Jamal Khashoggi

Image copyright AFP Image caption Saudi Arabia has gone through radical change in a short space of time under Mohammed Bin Salman Once famous for being tax-free, Saudi Arabia has announced it is trebling its Value Added Tax (VAT) from 5% to 15% and cancelling the monthly living subsidy from…

President Donald Trump is facing mounting pressure to react more forcefully to the disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.Mark Wilson/Getty ImagesUS Patriot missile batteries are being removed from Saudi Arabia, and the greater Middle East, several news outlets reported Thursday night.The move could be in retaliation over Saudi Arabia's oil…

WASHINGTON — Congress has failed in its bid to block President Donald Trump from engaging in further military action against Iran without backing from the legislative branch.The Senate fell short of the votes to override Trump's veto of a bipartisan resolution asserting that congressional authority on Thursday. Trump vetoed the…

The Senate has failed to override a presidential veto of a bipartisan resolution declaring that President Donald Trump must get backing from Congress before engaging in further military action against IranBy MATTHEW DALY Associated PressMay 7, 2020, 7:42 PM4 min readWASHINGTON -- Congress has failed in its bid to block…

The Saudi sovereign wealth fund bought a $500 million stake in Ticketmaster, the much revilved ticket service with a long history of being terrible to venues, performer, and fans. On his Pluralistic blog, Cory Doctorow says the Saudi fund is controlled by Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman... That is, the…

Secretary of state Mike Pompeo claimed on Sunday there is “enormous evidence” the coronavirus outbreak originated in a Chinese laboratory – but did not provide any of the alleged evidence.Related: Pandemic brings Trump's war on science to the boil – but who will win?Pompeo’s claims, made in an interview with…

A senior U.S. intelligence official said Friday that the two scenarios being examined by the intelligence community about the origins of the novel coronavirus – via human contact with infected animals or as the result of a laboratory accident in Wuhan, China – are "both" currently supported by "evidence" that the…

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – On April 2, the Republican Party more or less joined the Organization of Petroleum Exporting States Plus (OPEC+). That is the upshot of reporting by Timothy Gardner, Steve Holland, Dmitry Zhdannikov, and Rania El Gamal for Reuters that Trump threatened de facto Saudi ruler crown…

Premier League lobbied US over Saudi piracy claims London (AFP) – The Premier League wrote to the US government in February urging it to keep Saudi Arabia on a watchlist because it said the country “remained a centre for piracy”.The revelation comes as the league considers a takeover of Newcastle…

The list includes the following:1. Azimjon Askarov (Kyrgyzstan)Jailed journalist in deteriorating health at high risk for contracting COVID-19.On May 11, a Kyrgyz court is scheduled to hear the final appeal in the case of Azimjon Askarov which has been drawn out during his nine years imprisoned, despite persistent international condemnation.…