DUBAI: The United States will respond with military force if its interests are attacked by Iran, the US Iran envoy said on Thursday as Arab leaders gathered in Saudi Arabia to discuss what they see as the threat from Tehran amid rising tensions.
But US Special Representative for Iran, Brian Hook, said US actions taken so far in the Gulf region, which include repositioning military assets, have had the “desired deterrent effect on the (Iranian) regime’s risk calculations.”
The US military has sent forces, including an aircraft carrier and B-52 bombers, to the Middle East in a move that US officials said was made to counter “clear indications” of threats from Iran to American forces in the region.
Hook was speaking to reporters by phone ahead of emergency summits of Arab leaders in the Saudi city of Makkah due on Thursday to discuss drone strikes on oil installations in Saudi Arabia and attacks on four vessels, including two Saudi oil tankers, off the UAE coast earlier this month.
Hook said the US was waiting for results of the investigation into the tanker attacks off the UAE coast before discussing a proper response
Tehran has denied involvement in either attack.
The US is pursuing what it calls a “maximum pressure campaign” of sanctions against Iran to reduce its revenue streams from oil and other economic activities, in an attempt to curb what it sees as Tehran’s disruptive policies in the region.
Responding to a question about China and India importing Iranian oil and whether it was possible for them to keep importing small amounts, Hook said there would be no more exceptions granted to sanctions against Iran oil imports.
“There will be no more oil waivers granted,” he said, adding that any oil imported by any country beyond waiver limits that ran from November last year to May, would be subject to sanctions.
Trump also said that Iran’s economy is suffering from US sanctions and that the country is becoming a “weakened nation.”
As tensions between Washington and Tehran escalate, Trump claims Iran wants to make a deal.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei says, however, that negotiating with the US would bring nothing but harm.
He said Wednesday that his country will not negotiate on issues related to its military capabilities. He insists that Iran isn’t looking to acquire nuclear weapons — not because of sanctions or the United States, but because they are forbidden under Islamic Sharia law.
At the White House on Thursday, Trump told reporters: “If they want to talk, I’m available.”
Meanwhile, White House National Security Adviser John Bolton said on Thursday that the threat from Iran is not over but quick action from the United States has helped deter it.
“I don’t think this threat is over, but I do think you can make at least a conditional claim that the quick response and the deployment and other steps that we took did serve as a deterrent,” Bolton told reporters during a visit to London.
Asked whether he was at odds with President Donald Trump, who said earlier this week that the US was not looking for regime change in Iran, he said: “The policy we’re pursuing is not a policy of regime change. That’s the fact and everybody should understand it that way.”
Bolton said there was some prospect that evidence Iran was behind attacks this month on oil tankers in the Gulf would be presented to the United Nations Security Council next week.
“I don’t think anybody who is familiar with the situation in the region, whether they have examined the evidence or not, has come to any conclusion other than that these attacks were carried out by Iran or their surrogates,” he said.
US will respond with military force if its interests are attacked by Iran: Brian Hook
US will respond with military force if its interests are attacked by Iran: Brian Hook
- Hook says US waiting for results of investigation into tanker attacks off UAE coast before discussing proper response
- The Iran envoy said the US repositioning of military assets has had desired deterrent effect on Iranian regime
Ex-PM Khan urges Pakistan army chief to reconsider policies to end political instability
- The development comes amid renewed political tensions between Imran Khan-led opposition and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government in Pakistan
- Pakistan’s army has ruled the country for nearly half of its history, though it has denied in recent years that it no longer interferes in the country’s politics
ISLAMABAD: Former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan has written a letter to the chief of the country’s powerful army, General Asim Munir, and urged him to reconsider existing policies to end political instability in the country, Khan’s lawyer said on Monday.
The development comes amid renewed political tensions between Khan-led opposition and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government in Pakistan, following the breakdown of weeks-long talks between the two sides. Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party accuses the government of causing the breakdown by failing to release political prisoners and establish judicial commissions to investigate violent protests of May 9, 2023, and Nov. 26, 2024. The government says Khan’s party walked away from the talks “unilaterally” before they had a chance to address the PTI’s demands.
Khan’s ouster in a parliamentary no-trust vote in 2022 has plunged Pakistan into a political crisis, particularly since he was jailed in August 2023 on corruption and other charges and remains behind bars. His PTI party and supporters have regularly held protests calling for his release, with many of the demonstrations turning violent.
Speaking to reporters in Rawalpindi, Khan’s lawyer Faisal Chaudhry said the ex-premier has detailed six points in his letter, which he considers the reasons behind a growing divide between the country’s armed forces and the Pakistani people, and says that a change in current policies was the “need of the hour.”
“The first of all reasons, according to Imran Khan, is the rigging of Feb. 8, [2024] election,” he said. “This is the first point due to which a gulf was created between people and the institutions [armed forces].”
Pakistan held its general election on Feb. 8, 2024 that was marred by a mobile Internet shutdown and unusually delayed results. The polls threw up a hung National Assembly and were followed by weeks of protests by opposition parties over allegations of rigging and vote count fraud. The government and election authorities deny any systematic rigging of polls.
Khan last month called on his party’s members and supporters from all walks of life to mark Feb. 8 as a “Black Day” and hold protests across the country to protest alleged rigging of last year’s polls.
“Second, the judiciary in Pakistan has been controlled under the 26th constitutional amendment and the 26th constitutional amendment was brought to bulldoze justice system in the country,” Chaudhry said as he quoted Khan, saying the amendment was aimed at providing a cover to the “election fraud.”
The amendment empowered parliament to pick the country’s top judge among other changes.
The lawyer also said Khan’s letter mentioned among other things the recent amendments to the Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) that he said were aimed at stifling dissent on social media, a crackdown on his party’s members and supporters, violation of various court orders, and alleged threats to judges and journalists that were widening the divide between the armed forces and the Pakistani people.
Khan fell out with Pakistan army’s top leaders in the lead-up to his ouster from the PM’s office, and has since led an unprecedented campaign of defiance against the all-powerful army, which has ruled the South Asian country for nearly half of its 75-year history, and even when not in power, it is considered the invisible guiding hand in politics. The army has in recent years said it no longer interferes in politics.
Tensions between Khan’s PTI and the army further heightened after Khan’s brief arrest on May 9, 2023, in a land graft case that sparked countrywide protests, with PTI supporters attacking and ransacking military installations in an unprecedented backlash against the army.
The military has called the day of the protests a “Black Day” and vowed to punish those involved. Since then, thousands of Khan’s supporters have been arrested and dozens of his top party members have defected after they faced increasing pressure from the military establishment to do so, according to his supporters. The army denies it.
“Policies need to be changed swiftly and they should be kept in accordance with the constitution and law, so that political instability in the country may end and the country may move toward stability,” Khan’s lawyer said.
“As long as these policies are not changed, it is difficult for the country to reach a point of stability.”
Hamas officials say ‘ready’ for negotiations on phase two of Gaza truce
- “Hamas has informed the mediators … that we are ready to start the negotiations for the second phase,” an official said
CAIRO: Hamas is ready to begin talks on the details of a second phase of the ongoing truce in Gaza, two officials from the Palestinian militant group told AFP on Monday.
“Hamas has informed the mediators, during ongoing communications and meetings held with Egyptian mediators last week in Cairo, that we are ready to start the negotiations for the second phase,” one official said on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the talks.
“We call on the mediators to ensure that the occupation adheres to the agreement and does not stall,” they added.
A second official said the group was “waiting for the mediators to initiate the next round.”
Under the terms of the ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel — the first phase of which came into effect on January 19 — indirect talks to hammer out the details of phase two were due to start Monday.
The 42-day phase one revolves around the release of 33 Israeli hostages in exchange for around 1,900 prisoners, most of them Palestinian, being held in Israeli jails.
The second phase is expected to cover the release of the remaining hostages and include discussions on a more permanent end to the war.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office has said he will begin discussions about the second phase with US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff on Monday.
The Israeli premier is currently in Washington, and is due to meet Trump on Tuesday.
Makkah trials hydrogen-powered buses to promote clean energy, sustainability
- Scheme is part of a MoU between the Royal Commission for Makkah City and Holy Sites and the Ministry of Energy to implement a pilot project for hydrogen fuel cell buses on designated routes
- Aims to explore hydrogen applications in transportation, gain commercial and technical expertise, and gather insights for potential future expansion
RIYADH: The second trial of a hydrogen fuel cell-powered bus has been launched in Makkah.
It is overseen by the Royal Commission for Makkah City and Holy Sites, in collaboration with the Ministry of Energy, the Transport General Authority, the General Directorate of Civil Defense and the General Department of Traffic.
The scheme is part of a memorandum of understanding between the commission and the ministry to implement a pilot project for hydrogen fuel cell buses on designated routes, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
It aims to explore hydrogen applications in transportation, gain commercial and technical expertise, and gather insights for potential future expansion. It also seeks to raise public awareness of hydrogen technology.
Through the initiative, the commission aims to introduce clean energy-based transportation solutions, enhancing quality of life in alignment with Vision 2030’s goals to reduce emissions and protect the environment.
The project also seeks to improve services for pilgrims and Umrah performers, enhancing their experience at the holy sites, the SPA reported.
The hydrogen bus trial is integrated into the Makkah Bus Project, with an operational plan ensuring security and safety. This includes running buses along the designated route and deploying a mobile hydrogen fueling station.
An evaluation of the trial will focus on efficiency, performance, operational sustainability, cost-effectiveness and passenger comfort, ensuring Makkah’s public transportation system evolves into a more sustainable service.
Queen Rania calls for protecting children at Vatican summit
- Queen Rania explained that one in six children globally lives in conflict-affected areas
- Around 96% of vulnerable children in the Gaza Strip feel their death is imminent
LONDON: Queen Rania Abdullah of Jordan called on Monday for respecting and protecting children’s rights during the World Summit on Children’s Rights held by the Holy See at the Vatican.
The queen spoke at “The Rights of the Child in Today’s World” panel, following the opening remarks of Pope Francis at the international summit.
“Whether they are missing their two front teeth or have lost limbs to war wounds, every child has an equal claim to our protection and care,” Queen Rania said, according to Petra agency.
She explained that one in six children globally lives in conflict-affected areas, where dozens are killed or injured each day, Petra added.
Queen Rania highlighted shocking findings from a December study showing that 96 percent of vulnerable children in the Gaza Strip feel their death is imminent following more than a year of Israeli bombardment.
“Almost half said they wanted to die,” she added. “Not to become astronauts or firefighters like other children, they wanted to be dead. How did we let our humanity come to this?”
At least 47,000 Palestinians have died as a result of the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip since October 2023, with the majority being women and children.
“From Palestine to Sudan, Yemen to Myanmar, and beyond, this ‘un-childing’ creates chasms in our compassion,” she said.
“It stifles urgency in favor of complacency. It allows politicians to sidestep blame, and put narrow agendas above collective obligations.”
The Pontifical Committee for World Children’s Day initiated the World Summit on Children’s Rights to further the Roman Catholic Church’s mission of advocating for the rights of children.
The summit was attended by Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Antonio Tajani; former Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi; Climate Reality Project founder and chairman, Al Gore; and Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi, among others.
