DUBAI: Saeed Jalili, steadfastly loyal to Iran’s supreme leader, pushed slightly ahead of the sole moderate candidate as more votes were counted from a tightly controlled snap presidential election held amid growing public frustration and Western pressure.
Among more than 10.3 million ballots from Friday’s election counted so far, hard-line former nuclear negotiator Jalili won more than 4.26 million votes and his low-profile moderate challenger lawmaker Massoud Pezeshkian gained about 4.24 million, Interior ministry official Mohsen Eslami told state TV on Saturday.
Some insiders said the turnout was around 40 percent, lower than expected by Iran’s clerical rulers, while witnesses told Reuters that polling stations in Tehran and some other cities were not crowded.
Iran’s Tasnim news agency said a run-off election was “very likely” to pick the next president following the death of Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash.
The election coincides with escalating regional tension due to the war between Israel and Iranian allies Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, as well as increased Western pressure on Iran over its fast-advancing nuclear program.
While the election is unlikely to bring a major shift in the Islamic Republic’s policies, its outcome could influence the succession to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s 85-year-old supreme leader, in power since 1989.
The clerical establishment sought a high turnout to offset a legitimacy crisis fueled by public discontent over economic hardship and curbs on political and social freedom.
The next president is not expected to usher in any major policy shift on Iran’s nuclear program or support for militia groups across the Middle East, since Khamenei calls all the shots on top state matters.
However, the president runs the government day-to-day and can influence the tone of Iran’s foreign and domestic policy.
Jalili, a former diplomat, describes himself as a pious believer in “velayat-e faqih,” or rule by supreme jurisprudence, Iran’s system of Islamic government that provides the basis for Khamenei’s paramount position.
Iran’s presidential election is a contest among a tightly controlled group of three hard-line candidates and one low-profile moderate loyal to the supreme leader.
A hard-line watchdog body approved only six from an initial pool of 80 and two hard-line candidates subsequently dropped out.
Pezeshkian is backed by the reformist camp that has been largely sidelined in Iran in recent years.
Critics of Iran’s clerical rule say that low turnouts in recent years show the system’s legitimacy has eroded. Turnout was 48 percent in the 2021 presidential election and a record low of 41 percent of people voted in a parliamentary election in March.
“Based on unconfirmed reports, the election is very likely heading to a second round ... Jalili and Pezeshkian will compete in a run-off election,” Tasnim reported.
If no candidate wins at least 50 percent plus one vote from all ballots cast, including blank votes, a run-off between the top two candidates is held on the first Friday after the result is declared.
All candidates have vowed to revive the flagging economy, beset by mismanagement, state corruption and sanctions re-imposed since 2018, after the United States ditched Tehran’s 2015 nuclear pact with six world powers.
“I think Jalili is the only candidate who raised the issue of justice, fighting corruption and giving value to the poor. ... Most importantly, he does not link Iran’s foreign policy to the nuclear deal,” said Farzan, a 45-year-old artist in the city of Karaj.
Pezeshkian is faithful to Iran’s theocratic rule, but advocates detente with the West, economic reform, social liberalization and political pluralism.
“We will respect the hijab law, but there should never be any intrusive or inhumane behavior toward women,” Pezeshkian said after casting his vote.
He was referring to the death of Mahsa Amini, a young Kurdish woman, in 2022 while in morality police custody for allegedly violating the mandatory Islamic dress code.
The unrest sparked by Amini’s death spiralled into the biggest show of opposition to Iran’s clerical rulers in years.
Pezeshkian attempted to revive the enthusiasm of reform-minded voters who have largely stayed away from the polls for the last four years as a mostly youthful population chafes at political and social curbs. He could also benefit from his rivals’ failure to consolidate the hard-line vote.
“I feel Pezeshkian represents both traditional and liberal thoughts,” said architect Pirouz, 45, who said he had planned to boycott the vote until he learned more about Pezeshkian’s plans.
In the past few weeks, Iranians have made wide use of the hashtag #ElectionCircus on X, with some activists at home and abroad calling for a boycott, saying a high turnout would only serve to legitimize the Islamic Republic.
“The youth were punished ... young girls were killed on the streets ... We can’t easily move on from that. ... After all that happened, it’s unconscionable to vote,” said 55-year-old writer Shahrzad Afrasheh.
In the 2022/23 protests, more than 500 people including 71 minors were killed, hundreds were injured and thousands arrested, rights groups said.
Khamenei’s protege Jalili edges ahead in tight Iran presidential race
https://arab.news/m3jjy
Khamenei’s protege Jalili edges ahead in tight Iran presidential race
- Vote unlikely to alter policies, may shape Khamenei succession
- Iranians elect president after Raisi died in helicopter crash
Saudi Arabia announces $10 million in aid for Lebanon
- KSrelief and Lebanon’s High Relief Commission signed a pact in Beirut to launch 28 projects across the country
- Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said the strong fraternal relationship between Lebanon and Saudi Arabia had deepened and solidified over the years
BEIRUT: Saudi’s Ambassador to Lebanon Walid Bukhari said on Tuesday the Kingdom would provide $10 million to Lebanon through the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center.
KSrelief and Lebanon’s High Relief Commission signed a pact in Beirut to launch 28 projects across the country.
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said the strong fraternal relationship between Lebanon and Saudi Arabia had deepened and solidified over the years.
The Kingdom, he said, “has always been by Lebanon’s side and supported it in times of hardship, serving as a safety valve that has preserved the unity of the Lebanese, regardless of their sect, denomination, or political party.”
Mikati said the gesture represented Saudi Arabia’s keenness for stability in Lebanon.
“I am confident that the Kingdom has been and will remain the bigger brother of Lebanon,” he said.
Mikati added: “Saudi constants toward Lebanon are reflected by the Kingdom’s actions and deeds, through the Taif Agreement, which we adhere to fully, and which still serves as the appropriate framework for managing Lebanon’s affairs.
“In all the meetings I held with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, he expressed his support for Lebanon to emerge from its crisis, but on the condition that the required structural reforms are implemented and that Lebanese institutions play their full role, especially concerning electing a new president.
“This responsibility falls on us, the Lebanese, and what is required of us first and foremost is to carry out our duties with the support of friendly countries, foremost among them Saudi Arabia.”
The prime minister continued: “The person who led Saudi Arabia and its youth to the leadership and pioneering positions … will not find it difficult to be a support for his brothers in Lebanon. We look forward to the Kingdom’s care and fraternal gesture toward my country Lebanon so that it can rise again.”
Ambassador Bukhari said the Saudi support was a continuation of the “commitment of the leadership in Saudi Arabia,” led by King Salman and the crown prince, “to help humanitarian efforts and promote stability and development in Lebanon with the highest standards of transparency and accountability.”
The Kingdom’s support “comes as a continuation of the solidarity approach adopted by the Kingdom toward the Lebanese people, based on the duty of true Arab brotherhood and teachings of Islam,” he added.
Saudi Arabia has already launched 129 relief, humanitarian and development projects for Lebanon, covering many sectors.
Bukhari said KSrelief was a leading international organization with the purpose of providing relief to communities hit by disasters and crises.
“Since its establishment, KSrelief launched more than 7,000 humanitarian projects with a total value of $129.68 billion in 169 countries,” Bukhari added.
Maj. Gen. Mohammed Khair, head of the Higher Relief Committee, signed a pact of joint cooperation with Abdulrahman Al-Quraishi, director of KSrelief in Lebanon.
The Kingdom’s support coincided with ongoing hostilities between the Israeli army and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.
On Tuesday, an Israeli guided missile targeted farmers in Al-Zalutiyah, a town in the western sector, killing a Lebanese civilian. An Israeli drone also launched three missiles at Taybeh power plant, causing a fire and a power outage.
Stranded Yemeni pilgrims in Saudi Arabia will return home by land
- Yemen’s Ministry of Endowments and Guidance said that Yemeni pilgrims stranded at Jeddah airport were sent back to their hotels in Makkah
- Other pilgrims will be flown on Yemenia Airways flights from Jeddah to government-controlled Aden
AL-MUKALLA: Hundreds of Yemeni pilgrims trapped in Saudi Arabia will return to Houthi-held areas of Yemen by land, as the militia refuses to release Yemenia Airways aircraft that would transport them home, Yemen’s government said on Tuesday.
Yemen’s Ministry of Endowments and Guidance said that Yemeni pilgrims stranded at Jeddah airport were sent back to their hotels in Makkah and will be transported home by road to their districts under Houthi control.
Other pilgrims will be flown on Yemenia Airways flights from Jeddah to government-controlled Aden, then transported by bus to Sanaa and other Houthi-held Yemeni provinces, according to Yemen’s official news agency SABA.
Last week, Yemen’s Houthis seized three Yemenia flights at Sanaa airport and blocked them from going to Jeddah to bring back Yemeni pilgrims, stranding at least 1,000 people in Saudi Arabia.
The Yemeni government branded the Houthis’ capture of jets as “piracy” and urged the international community to put pressure on the Houthis to free the three planes and another plane that had been taken earlier.
The Houthi Supreme Political Council on Monday resisted requests to allow flights to carry pilgrims by applauding its authorities for taking the planes, claiming that the measure was intended to “preserve the company, its assets, and its capabilities.”
The Houthis claim they would administer the firm from Sanaa, repair the aircraft, and reschedule flights from Sanaa and other Yemeni airports, accusing the Yemeni government of mismanaging it.
This comes as the Houthis have increased their assaults on government troops in Marib, Taiz and Hodeidah over the past 48 hours, despite the militia’s negotiators meeting the Yemeni government in Muscat for UN-brokered prisoner exchange negotiations.
On Monday, the government’s Giants Brigades repelled a Houthi incursion in the Al-Abedia region of the central province of Marib, killing and injuring many assailants, according to a military source who spoke to SABA agency.
In their assault on government soldiers, the Houthis deployed canons, drones and medium weaponry in an effort to capture control of fresh regions in Marib province.
The Houthi attack in Marib occurred one day after the Houthis attacked the Giants Brigades forces in the western province of Hodeidah, killing two soldiers and injuring seven.
Yemen’s army said on Monday that its soldiers stopped a Houthi incursion attempt north of Taiz, forcing the Houthis to leave after brief fighting.
Despite a considerable decline in hostilities since the UN-brokered ceasefire came into effect in April 2022, the Houthis have continued to wage fatal attacks on government soldiers in Marib, Taiz, Dhale, Hodeidah and other disputed regions.
In a separate development, the militia said on Monday that its troops had carried out four operations against four “American, British and Israeli” ships in international waters off Yemen and the Mediterranean.
The first operation saw the militia’s missile troops firing cruise missiles against the “Israeli” MSC Unific ship in the Red Sea, according to Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea.
He said that their troops targeted the “US” oil ship Delonix in the Red Sea for the second time, employing ballistic and cruise missiles.
In the third operation, a “British landing ship” called Anvil Point was targeted in the Indian Ocean with cruise missiles, while a fourth missile targeted a ship called Lucky Sailor in the Mediterranean, which was attacked because the ship’s parent company violated the militia’s ban on sailing into Israeli ports.
The US Central Command said on Tuesday that its forces had destroyed one Houthi radar site in a Yemeni location controlled by the Houthis, marking the latest wave of attacks by US and UK aircraft against Houthi military targets in Yemen.
Since November, the Houthis have launched missiles, drones and explosive-laden ships into the Red Sea, Bab Al-Mandab Strait, the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, and have recently announced plans to expand their attacks into the Mediterranean in what the Yemeni militia refers to as a campaign against Israeli ships to force Israel to end its military operations in the Palestinian Gaza Strip.
Egypt set to change finance, foreign and supply ministers
- Kouchouk was serving as a deputy to Mohamed Maait
- The new cabinet is expected to be sworn in on Wednesday
CAIRO: Egypt is expected to change its foreign, finance, petroleum, electricity and supply ministers in a long-awaited new cabinet, with Ahmed Kouchouk leading the finance ministry, state TV said on Tuesday, citing local channel ExtraNews.
Kouchouk was serving as a deputy to Mohamed Maait, finance minister since 2018 and a central figure in Egypt’s negotiations with the International Monetary Fund.
At the foreign ministry, Egypt’s ambassador to the European Union Badr Abdelatty would replace Sameh Shoukry, who had held the foreign ministry post since 2014, state TV reported.
Sherif Farouk, chairman of state postal company Egypt Post, was set to take over at the supply ministry, replacing veteran minister Ali Moselhy, the reports said.
The supply ministry oversees Egypt’s trade in wheat and other commodities, as well as a sprawling subsidy system that tens of millions of Egyptians are eligible for.
The new cabinet is expected to be sworn in on Wednesday.
Israel says Gaza desalination plant connected to its electrical grid
- “A new power line from Israel has been directly connected to a water desalination plant managed by UNICEF in Khan Yunis,” said a statement from the Israeli army
- A source at Gaza’s Electricity Distribution Corporation said the beleaguered utility was “preparing for the possibility of them (Israel) operating the line“
JERUSALEM: Israel said Tuesday it has connected a water desalination plant in southern Gaza to its electrical grid, in an easing of its siege of the Palestinian territory, but is not yet supplying power.
The Israeli military agency responsible for civilian operations in the Palestinian territories said it could take up to two weeks to start supplying electricity to the desalination plant in Khan Yunis, which is suffering from critical water shortages.
“A new power line from Israel has been directly connected to a water desalination plant managed by UNICEF in Khan Yunis,” said a statement from the Israeli army and the COGAT agency, referring to the United Nations children’s fund.
A source at Gaza’s Electricity Distribution Corporation said the beleaguered utility was “preparing for the possibility of them (Israel) operating the line.”
Col. Elad Goren of COGAT told a press briefing that Israel would provide electricity “once they will fix the lines from the Gazan side... in a week or two.”
He said the Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority would pay for the electricity, as it did before the Israel-Hamas war started on October 7.
Israel has faced international criticism over the impact of its military assault against Hamas on Gaza’s civilian population.
Goren said infrastructure decisions were made at a political level, and that the return of the power line was based on the need to increase the desalination plant’s capacity.
UNICEF has welcomed an agreement with Israel to begin supplying the Khan Yunis plant again.
“This is an important milestone, and we are very much looking forward to seeing it implemented,” UNICEF spokesman in the Palestinian territories, Jonathan Crickx, told AFP.
Water has been scarce for Gaza’s 2.4 million inhabitants since the war erupted with the Hamas attacks on Israel. Sixty percent of the territory’s water distribution systems have been damaged, Crickx said.
After the Hamas attack, Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced “a complete siege” on Gaza with “no electricity, no water, no gas.” Aid groups say Gaza is now gripped by a humanitarian crisis.
“Currently, the plant is only producing 5,000 cubic meters of water a day. With the new power line from Israel, the plant will ramp up production to 20,000 cubic meters of drinking water per day,” the Israeli statement said.
Huge mounds of rotting trash pile up around Gaza camps, UNRWA says
- Louise Wateridge, an UNRWA aid worker, said that a pile of waste weighing an estimated 100,000 tons was building up near people’s tents in central Gaza
- “It’s among the population and it’s building up without anywhere to go. It just keeps getting worse”
“It’s among the population and it’s building up without anywhere to go. It just keeps getting worse”
GENEVA: Mounds of trash rotting in the heat are piling up close to where displaced people are sheltering in Gaza, a UN official said on Friday, raising fears about the further spread of disease.
Hundreds of thousands of Gazans who had fled to southern Gaza earlier in the more than 8-month conflict have been uprooted again since Israel expanded its military operations against Hamas to the southern city of Rafah in early May.
Louise Wateridge, an aid worker with United Nations Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA), said that a pile of waste weighing an estimated 100,000 tons was building up near people’s tents in central Gaza.
“It’s among the population and it’s building up without anywhere to go. It just keeps getting worse. And with the temperatures rising, it’s really adding misery to the living conditions here,” she told journalists via video link from Gaza.
Israel has refused repeated requests to allow UNRWA to empty the main landfill sites, she said, meaning temporary ones are emerging, she added. Even if permission is granted, Wateridge said UNRWA’s humanitarian missions such as trash collection have all but halted due to Israeli refusals to allow fuel imports.
Israel’s COGAT, a branch of the military tasked with coordinating aid deliveries into Palestinian territories, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Israel, which launched its Gaza military operation after deadly Hamas attacks on southern Israel on Oct. 7, says it has expanded efforts to facilitate aid flows into Gaza and blames aid agencies for distribution problems inside the enclave. It controls fuel shipments into Gaza and has long maintained that there is a risk they are diverted to Hamas.
The World Health Organization’s Tarik Jašarević said the trash, along with the rising heat, a lack of clean drinking water and sanitation services, was adding to disease risks.
“It can lead to a number of communicable diseases appearing,” he said, mentioning that around 470,000 cases of diarrhea have been reported since the start of the war.
Wateridge, who arrived back in Gaza on Thursday after a four-week absence, said the situation had deteriorated significantly. She described the living conditions as “unbearable” with people sweltering under plastic sheets and cowering in bombed out buildings.
