Antigovernment Protests Spark Beyond Iran Following The Death Of Mahsa Amini
Plus: Iran kills 13 people in Iraqi Kurdistan, the death toll of Lebanon shipwreck off Syria coast rises to 100, Moroccan activists demand abortion rights after teen's death, and much more.
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Before taking stock of this week's news, let me suggest reading my latest article on The New Arab about the race for Lebanon's next president.
Plagued by political fragmentation and an economic crisis, Lebanon's upcoming presidential election has yet to produce a consensus candidate that can unite the country.
Antigovernment protests spark beyond Iran following the death of Mahsa Amini
Iran's antigovernment protests have sparked across the country following the death of Mahsa Amani.
According to Iran Human Rights, a Norway-based group, the death toll due to clashes between protestors and Iranian police raised to 83 in nearly two weeks of demonstrations.
Among them, Hadis Najafi, a 23-year-old woman who took the streets of Karaj last week in protest of Iran's hijab mandate, was shot dead.
The rage against the Iranian government reached different countries in the world.
Several demonstrations took place in front of Iranian embassies or in the street in North America and Europe to support antigovernment protests, and several international celebrities also expressed solidarity.
Chanting the same "Women, life, freedom!" mantra used in demonstrations in Iran, about 25 Afghan women protested in front of the Iranian embassy in Kabul before being dispersed by Taliban forces firing in the air.
Inside Iran, there have been two state-organized counter-demonstrations to express support for the establishment.
The authorities have denounced "riots" during which public property has been burned.
They also say "anti-revolutionary" elements guided by foreign powers are driving these movements.
The United States, the European Union (EU), and human rights organizations have condemned the use of violence against protesters.
The US has also imposed sanctions on the morality police for alleged abuses and violence against women and demonstrators.
Germany's foreign minister said she wanted the EU to impose sanctions.
Source: news agencies and media outlets
Thirteen killed in Iraq as Iran attacks Kurdish groups blamed for protests
Thirteen people have been killed in Iraq's Kurdistan Region as Iran launched missiles and armed drones at what it said were bases of Iranian Kurdish opposition groups.
Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps said it hit "separatist terrorists" who had supported recent "riots."
Antigovernment protests have swept across Iran since the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a Kurdish woman.
Death toll of Lebanon shipwreck off Syria coast rises to 100
One hundred bodies have been recovered after a boat from Lebanon sank off Syria's coast last week.
As many as 150 passengers, mostly Lebanese, Syrian and Palestinian, were on board a small vessel that sank near the Syrian coastal city of Tartus on Thursday, September 22.
Twenty survivors were treated in Al-Basel hospital in Tartus last week. All of them have now been discharged.
Those rescued said that the boat set off from Miniyeh, a town north of the Lebanese port city of Tripoli.
Lebanon has seen a spike in the number of people attempting to board overcrowded boats to reach Europe over the past 12 months amid a worsening economic crisis.
Saudi king names crown prince MBS as prime minister
Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz named his son and heir, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), as the kingdom's prime minister and his second son Prince Khalid as defense minister, a royal decree showed on Tuesday, September 27.
Crown Prince Mohammed has changed Saudi Arabia radically since rising to power in 2017, leading efforts to diversify the economy from its dependence on oil, allowing women to drive, and curbing clerics' powers.
His reforms, however, have come with a crackdown on dissent, with activists, royals, women rights activists, and business people jailed.
UAE is finalizing deal to send six more LNG cargoes to Germany
Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. is finalizing a deal to deliver six liquefied natural gas shipments to Germany next year.
The extra cargoes will be in addition to the first delivery to be made as soon as December for the commissioning of RWE AG's floating import terminal in Brunsbuettel near Hamburg.
Germany is seeking new gas sources after the government secured five floating LNG import plants to help ease dependency on Russian fuel and ease an unprecedented energy price crunch.
The deal will help secure supplies in Europe's biggest economy, which is struggling to replace reduced Russian flows.
US lets firms expand internet services in Iran amid blackout
The US Treasury Department on Friday, September 23, issued a license authorizing American firms to provide additional internet services in Iran without risking sanctions, a move aimed at countering government censorship of protests over the death of Mahsa Amini.
Nearly all internet data on mobile phones were disconnected across the country, and home broadband was severely disrupted in most of the main protest cities.
The internet monitoring group NetBlocks said Iran was experiencing its most severe internet restrictions since the protests of November 2019.
Moroccan activists demand abortion rights after teen's death
Dozens of feminist activists demonstrated Wednesday, September 28, in Rabat, Morocco's capital, calling for legalized abortions after a teenage girl died following a clandestine procedure.
Protesters gathered outside the parliament, some holding placards denouncing the law which punishes abortion.
The death of the teenager earlier this month in a village in central Morocco has reignited calls by feminist groups and activists to legalize abortions in the country.
Abortions in Morocco are punishable by up to five years in prison, except for cases when the woman's health is in danger.
Kuwait holds second election in two years amid gridlock
Voters in Kuwait returned to the polls on Thursday, September 29, for the second parliamentary elections in less than two years, hoping to move the wealthy Gulf Arab nation out of a prolonged period of political gridlock.
Kuwait has the most accessible and most active assembly in the Persian Gulf.
However, political power is still concentrated mainly in the hands of the ruling Al Sabah family, which appoints the prime minister and Cabinet, and can dissolve the assembly at any time.
Voters will choose among 367 candidates, including 27 women, to elect 50 legislators to the National Assembly.
Lebanese parliament fails to elect new head of state
The Lebanese parliament failed to elect a new head of state on Thursday, September 29, to replace President Michel Aoun when his term ends on October 31, signaling the likelihood of the post being left vacant as the country grapples with a financial crisis.
Shi'ite Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said he would only call a new session once he saw there was consensus on a candidate for the post, which is reserved for a Maronite Christian in Lebanon's sectarian system.
That's all for this week. Thanks for reading Inshallah. Share this article and subscribe to be up to date about news from the Middle East every week. It's free.
About me
My name is Dario Sabaghi, a freelance journalist. I am interested in human rights and international news focusing on the MENA region.
Check out my work at dariosabaghi.com.
You can follow me on Twitter: @DarioSabaghi
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Cover photo: TIME/AP