Author: Shuaib Hassan

The US House Foreign Affairs Committee voted on Wednesday along party lines to give President Joe Biden the power to ban Chinese-owned TikTok, in what would be the most far-reaching US restriction on any social media app. Lawmakers voted 24 to 16 to approve the measure to grant the administration new powers to ban the ByteDance-owned app – which is used by over 100 million Americans – as well as other apps considered security risks. “TikTok is a national security threat … It is time to act,” said Representative Michael McCaul, the Republican chair of the committee who sponsored the…

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday he will not meet the Russian or Chinese foreign ministers at this week’s Group of 20 meeting in New Delhi, charging that Moscow was not serious about ending the war in Ukraine. “I have no plans to see either at the G20,” Blinken told reporters in Tashkent before flying out to New Delhi, while adding that he expected to participate in group sessions with them. Blinken has refused to meet Lavrov in person since the Ukraine invasion, dismissing Russian statements that it is ready to discuss the war launched by President Vladimir…

Anger and fear mount in Iran as fingers are pointed at ultra-conservative and opposition groups over poisoning incidents Hundreds of schoolgirls in Iran have been hospitalised in recent weeks after being poisoned by what officials have described as an “intentional” gas attack. Although incidents have been reported across the country, the majority of cases have centred around the holy city of Qom. BBC Persian reported that as many as 800 students in Qom had been poisoned so far, and that a number of cases had also been detected in the capital, Tehran. Younes Panahi, a deputy health minister, told media that the…

RIYADH: Boosted by a robust macroeconomic environment, Kuwait is expected to witness solid growth in spending this year, according to a recent report by Fitch Solutions.   As relatively strong oil prices support export revenue, the report noted that consumer spending in Kuwait in 2023 will post moderate yet stable growth of 4.4 percent year-on-year, down from the 5.2 percent estimated in 2022. In nominal terms, total spending will come in at 20.6 billion Kuwaiti dinars ($67 billion) in 2023, up from 19.2 billion dinars in 2022. The rate of growth over 2021-2022 was higher than expected following a successful COVID-19 vaccination rollout,…

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) published a two-part series on February 20-21 entitled “What would war with China look like for Australia?” It highlighted the growing fears in some ruling circles over the disastrous consequences of a US-led war with China amid the increasingly belligerent stance of Washington. The article is based on interviews with, as the ABC described them, “four of Australia’s most experienced military strategists.” All hold “the highest security clearances that it’s possible to have” and “have been involved in sensitive military operations.” The four are: Professor Hugh White, former deputy secretary for strategy and intelligence in…

THE GOVERNMENT OF AUSTRALIA has ordered the deportation of a Kazakh-born Irish citizen, who is believed to be a spy for the Russian Federation, according to reports from Australia and Ireland. The woman in question has been identified as Marina Sologub, 39, an ethnic Russian who was born in Kazakhstan, but grew up in the Republic of Ireland. Sologub reportedly spent her teenage years in Glanmire, a suburb of the city of Cork, located on Ireland’s southern coastline. She eventually enrolled at University College Cork, where she graduated with a degree in Politics and Governance. While still at university, Sologub worked for…

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday denied a media report from last week saying his office had been warned by Canada’s spy agency to drop a Liberal candidate, who is now a member of Parliament, because he had Beijing’s support. The Chinese government preferred Han Dong, a Chinese Canadian, over another Chinese Canadian Liberal, who was passed over in favour of Han, said Global News, citing anonymous security sources in a story posted online. The article said the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) urged Trudeau’s “team” to rescind Han’s candidacy. Instead he went on to win a seat in the…

A desire to restrain China united Republicans and Democrats on the House Financial Services Committee Tuesday, with lawmakers approving a series of bipartisan bills designed to rein in the country’s economic power. The committee approved 10 bills with broad support, including measures that would have the U.S. government scrutinize financial institutions that serve senior Chinese officials, target Chinese manufacturing of synthetic drugs, and commission a Treasury Department report on the global economic risks associated with China’s financial sector. The package also featured pro-Taiwan bills that would encourage Taiwan’s membership in the International Monetary Fund and exclude China from the G-20and other global organizations in the event it…

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr has said his country’s military must urgently focus on the protection of territorial integrity as disputes between Manila and Chinamultiply amid growing rivalry in the region between Beijing and Washington. Marcos Jr made his comment in a speech to his armed forces just weeks after he summoned China’s ambassador in Manila to protest against the use of a military-grade laser by the Chinese coastguard that briefly blinded crew members of a Philippine patrol vessel in the South China Sea. “I’m saying that your mission in the AFP has changed,” Marcos told troops late on Monday, referring to the…

At least two Ismaili home owners in Mountainous Badakhshan were fined one month’s average wage each for hosting prayers in their homes. The regime banned such meetings in late 2022. Officials told elders on 14 January in Khorugh not to allow prayers in homes, that local people must remove portraits of Ismaili spiritual leader the Aga Khan, and that study at the London-based Institute of Ismaili Studies is no longer allowed. The authorities banned voluntary lessons for children based on a course from the Aga Khan Foundation. Local administrations in the Mountainous Badakhshan Region in south-eastern Tajikistan have issued at…