The Qatari Minister of Labor and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Arab Labor Organization, Ali bin Saeed Al-Marri, confirmed that the organization continues to support the Palestinian cause.

Al-Marri said in a speech at the opening of the Arab Action Conference: ‘We meet today in Baghdad under exceptional circumstances, especially the reality in Gaza.’

He added: ‘We hope to produce results that preserve workers’ entitlements, as we reviewed in the organization’s report the reality of workers in the Palestinian territories and the genocide they are subjected to.

Source: National Iraqi News Agency

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Despite the allegations, the Israeli military will remain eligible for US military aid regardless because of steps Israel says it’s taking to address the problem, ABC News reported on Friday.

The allegations involving each of the units occurred before the October 7 war began when Hamas attacked Israel. None of the cases involves operations against Hamas in Gaza or against Iran or its proxies.

Israeli officials have been pressing Washington in public and private not to impose restrictions on the Netzah Yehuda battalion, which has operated in the occupied West Bank.

The Biden administration is reviewing whether to restrict aid to an Israeli military battalion after determining that it was one of three battalions credibly implicated in gross human rights violations against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank prior to Hamas’ Octo
ber 7 attack, NBC News reported, citing a letter leaked from the Dept. of State (DoS).

Two of those Israel Defense Forces units will continue to receive U.S. military assistance after accountability measures by the Israeli government, but whether the third IDF unit will face restrictions of US military aid is still under review, according to the letter.

Israeli officials have been pressing Washington in public and private not to impose the restrictions on the unit, fearing the unprecedented move would cast a shadow over its military as a whole. The US has issued growing criticism of its ally’s conduct in the Gaza Strip, while protests have mounted across American college campuses over the Israel-Hamas war.

A 1997 act known as the Leahy Law restricts US assistance to any security force unit of a foreign country if the unit is found to have committed a “Gross Violation of Human Rights,” but an exception can be made if the secretary of state determines effective steps are being taken to bring those in the uni
t responsible to justice.

It is named after its primary sponsor, former Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., who spent nearly half a century in the Senate.

The Leahy Law determinations, which have not yet been made public, were discussed in the letter obtained by NBC News from Secretary of State Antony Blinken to Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., ahead of the vote on a supplemental aid bill to Israel.

A US official confirmed to NBC News that the unit is Netzah Yehuda, a West Bank battalion comprised of ultra-orthodox Israeli soldiers, which has been under review by the State Department since 2022.

But in the undated letter, which was obtained and authenticated by CBS News, Blinken assures Johnson that the broader determinations he has made in accordance with the Leahy Law “will not delay the delivery of any US assistance,” and Israel would “receive the full amount appropriated by Congress.” According to a source with knowledge of the letter, Johnson had demanded assurance from Blinken before he would put a long-delayed
foreign aid package to a vote on the House floor. Blinken’s letter was delivered to Johnson last Saturday, the day the vote was to take place.

On his part, Secretary Blinken said the Leahy Law — is “a very important law, and it’s one that we apply across the board.” “And when we’re doing these investigations, these inquiries, it’s something that takes time, that has to be done very carefully both in collecting the facts and analyzing them – and that’s exactly what we’ve done. “And I think it’s fair to say that you’ll see results very soon. I’ve made determinations; you can expect to see them in the days ahead,” he added.

Source: Kuwait News Agency

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The Arab Labor Conference, in its fiftieth session, was opened this morning, hosted by the capital, Baghdad, under the patronage and presence of Prime Minister Muhammad Shiaa Al-Sudani.

Source: National Iraqi News Agency

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Source: National Iraqi News Agency

The post In the presence of Al-Sudani and Barzani, the State Administration Coalition holds an ‘important’ meeting this evening appeared first on Lebanon News Gazette.

In a statement, Bahrain’s Foreign Ministry affirmed the Kingdom’s unwavering solidarity with Iraq in its war against terror, and its backing to all measures taken by Iraq to maintain its security, stability and territorial integrity.

The ministry expressed its heartfelt condolences to Yemen’s government and people as well as the families of the victims, wishing a rapid recovery to those wounded, it said.

Source: Kuwait News Agency

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The renewed Kuwaiti stand was declared by the plenipotentiary minister and the deputy representative at the UN Faisal Al-Enezi, while addressing an open ministerial session of the Security Council, late on Friday, themed “the situation in the Middle East namely the Palestinian cause.” Al-Enezi said the UNGA resolution has affirmed again that the rights of the Palestinian people cannot be compromised, particularly the right to self-determination without external intervention, in addition to the national rights for independence and sovereignty.

The occupation Israeli entity had been recognized as a member of the UN four years after establishing the international organization. However, Palestine has been demanding its rights since
five decades ago.

Regretfully, the entity that occupied the Palestinian territories demands that the international community abstain from recognizing Palestine’s membership, the Kuwaiti diplomat said.

On UNRWA, Al-Enezi said that while the Palestinian people have been experiencing mounting hardships, “some parties call for limiting the UNRWA activities and shift its tasks to other regions without sensing ramifications of such radical thoughts on the future generations and people in need for health care.” Commenting on some States’ suspension of financial contributions to the relief agency, he indicated that these countries took the decision in response to allegations made by the Israeli occupation, but they backed down from the decision after determining that such allegations were devoid of substance.

He affirmed that the State of Kuwait’s offering of a voluntary contribution to the UNRWA, valued at USD 30 million is a step emanating from its moral and humanitarian responsibilities.

He has alluded to Kuwa
it’s dispatch of two planeloads of relief supplies to Gaza per day. He called for a cease-fire in Gaza, facilitating the dispatch of humanitarian supplies, halting the compulsory relocation of the Gazans, and stopping the ethnic cleansing.

Source: Kuwait News Agency

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Local diplomatic sources said on Saturday that Fidan will visit Riyadh on Sunday and Monday, during which he will hold discussions with the rest of the members of the ministerial committee assigned by the Joint Arab-Islamic Summit.

These sources indicated that the members of the ministerial committee are expected to meet with foreign ministers of Western countries in the coming period, and that Fidan will hold bilateral discussions and meetings in the capital, Riyadh, that will focus on the latest developments in events in Gaza.

According to these diplomatic sources, Turkey’s main priority is to stop the ongoing massacres in the Gaza Strip as soon as possible and focus on possible methods to stop the massacres in Gaza, mobilize the international community and ways to implement the two-state solution to find a pe
rmanent solution to the current injustice in Gaza.

They explained that delivering humanitarian aid urgently and without interruption to the Gaza Strip is also among Turkey’s priorities, and that Ankara will continue its diplomatic efforts to overcome the current obstacles hindering the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza.

Diplomatic sources indicated that Turkey stresses the need for Israel to comply with the Security Council resolution taken last March regarding a ceasefire in Gaza and allowing the entry of humanitarian aid, in addition to the measures announced by the International Court of Justice.

The diplomatic sources said that Ankara is continuing its efforts to secure the recognition of the State of Palestine by more countries, and it emphasizes this point in all meetings and communications of its officials, and that it is not possible to achieve peace and stability in the Middle East until the establishment of an independent, sovereign, geographically integrated Palestinian state within the 1967
borders with East Quds as its capital.

Turkish diplomatic sources warned that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is trying to drag the region into a war ‘in order to secure his stay in power,’ criticizing ‘some countries’ for remaining silent regarding Israeli practices in Gaza.

These sources called on those who support Netanyahu ‘unconditionally to reconsider their position urgently, and “we do not want other parties to bring their own conflicts to this region.’

Source: National Iraqi News Agency

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The House of Representatives voted on the proposed First Amendment Law to the Anti-Prostitution Law No. (8) of 1988.

It completed the first reading of the draft law on returning real estate to their owners, which is covered by some decisions of the (dissolved) Revolutionary Command Council.

Source: National Iraqi News Agency

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Prime Minister Najib Mikati conferred Saturday with Caretaker Energy and Water Minister Walid Fayyad over the affairs of his ministry and the power supply conditions in the country.

Mikati also received today Egyptian Ambassador to Lebanon, Alaa Moussa, with talks touching on bilateral relations between the two countries and the efforts made by Egypt to stop the Israeli aggression against Lebanon.

The Prime Minister thanked the Egyptian Ambassador for the role he is playing within the ‘Five-Year Committee’ in contributing to resolving the presidential vacuum in Lebanon.

Among the Prime Minister’s interlocutors for today was State Security Director General, Major General Antoine Saliba, who briefed him on the security situation in the country and the latest security developments.

Source: National News Agency – Lebanon

The post MIKATI MEETS WITH EGYPTIAN AMBASSADOR, STATE SECURITY DIRECTOR GENERAL, DISCUSSES POWER SUPPLY STATUS WITH ENERGY MINISTER appeared first on Lebanon News Gazette.

Romanowski said in a blog post on “X”, “We strongly condemn the attack that occurred on the energy infrastructure in the Kurdistan region of Iraq, and we realize that workers at the site were killed and injured.

She added: “We urge the Iraqi authorities to conduct a full investigation and bring those responsible to justice,” expressing her condolences to the families of the victims.

The Ambassador affirmed: “The United States will continue to work with the Government of Iraq and the Kurdistan Regional Government to support Iraq’s security, stability, and sovereignty.”

Yesterday, Friday, the Kormor gas field in Sulaymaniyah was attacked by a drone, killing two foreigners and wounding four others.

Source: National Iraqi News Agency

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