Iranian president announces another break from nuclear deal - CNBC

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani arrives to address the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters in New York, September 25, 2019.

Carlo Allegri | Reuters

Iran's president announced on Tuesday that Tehran will begin injecting uranium gas into 1,044 centrifuges, the latest step away from its nuclear deal with world powers since President Donald Trump withdrew from the accord over a year ago.

The development is significant as the centrifuges previously spun empty, without gas injection, under the landmark 2015 nuclear accord. It also increases pressure on European nations that remain in the accord, which at this point has all but collapsed.

In his announcement, President Hassan Rouhani did not say whether the centrifuges, which are at its nuclear facility in Fordo, would be used to produce enriched uranium. The centrifuges would be injected with the uranium gas as of Wednesday, Rouhani said.

His remarks, carried live on Iranian state television, came a day after Tehran's nuclear program chief said the country had doubled the number of advanced IR-6 centrifuges in operation.

There was no immediate reaction from the International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations' nuclear watchdog now monitoring Iran's compliance with the deal. The European Union on Monday called on Iran to return to the deal, while the White House sanctioned members of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's inner circle as part of its maximalist campaign against Tehran.

Rouhani stressed the steps taken so far, including going beyond the deal's enrichment and stockpile limitations, could be reversed if Europe offers a way for it to avoid U.S. sanctions choking off its crude oil sales abroad.

"We should be able to sell our oil," Rouhani said. "We should be able to bring our money" into the country.

The centrifuges at Fordo are IR-1s, Iran's first-generation centrifuge. The nuclear deal allowed those at Fordo to spin without uranium gas, while allowing up to 5,060 at its Natanz facility to enrich uranium.

A centrifuge enriches uranium by rapidly spinning uranium hexafluoride gas. An IR-6 centrifuge can produce enriched uranium 10 times faster than an IR-1, Iranian officials say.

Iranian scientists also are working on a prototype called the IR-9, which works 50-times faster than the IR-1, Iran's nuclear chief Ali Akhbar Salehi said Monday.

As of now, Iran is enriching uranium up to 4.5%, in violation of the accord's limit of 3.67%. Enriched uranium at the 3.67% level is enough for peaceful pursuits but is far below weapons-grade levels of 90%. At the 4.5% level, it is enough to help power Iran's Bushehr reactor, the country's only nuclear power plant. Prior to the atomic deal, Iran only reached up to 20%.

Tehran has gone from producing some 450 grams (1 pound) of low-enriched uranium a day to 5 kilograms (11 pounds), Salehi said. Iran now holds over 500 kilograms (1,102 pounds) of low-enriched uranium, Salehi said. The deal had limited Iran to 300 kilograms (661 pounds).

The collapse of the nuclear deal coincided with a tense summer of mysterious attacks on oil tankers and Saudi oil facilities that the U.S. blamed on Iran. Tehran denied the allegation, though it did seize oil tankers and shoot down a U.S. military surveillance drone.

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2019-11-05 10:34:16Z
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Sister of slain ISIS leader captured by Turkey, official says - CNN

Not much is known about Baghdadi's sister, Rasmiya Awad, 65, but Ankara hopes her capture will lead to a wealth of intelligence about the militant group.

"This kind of thing is an intelligence gold mine. What she knows about ISIS can significantly expand our understanding of the group and help us catch more bad guys," the Turkish official said.

Awad was detained in a raid on a metal container housing unit in Azaz, Aleppo province, part of a region that has been administered by Turkey since it carried out an operation to clear the border of ISIS militants in 2016.

The Turkish official did not provide details about the date of the operation.

Awad was taken into custody alongside her husband and daughter-in-law, who were also being questioned by Turkish authorities. Five children were found with them during the raid, the official said.

Turkey has described the discovery of Baghdadi's relatives as a boon for its intel about ISIS, saying that it will help the country better protect itself and Europe from terrorists.

The elusive and highly secretive leader of ISIS died during a raid conducted last month by the US military in close coordination with American intelligence and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in northwest Syria.

Baghdadi "blew himself up" after he was cornered by US forces in a tunnel within his compound, US President Donald Trump said during a press conference detailing the mission. His identity was later confirmed by DNA tests.

The world's most wanted man oversaw the militant group's transformation from a ragtag insurgency to a global terror network that attracted tens of thousands of fighters to its so-called "caliphate" in Iraq and Syria.

At the group's height, Baghdadi reigned over a territory the size of Britain, from which ISIS orchestrated attacks carried out in countries around the world.

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2019-11-05 09:45:00Z
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A view from the bridge: Iraq's protesters under fire - Reuters

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Ali says he has seen more than 50 people killed in front of him since anti-government protests began in Iraq last month.

Iraqi demonstrators climb Al Jumhuriya bridge during the ongoing anti-government protests in Baghdad, Iraq November 3, 2019. REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah

“The first one was shocking - he was someone I knew, and they shot him in the chest,” said Ali, in his early 20s and from Baghdad’s low-income Sadr City district.

“But you quickly get used to death ... I’ve seen people, some of them friends, choke, drown, have their skulls split open by tear gas and stun grenades,” Ali, who declined to give his last name, said as he played a mobile phone video of the shooting victim in his final moments in the capital’s Tahrir Square last month.

“We can’t even cry over their bodies any more.”

Since the start of October, more than 250 Iraqis have been killed protesting against a government they see as corrupt and beholden to foreign interests, according to eyewitnesses and medical and security sources.

There was no immediate comment from the interior ministry, which oversees many of the security forces, but a government report said nearly 150 people were killed in the first week of the unrest, 70% from bullets to the head or chest.

Recounting stories of his fallen comrades, Ali leaned against a mound of dirty blankets on the Tigris river bank under the Jumhuriya – or Republic – Bridge.

For the past 10 days, hundreds of young men and boys – some as young as 12 – have been camped out on the bridge, and under it. Wearing construction hats, gas masks, and chanting for the downfall of the government, they call themselves “the front line of the revolution”.

The bridge, which leads from the square to Baghdad’s fortified Green Zone, where government buildings and foreign embassies are located, has seen fierce clashes between protesters and security forces.

Protesters, armed with slingshots, have erected barricades of iron sheets and concrete blocks. Security forces have used rubber bullets, stun grenades, and tear gas against them, killing scores on the adjacent Jumhuriya and Sinak bridges.

Both sides have settled into an uneasy stalemate.

“We throw rocks at them, and they respond by killing us,” said Ali, as several tear gas canisters were lobbed by security forces.

BOYS UNDER THE BRIDGE

A group of medical volunteers have set up camp to help the wounded. They say the expired tear gas – Reuters saw used canisters with an expiry date of 2014 – is making people choke.

One young man, barefoot and wearing a dirty tank top and trousers, passed out after choking on the gas. A Reuters correspondent saw medics lower him off the bridge and put him in a tuk-tuk headed for a nearby hospital.

Ali is surrounded by a tight-knit group of 10, who have been camped under the Jumhuriya bridge since Oct. 24.

Reminiscent of Peter Pan’s Lost Boys, the group radiated an intensity forged by bloodshed. Many come from Baghdad’s poorest neighborhoods, where they work as tuk-tuk drivers or day laborers.

Despite Iraq’s oil wealth, many live in poverty with limited access to clean water, electricity, healthcare or education. Protesters blame corruption.

“For 16 years we’ve been told that our lives would be better,” said Abbas, who declined to give his last name.

“But I’m 19 and I’ve worked most days since I was 10 and still I don’t have more than 5,000 dinars ($4) in my pocket.”

DANGEROUS NIGHTS

Abbas was arrested in the first wave of protests, along with Ali and others in the group. They said their phones were scanned to identify fellow protesters. Released on bail, they were told to stay away from the demonstrations.

“But the very next day I went back to the protests,” said Ali. “We have to stay here to keep the revolution going.”

Nearly all those Reuters spoke to had bandages on their arms, torsos and legs. They said many of their injuries came from security forces who fire tear gas, stun grenades and rubber bullets, sometimes from boats on the river.

It is most dangerous at night, they said.

Slideshow (7 Images)

A few nights ago at 3 a.m., security forces threw gasoline at their camp, followed by burning rags, Ali said. The rags landed near a group of sleeping boys, according to a video seen by Reuters.

The boys now stand guard in shifts.

“The second we leave this bridge, the government will storm Tahrir Square and finish off the protests,” Ali said. “They can throw whatever they want at us. But we’re not going anywhere.”

Reporting by Raya Jalabi; Editing by Giles Elgood

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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2019-11-05 06:04:00Z
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Delhi gasps under 'eye-burning' smog amid worst pollution crisis - Al Jazeera English

Millions of people in India's capital have started their day choking through "eye-burning" smog, as the city government put restrictions on the number of private vehicles on Delhi roads amid an air pollution crisis.

Pollution levels are so high that schools have been shut, flights have been cancelled and a public emergency declared as experts say the air in New Delhi is similar to smoking up to 50 cigarettes a day.

"I have a headache every day I wake up. It's suffocating to breathe sometimes. And inflammation in the nostrils and all. And eyes also. Like it kind of burns," Ankusha Kushi, a student, told AFP news agency.

As Delhi residents woke up on Monday, levels of particulates measuring less than 2.5 microns - so tiny they enter deep into the respiratory tract - were at 613 micrograms per cubic metre of air, according to the US embassy in Delhi. The World Health Organization's (WHO) recommended safe daily maximum is a reading of 25.

Air pollution at this level can aggravate heart and lung disease and also poses serious risk to the respiratory systems of the general population.

A poisonous haze envelops New Delhi every winter, caused by vehicle fumes, industrial emissions and smoke from agricultural burning in neighbouring northern states of Punjab and Haryana.

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The current crisis - the worst in three years - prompted Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to announce a range of measures to fight what he described as "unbearable pollution".

Authorities in Delhi have ordered half the city's private cars to be taken off the road, based on an odd-even registration plate system - a decision many experts said was not enough and "too little, too late".

Delhi's seven million motorbikes and scooters, public transport and cars carrying only women were exempt from the restrictions.

"There is smoke everywhere and people, including youngsters, kids, elderly are finding it difficult to breathe," Kejriwal said in a video posted on Twitter.

Analysis: New Delhi smog threatens health of Indian residents

As smog levels exceeded those of Beijing by more than three times, authorities also parked a van with an air purifier near the Taj Mahal - the iconic 17th-century marble mausoleum 250km (150 miles) south of Delhi - in a bid to clean the air in its surrounds, the Press Trust of India reported.

The air quality index, measuring levels of PM 2.5, tiny particulate matter in the air, deteriorated to above 900 on Sunday, way over the 500-level that qualifies as "severe-plus".

Aside from the harm it was doing to the lungs of some 40 million people living in the capital region, the smog was so bad more than 30 flights were diverted from Delhi airport due to poor visibility.

Schools, which were closed on Friday last week, remained shut on Monday, and city-wide construction was halted until Tuesday in Delhi and surrounding areas.

Kejriwal said authorities were also distributing about 5 million face masks to schoolchildren.

Kejriwal, who likened Delhi to a "gas chamber" on Friday, said his city had done its part to curb pollution and that the burning of wheat stubble residue on farms outside the capital was responsible for the smog.

But Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar accused Kejriwal of politicising the issue, while an MP from the governing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) dismissed the odd-even car rule as a "stunt" and said he planned to ignore it.

I agree Ashutosh. Pollution due to stubble burning is not in our hands though we r distributing masks to our Delhiites to reduce its ill-effects on the health of our people. However, lets try to reduce pollution due to local sources as much as we can. https://t.co/JWhmbXmwfo

— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) November 4, 2019

Al Jazeera's Anchal Vohra reporting from Delhi said the conditions were really bad. "The air is unbreathable," she said.

Talking about the new measures she said they were expected to help "a little".

"A huge part of the pollution is vehicular pollution, so if you halt the number of vehicles, then yes I believe it should help."

"But the large part of this pollution is because of farmers burning the stubble in neighbouring states which are also fighting pollution, but there is no political consensus ... no clear directions as to what the government plan is.

"[So] as long as farmers keep burning the stubble, and in winter the pollution is expected to be high," Vohra  added.

 An Indian farmer burns crop stubble in a farm at a village on the outskirts of Amritsar [EPA]

India has faced a mounting pollution crisis over the past decade.

Fourteen Indian cities including the capital are among the world's top 15 most polluted cities, according to the WHO.

Experts warn that both state and national governments need to go beyond short-term remedies and tackle major pollution causes if air quality is to improve in the long term.

Amid lack of apparent inaction from the government, angry residents in Delhi protested outside Prime Minister Narendra Modi's residence on Saturday.

On Sunday, Modi's top bureaucrat held meetings with officials from Punjab, Haryana, and Delhi to tackle the crisis.

Stop-gap solutions "can't be a substitute for addressing the major long-term chronic sources of air pollution," Daniel Cass, senior vice president for environmental health of global non-profit Vital Strategies, told AFP.

He said emissions restrictions should be imposed on motorbikes and scooters, which are heavily used in Delhi but exempted from the odd-even scheme, and called for more public transport investment.

Changing agricultural practices, switching electricity generation sources and accelerating the conversion of home-heating from charcoal to natural gas were also key measures in the pollution fight, Cass said.

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2019-11-04 08:58:00Z
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Britain's snap election is unlikely to make Brexit any clearer, analysts say - CNBC

Pro Brexit anti European Union Leave protesters demonstrating in Westminster on what, prior to another Brexit Day extension, would have been the day the UK was scheduled to leave the EU, and instead political parties commence campaigning for a General Election on 31st October 2019 in London, England, United Kingdom.

Mike Kemp | In Pictures | Getty Images

Will the upcoming U.K. election put an end to more than three years of Brexit uncertainty? Maybe not, experts say.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson's deal was approved, in principle, by British lawmakers last month but political wrangling in Westminster led to the U.K. leader pausing his Brexit bill and opposition parties agreeing to an election.

Johnson said "the way to get Brexit done" was to have the national vote in December, but political analysts argue that he might be wrong.

Quentin Peel, an associate fellow at the think tank Chatham House told CNBC Friday that there is a "pretty good chance we won't" have clarity on Brexit after the election. Victoria Hewson, head of regulatory affairs at another think tank called The Institute of Economic Affairs, said this is "the most unpredictable election ever."

UK 'profoundly divided'

U.K. voters are still profoundly divided over EU membership, with the 2016 referendum itself producing a 51.89% result for leave and 48.11% for remain.

This division is now mirrored in the country's political system. The U.K. has traditionally been dominated by two main parties: the pro-business Conservative Party and the pro-social justice Labour party. However, both of them have failed to come up with a united position on Brexit. As a result, some of their party members have defected into other political groups or been expelled altogether.

Robert Colvile, director of the Centre for Policy Studies, told CNBC that there are now five parties "that matter."

Apart from the traditional two, Colvile was referring to: The Liberal Democrats — which is openly campaigning to stop Brexit altogether; the Brexit Party — whose leader, Nigel Farage, supports a no-deal breakup from the EU; and the Scottish National Party (SNP) — a pro-EU party based in Scotland.

"The Brexit vote will be split," Peel from Chatham House said. His theory is based on the fact that the Brexit Party supports what it calls a "clean" breakup from the EU and the Conservative Party is arguing that the country should leave the EU but with the deal that Johnson negotiated.

At the same time, "Labour's position is extremely obscure," Hewson from The Institute of Economic Affairs said. The party has said that it will look to negotiate another exit agreement with the EU and put it to a new referendum. Under this scenario, Brexit would likely take a lot longer to happen.

"It comes down to a numbers game," Hewson said.

In the event of a hung parliament then Colvile from the Centre for Policy Studies argued that a second referendum on the country's EU membership is the most likely option.

"If an election doesn't work (to solve the Brexit impasse), a second referendum is the last possibility," he said.

The polls have been wrong before

The U.K.'s voting system also adds another layer of complexity. The first-past-the-post electoral system tends to lend support to the bigger political parties.

The Conservative Party, under the leadership of Johnson, could get as much as 36% of the votes, according to a YouGov poll conducted in late October. It would be followed by Labour with 22% of support, the Liberal democrats with 19%, the Brexit Party with 12% and the SNP with 4% of votes.

However, these percentages would not necessarily translate to seats in the House of Commons with the electoral system the U.K. has.

Previous polls have proven to be wrong too. Ahead of the 2016 referendum, most polls expected that the U.K. would vote to stay in the European Union. In 2017, polls ahead of a snap election also forecast a large majority for the Conservative Party, which did not materialize.

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2019-11-04 07:56:30Z
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Britain's snap election is unlikely to make Brexit any clearer, analysts say - CNBC

Pro Brexit anti European Union Leave protesters demonstrating in Westminster on what, prior to another Brexit Day extension, would have been the day the UK was scheduled to leave the EU, and instead political parties commence campaigning for a General Election on 31st October 2019 in London, England, United Kingdom.

Mike Kemp | In Pictures | Getty Images

Will the upcoming U.K. election put an end to more than three years of Brexit uncertainty? Maybe not, experts say.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson's deal was approved, in principle, by British lawmakers last month but political wrangling in Westminster led to the U.K. leader pausing his Brexit bill and opposition parties agreeing to an election.

Johnson said "the way to get Brexit done" was to have the national vote in December, but political analysts argue that he might be wrong.

Quentin Peel, an associate fellow at the think tank Chatham House told CNBC Friday that there is a "pretty good chance we won't" have clarity on Brexit after the election. Victoria Hewson, head of regulatory affairs at another think tank called The Institute of Economic Affairs, said this is "the most unpredictable election ever."

UK 'profoundly divided'

U.K. voters are still profoundly divided over EU membership, with the 2016 referendum itself producing a 51.89% result for leave and 48.11% for remain.

This division is now mirrored in the country's political system. The U.K. has traditionally been dominated by two main parties: the pro-business Conservative Party and the pro-social justice Labour party. However, both of them have failed to come up with a united position on Brexit. As a result, some of their party members have defected into other political groups or been expelled altogether.

Robert Colvile, director of the Centre for Policy Studies, told CNBC that there are now five parties "that matter."

Apart from the traditional two, Colvile was referring to: The Liberal Democrats — which is openly campaigning to stop Brexit altogether; the Brexit Party — whose leader, Nigel Farage, supports a no-deal breakup from the EU; and the Scottish National Party (SNP) — a pro-EU party based in Scotland.

"The Brexit vote will be split," Peel from Chatham House said. His theory is based on the fact that the Brexit Party supports what it calls a "clean" breakup from the EU and the Conservative Party is arguing that the country should leave the EU but with the deal that Johnson negotiated.

At the same time, "Labour's position is extremely obscure," Hewson from The Institute of Economic Affairs said. The party has said that it will look to negotiate another exit agreement with the EU and put it to a new referendum. Under this scenario, Brexit would likely take a lot longer to happen.

"It comes down to a numbers game," Hewson said.

In the event of a hung parliament then Colvile from the Centre for Policy Studies argued that a second referendum on the country's EU membership is the most likely option.

"If an election doesn't work (to solve the Brexit impasse), a second referendum is the last possibility," he said.

The polls have been wrong before

The U.K.'s voting system also adds another layer of complexity. The first-past-the-post electoral system tends to lend support to the bigger political parties.

The Conservative Party, under the leadership of Johnson, could get as much as 36% of the votes, according to a YouGov poll conducted in late October. It would be followed by Labour with 22% of support, the Liberal democrats with 19%, the Brexit Party with 12% and the SNP with 4% of votes.

However, these percentages would not necessarily translate to seats in the House of Commons with the electoral system the U.K. has.

Previous polls have proven to be wrong too. Ahead of the 2016 referendum, most polls expected that the U.K. would vote to stay in the European Union. In 2017, polls ahead of a snap election also forecast a large majority for the Conservative Party, which did not materialize.

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2019-11-04 07:26:42Z
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US envoy decries Chinese 'intimidation' in South China Sea - Al Jazeera English

A US envoy has denounced Chinese "intimidation" in the South China Sea at a meeting of Southeast Asian leaders, as he conveyed an invitation from President Donald Trump for the leaders to attend a special summit in the United States.

China has made sweeping maritime claims in the resource-rich waters of the South China Sea and angered neighbours by sending ships into the busy waterway, where several members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) also have claims.

"Beijing has used intimidation to try to stop ASEAN nations from exploiting the off-shore resources, blocking access to 2.5 trillion dollars of oil and gas reserve alone," US envoy Robert O'Brien told on Monday the ASEAN-US summit in a speech in Bangkok, Thailand.

O'Brien, the White House national security adviser, read a message from Trump inviting the ASEAN leaders to "join me in the United States for a special summit" in the first quarter of 2020.

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ASEAN has been struggling over how to address tensions over China's encroachment into the disputed waters of the South China Sea.

Grappling with China

Vietnam wanted ASEAN leaders to issue a communique that would mention Chinese movements into waters where Vietnam has exclusive rights to exploit energy resources and other recent, aggressive acts off the Philippines and Malaysia.

China, through its ASEAN ally Cambodia, has opposed any such move, two Southeast Asian diplomats told AP news agency.

After weeks of wrangling, senior diplomats reached a compromise on expressing concern over "serious incidents in the area, which have eroded trust and confidence, increased tensions and may undermine peace, security and stability in the region," one of the diplomats said.

The phrase would not name China or mention other details, the diplomat said.

China and its ASEAN allies have steadfastly refused attempts at the annual summits to rebuke Beijing for its actions, which include building seven islands on disputed reefs that US officials say could serve as military platforms to intimidate rival claimants.

China claims virtually the entire South China Sea, a vital waterway for global commerce.

It opposes naval and aerial patrols by the US and its allies as American interference in an Asian problem. Beijing also regards the US concept of a free and open Indo-Pacific region as a strategy to contain China.

Much of Asia looks to the US to help counter China's growing reach and power.

Trump's absence, however, is a disappointment to some in the region and may undermine the US assertion that it puts a high priority on trade and other ties with the region.

But US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross insisted that his country remains "extremely engaged" with Asia, adding that "we continue to negotiate trade deals with countries in this region."

ASEAN members include Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

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2019-11-04 05:52:00Z
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