Middle East

2 Zionist settlers injured in Palestine Resistance operation

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The “shooting operation” took place in the town of Huwara, south of the city of Nablus, on Tuesday, the Palestinian Information Center news agency reported.

The agency attributed the operation to “Palestinian resistance fighters.” Other outlets said the al-Fajr Brigade, which is associated with the al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades — a coalition of West Bank-based Palestinian resistance groups — had claimed responsibility for the incident.

Israeli media sources, meanwhile, said one of the settlers was in a “critical condition,” while the other had been “moderately injured.”

The fighters managed to flee the scene, the sources added, saying that Israeli military reinforcements had been deployed to the area to conduct a comprehensive search operation in pursuit of the fighters.

The West Bank has been witnessing a surge in such resistance operations in reaction to the Israeli regime’s and its illegal settlers’ incessant instances of deadly aggression against the Palestinians, and their near-daily violations against Palestinian properties and holy sites.

The Palestinian resistance movement of Hamas, which is based in the nearby Gaza Strip, commended the operation.

Spokesman Hazem Qassem said the successful operation showed that the Palestinian fighters in the West Bank would continue resisting the Israeli occupation.

The operation coincided with the anniversary of the Israeli regime’s 2005 withdrawal from Gaza, he reminded. Qassem stressed that “this reflects the Palestinian people’s ability to resist the Israeli occupation until there will be no place for the invaders,” the Palestinian Information Center reported, citing his remarks.

MNA/PressTV

Middle East

2 Israeli settlers injured, one critically, in Palestinian resistance operation

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File photo shows Israeli security forces gathering around the site of a Palestinian resistance operation in the occupied West Bank.

Two Israeli settlers have been injured, one of them critically, following a Palestinian resistance operation in the north of the occupied West Bank.

The “shooting operation” took place in the town of Huwara, south of the city of Nablus, on Tuesday, the Palestinian Information Center news agency reported.

The agency attributed the operation to “Palestinian resistance fighters.” Other outlets said the al-Fajr Brigade, which is associated with the al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades — a coalition of West Bank-based Palestinian resistance groups — had claimed responsibility for the incident.

Israeli media sources, meanwhile, said one of the settlers was in a “critical condition,” while the other had been “moderately injured.”

The fighters managed to flee the scene, the sources added, saying that Israeli military reinforcements had been deployed to the area to conduct a comprehensive search operation in pursuit of the fighters.

The West Bank has been witnessing a surge in such resistance operations in reaction to the Israeli regime’s and its illegal settlers’ incessant instances of deadly aggression against the Palestinians, and their near-daily violations against Palestinian properties and holy sites.

The Palestinian resistance movement of Hamas, which is based in the nearby Gaza Strip, commended the operation.

Spokesman Hazem Qassem said the successful operation showed that the Palestinian fighters in the West Bank would continue resisting the Israeli occupation.

The operation coincided with the anniversary of the Israeli regime’s 2005 withdrawal from Gaza, he reminded. Qassem stressed that “this reflects the Palestinian people’s ability to resist the Israeli occupation until there will be no place for the invaders,” the Palestinian Information Center reported, citing his remarks.

Middle East

PUK head Talabani meets Iran envoy after Tehran visit

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Talabani held a meeting with Iran’s ambassador to Baghdad, Mohammad Kazem Al-e Sadegh in Sulaymaniyah located in the north of Iraq in the Kurdistan region on Tuesday.

In the meeting, the Iranian ambassador thanked the Iraqi Kurdish authorities for providing services and facilities to Iranian Arbaeen pilgrims after highlighting the historical and brotherly relations between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the PUK.

Referring to his recent trip to Tehran, Bafel Talabani described its results as positive and constructive.

Talebani further announced his readiness for any cooperation in order to fully implement the security agreement [between Iran and Iraq].

During his visit to the Kurdistan region, the ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Iraq also visited the grave of late Jalal Talabani, the former president of Iraq, in Sulaymaniyah.

MNA/IRN85227125

Middle East

Yemen among world’s worst for ‘contamination’ by explosives: Red Cross

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The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) says Yemen has one of the world’s highest rates of contamination with landmines and other deadly explosives.

“When it comes to weapon contamination, Yemen, Iraq and Afghanistan are the three countries most affected by this. It is really devastating and has a very important impact on people, their safety, and also their livelihood.” The ICRC’s Near and Middle East regional director, Fabrizio Carboni, was quoted  as saying

“The presence of unexploded ordnance is massive,” stressed Carboni. “The contamination is so important and so widespread that you will not be able to decontaminate everything [even if the conflict ended today].”

“This is the first time that I really have the feeling that there are convincing and concrete political options on the table and that violence is no longer the only option,” added Carboni.

Yemen is estimated to have at least one million mines that have been planted during years of war.

According to the UN-linked Civilian Impact Monitoring Project, landmines, unexploded shells, and other weapons or munitions left behind during fighting have killed and injured 1,469 civilians in Yemen over the past five years.

The Yemen Executive Mine Action Centre (YEMAC) earlier this month said that cluster bombs and unexploded ordnance used by the Saudi-led military coalition during its onslaught on Yemen took the lives of dozens of civilians last month.

The center criticized the United Nations for the suspension of funding for minefield clearing operations in Yemen for the second straight month.

The center also stressed that the continuation of the current situation will result in the maiming of a great number of Yemenis, especially children.

Saudi Arabia initiated a brutal war of aggression against Yemen in March 2015, enlisting the assistance of some of its regional allies, including the United Arab Emirates, as well as massive shipments of advanced weaponry from the US and Western Europe.

The Western governments further extended their political and logistical support to Riyadh in their failed bid to restore power in Yemen to the country’s former Saudi-installed government.

The former Yemeni government’s president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, resigned from the presidency in late 2014 and later fled to Riyadh amid a political conflict with Ansarullah. The movement has been running Yemen’s affairs in the absence of a functioning administration.

The war further led to the killing of tens of thousands of Yemenis and turned the entire nation into the scene of the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

Middle East

PUK head Talebani meets Iran envoy after Tehran visit

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Talebani held a meeting with Iran’s ambassador to Baghdad, Mohammad Kazem Al-e Sadegh in Sulaymaniyah located in the north of Iraq in the Kurdistan region on Tuesday.

In the meeting, the Iranian ambassador thanked the Iraqi Kurdish authorities for providing services and facilities to Iranian Arbaeen pilgrims after highlighting the historical and brotherly relations between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the PUK.

Referring to his recent trip to Tehran, Bafel Talabani described its results as positive and constructive.

Talebani further announced his readiness for any cooperation in order to fully implement the security agreement [between Iran and Iraq].

During his visit to the Kurdistan region, the ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Iraq also visited the grave of late Jalal Talabani, the former president of Iraq, in Sulaimaniyah.

MNA/IRN85227125

Middle East

1000s of academics call on Biden to shun Netanyahu during his US visit

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Thousands of Israeli academics and artists have urged the US president and UN chief to shun Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during his visit to New York next week.

Over 3,500 signers, including well-known Israeli writer David Grossman and painter Tamar Getter, in a recent open letter called on President Joe Biden and United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres not to meet with Netanyahu or invite him to speak at the UN General Assembly’s yearly meeting of world leaders.

“Netanyahu incites citizens against each other, threatens the country’s security and economy, and turns his face away from the historical conflict that tears Israel apart – the forceful domination of the Palestinian people,” the open letter read.

“From the outset of establishing his extreme right-wing government, Mr. Netanyahu’s coalition has worked tirelessly to undermine the gatekeepers of Israel’s democracy, weaken the Supreme Court, neutralize the media and destroy the few checks and balances safeguarding the health of our nation,” they wrote.

The letter underlines the divide between Israel’s far-right regime and segments of its population.

Netanyahu’s office has said the premier will travel to the US next week to visit high-tech leaders in California before flying to New York to address the UN.

Netanyahu’s public itinerary so far does not feature an appointment with Biden at the White House. Biden said earlier this year he had no intention to meet Netanyahu “in the near term.”

Israel’s rightward lurch under Netanyahu’s extremist regime that took office late last year has strained the country’s critical ties with the US, Israel’s main backer.

The Israeli prime minister’s US trip comes as his plan to overhaul the judicial system has plunged Israel into one of its gravest domestic crises in history.

Once again in the focus was Netanyahu’s so-called judicial overhaul plan. Netanyahu’s push for the highly controversial judicial overhaul has drawn strong criticism from Washington.

Proponents of the plan say it helps redistribute the balance of power between the politicians and the judiciary. Its opponents, however, accuse Netanyahu of trying his hand at a power grab. They say the premier, who is on trial on several counts of corruption charges, is also attempting to use the scheme to quash possible judgments against him.

The major grievance of the anti-regime demonstrators has been the highly controversial judicial overhaul scheme presented by the cabinet of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israeli academics, artists, businessmen and even military reservists have come out against the controversial overhaul.

Biden expressed concerns when Israel’s parliament slammed through the first piece of legislation in July, calling the outcome “unfortunate.” On Tuesday,  Israel’s supreme court, for the first time in its history, convened its entire 15-judge bench on Tuesday, September 12, to hear an appeal against that bill.

The Biden administration has also voiced increased frustration with the Israeli regime’s settlement growth in the occupied West Bank, which the US and most of the international community consider a main obstacle to peace with the Palestinians.

Middle East

Iran, Turkey need to expand legal, judiciary cooperation

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Kazem Gharibabadi made the remarks in a meeting with the Turkish ambassador to Tehran Hicabi Kırlangıç on Tuesday. 

Gharibabadi expressed readiness for strengthening interactions and expanding legal-judicial relations and cooperation with Turkey, adding that the expansion of judicial cooperation not only can enhance the overall bilateral ties, but also will be of great help to the citizens of the two countries.

Referring to the judicial cooperation agreement between Iran and Turkey he said that one of the main parts of this agreement is the transfer of convicts between the two countries.

Elsewhere in his remarks, he referred to the fight against terrorism, organized crime, Islamophobia, and support for the people of Palestine emphasizing that Iran and Turkey have extensive and positive cooperation in these areas within international bodies.

Hicabi Kırlangıç , for his part, referred to the friendly and significant relations between the two countries and the various shared aspects of neighborhood, Islamic values, and culture.

He also stated that following negotiations between officials of the two countries, the necessary ground has been laid for the extradition of 40 Iranian prisoners in Turkey to return home.

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Middle East

Tehran-Beijing-Riyadh agreement model for other countries

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“I am very pleased to meet Mr. Abdullah bin Saud al-Anzi, the new ambassador of Saudi Arabia to Iran, and I welcome his new mission,” Chang Hua, the Ambassador of China to the Islamic Republic of Iran wrote on his X account.

“The Beijing agreement between China, Iran, and Saudi Arabia is a model for countries around the world to resolve conflicts and disputes through dialogue and consultation,” Hua wrote.

“I visited His Excellency Chang Hua, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to the Islamic Republic of Iran, and during the meeting, friendly conversations were exchanged and topics of common interest were discussed,” the Saudi envoy also wrote in his account.

Earlier on Sunday, Saudi Arabia’s new Ambassador to Tehran submitted a copy of his credential to Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian.

The two countries agreed to resume diplomatic ties back in March following a Chinese-brokered deal after a seven-year estrangement. 

Iran officially reopened its embassy in Riyadh in June, followed by its consulate in Jeddah and representative office with the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.

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Middle East

Iran, US in final stages of implementing prisoner swap

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After the recent agreement between Iran and the United States on the release of Iran’s frozen assets in South Korea, as well as the exchange of prisoners between Tehran and Washington, new details on that mediate are revealed to the media.

Hamidreza Dehghani-Podeh, Iran’s ambassador to Qatar, who is in the process of farewell meetings with Qatari officials at the end of his mission in Doha, wrote in a post on X social network (former Twitter), “In the meeting with Mr. Mohammed Al Khulaifi, Qatar’s Minister of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, after reviewing the measures taken and the steps ahead, I expressed gratitude to him for his role in promoting bilateral relations, especially regarding the swap agreement, which we are in the final stages of implementing.”

The Reuters news agency on Sunday reported, citing sources in Iran and other sources close to Iran-US indirect talks on a prisoner swap mediated by Qatar over the past few months that Iran will release five US prisoners and the US, in return, would free five Iranian nationals as soon as next week (this week). The report added that the US would also allow the transfer of Iran’s frozen money to Qatar.

Moreover, the Associated Press reported earlier today that the Biden administration has issued a waiver for international banks to transfer $6 billion in frozen Iranian money from South Korea to Qatar without fear of US sanctions. 

The AP said the Biden administration has also agreed to release five Iranian citizens held in the United States.

It added that Secretary of State Antony Blinken signed off on the sanctions waivers late last week, a month after US and Iranian officials said an agreement in principle was in place on the issue.

Iran has said that it has done the prisoner swap to release its own prisoners illegally held in the United States.

KI

Middle East

Iraq will stand committed to its security agreement with Iran: FM

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Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein (R) speaks in a joint press conference with his Austrian counterpart Alexander Schallenberg in Baghdad, Iraq, on September 12, 2023. (Photo by the Iraqi News Agency)

Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein has reassured Iran that his country remains committed to its security agreement with the Islamic Republic regarding the expulsion of anti-Iran terrorist groups from the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region.

Hussein made the remarks in a joint press conference with his Austrian counterpart Alexander Schallenberg in the Iraqi capital city of Baghdad on Tuesday.

“We have taken the necessary measures to purge armed groups from areas along the border between Iraq and Iran. And for that purpose, I will travel to Tehran tomorrow to hold talks on the matter with Iranian authorities,” the top Iraqi diplomat announced.

He added, “Our constitution does not allow the Iraqi soil to be used as a launching pad for attacks on neighboring countries. At the same time, we do not accept the national sovereignty of Iraq to be undermined.”

The Iraqi foreign minister also described Baghdad’s relations with Tehran as strong and deep-rooted, emphasizing that such ties denounce the use of violence to settle differences.

“Iraq will not allow its territory to be used by some groups to attack Iran,” Hussein stated.

The comments came a day after Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kan’ani said the ultimatum given to Iraq to disarm anti-Iran separatist groups based in Kurdistan regime will not be extended.

“Iran’s stance is completely clear. According to the agreement reached with the Iraqi government, the final deadline for the disarmament of the terrorist and separatist forces in Iraq’s Kurdistan region ends on September 19 and that deadline will not be extended in any way,” Kan’ani said in a weekly press briefing in Tehran on Monday.

He noted that the Iraqi government has taken measures in this regard and has stressed that it will honor its commitments.

Also on Monday, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian warned that the presence of terrorists in the Iraqi Kurdistan region runs counter to the friendly ties between the two nations and contravenes the Constitution of Iraq.