IRAN TO DISBAND MORALITY POLICE AMID ONGOING PROTESTS, SAYS ATTORNEY GENERAL

Iran has abolished the morality police, according to an announcement by the attorney general carried on state media, following months of protests set off by the death of a young woman who was being held by the force for supposedly violating the country’s strict Islamic dress laws. The morality police “was abolished by the same authorities who installed it”, the statement by attorney general Mohammad Javad Montazeri said, according to state media reports. But he went on to suggest that the judiciary would still enforce restrictions on “social behaviour”. He also indicated that the authorities were reviewing the head scarf regulations. But it was not clear whether the authorities planned to relax the hijab law, which remained in force. There was, however, no confirmation of the closure from the interior ministry which is in charge of the morality police, and Iranian state media said Montazeri was not responsible for overseeing the force.

The announcement, reported by state news outlets on Saturday night, appeared to be a major victory for feminists who have sought for years to dismantle the force and for the protest movement ignited by the death of the young woman, Mahsa Amini, 22, in September.

Security forces have responded to the protest movement with a crackdown that has left hundreds dead, and the government has threatened harsh punishment for dissent — including executions. Rights groups say that at least 300 people have been killed since the protests began, including 50 minors, and the United Nations has said that some 14,000 people have been arrested.

TRUMP SHOCKS US BY CALLING FOR SCRAPPING OF CONSTITUTION

Even accounting for his off-the-wall, off the-cuff utterances over the years, former President Donald Trump jolted the US political establishment on Saturday by calling for scrapping of the US constitution because, he insisted, there was “massive fraud” in the 2020 presidential election, a claim that has been repeatedly disproved and rejected. Trump’s unprecedented call on canning the constitution came after Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of Twitter, commissioned a journalist to scrutinise internal emails of the platform before he took over to show the previous dispensation had “censored” reports about the dissolute lifestyle of then presidential candidate Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden.

Musk, Trump, and their supporters implicitly argued that by censoring damaging reports and graphic photos of Hunter, Twitter helped Democrats win. The reports and photos showing Hunter in compromising situations were published in right-wing, proTrump media but the preMusk Twitter banned posts and links, effectively limiting its reach.

“Do you throw the Presidential Election Results of 2020 OUT and declare the RIGHTFUL WINNER, or do you have a NEW ELECTION? A Massive Fraud of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the constitution,” Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform, accusing “Big Tech” of working closely with Democrats. “Our great ‘Founders’ did not want, and would not condone, False & Fraudulent Elections!”

Trump’s call was received with alarm and consternation, even by many Republicans and conservatives who revere the constitution as a inviolable founding document in a country that prides itself as a constitutional republic.

“No American conservative can agree with Donald Trump’s call to suspend the constitution because of the results of the 2020 election. And all real conservatives must oppose his 2024 campaign for president,” John Bolton, a Republican who served as Trump’s National Security Adviser tweeted.

RUSSIA WILL NOT EXPORT OIL SUBJECT TO WESTERN PRICE CAP

Moscow: Russia will not export oil that is subject a Western-imposed price cap even if Moscow has to accept a drop in oil production, President Vladimir Putin's point man on energy said on Sunday.

The G7 nations and Australia on Friday agreed a $60 per barrel price cap on Russian seaborne crude oil after EU members overcame resistance from Poland. The move by the West to prohibit shipping, insurance and reinsurance companies from handling cargoes of Russian crude above the cap, is an attempt to punish Putin for the Ukraine conflict.

Russian deputy PM Alexander Novak said on Sunday the move by the West was a gross interference which contradicted the rules of free trade and would destabilise global energy markets by triggering a shortage of supply. “We are working on mechanisms to prohibit the use of a price cap instrument, regardless of what level is set, because such interference could further destabilise the market,” said Novak, who is the Russian government official in charge of the country’s oil, gas, atomic energy and coal. “We will sell oil and petroleum products only to those countries that will work with us under market conditions, even if we have to reduce production a little,” he added. Novak said the Western cap could trigger trouble in the products markets and could affect other countries beside Russia.

SHANGHAI, OTHER CHINESE CITIES EASE SOME COVID CURBS

Several cities in China on Sunday eased some COVID restrictions, following the capital Beijing's lead a day earlier after a wave of public anger about the country's draconian handling of the pandemic.

Several days of protests in numerous cities appear to have forced the government's hand.

However, Beijing insists the zero-COVID policy, which requires strict lockdowns, testing and quarantine rules, will remain in place.

Beijing is now allowing those who test positive for COVID-19 to quarantine at home rather than at isolation centers.

Authorities in the capital on Saturday, canceled the testing requirement to ride public transport, alongside the cities of Tianjin, Shenzhen and Chengdu

Elsewhere in China, people in Shanghai and Nanning, the capital of the southern region of Guangxi, no longer have to show a negative COVID test to take public transport and visit parks.

Urumqi, the capital of the northwestern Xinjiang region, where protests against the zero-COVID policy first erupted last month, will reopen malls, markets, restaurants and other venues from Monday.

China will still impose mandatory quarantine for incoming travelers.

HERZOG BECOMES FIRST ISRAEL PRESIDENT TO VISIT BAHRAIN

Israeli President Isaac Herzog arrived on Sunday in Bahrain, the first visit by an Israeli head of state to the small Gulf kingdom since the two countries normalised relations in 2020.

Mr. Herzog, whose role is largely ceremonial, was greeted at the airport by Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif al-Zayani, according to pictures posted to his Twitter account.

He said on Twitter he planned to meet King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa, as well as Sheikh Salman bin Hamad Al-Khalifa, who is Crown Prince and Prime Minister.

Accompanied by an economic delegation, Mr. Herzog said he would discuss “ways to strengthen our economic cooperation” along with climate change and security issues.

Mr. Herzog said he would then travel to Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates.

“I call on more states in our region to join this partnership, strengthening the Middle East,” Mr. Herzog tweeted on Sunday.

“The expanding circle of (Middle East) peace is highly important, especially amid threats to global and regional stability. In the face of hate, threats & terror, there is one answer: alliances with friends.”

Outgoing Prime Minister Yair Lapid, then Israel’s top diplomat, visited Bahrain last year to open the Israeli embassy there.

EU TO ADAPT ITS STATE AID SCHEMES TO COUNTER U.S. GREEN SUBSIDY PACKAGE

The EU will adapt its state aid rules to prevent an exodus of investment triggered by a new U.S. green energy subsidy package, the bloc’s chief executive said on Sunday.

“Competition is good ... but this competition must respect a level playing field,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a speech in the Belgian city of Bruges.

The U.S. challenge

“The (U.S.) Inflation Reduction Act should make us reflect on how we can improve our state aid frameworks and adapt them to a new global environment,” she added.

The 27-country bloc fears that the U.S. $430 billion Inflation Reduction Act with its generous tax breaks may lure away EU businesses and disadvantage European companies, from car manufacturers to makers of green technology.

The topic is one of several on the agenda of the EU-U.S. Trade and Technology Council meeting on December 5.

Participants include U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai, along with European Commission Executive Vice Presidents Valdis Dombrovskis and Margrethe Vestager.

‘IRAN EXECUTED 4 PEOPLE IT SAYS SPIED FOR ISRAEL’

Cairo : Iranian authorities executed four people Sunday accused of working for Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, the state-run IRNA news agency said. Three others received prison sentences. IRNA said the country’s Revolutionary Guard announced the arrests of a network of people linked to the Israeli agency. It said the members had previous criminal records and tried to disrupt the country’s security. Network members stole and destroyed private and public property and kidnapped individuals and interrogated them, according to the report. It said the alleged spies had weapons and received wages from Mossad in the form of cryptocurrency. Iranian authorities provided no evidence for any of the alleged crimes. Three other members of the group received sentences of five to 10 years in prison, according to IRNA. They were arrested and sentenced to death in June on charges of “intelligence cooperation with Israel. ”

FLOW OF INDIAN STUDENTS TO AUSTRALIA UNIVS UP 7% AFTER 2 YEARS OF DECLINE

The traffic in Indian students flying to Australia for higher education has begun to surge after two consecutive years of decline due to the pandemic. Down Under is also seeing a shift in academic trends with the proportion of younger Indians travelling out to pursue an undergraduate degree rising.

Recent figures released by the Australian government show that the country has recorded around 52,000 new commencements from India in 2022, around 7% higher than the previous year.

While more Indians travelled out, numbers from China which has a zero-Covid policy dropped. With the new enrolments, the number of Indians and Chinese in various stages of higher education in Australia stands at 90,168 and 1,47,319 respectively. For China, the figure is the lowest in the last five years.

“In the past, Indian students used to travel abroad primarily to pursue their master’s degree after completing their first degree in India. It is only in the last 15 years that we’ve seen Indian students focused on undergraduate study to support a smooth learning and work experience,” she added.

Universities that TOIcontacted spoke of changing trends among students signing up for Australia. “While the student ratio of postgraduate to undergraduate historically stood at 80:20, it is now moving towards 65:35.