Middle East & North Africa

BAGHDAD (AP) — An Iraqi court Sunday postponed the trial of two European tourists charged with antiquities smuggling after their lawyers argued more information was needed about the ancient shards found in their possession.

The defense team for German national Volker Waldman filed a motion in court saying there was insufficient information about the value of the pieces Iraqi officials found on him. He was charged alongside Jim Fitton, 66, a retired British geologist.

Baghdad’s felony court postponed the case until June 6.

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — An Israeli court on Sunday sentenced six Palestinian inmates to five years in prison for tunneling out of their cell last year and escaping from a high-security facility in the biggest prison break of its kind in decades.

The jailbreak sparked a massive manhunt in the country’s north and the occupied West Bank in search for the men, who were members of Palestinian militant groups. They were recaptured days later.

21 May 2022; MEMO: The Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad has condemned and rejected the Turkish government's plan to settle one million Syrian refugees in the northern Syrian 'safe zone.'

21 May 2022; MEMO: Egyptian human rights organizations have announced the deterioration of Aisha Al-Shater's health, the daughter of the Muslim Brotherhood leader Khairat Al-Shater, during her detention at Al-Qanater Women's Prison.

Aisha is suffering severe health complications, such as bone marrow failure, which led to a shortage of blood cells, including platelets and red blood cells.

21 May 2022; MEMO: The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) announced on Friday the re-election of Ahmed Sa'adat as its Secretary-General, who is serving a term of 30 years in Israeli jails, a press release confirmed.

21 May 2022; MEMO: Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani announced on Wednesday that his country is ready to mediate between Iran, the European Union and the US regarding the nuclear deal, Anadolu Agency reported.

This came during a joint press conference held in Berlin with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who confirmed that Qatar would play a "central role" in Germany's new energy strategy.

21 May 2022; MEMO: Joint List MK Sami Abu Shehadeh announced on Friday that he would request the start of the process of dissolving the Israeli Knesset on Wednesday, Israeli media reported.

"I will submit the Knesset Dispersal Law [for a vote] next Wednesday," he announced via Twitter. "This bad government must fall," he declared.

New Delhi, May 22 (PTI) Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Sunday wondered whether the states can afford to give up revenue from VAT on petrol and diesel unless the Centre devolves more funds or gives them more grants, likening their situation to being between the devil and the deep sea .

The former finance minister's remarks come a day after the government announced Rs 8 per litre cut in excise duty on petrol and Rs 6 reduction on diesel.

DAMASCUS, May 21 (NNN-SANA) – Three people were killed in an Israeli missile strike, targeting military sites south of the capital, Damascus, last night, according to a statement from the Syrian military.

The statement said, the air defences intercepted most missiles, which were fired from the Israel-occupied Golan Heights.

The pro-government Sham FM radio said, strikes at the international airport in Damascus caused a fire near it, leading to the postponement of two flights.

JERUSALEM, May 21 (NNN-PNA) – The Israeli health ministry, last night, reported the country’s first suspected case of monkeypox, after the viral disease has recently been detected across North America and Europe.

Earlier in the day, a man in his 30s, returning from western Europe, visited Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv, with suspicious lesions of the virus, according to separate statements issued by the ministry and the hospital.