Section: Middle East Monitor (Kuwait)
Kurdish-led forces say they have pulled out of Syria border town
The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) on Sunday said they had withdrawn from the border town of Ras al Ain under a US-brokered ceasefire deal, but a spokesman for Turkish-backed Syrian rebels said the withdrawal was not yet complete, Reuters reports. Ras al Ain is one of two towns on the Turkish-Syrian border that have been the main...
Facebook says removed multiple accounts from UAE, Nigeria, Egypt and Indonesia
Facebook Inc has removed several pages, groups and accounts on its platforms from the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Nigeria and Indonesia, citing “coordinated inauthentic behaviour”, Reuters reports. A total of 280 Facebook accounts, 149 pages and 43 groups, and 121 Instagram accounts were removed, the social media platform said on Thursday. Read:...
US sanctions firm it says provides jet fuel to Russia in Syria
The United States on Thursday imposed sanctions on a firm it said was participating in a scheme to avoid US sanctions while helping provide jet fuel to Russian forces in Syria, Reuters reports. The US Treasury Department said the newly sanctioned firm, Maritime Assistance LLC, was operating as a front company for OJSC Sovfracht, a company the...
UK tourists leave Turkey as Thomas Cook collapses
British tourists are leaving from Turkey’s southwestern Mugla province following the collapse of UK tour operator Thomas Cook, as reported by Anadolu Agency. Nearly 1,000 tourists have started returning to the UK from Dalaman Airport in Mugla via 12 planes that were sent by the British Civil Aviation Authority after the company’s...
Sara Netanyahu demands to enter cockpit after pilot failed to welcome her
Israeli Prime Minister’s wife Sara Netanyahu had to be restrained by security after her fury at not being welcomed by name by the pilot on her flight this weekend. According to the Jerusalem Post, Mrs Netanyahu attempted to force her way into the cockpit of the airbourne El Al plane to express her rage at the pilot’s failure to...
Netanyahu in Ukraine to mobilise votes of Russia speakers
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday arrived in Ukraine to mobilise votes of Russian-speaking immigrants who left the former Soviet Union and moved to Israel, Arab48 reported. Netanyahu’s declared agenda included discussions about agriculture, tourism, education and stipends of retired immigrants. However, several Israeli...
Turkey, US agree to form joint operation centre for Syria safe zone
Turkey and the United States agreed on Wednesday to establish a joint operation centre in Turkey to coordinate and manage a planned safe zone in northeast Syria, a move that appeared to reduce the chance of imminent Turkish military action, Reuters reports. The two countries gave few details of the deal, which followed three days of talks between...
Immigration to Israel rose 28% in first half of 2019
Immigration to Israel rose 28 per cent in the first half of 2019, fuelled predominantly by a rise in the number of Russian Jews immigrating to the country.According to a report yesterday by Haaretz – which cited figures from the Jewish Agency, an NGO which encourages Jewish immigration to Israel – in the first six months of 2019, 16,019 Jews from...
Facebook says it dismantles covert influence campaign tied to Saudi government
People connected to the government of Saudi Arabia have run a network of fake accounts and pages on Facebook Inc to promote state propaganda and attack regional rivals, the social media giant said on Thursday, Reuters reports.Facebook said it had suspended more than 350 accounts and pages with about 1.4 million followers, the latest takedown in...
Iraq deports 33 children of Russian Daesh members
Iraq announced yesterday that it had deported as many as 33 children born to Russian mothers affiliated with Daesh back to Russia.The Iraqi foreign ministry said in a statement that it has been working with the competent government agencies, including the Supreme Judicial Council, the Ministry of Justice, and the security services, to resolve the...
