Iraq exhibits ancient artifacts returned by US and other countries/node/2545706/middle-east
Iraq exhibits ancient artifacts returned by US and other countries
Ancient artifacts, that were stolen from Iraq and returned after they were seized by the US government, are displayed at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Baghdad on July 8, 2024. (Reuters)
Iraq exhibits ancient artifacts returned by US and other countries
Iraqi authorities have been trying to retrieve thousands of archaeological relics missing since the invasion
More ‘rare archaeological collections’ would be returned by Switzerland and Japan this month
Updated 08 July 2024
Reuters
BAGHDAD: Iraq on Monday exhibited several ancient artifacts that it said had been returned by the United States and other countries, long after they were looted and smuggled out following the 2003 US invasion.
Iraqi authorities have been trying to retrieve thousands of archaeological relics missing since the invasion, which was followed by widespread looting in the country that some historians regard as the cradle of civilization.
Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein handed the recently recovered relics over to Culture, Tourism and Antiquities Minister Ahmed Al-Badrani at a ceremony in Baghdad.
Most of the artefacts on display at the foreign ministry headquarters were returned by the US after a visit by Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani to Washington in April, Badrani said.
He said other relics had been returned by other states, but gave no details.
Hussein said more “rare archaeological collections” would be returned by Switzerland and Japan this month.
At Security Council, concerns over ‘fragmentation’ of Sudan
The war has triggered the world’s largest displacement and hunger crisis
Updated 3 min 51 sec ago
AFP
UNITED NATIONS, United States: Several members of the UN Security Council on Wednesday voiced concern over the declaration of a parallel government by Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, while Kenya pushed back against accusations that it had recognized the entity.
RSF rebels and their allies fighting government forces on Sunday agreed to form a rival government, triggering diplomatic tensions between Sudan and Kenya.
The parties to the agreement, inked behind closed doors in Nairobi, said the charter establishes a “government of peace and unity” in rebel-controlled areas of the northeast African country.
“Attempts by the RSF and aligned actors to establish a government in RSF-controlled territory in Sudan are unhelpful for the cause of peace and security in Sudan, and risks a de facto partition of the country,” US Representative John Kelley told a Security Council meeting.
British Ambassador Barbara Woodward also expressed “deep concern” over the development.
“Respect for Sudan’s charter rights, its unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity is vital and will be necessary for a sustainable end to this war,” she said.
Envoys from France and China echoed that view, with Chinese Ambassador Fu Cong saying the move “risks increasing the fragmentation of the Sudan.”
Deputy Algerian Ambassador Toufik Laid Koudri, speaking on behalf of the Council’s three African members Algeria, Somalia, Sierra Leone as well as Guyana, urged “the RSF and their allies to put the unity and national interest of Sudan above all other considerations.”
Sudanese Ambassador to the UN Al-Harith Idriss Al-Harith Mohamed denounced the move as “an unprecedented violation of the UN Charter and the AU constitution,” and accused Kenya of taking “a step that aims to dismantle the Sudan.”
His Kenyan counterpart Erastus Lokaale denied the claim.
“I reiterate that neither President William Ruto nor the Government of Kenya has recognized any independent entities in the Sudan or elsewhere,” he said.
The war in Sudan, which has claimed tens of thousands of lives, erupted after a rift emerged between Burhan and Dagalo over the future structure of the government.
The war has triggered the world’s largest displacement and hunger crisis.
Both warring sides face accusations of committing grave atrocities against civilians, with their leaders sanctioned by the US.
Is Hezbollah sincere in ceding ‘resistance’ to Lebanon’s government?
Hezbollah remains Lebanon’s dominant armed force, raising questions about whether the government can reclaim full control
The group has professed confidence in the new administration, but many doubt it will coordinate with the army to implement ceasefire deal
Updated 6 sec ago
Nadia Alfaour
DUBAI: Thousands gathered in Beirut on Sunday to mourn Hezbollah’s founding leader, Hassan Nasrallah, as his body was finally laid to rest nearly five months after his killing. The elaborate funeral, held under the watchful eye of Israeli fighter jets overhead, served as a stark reminder of the Iran-backed group’s ongoing conflict with Israel.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz made it clear that figures like Nasrallah would continue to meet their demise, stating: “You will specialize in funerals, and we will in victories.”
Last November, Hezbollah’s new leader, Sheikh Naim Qassem, pledged to coordinate closely with the Lebanese army to implement a ceasefire deal between the governments of Lebanon and Israel. “There will be high-level coordination between the Resistance (Hezbollah) and the Lebanese army to implement the commitments of the deal,” he said in an address to supporters.
But as the dust settles from Nasrallah’s funeral, a critical question emerges: Is Hezbollah truly committed to ceding control of “resistance” to the Lebanese state, as many assumed?
Long the dominant force in Lebanon, Hezbollah suffered heavy losses during its 14-month conflict with Israel from Oct. 8, 2023, the day after a Hamas-led attack by Palestinian militants on Israel. Nasrallah was killed on Sept. 27, 2024, when Israeli forces bombed a building in southern Beirut where he was meeting with Hezbollah commanders.
But as the dust settles from Nasrallah’s funeral, a critical question emerges: Is Hezbollah truly committed to ceding control of “resistance” to the Lebanese state, as many assumed? (AFP)
What made matters worse was the fall in December of ally Bashar Assad in Syria, a reliable conduit for Middle East militant groups for weapons from Iran.
It is undeniable that Hezbollah is facing mounting challenges. A recent Wall Street Journal report cited an anonymous source close to Hezbollah as saying that fighters not originally from the south had been told to vacate their positions and that the Lebanese Armed Forces would be allowed to take control of the area as per the terms of the ceasefire.
The source also said the war had emptied Hezbollah’s coffers, making it impossible for it to fulfill its financial obligations to the families of slain soldiers, and supporters who lost their businesses and homes during the war.
The WSJ report also quoted residents as saying that Al-Qard Al-Hassan, Hezbollah’s primary financial institution, had “frozen payments for compensation checks that had already been issued.”
At the same time, Israel has extended its presence in five strategic positions on the Lebanese side of the Blue Line, citing security concerns. Nadav Shoshani, an Israeli military spokesperson, described it as a “temporary measure” to protect displaced northern Israeli communities.
Lebanese officials, however, view it as an “occupation” and are engaged in diplomatic efforts with Washington and Paris to secure a full Israeli withdrawal.
Nasrallah’s successor Sheikh Naim Qassem told supporters his group’s resistance will continue. (AFP)
In his televised address to mourners on Sunday, Qassem vowed to continue in his predecessor’s footsteps, asserting that “the resistance is not over.” He accused the Lebanese government of bowing to American pressure, particularly in preventing two Iranian planes from landing at Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport.
That decision, reportedly influenced by US warnings of an imminent Israeli strike, sparked protests, with Hezbollah supporters storming the streets and attacking a UN convoy, injuring two peacekeepers.
The attack on UNIFIL peacekeepers prompted swift condemnation. President Joseph Aoun called it a “flagrant violation of international law” and vowed that security forces would act against those destabilizing the country. Meanwhile, Hezbollah dismissed the government’s actions as merely following “an Israeli order.”
Lebanon’s new government finds itself in a precarious position, balancing the need for international credibility with the reality of Hezbollah’s entrenched power.
On Tuesday, Lebanon’s parliament began a two-day debate on the government’s ministerial statement, which sets out the objectives of the new administration.
Israel has extended its presence in five strategic positions on the Lebanese side of the Blue Line. (AFP)
Opening the debate, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam reiterated the state’s monopoly on the use of force, emphasizing the need to enforce UN Resolution 1701, which calls for Hezbollah’s disarmament south of the Litani River, and to his commitment to Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Deputy Speaker Elias Bou Saab, meanwhile, called for national unity, warning that “if the state fails to act, alternative forces will take over.”
In a sign that Hezbollah is perhaps willing to work with the new administration for the collective good of Lebanon, Mohammad Raad, head of the group’s parliamentary bloc, issued a statement on Tuesday in support of Salam’s government.
“We give our confidence to the government,” said Raad, expressing hope the new administration would “succeed in opening the doors to real rescue for the country.”
“We are keen on cooperating to the greatest extent to preserve national sovereignty and its stability and achieve reforms and take the state forward,” he added.
FASTFACTS
• Hassan Nasrallah, who helped found Hezbollah in 1982, following Israel’s invasion of Lebanon, was killed on Sept. 27 last year.
• Nasrallah’s funeral was held on Sunday at the 48,000-seat Camille Chamoun Sports City Stadium located in southern Beirut.
• The funeral also honored Hashem Safieddine, who led Hezbollah for just a week after Nasrallah’s death before he was killed by Israel.
While Prime Minister Salam has reaffirmed Lebanon’s commitment to UN Resolution 1701, there is little indication that the state can enforce this mandate without Hezbollah’s consent.
“The current government has a limited life and has several priorities; implementing the ceasefire agreement is at the top of them,” Nadim Shehadi, an economist and political adviser, told Arab News.
“How quick this will be is as much a logistical as it is a political question. It is wrong to assume that the Lebanese army can disarm Hezbollah without its political consent. There are competing interpretations of the ceasefire agreement.”
Shehadi added: “Nasrallah’s funeral on Sunday was significant. It was a political show of force accompanied by a defiantly uncompromising speech by Qassem.”
Sheikh Naim Qassem, pledged to coordinate closely with the Lebanese army. (AFP)
The US has made clear its stance on Hezbollah’s disarmament, tying Lebanon’s financial aid to progress on this front. The Trump administration recently froze all foreign aid through the State Department and USAID, citing misalignment with US interests.
In 2024, Lebanon received $219 million from USAID and an additional $17 million from the State Department. President Donald Trump’s decision to suspend aid was seen by many as a means to pressure Lebanon into fully implementing Resolution 1701 and preventing Hezbollah’s rearmament.
“American aid cuts are less chaotic than expected and are in fact linked to performance. The devil is everywhere, including the details,” Shehadi said. “Given the amount of bureaucracy involved and the immensity of cuts that the administration is carrying out across the board, one worries more about the implementation than about the principle.”
Hezbollah’s massive turnout for Nasrallah’s funeral underscored its continued influence. “Our struggle in support of Gaza is part of our faith in the liberation of Palestine,” Qassem, the new Hezbollah chief, told the mourners.
“We confront the Zionist regime and its supporter, the great tyrant, the US, which is conspiring against Gaza, Palestine, Lebanon, Iraq, and Iran.”
By contrast, President Aoun told a visiting Iranian delegation that was in Beirut for the funeral that Lebanon was “tired” of external conflicts playing out on its territory. “Lebanon has grown tired of the wars of others on its land,” he said, according to an official statement.
“Countries should not interfere in the internal affairs of other countries.”
In a recent op-ed for Arab News, Dania Koleilat Khatib, a specialist in US-Arab relations, said: “The US should be wise enough to realize that the continued presence of Israeli forces in Lebanon and their operations aimed at eliminating Hezbollah members will only strengthen the group in the long run.
Hezbollah’s massive turnout for Nasrallah’s funeral underscored its continued influence. (AFP)
“For stability, Israel must withdraw, and the Lebanese state must be strengthened. If this happens, Hezbollah will eventually be decommissioned as an armed movement.”
Despite Hezbollah’s assurances that it would coordinate closely with the Lebanese government to implement the ceasefire, its words and actions tell a different story.
Even now, it remains Lebanon’s most powerful armed entity, seen by its critics as undermining the state’s sovereignty while blaming external actors for its challenges.
The group’s financial troubles may weaken it in the long term, but for now its grip on Lebanon’s security landscape appears as firm as ever.
Whether the Lebanese government can assert full control over national defense — or whether Hezbollah will remain a state within a state — remains an open and pressing question.
Morocco announces $2.9 billion deal for French, Spanish and South Korean trains
They include 18 high-speed trains from Alstom
The ONCF said the purchases aimed to contribute to “the successful joint organization of the 2030 FIFA World Cup“
Updated 33 min 15 sec ago
AFP
RABAT: Morocco announced on Wednesday it would buy up to 168 trains from Spain’s CAF, South Korea’s Hyundai and France’s Alstom for $2.9 billion as part of preparations for the 2030 FIFA World Cup it is co-hosting with Spain and Portugal.
The National Railway Office (ONCF) said in a statement that it had awarded the contracts for the “new train acquisition program, with a total cost of 29 billion dirhams, as part of the development plan for 2030.”
They include 18 high-speed trains from Alstom, sealing a deal first mentioned during French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to Rabat in October.
Morocco already has one 350-kilometer (220-mile) high-speed railway line between the coastal cities of Tangier and Casablanca, and is planning a second that will extend 400 kilometers (250 miles) from Kenitra on the coast to Marrakech in the interior.
The first line, built by Alstom, has been in operation since 2018.
The contract with Spain’s CAF is for 30 intercity trains with an option for a further 10, while the deal with Hyundai Rotem is for 110 commuter trains.
The ONCF said the purchases aimed to contribute to “the successful joint organization of the 2030 FIFA World Cup.”
It said it also aimed to develop the domestic railway industry, with a local factory for commuter trains and “the ambition to export trains in the medium and long term.”
Gaza reconstruction needs political clarity, stability, UAE’s Gargash says
Gaza does need a reconstruction plan, a massive one, but that reconstruction plan cannot really take place without a clear path to a two-state solution
Updated 26 February 2025
Reuters
ABU DHBAI: Anwar Gargash, the diplomatic adviser to UAE’s president, said on Wednesday a Gaza reconstruction plan cannot happen without a clear path to a two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinians.
Investment in the project would need political stability, he added in remarks to the Investopia 2025 conference in Abu Dhabi.
“Gaza does need a reconstruction plan, a massive one, but that reconstruction plan cannot really take place without a clear path to a two-state solution. So, clearly here, you need political stability of a roadmap in order for these big investments to come to place,” Gargash said.
Arab states are weighing a post-war plan for Gaza to counter US President Donald Trump’s proposal to redevelop the strip under US control and displace Palestinians, a prospect that has angered regional leaders. The mainly Egyptian proposal may include up to $20 billion in funding over three years from the region, sources familiar with the discussions have said.
Egypt and Jordan held discussions with Gulf states in Riyadh last week to discuss the proposal ahead of an emergency summit to be held in Egypt on March 4 to discuss Gaza reconstruction.
Gargash added: “You know, you can’t just go and sort of invest billions without that political clarity and come back to see yet another conflict. I think that position is very clear.”
When asked if Trump’s proposal for Gaza was intentionally provocative to force Arab states to come up with a plan, Gargash said: “President Trump is a disruptor in many areas and the Arab, let’s say state system, was up to the challenge in my opinion. And I think it allowed the Arab state system to step up.”
Lebanon’s government wins confidence vote, says only armed forces should defend country in war
Salam said the government asserts that Lebanon has the right to defend itself in case of any “aggression” and only the state has the right to have weapons
He also said the government takes measures to liberate land occupied by Israel “through its forces only”
Updated 26 February 2025
AP
BEIRUT: Lebanon’s new government on Wednesday won a confidence vote in Parliament, with the support of Hezbollah’s bloc, even though the government statement adopted took a swipe at the group’s weapons.
Ninety-five out of 128 lawmakers supported the government of Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, a prominent jurist who previously headed the International Court of Justice. He was appointed last month to form a new government after a devastating war between Israel and Hezbollah, which killed over 4,000 people and caused widespread destruction.
The government statement adopted said that only Lebanon’s armed forces should defend the country in case of war. Unlike previous statements, it did not include the phrase “armed resistance,” which had been seen as legitimizing Hezbollah’s possession of weapons outside of state control.
Hezbollah has kept its weapons over the past decades saying they are necessary to defend the country against Israel. Calls for the group’s disarmament, however, intensified during the latest war, which ended with a US-brokered ceasefire on Nov. 27, 2024.
Hezbollah did not support Salam’s bid to be prime minister. But Hezbollah’s parliamentary leader, Mohammad Raad, on Tuesday announced his bloc’s confidence in his Cabinet on Tuesday.
Salam said the government asserts that Lebanon has the right to defend itself in case of any “aggression” and only the state has the right to have weapons. He also said the government takes measures to liberate land occupied by Israel “through its forces only.”
Legislators from the Amal movement, led by parliamentary speaker Nabih Berri — who brokered the ceasefire and is allied with Hezbollah — also voted for the new government. Hezbollah and the Amal Movement collectively hold about 27 seats designated for the Shi’ite community.
The Marada Movement, a Christian political party aligned with Hezbollah, and the Syrian Social Nationalist Party, a secular nationalist party aligned with Hezbollah, also offered the government their confidence.
The Lebanese Forces and the Kataeb, Christian parties that oppose Hezbollah and call for its disarmament and reduced Iranian influence, also backed Salam’s government.
Meanwhile, 12 legislators withheld support while four others abstained from voting, criticizing the ministerial statement as vague and lacking a clear plan. The “Strong Lebanon” bloc led by Gebran Bassil of the Free Patriotic Movement, previously aligned with Hezbollah, voted against the new government.
Among the key issues raised by parliamentarians for the government to address are Israel’s ceasefire violations and demands for its full withdrawal from Lebanese territory. While Israeli troops pulled out under the ceasefire terms, they remain in five strategic outposts along the border and continue to conduct airstrikes, saying they are targeting Hezbollah fighters and weapons caches.
Legislators also urged the government to tackle reconstruction following the war, Lebanon’s severe economic and banking crisis and implement long-overdue judicial and banking reforms.
