Cincunri Sakia

Rabu, 16 November 2022

Oil tanker owned by Israeli billionaire 'struck by drone' off coast of Oman - Sky News

An oil tanker owned by an Israeli billionaire has been struck by a bomb-carrying drone off the coast of Oman, an official has said.

The vessel, which is operated by Singapore-based Eastern Pacific Shipping but owned by Idan Ofer, was attacked on Tuesday night, according to the Middle East-based defence source.

The operator said it was investigating after its ship was struck by what it described as a projectile.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, a British military organisation that monitors shipping in the region, said it was "aware of an incident", which is "being investigated".

The ship was identified as the Pacific Zircon.

Eastern Pacific Shipping said the vessel was carrying gas oil and only minor damage was reported to the vessel's hull with no spillage of the cargo or injuries among the crew.

According to the shipping tracking site MarineTraffic, it was last seen off the coast of Liwa, Oman, on Monday morning.

It departed from Sohar on Monday afternoon destined for Buenos Aires. Eastern Pacific Shipping said it was some 150 miles (240km) off the coast of Oman at around the time it was struck, deep in the Arabian Sea.

Heightened tensions with Iran

The attack comes at a time of heightened tensions with Iran and ahead of the World Cup in nearby Qatar.

No one has claimed responsibility for the attack, but Tehran and Israel have been engaged in a years-long war within wider tensions in the Middle East.

It has also reportedly provided Russia with drones to use in its war against Ukraine.

The US blamed Iran for a series of attacks off the coast of the United Arab Emirates in 2019.

Tehran then started escalating its nuclear programme after the US unilaterally withdrew from its atomic deal with world powers.

Iranian state media has not commented.

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2022-11-16 09:56:15Z
1657699133

Oil tanker hit by armed drone off coast of Oman: Official - Al Jazeera English

No one has claimed responsibility for the attack, the details of which are unclear, but suspicion has fallen on Iran.

An oil tanker associated with an Israeli billionaire has been struck by a bomb-carrying drone off the coast of Oman, an official has told the Associated Press.

The attack happened on Tuesday night off the coast of Oman, the Middle East-based defence official said. The official spoke on Wednesday on condition of anonymity as they did not have authorisation to discuss the attack publicly.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, a British military organisation in the region monitoring shipping, told the AP: “We are aware of an incident and it’s being investigated at this time.”

The official identified the vessel attacked as the Liberian-flagged oil tanker Pacific Zircon. That tanker is operated by Singapore-based Eastern Pacific Shipping, which is a company ultimately owned by Israeli billionaire Idan Ofer.

In a statement, Eastern Pacific Shipping said the Pacific Zircon, carrying gas oil, had been “hit by a projectile” some 150 miles (240 kilometres) off the coast of Oman.

“We are in communication with the vessel and there is no reports of injuries or pollution. All crew are safe and accounted for,” the company said. “There is some minor damage to the vessel’s hull but no spillage of cargo or water ingress.”

A call to the Israeli embassy in Abu Dhabi was not answered. Israel’s prime minister’s office and its defence ministry declined to comment.

However, while no one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, an Israeli official speaking anonymously to Reuters said that Iran was behind the attack, which they said used the same type of drone that has previously been supplied to Russia in Ukraine.

Iran’s Nournews, which is affiliated with the country’s top security body, blamed Israel for the attack, accusing it of a distraction ahead of soccer’s World Cup that starts in Qatar on Sunday.

Tehran and Israel have been engaged in a years-long shadow war in the wider Middle East, with some drone attacks targeting Israeli-associated vessels travelling around the region.

Timothy Hawkins, United States’ Naval 5th Fleet Commander, told Al Jazeera that the US’ biggest concern was “any destabilising maritime activity that takes place in the surrounding waters because they are vital to global trade”.

He said that the 5th Fleet’s next step would be to continue maintaining a persistent presence in the Gulf.

“[We will] work with our regional partners and our international partners in patrolling the nearby waters and also working with commercial shipping to ensure they have the information they need to continue transiting these waterways safely,” Hawkins said.

The US has blamed Iran for a series of attacks occurring off the coast of the United Arab Emirates in 2019. Tehran then had begun escalating its nuclear programme following the US’s unilateral withdrawal from its atomic deal with world powers.

In 2021, a suspected Iranian drone attack hit the Israeli-associated oil tanker Mercer Street off Oman, killing two people on board.

Iranian state media did not immediately acknowledge the attack on the Pacific Zircon. It was not immediately clear where the vessel was on Wednesday. Satellite-tracking data from late Tuesday provided by MarineTraffic.com put the vessel deep in the Arabian Sea after leaving the Omani port of Sohar.

Since the collapse of Iran’s nuclear deal, nonproliferation experts warn Tehran now has enough enriched uranium to make at least one nuclear weapon, though Tehran insists its programme is peaceful.

The Iranian government has also accused countries it deems to be enemy states of meddling in Iran’s internal affairs amid nationwide anti-government protests that have been continuing since September.

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2022-11-16 09:47:39Z
1657699133

Donald Trump 2024: Six ways running for president will be harder this time - BBC

Trump descends the escalator in Trump Tower in New York

By Anthony Zurcher

North America correspondent

@awzurcher

Donald Trump has announced his third straight presidential bid, in an extremely rare attempt by a former US leader to recapture the White House after losing an election.

The speech, which clocked in at more than an hour, was largely a mix of boasts about his presidential record and attacks on the first two years of Joe Biden's presidency.

On display were some of Mr Trump's continued strengths. He has an unmatched sense of which issues are important to grass-roots conservatives, such as immigration and crime. His unpredictable and inflammatory style can drive news coverage and deny the spotlight to his competitors. He has a base of loyal supporters and can motivate typically unengaged Americans to vote. And after four years in office, many of those supporters hold positions of authority within the Republican Party.

But his speech also highlighted some of Mr Trump's key weaknesses.

He glossed over the hardships and missteps during the Covid pandemic and totally ignored his months of election denial that culminated in the 6 January 2021 attack on the US Capitol by a mob of his supporters.

He attempted to defend the Republican Party's tepid performance in last week's midterm election and his support for losing candidates, which has led to growing criticism from conservative ranks.

Mr Trump said the task ahead was not one for a "conventional candidate", but for a movement of millions of people - his movement, his people and his campaign. He rode that movement to the presidency six years ago, but there's reason to believe the obstacles that his latest White House bid will face are more daunting this time around. Here's why.

1. Running with a record

Eight years ago, Mr Trump was a political blank slate. With no record as an officeholder, voters could project their hopes and desires on to him. He could make expansive promises - so much winning! - without critics pointing to past shortcomings and failures.

That's not the case any more. While Mr Trump had some notable policy achievements during his four years in office, including tax cuts and criminal justice reform, he also had some prominent failures.

Why a Republican 'wave' never happened

Republicans will remember his inability to repeal Democratic healthcare reforms and his repeated promises of infrastructure investment that never came to fruition. And then there's Mr Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic, which could open him up to attacks on multiple fronts.

Democrats have long criticised his response as insufficiently aggressive, but there are some on the right who believe he went too far in supporting government-mandated mitigation efforts.

2. The shadow of 6 January

Mr Trump won't just have to run on his policy record as president, either. He will have to defend the way he handled the end of his presidency and his role in the 6 January 2021 attack on the US Capitol.

The images of that day, with supporters waving Trump banners amid the teargas as they ransacked the Capitol and temporarily halted the peaceful transition of power, will not be easily forgotten.

The midterm elections demonstrated that what happened that day - and Mr Trump's words and actions in the weeks leading up to it - may still be influencing voter behaviour.

Many Republican candidates who offered full-throated support for Mr Trump's refusal to accept the results of the 2020 election lost. Lots of them underperformed other Republican candidates in their states who were not outspoken in their election denial.

3. Legal headaches

One of the reasons floated for why Mr Trump appears so eager to launch another presidential bid is because it will allow him to more effectively frame his multiple criminal and civil investigations as part of a larger political vendetta.

While that might work for public relations purposes, Mr Trump's legal exposure in these cases is very real.

The former president is currently defending himself against a criminal election-tampering inquiry in Georgia, a civil fraud case targeting his business empire in New York, a defamation lawsuit involving a sexual assault allegation, and federal probes into his role in the Capitol attack and his post-presidential handling of classified material.

How big are Trump's legal problems?

Any of these investigations could lead to full-blown trials that would dominate the headlines and at least temporarily derail Mr Trump's campaign plans.

At best for him, it would be a costly distraction. A worst-case scenario would include massive financial penalties or prison.

4. A tougher opponent

As the Republican presidential contest began eight years ago, Mr Trump faced off against a Florida governor considered to be the party's prohibitive favourite. Jeb Bush, however, proved a paper tiger.

A massive campaign war chest and a famous last name was not enough. He was out of step with the Republican base on immigration and education policy. And the Bush name didn't carry the power within the party that it once did.

If Mr Trump wants the nomination in 2024, he may once again have to go through a Florida governor.

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Unlike Mr Bush, however, Ron DeSantis just won an overwhelming re-election victory that suggests he is in tune with his party's core supporters. While he has yet to be tested on the national stage, his political star is ascending.

It's unclear if Mr DeSantis will run, or who else will enter the Republican presidential contest at this point.

Who are Trump's Republican rivals?

The Florida governor could emerge as the consensus pick among the party faithful not interested in giving Mr Trump another shot. If so, Republican voters may have the kind of binary choice that will improve their odds of stopping Mr Trump before his nomination is secured.

5. Popularity woes

On the eve of Mr Trump's presidential announcement, a conservative group released a series of polls that showed Mr Trump trailing Ron DeSantis in a head-to-head contest by double-digits among Republican voters in Iowa and New Hampshire.

Those states hold votes early in the Republican nomination process.

Mr DeSantis also led by 26 points in Florida and by 20 in Georgia, which has a Senate run-off election in December. In all these states, Mr Trump's numbers were well down on previous surveys.

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According to exit polls from the recently concluded midterm elections, Mr Trump is simply not very popular - including in the key states he would need to win to secure the presidency in a general election.

In New Hampshire, only 30% of voters said they wanted Mr Trump to run for president again. Even in Florida, that number only rose to 33%.

Of course, Mr Trump overcame net-negative views of his candidacy in 2015 as well. But after eight years as a political figure on the national stage, those views may be much less likely to change this time around.

6. Father Time

If he wins the presidency, Mr Trump would be 78 years old when he's sworn in. And while that's the same age Joe Biden was when he moved in to the White House, it would make him the second-oldest president in US history.

Time takes its toll in different ways on different people, but the increasing burdens of age are inevitable.

There's no guarantee that Mr Trump can withstand the kind of rigorous campaigning required to win the Republican nomination - particularly one where he will probably be pitted against much younger candidates.

Mr Trump has shown remarkable endurance in the past, but every man has his limits.

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2022-11-16 04:39:12Z
1637423574

Oil tanker hit by armed drone off coast of Oman: Official - Al Jazeera English

No one has claimed responsibility for the attack, the details of which are unclear, but suspicion has fallen on Iran.

An oil tanker associated with an Israeli billionaire has been struck by a bomb-carrying drone off the coast of Oman amid heightened tensions with Iran, an official has told the Associated Press.

In a statement, Eastern Pacific Shipping said the Pacific Zircon, carrying gas oil, had been “hit by a projectile” some 150 miles (240 kilometres) off the coast of Oman.

A call to the Israeli embassy in Abu Dhabi was not answered. Israel’s prime minister’s office and its defence ministry declined to comment.

While no one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, suspicion has immediately fallen on Iran. Tehran and Israel have been engaged in a years-long shadow war in the wider Middle East, with some drone attacks targeting Israeli-associated vessels travelling around the region.

Timothy Hawkins, US Naval 5th Fleet Commander told Al Jazeera their biggest concern “is any destabilising maritime activity that takes place in the surrounding waters because they are vital to global trade”.

He said their next step is to continue maintaining a persistent presence.

“It is to work with our regional partners and our international partners in patrolling the nearby waters and also working with commercial shipping to ensure they have the information they need to continue transiting these waterways safely,” Hawkins said.

The United States also blamed Iran for a series of attacks occurring off the coast of the United Arab Emirates in 2019. Tehran then had begun escalating its nuclear programme following the US’s unilateral withdrawal from its atomic deal with world powers.

In 2021, a suspected Iranian drone attack hit the Israeli-associated oil tanker Mercer Street off Oman, killing two people on board.

Since the collapse of Iran’s nuclear deal, nonproliferation experts warn Tehran now has enough enriched uranium to make at least one nuclear weapon, though Tehran insists its programme is peaceful.

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Selasa, 15 November 2022

Kyiv attacked as world leaders meet at G20 - BBC

Firefighters work to put out a fire in a residential building hit by a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine

By Sam Hancock

BBC News

Russia has launched a barrage of missiles at key cities across Ukraine, days after its troops were forced to withdraw from Kherson.

The capital Kyiv was among those hit, with mayor Vitaliy Klitschko saying residential buildings close to the city centre had been damaged.

Strikes were also reported in Mykolaiv, Chernihiv and Lviv, and other places.

As well as following Russia's setback in Kherson, the strikes come as world leaders meet at the G20 in Bali.

There Moscow faced fierce condemnation for the war in Ukraine.

Mr Klitschko said at least one person was killed in the latest strikes, while several Russian missiles were shot down.

He warned that at least half of the city's residents were without electricity due to emergency outages - a "necessary step to balance the power system", he said.

Air raid alerts sounded across the country.

Vitaly Kimm, the mayor of Mykolayiv in the south, said Russian missiles had been launched in three waves.

In Chernihiv, in the north, Governor Vyacheslav Chaus warned people to take shelter, adding "the missile strike is continuing".

Meanwhile, in the western city of Lviv, Mayor Andriy Sadovy said there had also been attacks, with power cuts as a result.

In the past week Moscow has withdrawn its troops from the southern city of Kherson - a major setback for Russia's invasion.

When Russia has suffered losses on the ground during this war, it has routinely taken to the air to retaliate.

In video shared by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's office, what looks like a block of flats can be seen on fire, with flames billowing from windows.

A 22-year-old resident, Oleksandra, told Reuters news agency that she saw from her window "as the rocket was flying, a bright fire, and the sound of something flying very close by".

Andriy Yermak, a presidential adviser, said the strikes were Russia's response to President Zelensky's "powerful speech" to the G20 summit.

During the virtual speech, Mr Zelensky addressed what he referred to as "G19" leaders - snubbing Moscow - and said he was "convinced now is the time when the Russian destructive war must and can be stopped".

A draft declaration from the summit, seen by news agencies, said "most" countries agreed the war was exacerbating fragilities in the global economy.

Mr Lavrov said the declaration had been "politicised" by Ukraine's Western allies.

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2022-11-15 13:54:58Z
1647466211

G20 latest: Rishi Sunak admits UK's reputation was harmed by leadership chaos - The Times

Rishi Sunak has acknowledged that Britain’s reputation “took a bit of a knock” during the leadership chaos of recent months.

On a day in which he confronted Russia face-to-face for the first time, the prime minister said he wanted to play a leading role in solving key global problems as he softened his language on China.

Sunak was seen glowering at Sergey Lavrov at the opening session of the G20 summit in Bali, where he sat directly opposite the Russian foreign minister.

PM says G20 condemns Russia's actions in Ukraine

At the event, where he hopes to speak to President Xi, Sunak called China a “systemic challenge to our values”, but stopped short of the tougher language favoured by his predecessor.

He was urged not to “do a U-turn” by Sir Iain Duncan

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2022-11-15 12:30:00Z
1648783575

UN calls for Russia to pay reparations. How did countries vote? - Al Jazeera English

The United Nations General Assembly has adopted a resolution calling for Russia to be held accountable for breaching international law by invading Ukraine.

Passed on Monday, the resolution calls for Russia to pay reparations for the damage and loss of life during the conflict.

In his nightly video address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said: “The reparations that Russia will have to pay … are now part of the international legal reality.”

But Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Tuesday said Russia stands “categorically against” the proposal, adding that Moscow would do “everything possible” to stop the West from seizing its frozen international reserves or “plundering” them to pay for reparations to Ukraine.

In total, 94 of the assembly’s 193 members voted in favour of the resolution on Monday.

Fourteen voted against and 73 nations abstained.

The resolution stated that Russia “must bear the legal consequences of all its internationally wrongful acts, including making reparation for injury, including any damage, caused by such acts”.

Here is a country breakdown of the General Assembly vote:

Member states that voted against the resolution

B: The Bahamas, Belarus

C: Central African Republic, China, Cuba

D: Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea)

E: Eritrea, Ethiopia

I: Islamic Republic of Iran

M: Mali

N: Nicaragua

R: Russian Federation

S: Syrian Arab Republic

Z: Zimbabwe

INTERACTIVE-UN GA vote Russia pays reparations

Member states that abstained

A: Algeria, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia

B: Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belize, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Burundi

C: Cambodia, Congo

E: Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eswatini

G: Gabon, Gambia, Grenada, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana

H: Haiti, Honduras

I: India, Indonesia, Iraq, Israel

J: Jamaica, Jordan

K: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan

L: Laos, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libya

M: Madagascar, Malaysia, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mongolia, Mozambique

N: Namibia, Nepal, Nigeria

O: Oman

P: Pakistan

R: Rwanda

S: Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Sierra Leone, South Africa, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname

T: Tajikistan, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia

U: Uganda, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan

V: Vietnam

Y: Yemen

Member states that voted in favour of the resolution

A: Afghanistan, Albania, Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria

B: Belgium, Benin, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria

C: Canada, Cape Verde, Chad, Chile, Colombia, Comoros, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic

D: Denmark, Djibouti, Dominican Republic

E: Ecuador, Estonia

F: Fiji, Finland, France

G: Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala

H: Hungary

I: Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Ivory Coast

J: Japan

K: Kenya, Kiribati, Kuwait

L: Latvia, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg

M: Malawi, Maldives, Malta, Marshall Islands, Mexico, Micronesia, Monaco, Montenegro, Myanmar

N: Nauru, Netherlands, New Zealand, Niger, North Macedonia, Norway

P: Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal

Q: Qatar

R: Republic of Korea (South Korea), Republic of Moldova, Romania

S: Samoa, San Marino, Seychelles, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Somalia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland

T: Togo, Tuvalu, Turkiye

U: Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay

V: Vanuatu

Z: Zambia

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2022-11-15 11:58:45Z
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