Latest news with #securityservices
Khaleej Times
14 hours ago
- Khaleej Times
UAE foils drug smuggling attempt by 2 suspects linked to international network
UAE thwarted an attempt to distribute narcotic pills within the country, after monitoring the suspicious activity of two individuals of Arab nationality. Investigations confirmed their links to an international network for drug smuggling and trafficking. The two accused admitted that they had partners who prepared the shipment and smuggled it from Hamburg to one of the country's ports. One of them came to the country on a visit visa specifically to complete this mission. He added that the mastermind of the network resides outside the country and is the one who finances and manages the entire operation. The competent security services were able to raid two sites, one of which was used to store narcotic pills while the accused were unloading and preparing them for distribution within the country. The other site was where a mechanical construction equipment (excavator) was seized, in which another quantity was hidden, based on confidential information obtained by the task force.
Washington Post
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Iran executes man over 2022 protest killings. Activists say he was framed
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Iran on Wednesday executed a man convicted in the fatal shootings of seven people during a 2022 protest over the death of Mahsa Amini, though human rights activists say he was tortured into confessing to killings likely carried out by security services. The hanging of Abbas Kourkouri, also known as Mojahed Kourkouri, marks the first execution in nearly a year for someone arrested in the protests surrounding the death of Amini , who had been detained by police allegedly over not wearing her hijab, or headscarf, to their liking. Her death sparked months of demonstrations. Even today, some women refuse to wear their headscarves in public, openly defying a hijab law instituted by the country's theocracy.
Associated Press
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Iran executes man over 2022 protest killings. Activists say he was framed
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran on Wednesday executed a man convicted in the fatal shootings of seven people during a 2022 protest over the death of Mahsa Amini, though human rights activists say he was tortured into confessing to killings likely carried out by security services. The hanging of Abbas Kourkouri, also known as Mojahed Kourkouri, marks the first execution in nearly a year for someone arrested in the protests surrounding the death of Amini, who had been detained by police allegedly over not wearing her hijab, or headscarf, to their liking. Her death sparked months of demonstrations. Even today, some women refuse to wear their headscarves in public, openly defying a hijab law instituted by the country's theocracy. It's unclear why authorities chose now to execute Kourkouri, 42, though tensions have been rising regionally over Iran's rapidly advancing nuclear program, and the result of talks with the United States remains uncertain. Iran is one of the world's top executioners and has been cracking down in other ways on society in the time since the Amini demonstrations. Kourkouri 'was sentenced to death without a fair trial and without access to a lawyer of his choice,' said Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam of the Oslo-based group Iran Human Rights, which tallied an average of one execution in the Islamic Republic every six hours over the last eight months. Shooting happened during Amini protests Iran's state-run IRNA news agency reported at the time that on Nov. 16, 2022 two gunmen on motorcycles shot at protesters and security personnel gathered at the central market in the southwestern city of Izeh in the country's restive, oil-rich Khuzestan province. The assault killed seven people, including a 9-year-old boy, and wounded three police officers and two members of the Basij, the all-volunteer arm of Iran's Revolutionary Guard. The death of the 9-year-old boy, named Kian Pirfalak, drew anger from Iranians, particularly after his family reportedly said it was security forces — not other gunmen — who opened fire. Kourkouri was accused of being one of the gunmen. He was charged with a spate of offenses, including 'moharebeh' – an Islamic term meaning waging a battle against God. Authorities arrested him in December 2022 after reportedly shooting him in the leg. Activists say he was denied medical treatment beyond the bullet's removal. State media described Kourkouri as a drug dealer and 'instigator' with a history of extremist beliefs. But rights advocates say he isn't the violent person authorities have made him out to be and was himself an innocent protester. 'He was arrested during the 'Woman, Life, Freedom' protests, and the Islamic Republic authorities attempted to blame him' for the attack, Amiry-Moghaddam said. He added that the slain boy's parents and uncle believed Iranian security forces were responsible. The U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which also monitors Iran, similarly dismissed the Iranian government's claims. 'While authorities continue to describe the events of Nov. 16 in Izeh as a 'terrorist attack,' eyewitnesses and the families of victims have presented accounts that contradict the government's narrative,' it said Wednesday. The group quoted Kian's mother as saying, 'On our way home, officers opened fire on our car.' State media earlier broadcast videos of Kourkouri taking blame for the attack. But Amnesty International has said that authorities subjected him to solitary confinement and coerced his confessions, and that he wasn't at the scene at the time of the killings. One videotaped confession that had been aired on state TV showed Kourkouri in bed with his arm visibly bandaged and bloody, the rights group said. The footage resembled that of many other suspected coerced confessions broadcast by the Iranian broadcaster. Kourkouri's death brings the tally of executions related to violence at the Amini protests up to 11. The last such execution came 10 months ago, after Reza Resaei, 34, was sentenced to death over the killing of a security officer. Rights groups also said his confession was forced. Iran still faces dissent years later On the streets of Iranian cities, it's becoming increasingly common to see a woman pass by without a mandatory hijab, as the third anniversary of the death of Mahsa Amini and the mass protests it sparked approaches this fall. The government has targeted private businesses where women are seen without their headscarves. Surveillance cameras search for women uncovered in vehicles to fine and impound their cars, and authorities have gone as far as to use aerial drones to monitor women. The country's reformist President Masoud Pezeshkian campaigned on a promise to curb the morality police's harassment of women. But the country's ultimate authority rests with its 86-year-old Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Khamenei has in the past said 'unveiling is both religiously forbidden and politically forbidden.'
Asharq Al-Awsat
05-06-2025
- General
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Swedish Court Convicts One Man of ISIS Membership, Acquits Three
A Swedish appeals court on Thursday found one man guilty of being a member of a terrorism organization for swearing loyalty to ISIS, upholding the verdict of a lower court, while the conviction of three others were overturned. Sweden's security services arrested the men last year and prosecutors later charged them with being members of a terrorism organization between September 2023 and March 2024. But the Svea Appeals Court said in a statement on Thursday it does not consider it proven that the three now acquitted acted on behalf of ISIS. "However, the person who swore an oath of allegiance to ISIS is also convicted in the Court of Appeal," it said. All four men had pleaded not guilty.
Reuters
05-06-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Swedish court convicts one man of IS membership, acquits three
STOCKHOLM, June 5 (Reuters) - A Swedish appeals court on Thursday found one man guilty of being a member of a terrorism organisation for swearing loyalty to the Islamic State, upholding the verdict of a lower court, while the conviction of three others were overturned. Sweden's security services arrested the men last year and prosecutors later charged them with being members of a terrorism organisation between September 2023 and March 2024. But the Svea Appeals Court said in a statement on Thursday it does not consider it proven that the three now acquitted acted on behalf of the Islamic State militant group. "However, the person who swore an oath of allegiance to IS is also convicted in the Court of Appeal," it said. All four men had pleaded not guilty.
