New Syrian leaders say they want to contribute to ‘regional peace’

Members of the media react during a power cut ahead of the press conference of U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf, in Damascus, Syria, December 20, 2024. (REUTERS)
Members of the media react during a power cut ahead of the press conference of U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf, in Damascus, Syria, December 20, 2024. (REUTERS)
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Updated 21 December 2024
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New Syrian leaders say they want to contribute to ‘regional peace’

New Syrian leaders say they want to contribute to ‘regional peace’
  • France, Germany, Britain, and the United Nations have also sent emissaries to Damascus in recent days to establish contacts with the new authorities

DAMASCUS: Syria wants to contribute to “regional peace,” the country’s new authorities said late Friday, after a meeting between leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa and a US diplomatic delegation.
“The Syrian side indicated that the Syrian people stand at an equal distance from all countries and parties in the region and that Syria rejects any polarization,” the statement said.
It said the new authorities wanted to “affirm Syria’s role in promoting regional peace and building privileged strategic partnerships with countries in the region.”
A Syrian official had previously told AFP that the meeting between Al-Sharaa — known previously by his nom de guerre Abu Mohammed Al-Jolani — and the US delegation led by Barbara Leaf, head of the Middle East at the State Department, was “positive.”
Al-Sharaa, the leader of the Islamist Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) group that seized power in Damascus, was previously the target of US sanctions.
But after their first formal contact in Damascus on Friday, Washington announced it had dropped a bounty for his arrest.
“Based on our discussion, I told him that we were dropping the offer of a reward,” Leaf told reporters.
She said she told the new Syrian leader of the “critical need to ensure that terrorist groups cannot pose a threat inside Syria or outside, including to the United States and our partners in the region.”
He “committed to doing so,” she said, adding he had appeared to her as “pragmatic.”
HTS, which leads the victorious coalition of armed groups in Damascus, claims to have broken with jihadism and has sought to reassure people of its ability to revive the country after nearly 14 years of civil war.
France, Germany, Britain, and the United Nations have also sent emissaries to Damascus in recent days to establish contacts with the new authorities.
The West is wary of the risk of fragmentation of the country and the resurgence of the jihadist group Islamic State, which has never been completely eradicated there.
 

 


Vondrousova surprises Sabalenka to reach Berlin final

Vondrousova surprises Sabalenka to reach Berlin final
Updated 2 min 53 sec ago
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Vondrousova surprises Sabalenka to reach Berlin final

Vondrousova surprises Sabalenka to reach Berlin final
The 25-year-old Czech, ranked 164 in the world rankings, dominated Sabalenka 6-2. 6-4,
“I didn’t play for a long time,” said Vondrousova

BERLIN: Marketa Vondrousova brushed aside world number one Aryna Sabalenka in Berlin on Saturday to reach her first final since lifting the Wimbledon title two years ago.

The 25-year-old Czech, ranked 164 in the world rankings, dominated Sabalenka 6-2. 6-4, to set up a Sunday title clash with the winner of the other semifinal on the grass in Berlin between Wang Xinyu and Liudmila Samsonova.

Vondrousova plummeted down the rankings from sixth after missing several months with a left shoulder injury for which she underwent surgery last year.

“I didn’t play for a long time,” said Vondrousova, who was appearing in her first WTA semifinal since April last year.

“I’m just happy to be back healthy, and so grateful to play these matches.

“When I saw the field here, I was like, ‘OK, let’s just try to win the first round,’ and then, you
know, now this is happening.”

Sabalenka’s first serve let her down in the opening set, but the Belarusian fought back to start the second with a break.

Two games down Vondrousova levelled at 2-2, then broke to lead 5-4, wrapping up the win — her first ever over a world number one — but not before saving three consecutive break points, with an ace after one hour five minutes of play.

Sabalenka, 27, was losing only her first semifinal in eight last four appearances in 2025.

China’s Wang beat French Open champion Coco Gauff on Thursday then reached the semis after Spanish opponent Paula Badosa retired having lost 6-1 in the first set.

Her opponent, Samsonova, continued her excellent form on the grass after seeing off defending champion Jessica Pegula, Naomi Osaka, and last weekend’s Queen’s finalist Amanda Anisimova this week.

Eight dead in Brazil hot air balloon accident

Eight dead in Brazil hot air balloon accident
Updated 7 min 29 sec ago
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Eight dead in Brazil hot air balloon accident

Eight dead in Brazil hot air balloon accident
  • “Eight fatalities and 13 survivors,” governor Jorginho Mello said
  • An investigation was launched

SAO PAULO: At least eight people were killed Saturday when a hot air balloon with 21 passengers caught fire in southern Brazil, said the governor of Santa Catarina state, where the incident occurred.

“Eight fatalities and 13 survivors,” governor Jorginho Mello said on X.

Videos taken by bystanders and carried on Brazilian television showed the moment when the balloon erupted in flames above the coastal town of Praia Grande. The weather conditions were clear.


The basket carrying the passengers plummeted dozens of meters to the ground in flames.

An investigation was launched to determine the cause of the accident.

Praia Grande, on the Atlantic coast, is a popular destination for hot-air ballooning in Brazil.

That was the second fatal balloon accident in the country in just a few days. Less than a week ago, a woman died during a ride in southeastern Sao Paulo state.


PM Sharif orders early Hajj planning, calls for private scheme reform

PM Sharif orders early Hajj planning, calls for private scheme reform
Updated 17 min 36 sec ago
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PM Sharif orders early Hajj planning, calls for private scheme reform

PM Sharif orders early Hajj planning, calls for private scheme reform
  • A major portion of the quota for private Hajj operators remained unutilized this year
  • Shehbaz Sharif says no negligence in serving Hajj pilgrims next year will be tolerated

KARACHI: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday directed the religious affairs ministry to begin preparations for the 2026 Hajj immediately, while calling for urgent reforms to the country’s private Hajj scheme following a situation that left thousands of pilgrimage slots unused this year.

Pakistan received a quota of 179,210 pilgrims from Saudi Arabia for Hajj 2025, which was evenly divided between the government and private Hajj operators.

While the government filled its full allocation of over 88,000 pilgrims, a major portion of the private quota remained unutilized due to delays by companies in meeting payment and registration deadlines.

Private operators, however, blamed the situation on technical glitches such as payment issues and communication breakdowns.

“Preparations for next year’s Hajj operation must begin immediately,” the prime minister said, according to a statement released by his office.

“The operational plan should be developed in accordance with the Hajj policy issued by Saudi Arabia,” he continued. “No negligence in serving pilgrims next year will be tolerated.”

Sharif also emphasized the need to “regularize” the private Hajj scheme.

Previously, Pakistan’s religious affairs minister, Sardar Muhammad Yousaf, had confirmed that over 67,000 private-sector slots went unused, despite a last-minute effort to reclaim some of the allocation.

The shortfall prompted criticism and concerns over regulation and the capacity of private Hajj companies.

The prime minister has also asked the religious affairs ministry to submit a detailed Hajj action plan with clear deadlines and start preparing for next year’s Islamic pilgrimage.


IAEA says centrifuge workshop at Iran’s Isfahan nuclear site hit

IAEA says centrifuge workshop at Iran’s Isfahan nuclear site hit
Updated 18 min 44 sec ago
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IAEA says centrifuge workshop at Iran’s Isfahan nuclear site hit

IAEA says centrifuge workshop at Iran’s Isfahan nuclear site hit
  • “There was no nuclear material at this site and therefore the attack on it will have no radiological consequences,” Grossi said

VIENNA: The UN nuclear agency confirmed on Saturday that a centrifuge manufacturing workshop at Iran’s Isfahan nuclear site had been hit, in the latest strike amid Israel’s bombing campaign.


“A centrifuge manufacturing workshop has been hit in Esfahan, the third such facility that has been targeted in Israel’s attacks on Iran’s nuclear-related sites over the past week,” the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in a statement quoting its chief Rafael Grossi.

“We know this facility well. There was no nuclear material at this site and therefore the attack on it will have no radiological consequences,” Grossi was quoted as saying.


Couples tie the knot during a festival on an Amsterdam ring road

Couples tie the knot during a festival on an Amsterdam ring road
Updated 38 min 22 sec ago
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Couples tie the knot during a festival on an Amsterdam ring road

Couples tie the knot during a festival on an Amsterdam ring road
  • “It just seemed like super fun idea,” Lisowska said
  • “It’s a nice party we didn’t have to organize,” said Iozzelli

AMSTERDAM: Securing a coveted slot to exchange wedding rings on Amsterdam’s usually traffic-choked ring road seemed like a good omen for Zuzanna Lisowska and Yuri Iozzelli’s future life together.

“It just seemed like super fun idea,” Lisowska said. “And, you know, statistics were on our side. There were 400 couples who wanted to do it, so we feel really lucky to have been chosen.”

Friends and total strangers cheered and clapped as they told each other “I do!” as part of a day-long festival on parts of the A10 highway that circles the Dutch capital closed to traffic for the day.

“It’s a nice party we didn’t have to organize,” said Iozzelli.

Their only regret was not being able to bring their pet rabbit. “It was too hot,” Lisowska said after exchanging rings with Iozzelli.

The city that is known for partying said that some 600,000 people tried to get access to the ring road festival last month when more than 200,000 free tickets were made available.

Curious city folk, from parents pushing strollers to students and grandparents, stopped to watch the weddings and enjoyed the one-off opportunity to see the road without the usual cacophony of cars.

Among them was communications student Kyra Smit.

“It’s really fun because it’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing,” she said. “It’s so fun that you can say to people, wow, I’m married on the rings, so I really like this.”

The day was packed with events from music performances to readings, meetups and a fun run, shortened because of the heat. Organizers even placed a temporary forest of more than 8,000 trees on the blacktop.

The municipality laid on extra water taps and places where revellers could slap on sun block as temperatures soared to 30 degrees Celsius (86F) and upwards on the road surface.

The city’s official birthday is Oct. 27, reflecting the first time a variant of its name was used in an official document, and is staging celebratory events in the year leading up to that date. The festival on the ring road is the biggest so far and gave Amsterdam residents a new view of their ring road.

“It’s quite strange because normally you drive here and now you’re walking, so that’s a totally different situation,” said Marjolein de Bruijne, who works close to the A10.