UAE's Air Arabia to resume flights to Iraq after Iran-Israel truce
The carrier confirmed the gradual resumption of previously stopped flights as regional airspaces have been reopened following a ceasefire deal between Iran and Israel, according to Gulf News.
The airline will resume flight operations to Iraqi destinations, including Baghdad, Erbil, and Basra.
Air Arabia will also restart flights to Iran, Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia.
Iraqi Airways resumed flights on Wednesday, a day after Iran and Israel reached a ceasefire agreement following a 12-day conflict in which Tel Aviv and Tehran exchanged missile and drone raids.
After Israel struck Iran on June 13, claiming that its goal was to prevent the country from getting nuclear weapons, airlines continued to avoid huge sections of the Middle East.
This avoidance was due to continuous missile clashes between Israel and Iran, the most recent interruption in the region.
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Yemen Online
30-07-2025
- Yemen Online
Iraqi-British hotel owner and his Iranian oil smuggling link to Yemen's Houthis
Reviews of The Gainsborough Hotel speak of its spacious rooms, friendly staff and convenient location for visiting some of London's most famous tourist sites. It is fair to say all those who have enjoyed their stay at the hotel are probably unaware of any alleged connections the establishment has to oil smuggling and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp (IRCG). A closer look at the ownership of the property where the hotel sits, however, reveals it to be a company whose owner has been placed under sanctions by the US for masterminding a vast oil smuggling operation. Salim Ahmed Said is an Iraqi-British citizen who runs a network of companies that have been selling Iranian oil falsely declared as Iraqi since 2020, said the US Treasury when it announced the sanctions this month. The 47-year-old owns and runs companies that have smuggled oil for the benefit of the Iranian government and the IRGC. Through bribery of Iraqi officials he has been able to pass off Iranian oil as if it originated from Iraq, through a terminal he runs just over the border. The network of which his is part has "collectively shipped tens of millions of barrels of Iranian oil and other petroleum worth billions of dollars", the Americans allege. An investigation by The National has uncovered the London-business connections of Mr Said, who the US says has two British passports and goes by several aliases. Links to a Syrian shipping magnate, who is under US sanctions for his dealings with the Houthis and Hezbollah, can also be revealed. Ships involved in the black market Iranian oil trade link Said with Houthi and Hezbollah financier Abdul Jalil Mallah. The US has described Mr Mallah as an "illicit shipping magnate", alleging he and his brother "use their shipping empire to support Iran's malign activities and those of its proxies". A joint investigation by The National and the Greek journalism organisation iMEdD revealed Mr Mallah allegedly appears to operate the business in Greece despite being under sanctions. London hotels Turn the corner on to Queensberry Place, after a short walk from South Kensington underground station, and at the end of the street the Natural History Museum's imposing towers loom into view. On the right-hand side of the road is The Gainsborough and directly opposite The Exhibitionist, its sister hotel. Both are run by the same Dublin-based company. The Gainsborough building is owned by Robinbest and was bought for £6.5 million ($8.6 million) in 2018, according to accounts. Robinbest is in turn owned by The Willett Hotel, whose owner is Mr Said, and the company has assets of £27 million, according to its most recently filed accounts. The Willett Hotel's correspondence address is, however, The Exhibtionist Hotel, while its registered office is The Gainsborough Hotel. The building that is home to The Exhibitionist is owned by another company, The Exhibitionist Holdings. The Exhibitionist Holdings' solicitor said his client's accountants were raising this crossover with Companies House "as a matter of urgency". The Willett Hotel's registered office was once the Exhibitionist Hotel's site but it shifted across the road to The Gainsborough before again it moved, this time to an accountancy firm in east London, which was also the registered office of Robinbest. An employee, who asked for his identity and that of the firm not to be revealed, confirmed the handsome townhouse was part of Mr Said's empire when The National visited. He said he was 'very surprised' when told both the companies have been placed under sanctions by the US. 'We were not aware that he was involved in the oil business, only hotels,' he said. 'We're not aware of any sanctions.' The employee said the firm dealt only with Mr Said's staff and never with him. They sent all the relevant paperwork needed to file accounts. 'Everything is above board and the companies pay tax,' he said. Both The Willett and Robinbest moved their registered office addresses to The Gainsborough soon after The National began its investigation. Mr Said is from the town of Ranya in Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish region and first came to the UK in 2002 after which he was granted asylum, The Sunday Times reported.
Yemenat
16-07-2025
- Yemenat
Conflicts and Violations
During my time at the military academy, I was a disciplined and committed student, to the point of anxiety. I did not take violations lightly, nor did I wish to commit them; I only did so out of forgetfulness, confusion, or for a justifiable reason. My infractions were minimal and exceedingly rare, if not nearly nonexistent. They ranged from the tip of my boot straying from the line of tiles, to a light dusting on my uniform, a minor error in drill movements, or a delay in formation—amounting to no more than a handful of instances over two years. I never missed a single day or class throughout my entire academic tenure. The most significant violation I committed during those two years went unpunished. While our squad was running drills, my classmate Habish, known for his frequent infractions and chaos—who seemed inseparable from punishment—made an offhand remark to a fellow student in our squad named Omar, a university graduate and a member of the Iraqi Communist Party. All our classmates from the Iraqi Communist Party were university graduates, members of the party, and were aligned with the seats designated for the liberation movement. They embodied nobility, cultural richness, refined conduct, and served as admirable examples. Omar, in particular, stood out among them for his exceptional character and was a figure of inspiration. It is no small feat for a person to embody high awareness, cultural depth, righteous behavior, dignified interactions, and profound humility, yet Omar managed to encapsulate all this and more. His qualities consistently amazed and impressed me, making him worthy of my attempts to emulate him above all others. If all communists were like Omar, they would certainly deserve admiration. They were students of the remarkable Iraqi communist teacher, Fahd, who once proclaimed, as he faced execution by hanging: 'Communists are stronger than death and higher than the gallows.' In Omar, I saw a glimpse of prophecy, a Sufi asceticism infused with a touch of divinity, and a great leader who captivates hearts. My disorderly classmate's condescension towards Omar provoked me, stirring my moral indignation before any other sentiment, and I rushed at him with vigor and fury, surprising everyone, including the offender, who did not anticipate such a reaction. We engaged in a fierce altercation, and our peers intervened to break up the fight, transforming our orderly drill into a chaotic scene. Once the confrontation was resolved, the matter was contained amicably without notifying the authorities. In another instance, I faced compounded punishment. Upon hearing the formation whistle, I would rush like a Spanish bull to the yard, determined to avoid being caught by the duty officer. I was astounded and quick on my feet, pushing aside those who lagged before me. In a heavy jest, while I was resting beside the bed waiting for the formation whistle, some of my roommates played a trick on me by tying my belt to the bedpost without my knowledge. As soon as I heard the whistle, I bolted with the force of seventy horses, toppling the bed, which crashed to the ground amidst a flurry of scattered items. I hurried to try to fix what I could, but time was not on my side, and chaos reigned. I was punished twice that day: first for being late to formation, and second for the chaos that ensued with my bed and the scattered belongings around my room. Consequently, my roommate on the upper bunk also faced repercussions, but for him, it hardly mattered. He was infamous—if my memory serves me right—by the number 71444; we memorized his name due to his daily infractions, as he rarely escaped punishment. His number echoed every day over the loudspeaker during the afternoon formation, announcing his penalties or additional drills. * * * Perseverance and lack of sleep sometimes drained my strength. I remember a particular moment in the 'Vehicle Training' class; as the instructor was engrossed in explaining the workings of the car's pistons, I collapsed to the ground. I fell hard, as if a sudden seizure had overtaken me while I stood. When my classmates rushed to see what had happened, they were astonished to see me spring back to my feet. Even more surprising was my nonchalant response: 'Nothing happened, I just dozed off while standing.' Their astonishment grew, and laughter erupted, while the kind instructor allowed me to take a break. Nevertheless, I stubbornly continued to listen to the lesson. I remained committed during the night watches, despite my disdain for them, except when guarding one of the radar bases along the coast of Amran in Al-Shaab district in Aden, which felt more like a leisurely outing to me. During one of my guard shifts at the academy, while sitting in a chair with my rifle in hand, my head and neck suddenly dropped, and I almost fell. The knife fixed to the rifle's muzzle nearly struck my eye. It served as a harsh lesson that kept me alert during my subsequent shifts—I nearly learned at a great cost. * * * Yet, the infraction I cannot forget was when I left the buttons of my pants undone. The instructor, a short-statured Russian expert in reconnaissance, chastised me with an intensity that resembled a fit of passion, his words a blur I could not comprehend. However, his gestures and animated movements conveyed more than any punishment could; I was engulfed in shame, eliciting a storm of laughter from my peers. Today, in the Parliament, this scene and this forgetfulness recur without eliciting any reaction from anyone, to the point where it feels habitual and unremarkable. It seems I have been struck by a form of 'Alzheimer's.' Often, I or my colleagues discover that my zipper is down. Just the other day, my companion Nabeel Al-Hussam pointed it out, and in an animated response, followed by laughter, I retorted, 'I know… I'm heading to Parliament. It's customary for me to do this.' I conclude by saying that it is hardly surprising. The council has become a display of nudity, and I strive to maintain modesty as much as I can. What parallels this, and even exceeds it, deserves far more from me.
Yemen Online
27-06-2025
- Yemen Online
UAE's Air Arabia to resume flights to Iraq after Iran-Israel truce
Air Arabia, a low-cost carrier located in Sharjah, the UAE, will resume flights to neighboring countries, including Iraq, on July 1, following the reopening of regional airspace after Iran and Israel's 12-day battle. The carrier confirmed the gradual resumption of previously stopped flights as regional airspaces have been reopened following a ceasefire deal between Iran and Israel, according to Gulf News. The airline will resume flight operations to Iraqi destinations, including Baghdad, Erbil, and Basra. Air Arabia will also restart flights to Iran, Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia. Iraqi Airways resumed flights on Wednesday, a day after Iran and Israel reached a ceasefire agreement following a 12-day conflict in which Tel Aviv and Tehran exchanged missile and drone raids. After Israel struck Iran on June 13, claiming that its goal was to prevent the country from getting nuclear weapons, airlines continued to avoid huge sections of the Middle East. This avoidance was due to continuous missile clashes between Israel and Iran, the most recent interruption in the region.
