‘Jihadi John’ says sorry to family after identity revealed
By Staff writer | Al Arabiya News
Sunday, 8 March 2015
Sunday, 8 March 2015
Infamous ISIS executioner “Jihadi John,” who was recently identified as Mohammed Emwazi, has reportedly apologized to his parents for bringing shame to the family.
The Kuwait-born Emwazi was identified by media and experts late in February as the knife-wielding masked man appearing in beheading videos posted online by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
According to a Sunday Times report, Emwazi conveyed his apologies for the “problems and trouble the revelation of his identity has caused” to his parents and siblings.
Emwazi, a British computer-science graduate, had conveyed his message from Syria via a third party, the newspaper said.
But the 26-year-old executioner did not show remorse for beheading at least five Westerners previously held hostage by ISIS.
Emwazi’s family, originally from Kuwait, have been forced into hiding after he was identified as Jihadi John.
Last Update: Sunday, 8 March 2015 KSA 22:46 - GMT 19:46
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U.S. will ‘walk away’ if Iran nuke deal not reached
AFP, Washington
Sunday, 8 March 2015
Sunday, 8 March 2015
President Barack Obama assured in a taped television interview Sunday that the United States was prepared to "walk away" from nuclear talks with Iran if a verifiable deal cannot be reached with Tehran.
Obama made the comments Saturday as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry was in Paris to smooth over differences with France, which has pressed for greater guarantees that an agreement will stop Iran from gaining a nuclear weapon.
"If there is no deal then we walk away," Obama said in the interview, which aired on "CBS News Sunday Morning" and in expanded form on the network's "Face the Nation" show.
"If we cannot verify that they are not going to obtain a nuclear weapon, that there's a breakout period so that even if they cheated we would be able to have enough time to take action -- if we don't have that kind of deal, then we're not going to take it," he said.
Obama said the Iranians have negotiated seriously and progress has been made "in narrowing the gaps, but those gaps still exist.
"And I would say that over the next month or so, we're going to be able to determine whether or not their system is able to accept what would be an extraordinarily reasonable deal, if in fact, as they say, they are only interested in peaceful nuclear programs.
"And if we have unprecedented transparency in that system, if we are able to verify that in fact they are not developing weapons systems, then there's a deal to be had, but that's going to require them to accept the kind of verification and constraints on their program that so far, at least, they have not been willing to say yes to."
Obama said the negotiations on Iran's nuclear program were gaining "greater urgency because we have been negotiating for over a year."
"And the good news is during this period Iran has abided by the terms of (an interim) agreement. We know what is happening on the ground in Iran. They have not advanced their nuclear program.
"So we're not losing anything through these talks. On the other hand, you get to a point in negotiations where it is not a matter of technical issues any more, it is a matter of political will."
In Paris, Kerry also agreed with the French that there were still gaps to overcome in the "critical weeks" ahead.
"We want an agreement that's solid," Kerry told reporters after meeting with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius.
Fabius stressed that "differences still remain" which had to be "overcome" and "there is still work to do."
Fabius had expressed his concerns over the deal on Friday, saying "as regards the numbers, controls and the length of the agreement, the situation is still not sufficient."
Iran has long denied seeking to arm itself with an atomic bomb, insisting its nuclear program is for energy production and other civilian purposes.
Obama made the comments Saturday as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry was in Paris to smooth over differences with France, which has pressed for greater guarantees that an agreement will stop Iran from gaining a nuclear weapon.
"If there is no deal then we walk away," Obama said in the interview, which aired on "CBS News Sunday Morning" and in expanded form on the network's "Face the Nation" show.
"If we cannot verify that they are not going to obtain a nuclear weapon, that there's a breakout period so that even if they cheated we would be able to have enough time to take action -- if we don't have that kind of deal, then we're not going to take it," he said.
Obama said the Iranians have negotiated seriously and progress has been made "in narrowing the gaps, but those gaps still exist.
"And I would say that over the next month or so, we're going to be able to determine whether or not their system is able to accept what would be an extraordinarily reasonable deal, if in fact, as they say, they are only interested in peaceful nuclear programs.
"And if we have unprecedented transparency in that system, if we are able to verify that in fact they are not developing weapons systems, then there's a deal to be had, but that's going to require them to accept the kind of verification and constraints on their program that so far, at least, they have not been willing to say yes to."
Obama said the negotiations on Iran's nuclear program were gaining "greater urgency because we have been negotiating for over a year."
"And the good news is during this period Iran has abided by the terms of (an interim) agreement. We know what is happening on the ground in Iran. They have not advanced their nuclear program.
"So we're not losing anything through these talks. On the other hand, you get to a point in negotiations where it is not a matter of technical issues any more, it is a matter of political will."
In Paris, Kerry also agreed with the French that there were still gaps to overcome in the "critical weeks" ahead.
"We want an agreement that's solid," Kerry told reporters after meeting with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius.
Fabius stressed that "differences still remain" which had to be "overcome" and "there is still work to do."
Fabius had expressed his concerns over the deal on Friday, saying "as regards the numbers, controls and the length of the agreement, the situation is still not sufficient."
Iran has long denied seeking to arm itself with an atomic bomb, insisting its nuclear program is for energy production and other civilian purposes.
Last Update: Sunday, 8 March 2015 KSA 19:21 - GMT 16:21
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Fresh drone flight over sensitive French military site
Agence France Presse, Paris
Sunday, 8 March 2015
Sunday, 8 March 2015
A drone has been spotted over a sensitive military site south-west of Paris, a source close to the enquiry said Sunday, the latest in a series of overflights that has stumped authorities.
The drone was seen late Saturday over a base in Seine-Port from which France’s navy communicates with its submarines.
Drones have been seen over several high-profile areas of the French capital in recent weeks, as Paris remains on high alert after three gunmen killed 17 in three days in January.
Mysterious sightings have been made near the U.S. embassy, not far from the Invalides military museum, the Eiffel Tower and several major thoroughfares leading in and out of the French capital, police said.
Police have been unable to catch any of the operators of the night-time flights and it is unclear whether they are the work of pranksters, tourists or something more malicious.
French authorities were first alerted to mystery drone flyovers in October, when state-run power company EDF filed a complaint with police after detecting the small aerial vehicles zipping over seven atomic plants across the country.
The sightings continued into November, and altogether some 20 flyovers took place over nuclear plants. Their operators were never found.
Then on Jan. 20, a pilotless aircraft briefly flew over the presidential palace in Paris, shortly after the jihadist killings.
And in late January, small drones were also spotted near a bay in Brittany that houses four nuclear submarines - one of the most protected sites in the country.
Last Update: Sunday, 8 March 2015 KSA 17:39 - GMT 14:39
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German woman fighter dead in Kurd-ISIS clashes in Syria
AFP, Beirut
Monday, 9 March 2015
Monday, 9 March 2015
A young German woman has been killed fighting alongside Kurdish forces against Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) group jihadists in northeast Syria, a monitoring group said on Sunday.
Syrian Observatory for Human Rights head Rami Abdel Rahman said the woman in her 20s was "killed in the past few hours" in a battle since Saturday for the Kurdish-held town of Tal Tamr in Hasakeh province.
The German, whose name was not immediately available, would be the third Westerner killed among Kurdish ranks in Syria.
Briton Konstandinos Erik Scurfield and Australian Ashley Johnston both died in clashes elsewhere in Hasakeh.
At least 40 Kurdish fighters and ISIS militants have been killed in the Tal Tamr battle, the Observatory said earlier on Sunday.
News of the German woman's death, which was not immediately confirmed by Berlin, came on International Women's Day.
Women account for around 35 percent of the fighting force of the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), numbering around 7,000, and they receive the same training as their male comrades.
Syrian Observatory for Human Rights head Rami Abdel Rahman said the woman in her 20s was "killed in the past few hours" in a battle since Saturday for the Kurdish-held town of Tal Tamr in Hasakeh province.
The German, whose name was not immediately available, would be the third Westerner killed among Kurdish ranks in Syria.
Briton Konstandinos Erik Scurfield and Australian Ashley Johnston both died in clashes elsewhere in Hasakeh.
At least 40 Kurdish fighters and ISIS militants have been killed in the Tal Tamr battle, the Observatory said earlier on Sunday.
News of the German woman's death, which was not immediately confirmed by Berlin, came on International Women's Day.
Women account for around 35 percent of the fighting force of the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), numbering around 7,000, and they receive the same training as their male comrades.
Last Update: Monday, 9 March 2015 KSA 00:21 - GMT 21:21
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