DUBAI: Iran put three ballistic missiles on display at an outdoor prayer esplanade in central Tehran on Friday, as talks in Vienna aimed at reviving Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers flounder.
The missiles, known as Dezful, Qiam and Zolfaghar and with official ranges of up to 1,000 kilometers, were already-known models, the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard said.
Diplomats from countries that remain in the 2015 nuclear deal — Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China — are working with Tehran to revive the accord, which had sought to limit Iran’s nuclear ambitions in exchange for trade.
American diplomats are present in Vienna but they are not in direct talks with Iranians. The accord collapsed in 2018 when then-President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the US and re-imposed sanctions on Iran.
A report by state TV said the missiles on display were the same types as those used to strike US bases in Iraq.
The display came on the second anniversary of ballistic missile attacks on American bases in Iraq in retaliation for the US drone strike that killed top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad in 2020.
The Iranian military mistakenly shot down Ukraine International Airlines Flight PS752 with two surface-to-air missiles after the attacks, killing all 176 people on board. After days of denial, the Guard publicly apologized, blaming air defense operator who authorities said mistook the Boeing 737-800 for an American cruise missile.
An Iranian military court in November held a hearing for 10 people suspected of having role in downing the Ukrainian airliner.
State TV said a commemoration ceremony for the victims was held in Tehran’s main cemetery with the presence of their families as well as officials.

CAIRO: The Kuwaiti embassy in Kazakhstan asked Kuwaitis in the Central Asian country to leave “for their safety,” state news agency (KUNA) reported on Friday.
It also urged Kuwaitis who wanted to travel to Kazakhstan to postpone their plans “because of the emergency status” continuing in the country.
Demonstrations that began recently in Kazakhstan came as a response to a fuel price hike have swelled into a broad movement against the government and ex-leader Nursultan Nazarbayev, 81, the longest-serving ruler of any former Soviet state.

The forgotten Arabs of Iran

A century ago, the autonomous sheikhdom of Arabistan was absorbed by force into the Persian state. Today the Arabs of Ahwaz are Iran’s most persecuted minority

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LONDON: Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed said the UAE supports the UN and is looking forward to working with the global body in various fields, state news agency WAM reported on Jan. 6.
He said the UAE worked for peace and stability, and supported everything that achieved regional and international development and prosperity.
Sheikh Mohammed was speaking during a phone call with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres a day after the UAE announced its commitments as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for the 2022-23 term.
Guterres congratulated Sheikh Mohammed on the UAE being elected to the world body and wished it success in serving the international community through the position.
The UN chief also praised Emirati humanitarian and development initiatives to support international stability and development.
The crown prince congratulated Guterres on his re-election for a second term as head of the UN, which began on Jan. 3.
He also thanked the UN and its secretary-general for the important role they play in the service of global peace and security.
“This role is becoming increasingly important in light of the challenges and dangers that threaten humanity, foremost of which is the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change and the need to strengthen international collective action in the face of these threats,” he said.
During the call, the two men discussed various aspects of cooperation between the UAE and the UN and exchanged views on international and regional issues of common concern, including the situation in the Middle East.
“They stressed the importance of settling crises in the region through dialogue, peaceful methods and joint international action,” the report said.
The UAE was elected as a non-permanent member of the 15-member Security Council for the second time in its history in June and held its first meeting on Jan. 4. During its term, the country will chair the council twice, in March of this year and in June 2023.

TEL AVIV: An Israeli deputy minister was under fire on Thursday for calling residents of an unauthorized West Bank settlement outpost “subhuman,” sparking an outcry that underscored the fragility of Israel’s ideologically diverse coalition.

Yair Golan, a former deputy military chief and a member of the dovish Meretz party, has previously prompted a backlash for comments appearing to liken the atmosphere in Israel to that of Nazi-era Germany.

“These are not people, these are subhumans. Despicable people and the corruption of the Jewish people. They must not be given any backing,” Golan told the Knesset Channel. “This radical nationalist rampage will bring a catastrophe upon us.”

Golan, who serves as deputy economy minister, was referring to settlers from an illegal outpost in the West Bank, which was evacuated as part of Israel’s 2005 withdrawal from the Gaza Strip but where settlers have repeatedly rebuilt structures.

The settlers and their supporters have also clashed with Palestinians from nearby villages. Golan said he was referring to settlers suspected of having defaced a nearby Muslim cemetery, which he likened to a “pogrom.”

Separately, Israeli forces shot and killed a Palestinian who had opened fire on them during an arrest raid in the occupied West Bank city of Nablus early on Thursday, the Israeli military said.

The military said it was carrying out an operation to arrest a suspect when armed men began firing on the troops. It said forces killed one of the gunmen. No soldiers were wounded and the suspect was arrested, the military said.

The official Palestinian news agency, Wafa, identified the man as Bakir Muhammad Musa Hashash, 21, saying he was critically wounded and later died.

Last month, a Palestinian opened fire on a car filled with Jewish seminary students next to a West Bank settlement outpost.  At the same time, settler violence against Palestinians has risen, particularly in the northern West Bank.

NAJAF: Iraqi boxer Bushra Al-Hajjar jumps into the ring, gloves raised to eye level, and strikes out at her sparring partner.

Her bigger struggle, though, is to deliver a blow against social taboos.

In Iraq’s Shiite city of Najaf, the sight of a women’s boxing hall is unusual but, like others here, the 35-year-old boxing instructor is fighting deeply ingrained taboos.

“At home, I have a full training room, with mats and a punching bag,” said the mother of two, who also practices karate.

Hajjar won gold in the 70 kilogram-class at a boxing tournament in the capital Baghdad in December.

“My family and friends are very supportive, they’re very happy with the level I’ve reached,” she said, a blue headscarf pulled tightly over her hair.

Twice a week, she trains at a private university in Najaf, 100 km south of Baghdad, where she also teaches sports.

In overwhelmingly conservative Iraq, and particularly in Najaf, Hajjar acknowledges her adventure has raised eyebrows.

“We’ve come across many difficulties,” she said. “We’re a conservative society that has difficulty accepting these kinds of things.”

She recalls the protests when training facilities first opened for women, but said “today, there are many halls.”

Boxing student Ola Mustafa, 16, taking a break from her punching bag, said: “We live in a macho society that opposes success for women.”

However, she said she has the support not only of her trainer but also of her parents and brother, signaling that social change is afoot.

“People are gradually beginning to accept it,” she said. “If more girls try it out, society will automatically come to accept it.”

Iraqi boxing federation president Ali Taklif acknowledges that Iraqi women engaging in the sport is a “recent phenomenon,” but says it is gaining ground. “There is a lot of demand from females wanting to join,” he said, adding that Iraq now has some 20 women’s boxing clubs.

More than 100 women boxers competed in a December tournament, in all categories, he added.

But “like other sports (in Iraq), the discipline suffers from a lack of infrastructure, training facilities and equipment.”

In the past, Iraq had a proud tradition of women in sports, especially in the 1970s and 1980s.

Whether in basketball, volleyball or cycling, women’s teams regularly took part in regional tournaments.

But sanctions, decades of conflict and a hardening of conservative social values brought this era to a close, with only the autonomous Kurdistan region in northern Iraq largely spared.

There has been a timid reversal in recent years, with women taking up a range of sports, also including kickboxing. For Hajjer Ghazi, who at age 13 won a silver medal in December, boxing runs in the family.

Her father, a veteran professional boxer, encouraged his children to follow in his footsteps.

Both her sisters and older brother Ali are also boxers.

“Our father supports us more than the state does,” said Ali in their hometown of Amara in southwestern Iraq.

The father, Hassanein Ghazi, a 55-year-old truck driver who won several medals in his heyday, insists: “Women have the right to play sports, it’s only normal.”

He recognizes certain “sensitivities” remain, linked to traditional tribal values.

As an example, he pointed out that “when their coach wants them to run, he takes them to the outskirts of town,” away from too many onlookers.