Headline News
- Wall Street oscillates amid COVID-19 spikes, muted data
Wall Street struggled for direction on Thursday as investors weighed a resurgence in coronavirus infections and the possibility of a new round of shutdowns against data that suggested the U.S. economy might not bounce back with quick, V-shaped recovery.
  
- Facebook takes down certain posts, ads from Trump re-election campaign
Facebook Inc said on Thursday it took down certain posts and advertisements from U.S. President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence related to their re-election campaign, due to violation of the social network’s policy against organized hate.
 
- Jean Kennedy Smith, last surviving sibling of JFK, is dead at 92
Jean Kennedy Smith, the last surviving sibling of slain President John F. Kennedy, who as U.S. ambassador to Ireland in the 1990s played a pivotal role in the Northern Irish peace process, died on Wednesday at age 92.
 
- Portraits of former Confederate House speakers to be removed: Pelosi
Portraits of four former House of Representatives speakers who served the Confederacy will be removed from the U.S. Capitol, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Thursday.
 
- U.S. prison riot teams faulted for injuring staff during exercises
U.S. Bureau of Prisons riot teams that helped protect the White House during protests earlier this month injured employees by deploying flash bang grenades and pepper spray during exercises last year, the Justice Department’s internal watchdog has found.
 
- Lloyd’s of London to pay for ‘shameful’ Atlantic slave trade role
The Lloyd’s of London insurance market apologised on Thursday for its “shameful” role in the 18th and 19th Century Atlantic slave trade and pledged to fund opportunities for black and ethnic minority people.
 
- Explainer: London faces up to former role insuring Atlantic slave trade
London is facing up to its role in insuring the slave trade as part of a sweeping global reassessment of history and racism.
 
- U.S. Supreme Court blocks Trump bid to end ‘Dreamers’ immigrant program
The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday dealt President Donald Trump a major setback on his hardline immigration policies, blocking his bid to end a program that protects from deportation hundreds of thousands of immigrants – often called “Dreamers” – who entered the United States illegally as children.
 
- Exclusive: Massive spying on users of Google’s Chrome shows new security weakness
A newly discovered spyware effort attacked users through 32 million downloads of extensions to Google’s market-leading Chrome web browser, researchers at Awake Security told Reuters, highlighting the tech industry’s failure to protect browsers as they are used more for email, payroll and other sensitive functions.
 
- Pelosi urges Senate to take up ‘Dreamers’ bill after top court ruling
U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Thursday urged the Senate to take up legislation previously passed by the Democratic-led House in support of so-called “Dreamers” now that the Supreme Court has blocked President Donald Trump’s effort to end their protections.
 
Shanghai Daily
- Paris mosque closed in crackdown
French authorities said yesterday they would close a Paris mosque in a clampdown on radical Islam that has yielded over a dozen arrests following the beheading of a history teacher who had shown his pupils
- WHO: World must learn from Asia
Europe and North America should follow the example of Asian states by persevering with anti-COVID measures and quarantining anyone who comes into contact with infected people, a World Health Organization
- Trump hits Fauci as a ‘disaster’
US President Donald Trump called infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci a “disaster” on Monday, airing his frustration with the scientist during a call meant to reassure campaign staff he has a path
- Moscow in bid to end arms race
Russia said yesterday it would be ready to freeze its total number of nuclear warheads if the United States did the same in order to extend their last major arms control treaty by a year.
- Indonesia rejects US air patrols
Indonesia has rejected a proposal by the United States to allow its P-8 Poseidon maritime surveillance planes to land and refuel there, according to four senior Indonesian officials familiar with the
- COVID-19 infections pass 40m, life changes forever
THE number of confirmed COVID-19 cases across the planet has surpassed 40 million, but experts say that is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the true impact of the pandemic that has upended
- French police probe supporters of Islamist killer
FRANCE’S interior minister said yesterday police investigations were underway into dozens of people who allegedly issued messages of support for the attacker after the beheading of a history teacher near
- Armenia, Azerbaijan trade accusations over truce
DESPITE a second attempt at a cease-fire, Armenia and Azerbaijan traded accusations yesterday of violating the new truce in their destructive conflict over the separatist region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The
- Islamist beheads teacher in Paris
For the second time in three weeks, terror struck France, this time with the gruesome beheading of a history teacher in a street in a Paris suburb.
- Thousands rally in US demanding ‘Dump Trump’
Thousands took to the streets across the United States for pro-women’s marches on Saturday, many wearing pink protest hats and denouncing President Donald Trump and appointment of a conservative to replace
- At least 14 soldiers die in landslide in Vietnam
A LANDSLIDE early yesterday killed at least 14 military personnel and left eight missing in central Vietnam, the government said, in what could be the country’s largest military loss in peacetime as it
- New Zealanders return Ardern in record landslide
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern won a second term in office on Saturday in an election landslide of historic proportions.
BBC News (Middle East)
- Jamal Khashoggi: Journalist’s fiancee sues Saudi crown prince
Hatice Cengiz files a lawsuit against Mohammed bin Salman over the journalist’s murder in Istanbul.
- Yemen war: Mud-brick Seiyun Palace ‘at risk of collapse’
Recent heavy rains and flash floods damaged the 19th-Century Seiyun Palace in Hadramawt province.
- Coronavirus: Top Palestinian official Saeb Erekat in ‘critical’ condition
Chief negotiator Saeb Erekat, 65, has been placed on a ventilator at an Israeli hospital.
- Israel and Bahrain establish formal diplomatic relations
Bahrain becomes only the fourth Arab country in the Middle East to recognise Israel.
- Hay Festival severs UAE ties after sex assault claim by employee
Abu Dhabi’s minister of tolerance has denied allegations he sexually assaulted a festival organiser.
- Egypt releases satirical blogger Shadi Abu Zeid
The activist is reunited with his family after spending 29 months in jail for spreading “fake news”.
- Beirut protests: ‘A year of rising and fading hopes’
The BBC’s Lina Sinjab looks back at one year of protests calling for change in Beirut, Lebanon.
- Coronavirus: Israel to ease second lockdown after cases decline
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the month-long lockdown has been a “major success”.
- Lebanon protesters’ euphoria gives way to despair
The country’s problems have worsened since huge crowds took to the streets a year ago.
- Signs Saudis are edging towards historic Israel peace
A hard-hitting interview by a leading Saudi figure heightens speculation of a diplomatic earthquake.
- Why Trump wants Sudan to befriend Israel
With Sudan desperate for sanctions to be lifted, the US and Israel have spotted an opportunity.
- Coronavirus threatening expat exodus from the UAE
The foreign workforce is paying the price as the economy is squeezed by the virus.
- Islamic State: Relatives of British hostage braced for coming trial
The sister of journalist John Cantlie, who was kidnapped in 2012, speaks of her eight-year ordeal.
- How the UAE emerged as a regional powerhouse
From a mission to Mars to military expeditions, what is driving the UAE to punch above its weight?
- Israeli settlers’ Chelsea boss backer
An investigation by BBC News Arabic has found that Russian oligarch, Roman Abramovich, controls companies that have donated $100m to an Israeli settler organisation.
- Israel’s borders explained in maps
As Israel’s acceptance by Arab states grows, here’s how the shape of the Jewish state has changed.
|
A large number of Iranian university students meet with Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei at the 16th night of the fasting month of Ramadan on May 22, 2019. Photo: khamenei.ir 
Tehran, May 23, IRNA – Foreign Ministry Spokesman Seyyed Abbas Mousavi pointed to the ‘psycho-propaganda’ scenario launched against Iran, and said that this scenario is pre-maturely defeated and will definitely go nowhere.
Tehran, May 23, IRNA – German Foreign Ministry political director Jens Ploetner accompanied with German Ambassador to Tehran Michael Klor Berchtold held talks with Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister for political affairs Abbas Araqchi on bilateral ties and Iran nuclear deal.
Islamabad, May 23, IRNA – Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday congratulated Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the victory in general election.
Persian yellow deer, which is on the verge of extinction, is seen on a series of photos in Dasht Naz protected area in northern Iran on May 23, 2019. IRNA/Ehsan Fazli Osanloo