writing by Junko Fujita and William Mallard; Editing by Gerry Doyle

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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Oil rises to three-month excessive on upbeat information, Center East rigidity

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LONDON (Reuters) – Oil costs rose to three-month highs on Monday, underpinned by optimism over an anticipated China-U.S. commerce deal and upbeat industrial information, whereas merchants saved an in depth watch on the Center East following U.S. air strikes in Iraq and Syria.

FILE PHOTO: An oil pump is seen simply after sundown outdoors Saint-Fiacre, close to Paris, France September 17, 2019. REUTERS/Christian Hartmann

Brent crude futures LCOc1 had been up 0.9% at $68.75 a barrel, up 59 cents. The worldwide benchmark has risen round 27% in 2019.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures CLc1 rose 22 cents or 0.2% to $61.94 a barrel by 0940 GMT. The U.S. benchmark is up about 36% to date this yr.

“Oil costs have reached their highest stage for the reason that Saudi oilfield assault in mid-September”, stated market analyst Margaret Yang of CMC Markets.

Regardless of a the comparatively low value positive factors regardless of an array of bullish elements, Yang added: “Merchants are additionally cautious about profit-taking prospects.”

Tensions within the Center East have flared up as america carried out air strikes on Sunday towards the Kataib Hezbollah militia group, whereas protesters in Iraq on Saturday briefly compelled the closure of its southern Nassiriya oilfield.

In the meantime, Libyan state oil agency NOC stated it’s contemplating the closure of its western Zawiya port and evacuating workers from the refinery because of clashes close by.

Oil costs had been additionally supported by declining U.S. crude shares, which fell by 5.5 million barrels within the week to Dec. 20, far exceeding a 1.7-million-barrel drop forecast in a Reuters ballot.

In China, manufacturing unit exercise had probably expanded once more in December on stronger exterior demand and an infrastructure push at dwelling though the tempo of progress is about to ease as markets await extra certainty on a U.S.-China commerce truce, a Reuters ballot confirmed.

China’s Commerce Ministry stated it’s in shut contact with america on the signing of a long-awaited commerce deal.

The 2 international locations on Dec. 13 introduced a “Part one” settlement that reduces some U.S. tariffs in alternate for what U.S. officers stated can be a giant bounce in Chinese language purchases of American farm merchandise and different items.

Some analysts, nevertheless, cited ample international crude shares as a serious impediment in 2020 to efforts to rein in output by the Group of the Petroleum Exporting International locations and its allies like Russia.

“At the same time as OPEC and its non-OPEC companions endeavor to make further provide cuts in Q1 2020, we’re not satisfied this will likely be enough to avert giant international stock,” stated Harry Tchilinguirian, international oil strategist at BNP Paribas.

“We stay of the opinion that oil fundamentals proceed to current draw back threat.”

Extra reporting by Seng Li Peng, modifying by Louise Heavens

Our Requirements:The Thomson Reuters Belief Ideas.

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AP PHOTOS: Sundown on Turkey’s huge stone heads

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Guests snap pictures of huge stone heads that stare down on them from the summit of Mount Nemrut, in Turkey’s southeastern Adiyaman province, their faces illuminated by sundown lighting.

Perched at an altitude of two,150 meters (over 7,000 toes), the statues are a part of a temple and tomb advanced that King Antiochus I, of the traditional Commagene kingdom, constructed as a monument to himself. A 50 meter (164-foot) -high, man-made mound — the presumed tomb of Antiochus — units the background.

Son of the founding father of the Commagene kingdom, Antiochus reigned between 64 and 38 BC, till he was deposed by the Romans. The dominion spanned an space from the japanese fringe of the Taurus mountains to the Euphrates River.

The traditional web site — which incorporates large 10-meter (33-foot) -high, seated statues of Antiochus himself surrounded by historical Gods, together with Zeus and Apollo — was found in 1881 by a German engineer. Excavations started there within the 1950s.

Right this moment, the positioning is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Website and the monuments are among the many best-known photographs of Turkey, that includes on postcards and Turkish tourism posters and advertisements.

Guests climb to the positioning at daybreak or at nightfall to see the statues underneath the spectacular lighting. It’s additionally a favourite spot for stargazers to look at the evening sky.

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Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Turkey contributed.

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Iran suspended from world judo over Israel boycott coverage

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Iran has been suspended from worldwide judo competitions as a result of it boycotts bouts with Israeli athletes.

Lower than a month after world champion Saeid Mollaei walked off the Iranian crew in protest on the boycott coverage, the Worldwide Judo Federation (IJF) stated Wednesday that Iran is suspended forward of a full listening to.

Iran’s judo federation is accused of discriminating towards Israeli athletes and breaking guidelines over manipulating competitors outcomes.

“The IJF Government Committee thought-about that such a conduct is insupportable,” the federation stated.

Mollaei has stated he was repeatedly ordered by Iranian officers to lose matches or withdraw from competitions, together with final month’s world championships, in order to not face Israelis. He’s at present in hiding in Germany.

Iran doesn’t acknowledge Israel as a rustic, and Iranian sports activities groups have for a number of a long time had a coverage of not competing towards Israelis.

IJF spokesman Vlad Marinescu stated any ban will not apply to subsequent yr’s Tokyo Olympics. That is as a result of it is the Iranian Olympic Committee, not the Iranian judo federation, which formally enters the Olympic crew.

In the meantime, the IJF is exploring methods to permit Mollaei to compete on the Worldwide Olympic Committee’s crew of refugees.

The IOC has signaled a more durable line on boycotts lately.

In June, IOC president Thomas Bach criticized governments who “clearly abuse sport for his or her political functions,” noting a case in Might of a Tunisian court docket blocking 4 Israelis from competing on the taekwondo junior world championships.  

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Extra AP sports activities: https://apnews.com/apf-sports and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports activities



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Worldwide panel to criticize U.S. FAA’s Boeing 737 MAX approval course of: WSJ

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An aerial photograph reveals Boeing 737 MAX plane on the Boeing amenities positioned on the Grant County Worldwide Airport in Moses Lake, Washington, September 16, 2019. REUTERS/Lindsey Wasson

(Reuters) – A panel of worldwide air-safety regulators is ending a report, which is predicted to criticize the preliminary U.S. approval course of for Boeing Co’s (BA.N) 737 MAX jets, the Wall Road Journal reported, citing folks briefed on the conclusions.

As a part of the panel’s findings, the duty drive will name out the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for what it says is a scarcity of readability and transparency in the way in which the company delegated authority to Boeing to guage sure flight-control options, the Journal reported on Monday.

The ultimate conclusion in a few of these important design modifications didn’t obtain sufficient consideration from the FAA, the report added.

The panel is predicted to name for better data-sharing and transparency amongst completely different governments, WSJ reported, with the draft report recommending reviewing and updating FAA steerage and day-to-day certification procedures to make sure the company’s early involvement in new onboard techniques.

The multi-agency panel is known as the Joint Authorities Technical Overview (JATR) and contains air-safety regulators from Canada, China, Indonesia, the United Arab Emirates, the European Union, Brazil and america. It’s anticipated to launch the report within the subsequent few weeks, the report mentioned.

“We sit up for the publication of the JATR report when it’s full,” a Boeing spokesperson mentioned in a press release, including that the corporate continues to work with world regulators to soundly return the 737 MAX to service.

Boeing’s 737 MAX was grounded worldwide in March after two lethal crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia inside 5 months of one another. The FAA on Monday mentioned its new chief, Stephen Dickson, plans to journey to Seattle this week to fly “newly configured” Boeing 737 MAX software program in a simulator.

FAA didn’t instantly reply to Reuters’ request for remark.

Reporting by Sathvik N in Bengaluru, further reporting by Akanksha Rana and Aakriti Bhalla in Bengaluru, Modifying by Sherry Jacob-Phillips

Our Requirements:The Thomson Reuters Belief Rules.

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Saudi vitality minister to carry press convention on Tuesday

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FILE PHOTO: Saudi Arabia’s new Power Minister, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman takes a tour on the exhibition throughout the 24th World Power Congress in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates September 9, 2019. REUTERS/Satish Kumar/File Picture

RIYADH (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia’s vitality minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman will maintain a press convention on Tuesday following the assaults on Aramco services in Abqaiq and Khurais which have lower the corporate’s crude oil provide by about 50 %, the media ministry mentioned.

Prince Abdulaziz had mentioned on Sunday Aramco would have extra info to share inside 48 hours.

Reporting By Stephen Kalin; Writing By Maha El Dahan

Our Requirements:The Thomson Reuters Belief Rules.

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