Author: Steven Sahiounie

Asharq Al-Awsat, a Saudi newspaper, announced that the US National Security Adviser, Jake Sullivan, who arrived in the Saudi city of Neom yesterday evening, Monday, has scheduled to hold high-level talks with Saudi officials at the beginning of his tour in the region. He will be especially dealing with the Yemen and Iran “files.” According to the newspaper, Sullivan, the highest-ranking US official to visit Saudi Arabia since Joe Biden took office last January, will discuss “the Iranian nuclear file” and efforts to force peace initiatives to end the war in Yemen. AP: The visit comes following a reschedule Yesterday, Monday,…

The number of “murders and manslaughter” in the US rose by nearly 30% in 2020, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation in its annual crime report on Monday. According to the report, violent crimes in the US rose for the first time in four years. Some experts attributed the increase to several reasons, such as repercussions of COVID-19, changes in policing, and increased gun sales. Justin Nix, an associate professor of criminology and criminal justice at the University of Nebraska in Omaha told the Washington Post that there’re “no real surprises” in the published data. However, Daniel Webster, director of the Johns Hopkins…

Caracas and Guaido’s opposition reported making progress toward resolving their differences in the Norway-mediated, New Mexico-held talks during their third round, which concluded on Monday. The positions of the two sides “moved closer in the search for solutions to the challenges in social, economic, and political matter,” said a statement read by Norwegian mediator Dag Nylander. The joint statement did not get into details regarding the areas in which progress was made during the negotiations, which aimed at solving the political crisis in Venezuela. However, the parties did report making advances in efforts to establish a mechanism for consultations with…

Yemen’s Deputy Foreign Minister Hussein Al-Ezzi addressed the UN, saying that its recognition of Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi’s government is the biggest political and humanitarian scandal in the history of the international community. In a series of tweets, Al-Ezzi accused the UN of trying to insult Yemen, which is a country rich in ancient history and civilization. He also questioned the UN’s motives behind recognizing Hadi as the legitimate president. Al-Ezzi described Hadi as a “mercenary” and a “criminal” wanted by the Yemeni judiciary, pointing out that the Sanaa government has called on world countries to delegitimize the mercenary government…

Steven Sahiounie, journalist and political commentator The Middle East is a boiling cauldron about to overflow.  The occupation of Palestine continues to make the region unstable, and is a source of human rights abuses, and war crimes.  Add in the tensions between the US and Iran as they negotiate a new nuclear deal, and you have the region sitting on the edge of their seats.  Steven Sahiounie of MidEastDiscourse interviewed Dr. Ahmad Alderzi, the noted microbiologist and political activist, to get his take on the situation unfolding. Steven Sahiounie (SS): The Israeli occupation stated that they don’t mind a new…

In an interview for Sputnik, the Vietnamese Ambassador to Russia, Dang Minh Khoi, said the Russian Direct Investment Fund reached a purchase agreement with the Vietnamese T&T Group on Russia’s Sputnik V, although the vaccine did not receive official recognition from the World Health Organization. As per the agreement, Vietnam would obtain COVID-19 vaccines from Russia throughout 2021. “T&T Group and the Russian Foreign Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) have reached an agreement to supply Vietnam with the Sputnik V vaccine in 2021,” Khoi told Sputnik. The ambassador revealed that the two sides are working to develop a delivery schedule that suits…

Oil made gains on Monday, its fifth day in a row, with Brent nearing $80 a barrel amid an increase in demand around the world as restrictions around the pandemic are easing. Brent crude made a $1.14 gain, a 1.5% increase that put it at $79.23 per barrel. This makes for its third consecutive week on the rise. US oil made a $1.11 gain, a 1.5% increase that put it at $75.09, making for its highest price in 2 months after making gains for five consecutive weeks. “Supply tightness continues to draw on inventories across all regions,” ANZ Research said…

China’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges have barred new accounts and clients from investing and trading cryptocurrencies in mainland China upon the government’s latest ban on cryptocurrencies.  China’s top regulators stepped up their crackdown on cryptocurrencies on Friday, 24th of September, imposing a blanket ban on all crypto transactions and mining and putting pressure on Bitcoin and other major coins, as well as crypto and blockchain-related companies. Overseas exchanges, as part of the ban, are prohibited from providing services to users in China, as all virtual-currency activities became illegal. Huobi, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, said Sunday that all already-existing accounts…

Kazem Gharibabadi, Iran’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations, criticized the IAEA’s report on the TESA Karaj complex, saying “it is not accurate and goes beyond agreed terms of the joint statement.” Gharibabadi’s statement came in response to the IAEA’s report presented by the Secretary-General on Sunday regarding Iran “not allowing the IAEA to replace its cameras” in the TESA Karaj complex. “The (IAEA) Director General (Rafael Grossi) stresses that Iran’s decision to not to allow agency access to the TESA Karaj centrifuge component manufacturing workshop is contrary to the agreed terms of the joint statement issued on…

The Austrian Communist Party topped the results of the municipal elections in Graz, the second-largest city in Austria, according to preliminary results. Communist Party candidate Elke Kahr, 59, won 28.9% of the vote, compared to 25.7% for outgoing conservative mayor Siegfried Nagel, who held the post for 18 years. According to opinion polls, the result was not expected, Kahr told reporters. Addressing this success, she said that some people make promises a few weeks before the elections, but her party was always there to serve the people, especially the poor. Graz is Austria’s second-largest city with over 220,000 voters, many…