Media Summary
UK passport returned to detained Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe in Iran
BBC News and The Independent report on Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s upcoming visit to the UAE and Saudi Arabia. Johnson is calling on the Gulf states to ramp up oil output as the world has seen a remarkable spike in prices due to COVID-19 and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Johnson is facing criticism for the trip as it comes days after Saudi Arabia executed 81 men in one day, which has sparked a larger conversation about the UK’s engagement with the kingdom and its human rights record.
The Guardian reports that Labour leader Keir Starmer has called out Johnson for “going cap in hand from dictator to dictator” for oil. Johnson said his trip is “vital, if we are going to stand up to Putin’s bullying, if we are going to avoid being blackmailed by Putin in the way that so many western countries sadly have been, we have got to get ourselves off Russian hydrocarbons”.
BBC News, The Telegraph and The Independent report that talks are moving forward to free British-Iranian Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe. Zaghari-Ratcliffe has been given her UK passport back, according to her MP Tulip Siddiq, who added that the family was feeling “more hopeful” about her return to the UK. Prime Minister Johnson added that talks are “going right up to the wire” while Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said it was “priority to pay the debt that we owe to Iran,” referencing the £400m owed when the UK failed to deliver Chieftain tanks in the 1970s. Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s lawyer said: “I am hopeful that we will have good news soon.”
David Gardner writes for The Financial Times about how the mistrust between the Biden administration and the Gulf emphasises the need to reset relations. The paper notes: “Arab regimes are disgruntled, Biden has been snubbed and Putin’s war on Ukraine is causing friction.”
The New Statesman examines how the war in Ukraine “could unleash a catastrophe on the Middle East,” noting that “food and fuel prices are at their highest since 2011, when increases helped trigger the Arab Spring”.
Reuters reports that Russian Billionaire Roman Abramovich landed in Moscow as Western governments continue to seize more of his assets. He is reportedly not in Moscow to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Abramovich was spotted at a VIP lounge at the Ben Gurion Airport in Israel on Sunday. On Tuesday Abramovich was among several Russian billionaires added to the EU blacklist, as countries seek to isolate Putin and his allies over the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The Times reports that Israel suffered a massive cyberattack on what the paper called “strategic Israeli websites and government infrastructure, including electric and water companies”. The attack came after Iran claimed to foil an attempt by the Mossad to sabotage Fordow – one of Iran’s key uranium enrichment facilities.
Reuters reports that Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia has received written guarantees that its cooperation with Iran will not be affected by US sanctions over the invasion of Ukraine. Lavrov noted the guarantees are “included in the very text of the agreement on reviving the JCPOA, and in these texts there is a reliable defence of all the projects provided for by the JCPOA and those activities – including the linking up of our companies and specialists.” The report notes that Lavrov’s latest comments “appeared to signal Moscow may have backed off its previous view that Western sanctions imposed on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine were an impediment to salvaging the nuclear deal”.
The Times reports that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the 9/11 attacks, may avoid the death penalty. This comes as prosecutors and his lawyers begin talks on a plea deal. The paper notes that a “deal would bring an end to the long-running case, which has been plagued with delays and has no date set for trial. [He is] accused of terrorism, hijacking, conspiracy and murder in violation of the law of war, as well as directing and training or providing travel arrangements and money to the 19 hijackers who crashed aircraft into the World Trade Centre, the Pentagon and a field in Pennsylvania, killing nearly 3,000 people.”
Israel Hayom reports that Defence Minister Benny Gantz and Integration Minister Pnina Tamano-Shata arrived at Ben Gurion International airport yesterday to tour Terminal 1, the area set aside for the processing of immigrants from Ukraine and Russia. During the visit Gantz said: “The circumstances of people’s arrival here are painful. The State of Israel was always their home, and now they are enacting their return home and we’re happy to be able to help.”
Yediot Ahronot reports that the Health Ministry will likely launch a campaign to vaccinate Ukrainian refugees come to Israel. The Health Ministry does not have accurate data on the vaccination rate of the refugees who have arrived in the country so far. Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz wrote to Aliya and Integration Minister Pnina Tamano-Shata, saying: “As a state, we have a joint interest in protecting the health of people staying in our country and to provide them with high-quality and accessible medical services. If, heaven forbid, their medical condition should worsen and they are forced to use emergency medicine, the Israeli medical system will bear the costs. We need to regulate in advance their eligibility for medical services in order to prevent disease and additional trauma during their difficult hour, and to manage the Israeli healthcare system’s resources correctly and optimally.”
Israel Hayom reports that organisations affiliated with the right-wing national camp are expected to demonstrate outside the home of Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked. Matan Peleg, director of Im Tirtzu, said: “The Israeli government needs to do everything in its power to bring to Israel Jews from Ukraine and Russia. We call on the interior minister to stop debasing herself before post-Zionist elements that want to bring tens of thousands of non-Jewish refugees into Israel with the goal of diluting the Jewish majority in Israel.”
A poll from N12 Online examines public support for Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s role in mediating the conflict between Russia and Ukraine and the public’s position on Russia. The poll found that the public was just about evenly split on whether Bennett should mediate between Russia and Ukraine (41 per cent – Yes; 44 per cent – No). In terms of Israel’s position to the war, the poll found that 39 per cent said Israel should identify more with Ukraine, 24 per cent said Israel should identify less with Ukraine, and 28 per cent said Israel should maintain its current policy.
Yoav Limor comments in Israel Hayom about recent events and rising tensions between Iran and Israel. He writes: “The string of events illustrates once again that the war between Israel and Iran has become more violent and out in the open than in the past. Israel may take care to maintain secrecy (both in terms of operations’ execution and in terms of admitting responsibility for them) when operating inside Iran, but it would appear that Israel is ready to take bigger chances than in the past in order to thwart Iran’s operational capabilities and to try and deter them. This is a wise policy, one that is expected to be pursued more vigorously after a new nuclear deal is signed.”
Israel Hayom reports on the cyberattack that shut down several government websites on Monday. A senior Israeli official told the paper that the attack was carried out by a “powerful party, not by a lone-wolf hacker or a group of lone-wolf hackers”. The attack is one of the broadest to hit the country. The paper notes, “The initial findings show security breaches at two service providers that provide service to the government. The breach was located in a relatively short period of time and the websites returned to functionality. A government official said lessons have already been learned from the incident and that additional conclusions would be drawn in future.”
The Jerusalem Post reports that US Central Command Gen. Kenneth McKenzie said Iran is in possession of over 3,000 ballistic missiles, many of which can reach Israel. His comments came during an appearance at the Senate Armed Services Committee. McKenzie added: “At a military level my concern is first of all that they do not have a nuclear weapon, but I am also very concerned about the remarkable growth and efficiency of their ballistic missile programme.”
Haaretz and Israel Hayom report the Health Ministry said this morning that two cases of an unidentified COVID variant were found in two Israelis who had returned from abroad. The variant, which is a combination of the BA.1 (omicron) and infectious BA.2 variants, has not been sequenced anywhere else in the world. The ministry said it was closely monitoring the strain. Coronavirus Commissioner Salman Zarka said, “This phenomenon occurs when two new strains meet, they reproduce and take traits from both strains. The infection most likely happened in Israel. A young woman infected a baby and her parents. The two flew abroad and when they returned, their test results at Ben-Gurion airport were tested for new variants, which is when the new strain was revealed.”