Iran’s president names first Sunni governor in 45 years

Iran’s president names first Sunni governor in 45 years
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian speaks at the start of his press conference in Tehran, Iran. (File/AP)
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Updated 18 September 2024
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Iran’s president names first Sunni governor in 45 years

Iran’s president names first Sunni governor in 45 years
  • Arash Zerehtan was appointed head of the western state
  • He is the first Sunni to be made a regional governor in the predominantly Shiite country

TEHRAN: Iran’s new president, Masoud Pezeshkian, on Wednesday nominated a member of the Sunni Muslim minority to be governor of Kurdistan province, official media reported.
Arash Zerehtan was appointed head of the western state, IRNA news agency said, citing government spokesman Fatemeh MoHajjerani.
He is the first Sunni to be made a regional governor in the predominantly Shiite country since the earliest days of the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Zerehtan, 48, served as a member of parliament for the city of Paveh between 2020 and this year.
Sunnis account for about 10 percent of Iran’s population, where the vast majority are Shiites and Shiite Islam is the official state religion.
They have very rarely held key positions of power since the revolution.
Pezeshkian, 69, took office in July after an early election following the death of ultraconservative president Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash.
During his election campaign, Pezeshkian criticized the lack of representation for ethnic and religious minorities, in particular Sunni Kurds, in important positions.
In August, he made another member of the Sunni minority, Abdolkarim Hosseinzadeh, one of his vice presidents.


Houthis threaten to ‘cut off heads’ of Yemenis who celebrate Sept. 26 revolution

Houthis threaten to ‘cut off heads’ of Yemenis who celebrate Sept. 26 revolution
Updated 5 sec ago
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Houthis threaten to ‘cut off heads’ of Yemenis who celebrate Sept. 26 revolution

Houthis threaten to ‘cut off heads’ of Yemenis who celebrate Sept. 26 revolution
  • Militant group deploys forces across northern Yemen to crack down on gatherings, and abducts more than 200 people over online anniversary celebrations
  • The 1962 revolution overthrew the Zaidi Imamate, which ruled northern Yemen for centuries and was ideologically similar to the Houthis

AL-MUKALLA: The Houthis vowed to violently suppress any public celebrations this week of the 62nd anniversary of the Sept. 26 revolution in Yemen.

The militant group has deployed armored vehicles and forces across northern Yemen to crack down on any gatherings that take place on Thursday, and abducted more than 200 people who celebrated it online.

The revolution, which began on Sept. 26, 1962, resulted in the overthrow of the Zaidi Imamate rulers who had controlled northern Yemen for centuries, paving the way for the establishment of the Yemen Arab Republic.

The Houthis share a similar ideology with the Zaidi Imamate, including a desire to limit rule over the country to Hashemites. The group fears people will be motivated by the anniversary to take to the streets in large numbers and demand an end to repressive Houthi rule.

Nasruddin Amer, a Houthi media official, threatened to “cut off the heads” of those who gather on Thursday to commemorate the 1962 revolution. He accused them of being “stooges for the Zionists” and seeking to undermine security and stability in areas under Houthi control. Houthi authorities will allow people to celebrate the anniversary under supervision, in designated locations, he added.

“We do not have mercy or pity for enemies … If anyone tries to twist our arm, we will remove his head,” Amer said. “This is our nature and methodology. We are unconcerned about the entire world or public opinion.”

Abdulkader Al-Murtada, the head of the Houthi prisoner-exchange committee, issues similar threats and accused people who would celebrate the revolution of “serving the US agenda” in an attempt to force the Houthis to halt their attacks on international shipping, which the group claims to be carrying out in support of the Palestinian people.

“We will deal with any anarchists or charlatans, as well as anyone who attempts to cause trouble, in the same way that we deal with the enemy, and everyone is aware of how we do so,” Al-Murtada said.

Local media and residents of Sanaa, Hodeidah and other Houthi-controlled areas confirmed on Wednesday that the group had deployed armed vehicles and military forces as part of an intensive crackdown on those who celebrate the revolution or incite others to do so online.

The Mayyun Organization for Human Rights and Development said that in the past few days the Houthis abducted 270 Yemenis, including teachers, activists, journalists and members of the former ruling party, the General People’s Congress, in Sanaa and other areas for posting online messages that praised the Sept. 26 revolution and urged the public to commemorate it.

“We denounce these intimidation campaigns against civilians, particularly women, which coincide with security crackdowns and public threats of arrest aimed at deterring people from participating in planned public celebrations and raising the national flag,” the organization said.

Activists reported that in the past 24 hours the Houthis abducted people in Sanaa and other areas for flying the Yemeni flag, as well as a person in Sanaa who appeared in a video dancing to nationalist songs commemorating the revolution.

The Yemeni Journalists Syndicate also demanded the immediate release of four Yemeni journalists abducted over the past six days as part of the Houthi crackdown on Sept. 26 anniversary celebrations.

“The syndicate reiterates its call to all organizations concerned with freedom of opinion and expression to show solidarity with the abducted journalists and press for their release,” it said.

Hundreds of people marched through the streets of the government-controlled southern city of Taiz on Tuesday night to commemorate the 1962 revolution, carrying the Yemeni flag and chanting nationalist slogans. Thousands of people in Marib and other cities were expected to hold similar rallies on Wednesday and Thursday.

Meanwhile, the US Central Command said on Wednesday that its forces destroyed a Houthi drone over the Red Sea before it reached a vessel it was targeting in a critical shipping lane.

It was the latest US military response against the Houthis intended to weaken them and pressure them into halting their attacks on ships in international waters off the coast of Yemen.


US announces $424 mn in new aid for Sudanese at UN meeting

US announces $424 mn in new aid for Sudanese at UN meeting
Updated 22 min 1 sec ago
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US announces $424 mn in new aid for Sudanese at UN meeting

US announces $424 mn in new aid for Sudanese at UN meeting
  • The US ambassador to the United Nations made a new appeal to let assistance into El-Fasher
  • “We must compel the warring parties to accept humanitarian pauses,” said Linda Thomas-Greenfield

UNITED NATIONS: The United States on Wednesday announced $424 million in new aid for displaced and hungry Sudanese at a high-level meeting on the country’s brutal war at the United Nations.
The US mission to the UN said the assistance includes $175 million with which the United States will buy surplus food from its own farmers to feed people in and around Sudan, where a UN-backed assessment has warned of wide-scale famine.
Addressing the event, the US ambassador to the United Nations made a new appeal to let assistance into El-Fasher, which has been besieged by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) as the paramilitary force seeks a complete takeover of the western Darfur region.
“We must compel the warring parties to accept humanitarian pauses in El-Fasher, Khartoum and other highly vulnerable areas, eliminate barriers to humanitarian access along all routes, and put down their weapons and come to the negotiating table,” said Linda Thomas-Greenfield.
Sudan plunged into a devastating war last year as the army battled the RSF.
The World Health Organization said this month at least 20,000 people have been killed. But some estimates are far higher, with the US envoy on Sudan, Tom Perriello, saying that up to 150,000 people may have died.


Iraq hangs 21 mostly on ‘terror’ charges: security sources

Iraq hangs 21 mostly on ‘terror’ charges: security sources
Updated 36 min 38 sec ago
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Iraq hangs 21 mostly on ‘terror’ charges: security sources

Iraq hangs 21 mostly on ‘terror’ charges: security sources
  • They were executed in Nassiriya prison, and the bodies were handed over to forensics

BAGHDAD: Iraqi authorities have hanged at least 21 people, including a woman, most of them convicted over “terrorism” charges, three security sources told AFP on Wednesday.
“Twenty-one people were executed in terrorism cases,” an Iraqi security official told AFP, while other sources confirmed the convicts, including one woman, were executed in Nassiriya prison and the bodies were handed over to forensics.


UN Security Council falls short of meeting aspirations, says Arab League chief

UN Security Council falls short of meeting aspirations, says Arab League chief
Updated 45 min 55 sec ago
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UN Security Council falls short of meeting aspirations, says Arab League chief

UN Security Council falls short of meeting aspirations, says Arab League chief
  • Ahmed Aboul Gheit: It has become universally acknowledged that the Security Council, in its current form, no longer mirrors the realities of today’s world
  • Aboul Gheit: A glaring example of this is the months-long Israeli aggression against Gaza, marked by relentless killing, destruction, starvation and displacement

CAIRO: The current structure of the UN Security Council no longer reflects the realities of the modern world, Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit told the Summit of the Future in New York City on Tuesday.

Speaking on the second day of the event, he said the council as it stood did not effectively fulfill its mandate in addressing contemporary conflicts.

“It has become universally acknowledged that the Security Council, in its current form, no longer mirrors the realities of today’s world. It has fallen short in serving the goals of multilateralism effectively and in addressing the conflicts that ravage our planet,” said Aboul Gheit.

“A glaring example of this is the months-long Israeli aggression against Gaza, marked by relentless killing, destruction, starvation and displacement, without the Council being able to take decisive action. Even when a resolution was eventually passed, regrettably, the Council has not been able to enforce it to this day.”

He added: “The current structure and performance of the Security Council do not align with our shared aspirations. We anticipate genuine and transparent reform that will restore confidence in the institution and reflect the realities of the modern world.”

Aboul Gheit stressed the urgent need to strengthen collaboration with the UN to address the root causes of the current crises in the Arab region and beyond.

He said: “I must emphasize that any reforms to the Security Council and international financial institutions must ensure that the Arab world has a consistent and influential voice in global decision-making processes.”

He emphasized that these global issues converged at a critical juncture — the need to preserve multilateralism and strengthen collective action on the international stage.

Among the most pressing concerns he highlighted were rising temperatures and climate change, the widening gap between the developing world and wealthier nations — particularly in relation to climate finance — and the equitable sharing of the burdens of climate adaptation. 

Aboul Gheit also pointed to the persistent crises of extreme poverty and mounting debt, as well as the serious challenges posed by emerging technologies, especially artificial intelligence, according to spokesman Gamal Roshdy.


Cyprus leader says he ready to resume peace talks ‘today’

Cyprus leader says he ready to resume peace talks ‘today’
Updated 54 min 52 sec ago
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Cyprus leader says he ready to resume peace talks ‘today’

Cyprus leader says he ready to resume peace talks ‘today’
  • “We cannot change geography. It is an opportunity, not a curse. Turkiye and Cyprus will always remain neighbors,” Nikos Christodoulides told the UN General Assembly
  • “I adamantly believe we can carve a new path, one of peace, cooperation and collaboration“

NICOSIA: Cyprus’s president said on Wednesday he was ready to immediately resume reunification talks over the ethnically divided island, urging regional rival Turkiye to also engage in the effort.
“We cannot change geography. It is an opportunity, not a curse. Turkiye and Cyprus will always remain neighbors,” Nikos Christodoulides said in a speech to the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
“I adamantly believe we can carve a new path, one of peace, cooperation and collaboration,” he said.
Cyprus was split decades ago in a Turkish invasion after a brief Greek-inspired coup, and preceded by years of sporadic violence between Greek and Turkish Cypriots.
Reunification talks collapsed in mid-2017 and have been at a stalemate since.
A Turkish Cypriot breakaway state in northern Cyprus, backed only by Turkiye, wants a two-state deal where its sovereignty is recognized. Greek Cypriots say the only framework available is that defined by UN resolutions calling for reunification under a bizonal, bicommunal federation.
“I am committed and I am ready to sit at the negotiating table today. Not tomorrow. Today,” Christodoulides said.
Perched on the edge of the Middle East, the Cyprus problem is now massively overshadowed by the explosive situation of its neighbors.
Earlier this year the island became a bridge for delivering badly-needed humanitarian aid to Israel-beseiged Gaza in an initiative backed by the United Arab Emirates, the US and Israel. It has also offered to assist in an evacuation of civilians from the region if tensions escalate further.
Yet despite the grim outlook, Christodoulides said he would never accept the linear narrative of a region in turmoil.
“I have experienced first-hand what countries in the region can achieve when they come together behind a common vision,” he said.