Trump cuts Alhurra news created by US government after Iraq invasion
Washington – Alhurra, the Arabic-language network created by the US government after the Iraq invasion, said Saturday it would cease broadcasts and lay off most staff after President Donald Trump's administration shut off funds.
The network went on air in 2004, when US officials were complaining about coverage of the Iraq war from Qatar-backed Al-Jazeera — which two decades later maintains a dominant role in Arabic-langauge media.
'Media in the Middle East thrive on a diet of anti-Americanism,' said Jeffrey Gedmin, president and CEO of Middle East Broadcasting Networks (MBN), the parent of Alhurra and other smaller US-funded Arabic-language outlets.
'It makes no sense to kill MBN as a sensible alternative and to open the field to American adversaries and Islamic extremists,' he said in a statement.
The Trump administration, in part of a sweeping cost-cutting drive led by billionaire Elon Musk, in March said it was ceasing all financial transfers for US government-supported media.
The move quickly froze Voice of America, although its employees have mounted legal challenges to restore the funding, which was approved by Congress.
In a memo to staff, Gedmin said that Kari Lake, a firebrand Trump supporter put in charge of the agency supervising US-funded media, had refused to see him to discuss the 'unlawfully' withdrawn funds.
'I'm left to conclude that she is deliberately starving us of the money we need to pay you, our dedicated and hard-working staff,' he wrote.
'What's happening is a disgrace. You deserve better and I bear responsibility for not resolving this crisis in time to keep you,' said Gedmin, a veteran scholar of democracy.
Alhurra will cease broadcasts but seek to maintain digital updates through a staff reduced to 'a couple dozen,' he wrote.
Alhurra says it reaches more than 30 million people each week across 22 countries.
But it has faced stiff competition from Al-Jazeera as well as Al-Arabiya, which is funded by Saudi Arabia, and more recently UAE-backed Sky News Arabia.
Trump has a testy relationship with media and has questioned the 'firewall' under which US-funded outlets were promised editorial independence.
Unlike Voice of America, Alhurra was not considered part of the US government, instead receiving grants to operate.
Other outlets in similar situations have also tried to press on.
Radio Free Europe, which played a vital role in the Cold War and is now based in Prague, has won promises of support from the Czech government to step in to replace US funding.
Radio Free Asia, aimed at providing news to China, North Korea and other Asian countries without free media, has been providing online news at a reduced pace.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Iraqi News
2 hours ago
- Iraqi News
Trump travel ban in effect, citizens from 12 nations barred from US
Washington – President Donald Trump's sweeping new travel ban came into effect early Monday immediately after midnight, barring citizens from a dozen nations from entering the United States and reviving a divisive measure from his first term. The move is expected to disrupt refugee pathways and further restrict immigration as the Trump administration expands its crackdown on illegal entries. Many of the nations covered by the restrictions have adversarial relations with the United States, such as Iran and Afghanistan, while others face severe crises, like Haiti and Libya. In announcing his restrictions last week, Trump said the new measure was spurred by a recent 'terrorist attack' on Jews in Colorado. The group had been protesting in solidarity with hostages held in Gaza when they were assaulted by a man the White House said had overstayed his visa. That attack, Trump said, 'underscored the extreme dangers posed to our country by the entry of foreign nationals who are not properly vetted' or who overstay their visas. The move bans all travel to the United States by nationals of Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen, according to the White House. Trump also imposed a partial ban on travelers from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela. Some temporary work visas from those countries will be allowed. New countries could be added, Trump warned, 'as threats emerge around the world.' Mehria, a 23-year-old woman from Afghanistan who applied for refugee status, said the new rules have trapped her and many other Afghans in uncertainty. 'We gave up thousands of hopes and our entire lives… on a promise from America, but today we are suffering one hell after another,' she told AFP. – World Cup, Olympics, diplomats excluded – The ban will not apply to athletes competing in the 2026 World Cup, which the United States is co-hosting with Canada and Mexico, or in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, Trump's order said. Nor will it apply to diplomats from the targeted countries. United Nations rights chief Volker Turk warned that 'the broad and sweeping nature of the new travel ban raises concerns from the perspective of international law.' US Democratic lawmakers and elected officials blasted the ban as draconian and unconstitutional. 'I know the pain that Trump's cruel and xenophobic travel bans inflict because my family has felt it firsthand,' congresswoman Yassamin Ansari, who is Iranian-American, posted Sunday on X. 'We will fight this ban with everything we have.' Rumors of a new travel ban had circulated following the Colorado attack, with Trump's administration vowing to pursue 'terrorists' living in the United States on visas. US officials said suspect Mohamed Sabry Soliman, an Egyptian national according to court documents, was in the country illegally having overstayed a tourist visa, but that he had applied for asylum in September 2022. Trump's new travel ban notably does not include Egypt. His proclamation said Taliban-ruled Afghanistan and war-torn Libya, Sudan, Somalia and Yemen lacked 'competent' central authorities for processing passports and vetting. Iran was included because it is a 'state sponsor of terrorism,' the order said. For the other countries, Trump's order cited an above-average likelihood that people would overstay their visas.
Iraqi News
2 hours ago
- Iraqi News
Iran says to submit own nuclear proposal to US soon
Tehran – Iran said Monday it will soon present a counter-proposal on a nuclear deal with the United States, after it had described Washington's offer as containing 'ambiguities'. Tehran and Washington have held five rounds of talks since April to thrash out a new nuclear accord to replace the deal with major powers that US President Donald Trump abandoned during his first term in 2018. The longtime foes have been locked in a diplomatic standoff over Iran's uranium enrichment, with Tehran defending it as a 'non-negotiable' right and Washington describing it as a 'red line'. On May 31, after the fifth round talks, Iran said it had received 'elements' of a US proposal, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi saying later the text contained 'ambiguities'. Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei criticised the US proposal as 'lacking elements' reflective of the previous rounds of negotiations, without providing further details. 'We will soon submit our own proposed plan to the other side through (mediator) Oman once it is finalised,' Baqaei told a weekly press briefing. 'It is a proposal that is reasonable, logical, and balanced, and we strongly recommend that the American side value this opportunity.' Iran's parliament speaker has said the US proposal failed to include the lifting of sanctions — a key demand for Tehran, which has been reeling under their weight for years. – 'Strategic mistake' – Trump, who has revived his 'maximum pressure' campaign of sanctions on Iran since taking office in January, has repeatedly said it will not be allowed any uranium enrichment under a potential deal. On Wednesday, Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the US offer was '100 percent against' notions of independence and self-reliance. He insisted that uranium enrichment was 'key' to Iran's nuclear programme and that the US 'cannot have a say' on the issue. Iran currently enriches uranium to 60 percent, far above the 3.67-percent limit set in the 2015 deal and close though still short of the 90 percent needed for a nuclear warhead. Western countries, including the United States, have long accused Iran of seeking to acquire atomic weapons, while Iran insists its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes The United Nations nuclear watchdog will convene a Board of Governors meeting from June 9-13 in Vienna to discuss Iran's nuclear activities. The meeting comes after the International Atomic Energy Agency released a report criticising 'less than satisfactory' cooperation from Tehran, particularly in explaining past cases of nuclear material found at undeclared sites. Iran has criticised the IAEA report as unbalanced, saying it relied on 'forged documents' provided by its arch foe Israel. Britain, France and Germany, the three European countries who were party to the 2015 deal, are currently weighing whether to trigger the sanctions 'snapback' mechanism in the accord. The mechanism would reinstate UN sanctions in response to Iranian non-compliance — an option that expires in October. On Friday, Araghchi warned European powers against backing a draft resolution at the IAEA accusing Tehran of non-compliance, calling it a 'strategic mistake'. On Monday, Baqaei said Iran has 'prepared and formulated a series of steps and measures' if the resolution passed. 'Without a doubt, the response to confrontation will not be more cooperation,' he added.
Shafaq News
2 hours ago
- Shafaq News
Al-Anbar's energy boost: Iraqi PM fast-tracks Akkas Gas Project
Shafaq News/ Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani ordered, on Monday, the immediate acceleration of the Akkas gas field to power al-Anbar's 1,600-megawatt station, pledging federal backing to upgrade the province's energy sector and close service gaps. The directive followed an unannounced visit to al-Anbar, where al-Sudani met tribal leaders at the guesthouse of Sheikh Hamid Turki al-Shawkah, head of the Tribal Sheikhs Council and chief of the Al-Bu Dhiyab tribe. According to the PM's media office, he described al-Anbar as rich in potential, confirming funding for stalled and new projects. 'Gas investment in Anbar [al-Anbar] is among the government's top priorities,' he remarked, confirming orders to expedite the Akkas project. He also referenced broader reforms, including the Development Road project and initiatives to address water scarcity. However, the visit drew criticism from within al-Anbar. A source in the provincial council, speaking anonymously, told Shafaq News that the trip bypassed local protocols and excluded official coordination. 'There was no provincial flag. It wasn't treated as a formal visit.' The source also flagged al-Sudani's meetings with Hamid al-Hayis and Arkan Altarmoz, outspoken critics of the local administration, as a possible move to reshape the province's political landscape and marginalize the elected council.
