This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareBEIRUT — Lebanese authorities on Thursday took halting steps toward accountability for the devastating explosions in Beirut, but the measures, including the interrogation of port officials, look unlikely to stem a torrent of calls for the punishment of the country's leaders.The fury spilled out during a visit to Lebanon by French President Emmanuel Macron, who toured the destruction Thursday, followed by a boiling crowd that demanded that any emergency aid bypass corrupt government officials. By nightfall, after a day of...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareBEIRUT — Lebanese authorities on Thursday took halting steps toward accountability for the devastating explosions in Beirut, but the measures, including the interrogation of port officials, look unlikely to stem a torrent of calls for the punishment of the country's leaders.The fury spilled out during a visit to Lebanon by French President Emmanuel Macron, who toured the destruction Thursday, followed by a boiling crowd that demanded that any emergency aid bypass corrupt government officials. By nightfall, after a day of...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareBEIRUT — The highest court in the tiny Persian Gulf country of Bahrain upheld two death sentences Monday, despite evidence of torture in extracting a confession implicating both men.Husain Moosa, 34, and Mohammed Ramadan, 37, were sentenced to death in 2014 after being charged with targeting police officers with a bomb, killing one of them. Their sentences were overturned following an internal review of allegations that the men had been tortured and sexually assaulted.The Court of Cassation on Monday reinstated the death...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareBEIRUT — The highest court in the tiny Persian Gulf country of Bahrain upheld two death sentences Monday, despite evidence of torture in extracting a confession implicating both men.Husain Moosa, 34, and Mohammed Ramadan, 37, were sentenced to death in 2014 after being charged with targeting police officers with a bomb, killing one of them. Their sentences were overturned following an internal review of allegations that the men had been tortured and sexually assaulted.The Court of Cassation on Monday reinstated the death...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareBEIRUT — Yemen's Houthi rebels claimed that they hit an Aramco oil facility in eastern Saudi Arabia on Sunday, the first time the group has reached the company's facilities in that area.In a televised statement, a spokesman for the rebel group, Brig. Gen. Yahya Sarea, said ballistic missiles and drones hit the oil giant’s facilities in Ras Tanura, a major port on Saudi Arabia’s Persian Gulf coast and one of its largest refineries, and military positions in nearby Dammam.Saudi state media later confirmed the Ras Tanura...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareBEIRUT — Yemen's Houthi rebels claimed that they hit an Aramco oil facility in eastern Saudi Arabia on Sunday, the first time the group has reached the company's facilities in that area.In a televised statement, a spokesman for the rebel group, Brig. Gen. Yahya Sarea, said ballistic missiles and drones hit the oil giant’s facilities in Ras Tanura, a major port on Saudi Arabia’s Persian Gulf coast and one of its largest refineries, and military positions in nearby Dammam.Saudi state media later confirmed the Ras Tanura...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareMOSCOW — Russia was given about four to five minutes warning of the Biden administration’s first military action when it struck Iranian-backed militias in eastern Syria early Friday, according to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. But he said the warning came too late to reduce the risk of a potential clash between the two country’s forces.U.S. officials believe the attack killed a number of alleged Iranian-linked fighters, signaling the administration’s intent to use targeted military action to push back against...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareMOSCOW — Russia was given about four to five minutes warning of the Biden administration’s first military action when it struck Iranian-backed militias in eastern Syria early Friday, according to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. But he said the warning came too late to reduce the risk of a potential clash between the two country’s forces.U.S. officials believe the attack killed a number of alleged Iranian-linked fighters, signaling the administration’s intent to use targeted military action to push back against...WW…