Abu Dhabi Police warns public against fraudulent Ramadan competitions

Abu Dhabi Police warns public against fraudulent Ramadan competitions
Men pray at the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi on Laylat al-Qadr, one of the holiest nights during the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan, Apr. 6, 2024. (AFP)
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Updated 20 March 2025
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Abu Dhabi Police warns public against fraudulent Ramadan competitions

Abu Dhabi Police warns public against fraudulent Ramadan competitions
  • Scammers trick victims into believing they have won cash prizes, ask for payments
  • Warning against fake charity links posing as legitimate organizations

LONDON: Abu Dhabi Police issued a warning on Thursday about fraudulent Ramadan competitions on social media that aim to deceive users into sharing personal and banking information.

Maj. Gen. Mohammed Suhail Al-Rashidi, the director of the Criminal Security Sector of Abu Dhabi Police, said scammers tricked victims into believing they had won cash prizes, only to ask for payments or personal information in order to claim the reward.

He urged the public to verify the authenticity of these online competitions, avoid sharing confidential information, and report any suspicious activities.

Abu Dhabi Police warned against fake charity links on social media posing as legitimate organizations during the month of Ramadan, which concludes in late March, the Emirates News Agency reported.

Al-Rashidi urges those who wish to donate to do so only through authorized organizations and legitimate channels. He also stressed the importance of remaining vigilant against online fraud, while following cybersecurity guidelines.


Italy pledges 68 million euros in aid for Syria

Italy pledges 68 million euros in aid for Syria
Updated 11 sec ago
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Italy pledges 68 million euros in aid for Syria

Italy pledges 68 million euros in aid for Syria
  • EU countries have also suspended a range of sanctions against Syria, including restrictions related to energy, banking, transport and reconstruction
ROME, March 27 : Italy has earmarked some 68 million euros ($73.20 million) to finance humanitarian projects and rebuild infrastructure in Syria, Rome’s foreign minister told lawmakers on Thursday, saying it was crucial to support the transition in Damascus.
“An initial package has been earmarked for humanitarian initiatives in the hospital and health sector, in infrastructure, and in strengthening food supply chains,” Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani told a parliamentary hearing.
“New cooperation projects will start in the coming weeks. And we also intend to organize a business forum aimed at reconstruction,” he added.
Earlier this month, donors at a European Union-led conference pledged 5.8 billion euros to help Syria’s new authorities with the challenges of the transition.
EU countries have also suspended a range of sanctions against Syria, including restrictions related to energy, banking, transport and reconstruction.
The new authorities this month issued a constitutional declaration that retains a central role for Islamic law in the country.
Tajani said the constitutional declaration represented a “positive step” and a “progressive and cautious” easing of sanctions should continue to foster institutional consolidation and economic recovery.

(Reporting by Angelo Amante, editing by Alvise Armellini and Sharon Singleton)

Police use force to break up protests at university in Turkiye’s capital

Police use force to break up protests at university in Turkiye’s capital
Updated 27 March 2025
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Police use force to break up protests at university in Turkiye’s capital

Police use force to break up protests at university in Turkiye’s capital
  • At least 1,400 people were detained first six days of the protests, the interior minister said Tuesday
  • A group of students gathered to read a statement near the university gates, pro-opposition broadcaster Halk TV and local media reported
ISTANBUL: Police used pepper spray, plastic pellets and water cannon against protesters in Turkiye’s capital early Thursday, potentially reigniting tensions after two days of relative calm in the country’s biggest anti-government protests in over a decade.
The demonstrations began last week following the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, a key rival to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Imamoglu, jailed on corruption charges many see as politically motivated, is also accused of supporting terrorism. The government insists the judiciary is independent, but critics say the evidence is based on secret witnesses and lacks credibility.
Early Thursday, student demonstrators tried to march and gathered to read a statement near the gates at Middle East Technical University, pro-opposition broadcaster Halk TV and local media reported. They were met by security forces who deployed pepper spray, water cannon and plastic pellets. A standoff ensued where the students hid behind a barricade of dumpsters until the police charged to detain them.
Melih Meric, a legislator with the Republican People’s Party or CHP, was seen soaked with water and suffering from pepper spray exposure. “My student friends only wanted to make a press statement, but the police strictly did not allow it, this is the result,” Meric said in social media videos.
Officials have not said how many people were detained.
Ozgur Ozel, the leader of party to which Imamoglu belongs, had promised that lawmakers would stand alongside protesters in the hope of lowering tensions. He also warned Tuesday that if the police provoked demonstrators he would “make a call for 500,000 people to (come to) the place that will disturb” the authorities the most.
At least 1,400 people were detained first six days of the protests, the interior minister said Tuesday.
Demonstrations involving hundreds of thousands have swept across major cities, including opposition-organized rallies outside Istanbul City Hall. Other major protests have been held in Istanbul’s districts of Kadikoy and Sisli districts in recent days.
Erdogan has accused the opposition of “sinking the economy” by calling for a boycott of companies it says support the governmen. The president said those responsible for hurting financial stability would be held “accountable.”
Meanwhile, Imamoglu, speaking from prison via social media Wednesday, denounced police violence against protesters, “I cannot call them police because my honorable police would not commit this cruelty to the young children of the nation,” he said.
Imamoglu has been confirmed as the main opposition party’s candidate for presidential elections due in 2028 but which could come earlier. He has performed well in recent polls against Erdogan, for whom his election as mayor of Turkiye’s largest city in 2019 was a major blow.

Hamas spokesperson Qanoua killed in Israeli airstrike, Al-Aqsa TV reports

Hamas spokesperson Qanoua killed in Israeli airstrike, Al-Aqsa TV reports
Updated 27 March 2025
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Hamas spokesperson Qanoua killed in Israeli airstrike, Al-Aqsa TV reports

Hamas spokesperson Qanoua killed in Israeli airstrike, Al-Aqsa TV reports
  • Al-Qanoua was killed when his tent was targeted in Jabalia in northern Gaza
  • Earlier this week, Israel killed senior leaders Ismail Barhoum and Salah Al-Bardaweel

CAIRO: Hamas spokesperson Abdel-Latif Al-Qanoua has been killed in an Israeli airstrike in northern Gaza, Hamas-affiliated media said early on Thursday, the latest group figure to be killed since Israel resumed its operations in the enclave.
Al-Qanoua was killed when his tent was targeted in Jabalia, the Hamas-run Al-Aqsa television said. The same strike wounded several people, while separate attacks killed at least six in Gaza City and one in southern Gaza’s Khan Younis, medical sources said.
Earlier this week, Israel killed Ismail Barhoum, a member of Hamas’ political office, and Salah Al-Bardaweel, another senior leader.
Both Bardaweel and Barhoum were members of the 20-member Hamas decision-making body, the political office, 11 of whom have been killed since the start of the war in late 2023, according to Hamas sources.
Last week, Israel ended a two-month-old ceasefire by resuming bombing and ground operations, increasing pressure on Hamas to free the remaining hostages in its captivity.
At least 830 people, over half of them children and women, have been killed since Israel resumed major military strikes in Gaza on March 18, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
Israel and Hamas accused each other of breaching the truce. It had broadly held since January and offered respite from war for the 2.3 million inhabitants of Gaza, which has been reduced to rubble.
Hamas, which still holds 59 of the 250 or so hostages Israel says the group seized in its October 7, 2023 attack, accused Israel of jeopardizing efforts by mediators to negotiate a permanent deal to end the fighting.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he ordered strikes because Hamas had rejected proposals to secure a ceasefire extension. He repeated threats on Wednesday to seize territory in Gaza if Hamas failed to release the remaining hostages it still holds.


Trump: Houthi attacks will continue for long time

Trump: Houthi attacks will continue for long time
Updated 27 March 2025
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Trump: Houthi attacks will continue for long time

Trump: Houthi attacks will continue for long time

US airstrikes against the Houthis in Yemen will continue for a long time, President Donald Trump said Wednesday.

His comments came shortly after Houthi media said new US strikes had hit the capital Sanaa, AFP reported. Earlier reports said there had been 19 US raids elsewhere in Yemen.

The US said it was launching a military offensive against the Houthis on March 15, to stop the group attacking shipping in the Red Sea - a key global trade route.

The militant Iran-backed group started the attacks after the start of the Gaza war, claimig they were acting in solidarity with Palestinians.


Iraq gives British Petroleum final green light to redevelop Kirkuk oilfields

Iraq gives British Petroleum final green light to redevelop Kirkuk oilfields
Updated 27 March 2025
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Iraq gives British Petroleum final green light to redevelop Kirkuk oilfields

Iraq gives British Petroleum final green light to redevelop Kirkuk oilfields
  • First phase of project will cover their Baba and Avanah domes and three adjacent fields
  • British Petroleum helped to discover the giant Kirkuk oilfields in the 1920s

 

LONDON: BP has received final government approval for the redevelopment of Iraq’s giant Kirkuk oil fields, with an initial plan to produce 3 billion barrels of oil equivalent, the company said on Wednesday.
The project is a breakthrough for Iraq, where output has been constrained by years of war, corruption and sectarian tensions, and a cornerstone of BP’s drive to refocus on its oil and gas business and away from renewables.
Tuesday’s signing of a final agreement on the project between BP CEO Murray Auchincloss and Iraq’s Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani follows an initial deal signed last month and a memorandum of understanding last year.
BP said its remuneration will be linked to incremental production volumes, price and costs, and that the company will be able to book a share of output and reserves “proportionate to the fees it earns for helping to increase production.”
The first phase of the redevelopment of the Kirkuk fields, which BP first helped to discover in the 1920s, will cover their Baba and Avanah domes and three adjacent fields Bai Hassan, Jambur and Khabbaz, BP said.
A new operator will be set up, including staff from Iraq’s North Oil Company (NOC) and North Gas Company (NGC) as well as people seconded from BP.