LONDON: The Iranian regime’s mass execution of thousands of political prisoners in 1988 amounts to crimes against humanity, Human Rights Watch said on Wednesday.

“Overwhelming evidence” points to then-Supreme Leader Ruhollah Khomeini having ordered the mass executions, HRW said, adding that they took place in at least 32 cities and that up to 5,000 prisoners were murdered.

In an in-depth question-and-answer document, it said evidence also points liability to current senior Iranian politicians, including President Ebrahim Raisi.  

WASHINGTON: The United States fears Turkey will launch a new offensive in northern Syria that Washington has warned against, a senior American diplomat said on Wednesday.
“We are deeply concerned by recent increased rhetoric from Turkey about potential military moves into the north of Syria,” Assistance Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara Leaf told a congressional hearing.
“We’ve stepped up our diplomatic engagements to attempt to stop that,” she said.

ANKARA: Turkey on Tuesday called on Greece to withdraw its armed forces from Aegean islands, warning that his country will challenge the status of the islands if it fails to demilitarize them.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said during a joint news conference with his North Macedonian counterpart, that Greece has been building a military presence on the Aegean islands in violation of the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne and the 1947 Paris Treaty. He said the islands were ceded to Greece on condition that they be kept demilitarized.

AL-MUKALLA: Yemeni government negotiators in the UN-brokered talks over the siege of Taiz on Tuesday accepted a UN proposal for initially opening a main road in the besieged city of Taiz, achieving a breakthrough in the talks and as the truce continues to produce significant benefits.

LONDON: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Qatar’s foreign minister on Monday and discussed issues of concern including the challenges posed by Iran.

Blinken and Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani also discussed the importance of advancing towards a reality where Israelis and Palestinians alike can enjoy equal measures of security, freedom, and prosperity.

The importance of international support for Ukraine was also discussed, State Department Spokesperson Ned Price said.