Middle East & North Africa

Jan 9 (Reuters) - Meta's (META.O) Oversight Board on Monday overturned the company's decision to remove a Facebook post that used the slogan "death to Khamenei" to criticize the Iranian leader, saying it did not violate a rule barring violent threats.

The board, which is funded by Meta but operates independently, said in a ruling that the phrase is often used to mean "down with Khamenei" in referring to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has been leading a violent crackdown on nationwide protests in recent months.

TEHRAN, Jan. 9 (Xinhua) -- The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Monday that negotiations on the revival of a 2015 nuclear deal are continuing through relevant channels at both sides' request.

Nasser Kanaani made the remarks at a weekly press conference without further elaborating on "relevant channels," according to the official news agency IRNA.

Kanaani added Iran's policy toward the nuclear issue is clear, and the country is acting within the same political framework.

09 Jan 2023; MEMO: Qatar Central Bank's international reserves and foreign currencies liquidity increased by 9.6 per cent in December 2022 on a year on year basis, Anadolu news agency has reported. The figure for last month stood at 230.026 billion Qatari Riyals ($63.18bn), compared with QR209.932bn ($57.66bn) in December 2021.

09 Jan 2023; MEMO: A member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), Azzam Al-Ahmad, said Israel has one week to stop its punitive measures against the Palestinian Authority officials or the PA will reconsider its relation with the occupation state.

08 Jan 2023; MEMO: The Somali government on Saturday said the al-Qaeda-affiliated terror group al-Shabaab requested to open negotiations with the government for the first time, reports Anadolu Agency.

Somalia's Deputy Defense Minister Abdifatah Qasim said al-Shabaab terrorists do not have a chance to negotiate with the government, except for Somali nationals who are members of the terror group.

CAIRO (AP) — The Suez Canal Authority said a cargo ship carrying corn that went aground early Monday in the Egyptian waterway was refloated and canal traffic was restored.

Adm. Ossama Rabei, head of the authority, said the Marshall Islands-flagged MV Glory suffered a technical failure and the canal deployed four tugboats to help refloat it. He said the vessel was being withdrawn to a nearby maritime park to fix the problem.

08 Jan 2023; MEMO: Turkiye's Consulate General in Marseille on Friday was attacked with Molotov cocktails by unidentified people, reports Anadolu Agency.

Some six people wearing masks threw Molotov cocktails at the consulate's building, the Turkish Consul General in Marseille Arda Ulutas told Anadolu Agency.

Ulutas said French police quickly arrived at the scene after the security personnel pressed the alarm button.

09 Jan 2023; MEMO: Israeli occupation authorities notified Palestinians on Sunday of their plan to demolish five homes and three water wells in Masafer Yatta, south of the occupied West Bank.

Local Palestinian anti-occupation activist, Rateb Jabour, said Israeli occupation forces raided the village of Al Jawaya in Masafer Yatta and handed five demolition orders to local residents.

08 Jan 2023; MEMO: The sequel to the 2000 historical epic film Gladiator is to begin shooting in May with filming to take place across several locations in the city of Ouarzazate in Morocco.

08 Jan 2023; MEMO: Turkish officials on Sunday commemorated the martyrs of the Battle of Sarikamis during World War I, reports Anadolu Agency.

Tens of thousands of Ottoman soldiers, led by Enver Pasha, died during the Battle of Sarikamis from December 1914 to January 1915, when they launched an attack near the eastern city of Kars to liberate Ottoman territories under Russian occupation.