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Hezbollah was reeling Saturday from an Israeli airstrike that killed two of its senior figures and dozens of other people, intensifying fears of all-out war in the Middle East. At least 31 people were killed in total, including three children, and 68 injured, Lebanese health minister Firass Abiad told a news conference Saturday. The strike followed the coordinated detonation of pagers and walkie-talkies belonging to Hezbollah members across Lebanon earlier in the week. Israel has not publicly claimed responsibility for that attack, but Hezbollah and officials across the world have said Israel was behind the explosions. And a senior officer in Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), said the region was on the brink of war.

Persons: Ibrahim Akil, Ahmed Wahbi, Firass Abiad, Israel, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Mohsen Rezaee Organizations: Radwan Force, Getty, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Locations: East, Lebanese, Beirut, Beirut's, AFP, Iran, Israel, Lebanon, Tehran, Islamic Republic, Iraq, Syria, Tasnim

☆ Wigs, robotic guns and exploding pagers: Israel has a long history of hunting down its enemies
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-20 | by ( Dan De Luce | Dan De Luce Is A Reporter For The Nbc News Investigative Unit. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

Over the years, Israel has viewed “targeted killings” as a way to deter attacks on the county, fuel fear among its enemies and exact revenge. Iran’s nuclear program is closer to building a bomb than ever, even after several nuclear scientists were killed, he said. But the Mossad operation dismayed Israeli Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion, who demanded the resignation of the spy service’s chief. Almost four decades later, Israel killed a major Hamas official, Mahmoud al-Mabhouh, in a Dubai hotel in a complex plot involving more than two dozen Mossad operatives. In an echo of this week’s attacks in Lebanon, Israel killed a Hamas bombmaker, Yahya Ayyash, in 1996 with a cellphone outfitted with explosives.

Persons: ”, Bruce Riedel, Adolf Eichmann, Eichmann, David Ben, Gurion, God —, Russell Mcphedran, Ehud Barak, Ahmed Bouchikhi, Ali Hassan Salameh, Yasser Arafat, Bouchikhi, Israel, Mahmoud al, Mabhouh, Mohammed Salem, Ahmed Jibril, Ronen Bergman, Jibril, Yahya Ayyash, Ayyash, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, Fakhrizadeh, Ismail Haniyeh, David Barnea, Israel “, ” Barnea Organizations: Lebanese, CIA, Argentine, Nazi, Damocles, Palestinian, Fairfax Media, Getty, Palestine Liberation Organization, Hamas, New York Times Locations: Israel, British, Nazi, Argentina, Egypt, Munich, Beirut, Moroccan, Norwegian, Lillehammer, Europe, Dubai, Gaza, Israeli, Lebanon, U.S, Iran’s, Absad, Tehran, Syria, Iran, Mossad’s

☆ Wireless device explosions latest in suspected Israeli ‘black ops’
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-19 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Almost exactly 24 hours later, walkie-talkies detonated in a fresh wave of explosions Wednesday across Lebanon, a security source told CNN. In response, Israel launched “Operation Wrath of God” and spent years tracking down those involved in the Munich Massacre. Mahmoud Zayat/AFP/Getty ImagesIranian nuclear scientistsSince 2010, five Iranian nuclear scientists have been killed in foreign-linked assassinations, as Israel tries to prevent its greatest adversary from developing nuclear weapons. Iranian officials said the weapon had used artificial intelligence and facial recognition to detect Fakhrizadeh and open fire, before the car, reportedly packed with explosives, self-destructed. Top Iranian officials blamed Israel for the assassination.

Persons: Israel, God ”, Mahmoud Hamshari, –, ’, Yahya Ayyash, ”, Ayyash, Mahmoud Zayat, Moshe Ya’alon, Der Spiegel, “, Stuxnet, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh's, David Kennedy, ” Kennedy, Ismail Haniyeh Organizations: CNN, Hezbollah, Munich, Palestine Liberation Organization, PLO, Firefighters, Getty, Israeli, ”, Military, Iranian Defense Ministry, US National Security Agency, The New York Times Locations: Lebanon, Iran, Munich, Palestinian, Palestine, Paris, Italian, Gaza, Saida, AFP, United States, Iranian, Bushehr, Israel, Tehran, Nissan

☆ Analysis: Lebanon’s pager explosions send message to Hezbollah
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-17 | by ( Nick Paton Walsh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

London CNN —Is it a prelude to a wider attack or the totality of the message to Hezbollah? The risk of widespread war with Israel again has become a pressing reality since the October 7 attacks. It places Hezbollah, however, in another unenviable moment of frailty – plunged into chaos, with great pressure upon them to project strength again. Hezbollah will still be able to inflict significant damage upon Israel if a full-scale battle erupts. But Israel may have decided too cleanly that Hezbollah seeks to avoid war, and therefore can be goaded repeatedly.

Persons: Yoav Gallant, Amos Hochstein, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, Ismail Haniyeh, –, Fu’ad Shukr, Hassan Nasrallah, Israel Organizations: London CNN, Getty Locations: Lebanese, Lebanon, Israel, “, Tehran, Beirut, AFP

☆ The killing of a top Hamas leader in its backyard is 'humiliating' for Iran, experts say
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-31 | by ( Thibault Spirlet | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Read previewIsmail Haniyeh, the leader of the political wing of Hamas, was killed on Wednesday. Ismail Haniyeh (left) meeting with Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran, Iran, on July 30, 2024. According to Middle East and military experts, Haniyeh's death is a "humiliating" blow to Iran. A new phase of brinkmanshipTensions between Israel and Iran were high even before Haniyeh's killing. MOSAB SHAWER/AFP via Getty ImagesSince Hamas launched terror attacks on Israel on October 7, groups allied with Iran — the Houthis, Hamas, and Hezbollah — have targeted Israel, with attacks sometimes spilling over into neighboring countries and directly involving Iran.

Persons: —, Ismail Haniyeh, Haniyeh, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Nobody, Israel didn't, Andrew Fox, Henry Jackson, Fox, Abdullah Ahmed Abdullah, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, Ameneh, Farzan, MOSAB SHAWER, Burcu, Fuad Shukr Organizations: Service, Business, Iran's, KHAMENEI.IR, Getty Images, Henry, Henry Jackson Society, New York Times, East, Global Governance Centre, Geneva Graduate Institute, BI, West, Getty, —, Middle East Security, Royal United Services Institute, Fox Locations: Iran, Tehran, AFP, Israel, Middle East, Iranian, West Bank, Hebron, Syria, Beirut, Iraq, Yemen, Red, ACLED, Lebanon

☆ Iran Has Accused Israel of Assassinations on Its Soil Before
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-31 | by ( Qasim Nauman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

Hamas and Iran on Wednesday accused Israel of assassinating Ismail Haniyeh, one of the Palestinian militant group’s most senior figures, in Tehran. Iran and Israel have fought a covert war for years, blaming each other for sabotage, abductions and targeted killings across the region. Tehran has also accused Israel of past assassinations inside Iran. Mr. Fakhrizadeh was one of Israeli intelligence’s top targets for years, and Iran angrily accused Israel of killing him. He wasn’t the first scientist linked to the nuclear program to be attacked on Iranian soil.

Persons: Israel, Ismail Haniyeh, Mr, Haniyeh, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, Fakhrizadeh, Sayad, Khodayee, Qassim Suleimani, Ayoub, Kamran Aghamolaei Organizations: Revolutionary Guards, Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, Quds Force Locations: Iran, Tehran, Israel, U.S, United States, Iraq

☆ Iran has no good options after two deadly strikes on senior allies
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-31 | by ( Nick Paton Walsh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

ET) in Tehran, will dictate what comes next, as Iran looks to present a narrative that justifies and fashions its response. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is seen with Haniyeh -- hours before his assassination. There is no shortage of furious rherotic the day after the strikes, but there is no easy route for Iran. Iran has also tried an unprecedented direct all-out attack on Israel before, in April, after senior IRGC commanders were killed in an Israeli strike on Damascus. In short, the 300 drone and missiles fired - straight from Iran at Israel - just didn’t get through.

Persons: Ismail Haniyeh, Haniyeh, Israel, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, Qasem Suleinami, rherotic, Ahmad Al, Ali Khamenei’s, “, Masoud Pezeshkian, group’s, Fuad Shukr Organizations: CNN, Revolutionary Guards, Iran's Locations: Iran, Tehran, Israel, Beirut, Lebanon, Golan, Quds, Damascus

☆ Iran says Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-31 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Hamas said Haniyeh was killed "in a Zionist airstrike on his residence in Tehran after he participated in the inauguration of Iran's new president." Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran, Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard said early Wednesday, and Hamas blamed Israel for the attack. Hamas officials did not immediately respond to requests for further comment. In April, an Israeli airstrike in Gaza killed three of Haniyeh's sons and four of his grandchildren. Haniyeh was in Tehran to attend Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian's swearing-in ceremony on Tuesday, along with other Hamas officials and officials from Hezbollah and allied groups.

Persons: Ismail Ismail Haniyeh, Haniyeh, Ismail Haniyeh, Israel, Sinwar, Masoud Pezeshkian's, Fouad Shukur, Shukur, Biden, Bill Burns, Brett McGurk, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh Organizations: Revolutionary Guard, Al, Israel, Guard, CIA, White, Hamas, Gaza Health Ministry Locations: Tehran, Israeli, Israel, Palestine, Gaza, Qatar, Al Jazeera, Iran, Beirut, Lebanese, U.S, Rome, East, North Africa

☆ Iran says Israel will 'pay heavy price' after death of top Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-31 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Iranian officials are condemning what they say was an Israeli strike on Tehran that killed Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. Palestinian militant organization Hamas and Iran's Revolutionary Guard issued separate statements confirming the death of the longtime political leader of Hamas early Wednesday and blamed Israel, which has not yet commented on Haniyeh's death. Tehran Mayor Alireza Zakani and former commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, Mohsen Rezaei, in separate comments said that Israel will "pay a heavy price," according to Iranian state media. Tehran and other countries that do not recognize the state of Israel frequently refer to it as "the Zionist regime." He was made the head of Hamas' political wing in 2017 before moving to Qatar in exile in 2019.

Persons: Ismail Haniyeh, Israel, Alireza Zakani, Mohsen Rezaei, Ayatollah Khamenei, Haniyeh, Hamas Organizations: Hamas, Iran's Revolutionary Guard, CNBC, Iranian Revolutionary Guard, Zionist, politburo Locations: Israeli, Tehran, Israel, Iranian, Iran, Qatar

☆ Iranians are voting in a presidential runoff. What will it mean for the world?
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-04 | by ( Nadeen Ebrahim | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

Here’s what to expect on Friday’ second round of elections, and how the results could impact Iran and the world. During the first round, Pezeshkian led with 42.5% of the votes, followed by Jalili with 38.6%, according to the state news agency IRNA. In a move that shocked observers, the man who led Ghalibaf’s electoral campaign, Sami Nazari Tarkarani, also declared his support for reformist Pezeshkian, Khabar Online reported. People drive past a billboard with pictures of presidential candidates Masoud Pezeshkian and Saeed Jalili on a street in Tehran, Iran, on Monday. Presidential candidates Masoud Pezeshkian and Saeed Jalili attend an election debate at a television studio in Tehran, Iran on Tuesday.

Persons: CNN — Iran’s, Ebrahim Raisi, Masoud Pezeshkian, Saeed Jalili, Raisi, Hossein Amir, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Pezeshkian, –, Khamenei, ”, hardliner Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Jalili, ” Parsi, Sardar Mohsen Rashid, Rashid, Sami Nazari Tarkarani, Ghalibaf, Sanam Vakil, “, ” Sina Toossi, ” Pezeshkian, Toossi, Majid Asgaripour, Iran’s, ” Jalili, Israel sharpens, Israel “, Israel Katz, ” Ali Vaez, Vaez, CNN’s Becky Anderson, Saeed Jalili , Morteza Fakhri, Parsi, ” Vakil Organizations: CNN, Foreign, Guardian Council, IRNA, Quincy Institute, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Pezeshkian, Khabar, North Africa, Chatham House, Center for International Policy, Trump, Islamic, International Atomic Energy Agency, UN, Israeli, Group, Reuters Locations: Islamic Republic, Iran, tatters, Israel, United States, Tehran, Washington, Iranian, East, London, Washington ,, Gaza, Lebanon

☆ Iran’s presidential election heads to runoff after inconclusive first round
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-29 | by ( Mostafa Salem | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

Abu Dhabi, UAE CNN —Iran’s presidential election is expected to head to a second round after none of the candidates managed to secure more than 50% in Friday’s vote, according to the spokesperson of the election committee, Mohsen Eslami. A runoff vote is expected to take place on July 5 between the candidates with the most votes – Masoud Pezeshkian, a reformist lawmaker and former health minister ahead of Saeed Jalili, a hardline security adviser and former nuclear negotiator. The results will be reviewed by the influential Guardian Council before the top two candidates start campaigning again. Pezeshkian received almost 10.5 million votes while the runner up Jalili received almost 9.5 million votes, according to numbers published by state news agency IRNA. Twenty-four million people cast their ballots out of 60 million eligible voters, with a turnout of 40%, Eslami said.

Persons: UAE CNN —, Mohsen Eslami, Masoud, Saeed Jalili, Pezeshkian, Jalili, IRNA, Eslami Organizations: UAE CNN, Guardian Council Locations: Abu Dhabi, UAE

☆ Iran President Raisi: Days of funeral ceremonies begin as investigators probe helicopter crash
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-21 | by ( Jessie Yeung | Simone Mccarthy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —Funeral ceremonies are set to begin on Tuesday for the late Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi following his death in a helicopter crash, as authorities probe what caused the aircraft to smash into the side of a remote mountainside during foggy weather on Sunday morning. A helicopter carrying Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi takes off on May 19, 2024, before the crash took place. There is no indication what might have caused the crash – and why so many senior Iranian government officials were traveling in a single, decades-old helicopter. A high-ranking delegation will go to the crash site in Eastern Azerbaijan, according to Iran’s Tasnim news agency. Inside Iran, where many of the country’s restive youth population have grown tired of rule by conservative clerics, Raisi had a much more polarizing legacy.

Persons: Ebrahim Raisi, Ayatollah Khamenei, Mohsen Mansouri, Ali Hamed Haghdoust, Mansouri, Reza, Khamenei, “, ”, Abdulkadir Uraloglu, Uraloglu, Iran’s, ’, Ayatollah Khamenei —, Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, Kim Jong, Kim, Xi, Raisi’s, Azin, ” Xi, Putin, Russia, ” Raisi, Raisi Organizations: CNN, Wana News Agency, Reuters, Mehr, Iranian, Turkish Transportation, Infrastructure, TRT, Moj News Agency, AP, Kremlin, US Locations: Tabriz, Iran, Qom, Tehran, Mashhad, Turkey, Turkish, Eastern Azerbaijan, Israel, Korean, Saudi Arabia, Ukraine, China, North Korea, Russia, Iranian

☆ Iran's President Raisi and Foreign Minister Amirabdollahian killed in helicopter crash, state media says
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-20 | by ( Lee Ying Shan | In Ying-Shan-Lee | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi speaks during a meeting with the cabinet in Tehran, Iran, October 8, 2023. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian died in a helicopter crash, state media reported Monday. Iranian state television reported there was "no sign of life" at the crash site of the helicopter that carried Raisi, Amirabdollahian, and others. "All the passengers of the helicopter carrying the Iranian president and foreign minister were martyred," semi-official news agency Mehr News reported. "The overall outline of Iranian foreign policy is not likely to change significantly."

Persons: Ebrahim Raisi, Hossein Amirabdollahian, Ali Ahmadi, CNBC's, Raisi, Malik Rahmati, Affairs Mohsen Mansouri, Pirhossein Koulivand, Ayatollah Khamenei Organizations: Mehr News, FARS News Agency, Geneva Center for Security, Communication, Affairs, Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps Locations: Tehran, Iran, FARS, Azerbaijan Republic, Iran's, East Azerbaijan's, Tabriz, Turkey, Russia

Gazan journalists told CNN they are haunted by their colleagues’ deaths, as they balance the emotional labor of covering the war with trying to protect their families. Israel launched a military assault on Gaza on October 7 after the militant group Hamas, which governs Gaza, killed at least 1,200 people in Israel and abducted more than 250 others. After nearly seven months of war, Abu Dagga told CNN that she, too, wants to leave. The photojournalist for Turkish state broadcaster TRT told CNN he had been traveling through the neighborhood, after being displaced from the local refugee camp. We hope that God will bring him back to us safely.”Whether they report from within the enclave, or elsewhere, Palestinian journalists told CNN they could not turn away from the horrors unfolding in Gaza.

Persons: CNN —, ” Dr, Mahmoud Abu Nujaila, Médecins, Israel, Wael Al, ”, Mariam Abu Dagga, ” Al, Hamza Al, “, Abu Dagga, ’, Heath, ” Mariam Abu Dagga, Khan Younis, Mohammad Ahmed, Shrapnel, Ahmed, Nobody, ” Ahmed, Adnan, what’s, ” Mohammad Ahmed, Ibrahim Dahman, Rasha, – Zeid, Khalil, ” Dahman, Dahman, Sheikh Radwan, ” Ibrahim Dahman, Saeed Al, Taweel, Alaa Abu Mohsen, Al, Saeed, ” Mohsen, Mahmud Hams, Saba, ‘ Saeed, ’ ”, Jaafrawi, Nidal, Haitham Abdelwahed, Wahidi, Erez, Beit, Mohammed Soboh, Arafat Barbakh, Fadi Wael Abdel Karim Al, ’ ” Fadi, Fadi Organizations: CNN, Awda, Protect Journalists, Independent, AFP, Getty, ”, Press, Borders, Israel Defense Forces, IDF, Hamas, Ministry of Health, United, United Arab Emirates, TRT, Al, Wafa, Saba Al, Amnesty International, Amnesty, Reuters, Cross Locations: Jabalya, Gaza, Israel, Rafah, ” Al Jazeera's Gaza, Palestine, United Arab, Khan, Egypt, Turkish, Gaza City, Sheikh Radwan, Wadi Gaza, Giza, Cairo, Sheikh, Phoenix, AFP, Israeli

☆ Asylum Seekers Already in U.K. Say Rwanda Law Creates New Anxiety
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-28 | by ( Megan Specia | Emma Bubola | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

On a cold spring day last month, Mohsen, a 36-year-old from Iran, woke before dawn and was hurried by smugglers onto a rubber boat on the coast of France. The water was calm and the sky clear, but he knew the risks of the journey he was about to make, he said. Since 2018, at least 72 people have drowned in the Channel while attempting crossings, according to the International Organization for Migration. He fled Iran, he said, because police officers came to his home last year threatening to arrest him after he took part in anti-government protests. And he boarded the boat even though he knew about the British government’s plan to deport some asylum seekers to the central African country of Rwanda, which was first announced in 2022.

Persons: Mohsen Organizations: Channel, International Organization for Migration Locations: Iran, France, Britain, Rwanda

☆ Same-sex couples face up to 15 years in prison in Iraq’s LGBTQ crackdown
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-27 | by ( Nechirvan Mando | Eyad Kourdi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Iraq has passed a new law that penalizes same-sex relations with up to 15 years in prison, a move condemned by rights advocates as the latest attack on the country’s LGBTQ community. Samar called on the US and other countries to put diplomatic pressure on the Iraqi government to revoke the law. He warned that international business coalitions have already signaled that such discriminatory practices could negatively impact Iraq’s economic growth. “Respect for human rights and political and economic inclusion is essential for Iraq’s security, stability, and prosperity. This legislation is inconsistent with these values and undermines the government’s political and economic reform efforts,” Miller said on Saturday.

Persons: ” –, Raad al, Mohsen Al, ” Al, Mandalawi, ‘, I’ve, ” Samar, Samar, Mohammed Shia, Joe Biden, “, ” Matthew Miller, ” Miller, Sarah Sanbar, ” “, ” Organizations: CNN, Iraq, Maliki, Iraqi, US Department of State Locations: Iraq, Iraq Samar, Samar, Al

As police officers guarded the wrought iron gates protecting Columbia University’s main campus on Tuesday evening, checking for student identification cards, a group gathered around a stone dais at the center of the quad. Roughly 400 students held Palestinian flags and handmade signs. Protesters took turns speaking into a microphone, criticizing the Israel-Hamas war, but also their own school over its decision to suspend two pro-Palestinian student groups through the end of the semester. “We’ve said it before, that our voices are louder and more powerful than the money that you receive, Columbia,” said Mohsen Mahdawi, a student and Palestinian refugee. Following their suspension, the groups released a joint statement on Instagram, accusing the university of “selective censorship” of pro-Palestinian groups and calling the move “an attack on free speech to distract from and enable Israel’s genocidal campaign against the Palestinian people.”

Persons: “ We’ve, ”, Mohsen Mahdawi Organizations: Columbia, Justice, Jewish, Peace Locations: Columbia, Israel, New York City, Palestine

☆ Afghan earthquakes kill 2,445, Taliban say, as death toll mounts
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-08 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

More than 2,400 people were killed in earthquakes in Afghanistan, the Taliban administration said on Sunday, in the deadliest tremors to rock the quake-prone mountainous country in years. They were among the world's deadliest quakes this year, after tremors in Turkey and Syria killed an estimated 50,000 in February. Afghan residents sit at a damaged house after earthquake in Sarbuland village of Zendeh Jan, district of Herat province, on October 7, 2023. Diplomats and aid officials say concerns over Taliban restrictions on women and competing global humanitarian crises are causing donors to pull back on financial support. The Islamist government has ordered most Afghan female aid staff not to work, although with exemptions in health and education.

Persons: Janan Sayeeq, Sayeeq, Danish, Suhail Shaheen, Mohsen Karimi, Naseema Organizations: U.S . Geological Survey, Ministry, Taliban, AFP, Getty, Afp, Diplomats, International Committee Locations: Afghanistan, Herat, U.S, Turkey, Syria, Afghanistan's, Iran, Qatar, Sarbuland, Zendeh Jan, Herat province, Pakistan

CNN —A series of powerful earthquakes struck western Afghanistan on Saturday killing at least 100 people and wounding more than 500 others, according to the UN’s humanitarian office, as the nation reels from another natural disaster at a time of deep economic crisis. The 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck 25 miles (40 kilometers) west of Herat city in the western Herat province – the third largest in Afghanistan. The initial quake was also felt in neighboring provinces of Badghis and Farah and was followed by multiple aftershocks. A deadly quake in March struck northeastern Afghanistan, sending residents fleeing from their homes as it brought down entire buildings and triggered devastating landslides. And a 5.6 magnitude earthquake on January 17, 2022 struck Badghis, another western province near Herat bordering Turkmenistan, killed more than 20 people and reduced hundreds of brick homes to rubble.

Persons: Farah, “, OCHA, Mohsen Karimi Organizations: CNN, UN Office, Humanitarian Affairs, UN, Getty, Bank Locations: Afghanistan, Herat, Herat province –, Badghis, Herat City, AFP, United States, freefall, New Delhi, Khost, Pakistan, Turkmenistan

Thousands of people are confirmed dead and thousands more missing, with the mayor saying the toll could reach 20,000. Usama Al Husadi, a 52-year-old driver, had been searching for his wife and five children since the disaster. Husadi, who had been working the night of the storm, dialled his wife's phone number once again. "We lost at least 50 members from my father’s family, between missing and dead," he said. Confirmed death tolls given by officials so far have varied, but all are in the thousands, with thousands more on lists of the missing.

Persons: Hassan El Salheen, Aly, Storm Daniel, Mohamed Abd El Ghany, Usama Al Husadi, Husadi, Wali Eddin Mohamed Adam, Abdulmenam, Ghaithi, Mohamed Mohsen Bujmila, Khadija, Bujmila, Muammar Gaddafi, Peter Graff, Angus MacSwan Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, Derna, Saudi, Al, Rescue, United Arab, NATO, of National Unity, Thomson Locations: Libya, Al Sharief, Bani Swief, Egypt, DERNA, Libyan, Al Arabiya, Derna, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Qatar, Tripoli

"The fresh water is finished," said Khamis Adel, a lifelong fishermen and indigenous Marsh Arab from Al-Khora in Basra. It's a question asked by many who once lived off Iraq's marshlands, rich waterways which gave birth to civilization in ancient Mesopotamia. As the rivers and marshlands dry out, so too does the economy that they sustain. "Now a fisherman is nothing, they are like beggars," he said, pushing his boat along the canal in humid heat. Even after the 2003 U.S. invasion, when parts of the marshes were flooded again, water levels did not fully recover.

Persons: Essam, Khamis Adel, Mohsen, Hasan Moussa, Hasan, Naame Hasan, Adel, Saddam Hussein, Ahmed Saeed, Issam, Timour Azhari, William Maclean Organizations: REUTERS, UNESCO, of, U.N's, Organization for Migration, WE, Thomson Locations: Iraqi, Basra, Iraq, BASRA, NAJAF, Al, Khora, of Eden, Mesopotamia, Turkey, Iran, Najaf, U.S, Issam Sudani, Timour, Baghdad

☆ Stampede in Yemen’s capital kills at least 78, official says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

That sparked a panic, and people, including many women and children, began stampeding, they said. Motaher al-Marouni, a senior health official in Sanaa, gave the death toll of 78 and said at least 13 were seriously hurt, according the rebels' Al-Masirah satellite TV channel. Hamdan Bagheri, deputy director of the al-Thowra Hospital in Sanaa, said in televised comments that the tragedy took place around 8.20 p.m. and the facility received at least 73 injured people. The rebels quickly sealed off the school where the event was held and barred people, including journalists, from approaching. Yemen's capital has been under the control of the Iranian-backed Houthis since they descended from their northern stronghold in 2014 and removed the internationally recognized government.

CNN —Iran executed at least 582 people last year, a 75% increase on the previous year, according to human rights groups who say the rise reflects an effort by Tehran to “instill fear” among anti-regime protesters. It was the highest number of executions in the Islamic republic since 2015, according to a report released Thursday by the Norway-based Iran Human Rights (IHR) and the France-based Together Against the Death Penalty (ECPM) groups. The vast majority of the executions – at least 544 – were of people accused of murder and drug-related offenses, said the report. “Iran’s authorities demonstrated how crucial the death penalty is to instill societal fear in order to hold onto power,” the report said. The human rights report said they were charged with “corruption on Earth.”Dozens of other protesters have received death sentences in recent months.

☆ Syria's president appoints new oil minister in reshuffle
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

DAMASCUS, March 29 (Reuters) - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has appointed a new oil minister and changed four other ministers in a cabinet reshuffle, state media said on Wednesday. Hassan Kaddour, who was the general director of the Syrian Petroleum Company for the last two years, replaces Bassam Touma as oil minister, the report said. Assad named Mohsen Abdelkarim Ali as internal trade minister, Abdelqader Jokhdar as industry minister, Louay al-Munajjed as social affairs minister and Ahmed Bostachi as a state minister. Assad switched out his defence minister in April 2022. The conflict raging in Syria since 2011 has cost the country much of its domestic oil production, especially with the northeastern oil producing fields outside government control.

☆ A 2,000-year-old mummy was found dumped in the trash in Yemen with its insides ripped out
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Marianne Guenot | Sam Tabahriti | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A 2,000-year-old mummy was found dumped in the trash in Yemen. Local officials said the mummy was likely abandoned by grave robbers and antiquities smugglers. Yemen's General Organization of Antiquities and Museums (GOAM) on Wednesday blamed "tomb robbers and antiquities traffickers" for exhuming the artifact. Locals looking at the mummy found in the trash in Yemen. Yemen General Organization of Antiquities and MuseumsThe discovery has caused fury among locals, who have seen their rare historical artifacts threatened by the country's long-raging civil war, per the Saudi-Arabian daily Arab News.

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