A Russian court rejected an appeal of a US soldier who was sentenced in June to nearly four years in a penal colony after being found guilty of stealing $113 from his girlfriend and making threats to kill her, the court said on Monday.
Gordon Black, a 34-year-old US staff sergeant, was detained on May 2 in Russia’s far eastern city of Vladivostok after an argument with his girlfriend, Alexandra Vashchuk, whom he had met while in South Korea.
He pleaded not guilty to threatening to kill Vashchuk but admitted he was partially guilty of taking the money, though out of necessity.
A panel of judges in the Primorsky Krai Court considered Black’s appeal of the verdict from a Vladivostok district court but left it unchanged, the court said in statement in a social media post.
Black’s defense argued in its appeal that the original verdict was illegal and unfair, and asked for a new trial, Russia’s RIA state news agency reported earlier.
According to Black’s defense lawyer, the verdict did not rely on case materials, ignored evidence confirming Black’s innocence, and incorrectly interpreted his actions toward the victim, RIA reported.
Black is among a number of Americans held in Russia on a variety of charges.
Last week, dual Russian-American citizen Ksenia Karelina was sentenced to 12 years in prison on Thursday after a Russian court found her guilty of treason for donating $51.07 to a charity supporting Ukraine.
Russian court upholds sentence of jailed US soldier Gordon Black
https://arab.news/mcv8a
Russian court upholds sentence of jailed US soldier Gordon Black
- Gordon Black was detained on May 2 in Russia’s far eastern city of Vladivostok after an argument with his girlfriend
- Black’s defense argued in its appeal that the original verdict was illegal and unfair, and asked for a new trial
Iranian operatives charged in the US with hacking Donald Trump’s presidential campaign
The indictment comes at a time of heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran
WASHINGTON: The Justice Department unsealed criminal charges Friday against three Iranian operatives suspected of hacking Donald Trump’s presidential campaign and disseminating stolen information to media organizations.
The three accused hackers were employed by Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard and their operation also targeted a broad swath of targets, including government officials, members of the media and non-governmental organizations, the Justice Department said.
The Trump campaign disclosed on Aug. 10 that it had been hacked and said Iranian actors had stolen and distributed sensitive internal documents. Multiple major news organizations that said they were leaked confidential information from inside the Trump campaign, including Politico, The New York Times and The Washington Post, declined to publish it.
US intelligence officials subsequently linked Iran to a hack of the Trump campaign and to an attempted breach of the Joe Biden-Kamala Harris campaign. They said the hack-and-dump operation was meant to sow discord, exploit divisions within American society and potentially influence the outcome of elections that Iran perceives to be “particularly consequential in terms of the impact they could have on its national security interests.”
Last week, officials also revealed that the Iranians in late June and early July sent unsolicited emails containing excerpts of the hacked information to people associated with the Biden campaign. None of the recipients replied. The Harris campaign said the emails resembled spam or a phishing attempt and condemned the outreach to the Iranians as “unwelcome and unacceptable malicious activity.”
The indictment comes at a time of heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran as Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel escalate attacks against each other, raising concerns about the prospect of an all-out war, and as US officials say they continue to track physical threats by Iran against a number of officials including Trump.
Afghan embassy in UK shutters after Taliban cuts ties
- Afghan embassy’s consular section in London closed on September 20, according to its website
- UK does not recognize Taliban government, does not have formal diplomatic relations with the country
LONDON: Afghanistan’s embassy in London closed on Friday after Taliban authorities cut ties with diplomatic missions set up by the previous government in Kabul and fired its UK staff.
An AFP reporter saw a notice hung on the gate to the consular section reading: “The embassy of the Republic of Afghanistan is closed.”
No one answered the door but the country’s flag was still flying.
Afghan ambassador to the UK Zalmai Rassoul announced on social media earlier this month that the embassy would close “at the official request of the host country” on September 27.
The UK Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) denied that it was behind the closure.
“This decision was not made by the UK government,” a spokesperson said. “The State of Afghanistan decided to close the Afghan Embassy in London and dismiss its staff.
“We continue to support the people of Afghanistan and provide humanitarian assistance to those most in need.”
The FCDO has not indicated whether a new Afghan ambassador would be accredited in London.
The UK does not recognize the Taliban government as legitimate and does not have formal diplomatic relations with the country.
But in line with the United States and the European Union, London acknowledges that there is “no alternative to engaging pragmatically with the current administration of Afghanistan.”
The UK mission to Afghanistan is currently based in Doha.
The Afghan embassy’s consular section in London closed on September 20, according to its website.
On Friday, Rassoul reposted an X post in which the German ambassador to the UK said it was a “pleasure” to work with his Afghan counterpart over the years and condemned the “appalling situation for women and girls under the Taliban.”
Over the past three years, the Taliban has imposed an austere interpretation of Islam and progressively driven women out of public spaces.
Despite the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021, embassies continued to operate with diplomatic staff loyal to the previous foreign-backed government.
At the end of July, the Taliban foreign affairs ministry said it “bears no responsibility” for credentials including passports and visas issued by missions out of step with Kabul’s new rulers.
These include Afghan embassies in France, Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, Canada and Australia.
The Taliban government has said Afghans living abroad should deal instead with missions affiliated with the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan — its self-styled name for the country since taking over.
The authorities have not been officially recognized by any country, but Pakistan, China and Russia are hosting Afghan embassies working on order from the Taliban government.
Diplomats at the UK embassy have reportedly been advised to leave the UK or apply for political asylum, according to the BBC.
Model Naomi Campbell barred from being charity trustee in England and Wales
- Campbell, 54, said she was “extremely concerned” by the findings of the regulator
LONDON: British supermodel Naomi Campbell has been barred from being a charity trustee in England and Wales for five years after the poverty charity she founded nearly two decades ago was deemed Thursday to have been “poorly governed” with “inadequate financial management.”
Following a three-year investigation into the financial activities of “Fashion for Relief,” the Charity Commission, which registers and regulates charities in England and Wales, said it had found “multiple instances of misconduct and/or mismanagement,” and that only 8.5% of the charity’s overall expenditure went on charitable grants in a six-year period from 2016.
For example, it said that thousands of pounds worth of charity funds were used to pay for a luxury hotel stay in Cannes, France, for Campbell as well as spa treatments, room service and even cigarettes. The regulator sought explanations from the trustees but said no evidence was provided to back up their explanation that hotel costs were typically covered by a donor to the charity, therefore not costing the charity, said the Associated Press.
Campbell, 54, said she was “extremely concerned” by the findings of the regulator and that an investigation on her part was underway.
“I was not in control of my charity, I put the control in the hands of a legal employer,” she said in response to a question from the AP after being named a knight in France’s Order of Arts and Letters at the country's culture ministry for her contribution to French culture. "We are investigating to find out what and how, and everything I do and every penny I ever raised goes to charity.”
The commission, which registers and regulates charities in England and Wales, also found that fellow trustee Bianka Hellmich received around 290,000 pounds ($385,000) of unauthorized funds for consultancy services, which was in breach of the charity's constitution. She has been disqualified as a trustee for nine years. The other trustee, Veronica Chou, was barred for four years.
“Trustees are legally required to make decisions that are in their charity’s best interests and to comply with their legal duties and responsibilities,” said Tim Hopkins, deputy director for specialist investigations and standards. “Our inquiry has found that the trustees of this charity failed to do so, which has resulted in our action to disqualify them.”
The charity, which was founded in 2005 in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, was dissolved and removed from the register of charities earlier this year. On its website, which is still active, the charity said that it presented fashion initiatives and projects in New York, London, Cannes, Moscow, Mumbai and Dar es Salaam, raising more than $15 million for good causes around the world.
The charity had been set up with the aim of uniting the fashion industry to relieve poverty and advance health and education, by making grants to other organizations and giving resources towards global disasters.
The commission said that around 344,000 pounds ($460,000) has been recovered and that a further 98,000 pounds of charitable funds have been protected. These funds were used to make donations to two other charities and settle outstanding liabilities.
“I am pleased that the inquiry has seen donations made to other charities which this charity has previously supported,” said the regulator's Hopkins.
* This article originally appeared on Asharq Al-Awsat, click here to read it.
Russia puts 72-year-old US man on trial as Ukraine mercenary
- Moscow City Court is hearing a criminal case against the American “over participating as a mercenary in the armed conflict on the side of Ukraine,” RIA Novosti news agency said
- “We are aware of the reports of the arrest of an American citizen,” the US embassy in Moscow said
MOSCOW: A Moscow court on Friday began the trial of a 72-year-old American man accused of fighting as a mercenary in Ukraine, Russian news agencies reported.
Moscow City Court is hearing a criminal case against the American “over participating as a mercenary in the armed conflict on the side of Ukraine,” RIA Novosti news agency said.
It identified the man as Stefan Hubbard but said his name could be spelled differently, with social media posts suggesting the name could be Stephen Hubbard.
“We are aware of the reports of the arrest of an American citizen. Due to privacy restrictions we are unable to comment any further,” the US embassy in Moscow said in a statement.
The pensioner from Michigan moved to Ukraine in 2014, RIA Novosti said. Reports did not make clear when or how Hubbard arrived in Moscow.
At the hearing at Moscow’s highest city court, a judge agreed to the prosecutor’s request to detain Hubbard for six months on the grounds that he could try to flee, remanding him in custody until March 26, 2025.
The next hearing was set for next Thursday.
Participating as a mercenary in an armed conflict is punishable by up to 15 years in prison under Russian law.
A video posted on YouTube channels in May 2022 showed a man who gives his name as Stephen James Hubbard and said he was living in the city of Izyum in the Kharkiv region.
The man says he was born in Big Rapids, Michigan, and came to Izyum in 2014.
He looks dishevelled with a long beard and dirty nails.
Russia occupied part of the Kharkiv region including Izyum in March 2022 shortly after launching its February 24 offensive, and Ukraine retook Izyum in September 2022.
The American signed a contract with a Ukrainian territorial defense battalion the day after Russian forces entered Ukraine, the prosecutor said in court, RIA Novosti reported.
In this role, he was paid “at least $1,000 a month,” underwent training, received a uniform and weapons and “took part in the armed conflict,” the prosecutor said.
He was detained by a Russian soldier on April 2, 2022, she added without giving details.
Russia has arrested several US citizens in recent years on charges ranging from espionage and criticizing the Russian army to petty theft and family disputes.
Philippines opens Mindanao’s longest bridge to boost development
- 3.17-km-long Panguil Bay Bridge to be followed by a longer one in Mindanao’s southeast
- It cuts travel between Misamis Occidental and Lanao del Norte from 2 hours to 7 minutes
Manila: President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. inaugurated on Friday the longest bridge in Mindanao in a move expected to boost connectivity in the long-underdeveloped southern Philippines.
The 3.17-km Panguil Bay Bridge linking Tangub City in Misamis Occidental province to Tubod town in Lanao del Norte slashes travel time from about 2.5 hours to seven minutes.
Funded by a loan from South Korea’s Economic Development Cooperation Fund, construction of the 8-billion-peso ($143 million) two-way, two-lane bridge started in February 2020 and was completed this month.
“The increased economic activity is going to be a very important development building block for both the provinces and for the entire island of Mindanao,” Marcos said as he officially opened the bridge.
“With this bridge, what once took two hours will now take seven minutes and will benefit 10,000 travelers a day … I would like to highlight the ripple effect it will have on local businesses.”
Approved during the Benigno Aquino III administration in 2015, the bridge’s construction started under the administration of Rodrigo Duterte and was completed under Marcos.
Hailed as a landmark infrastructure achievement in the region, the Panguil Bay Bridge will soon face competition.
The 3.98-km Samal Island-Davao City Connector in Mindanao’s southeastern Davao Region is set to surpass the Panguil Bay Bridge as Mindanao’s longest in 2027.
