Morocco activist gets six-month sentence for online post: lawyer

Fouad Abdelmoumni. (Supplied)
Fouad Abdelmoumni. (Supplied)
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Updated 04 March 2025

Morocco activist gets six-month sentence for online post: lawyer

Fouad Abdelmoumni. (Supplied)
  • In his Facebook post last year, Abdelmoumni echoed accusations of Moroccan espionage against France

RABAT: A Moroccan court on Monday sentenced activist Fouad Abdelmoumni to six months in prison for “spreading false allegations” and other charges related to a post he had shared on Facebook, said his lawyer.
Abdelmoumni, a human rights advocate, was taken into custody in late October after alleging online that Morocco had spied against France, but released after a two-day detention.
His lawyer, Mohamed Nouini, told AFP that Abdelmoumni will only be imprisoned if a higher court upholds Monday’s verdict issued in Casablanca.
“He should have been prosecuted under the Press Code, which does not provide for prison sentences, rather than the Penal Code,” Nouini said.
The charges against Abdelmoumni include “spreading false allegations,” “defamation” and “insulting public bodies.”
In his Facebook post last year, Abdelmoumni echoed accusations of Moroccan espionage against France.
“France, which sees its position decline among all nations, would not want to give in to the blackmail of a weak state which uses all the means of pressure at its disposal... including espionage,” Abdelmoumni wrote at the time.
Prosecutors argued that his statements constituted “allegations harmful to the kingdom’s interests” and went “beyond the limits of freedom of expression, amounting to criminal offenses punishable by law.”
Abdelmoumni shared the post during a visit by French President Emmanuel Macron, which had marked a thawing of diplomatic ties between Rabat and Paris after three years of strained relations, partially over the espionage allegations.
In 2021, Morocco was accused of deploying Israeli-made Pegasus spyware to monitor prominent figures including Macron.
The allegations were based on a report by investigative outlet Forbidden Stories and rights group Amnesty International, which Morocco called “baseless and false.”
The spyware, developed by Israeli firm NSO Group, can infiltrate mobile phones, extracting data and activating cameras.


Senior UK defense figures toured Jerusalem as guests of Israeli firm bidding for military contract

Senior UK defense figures toured Jerusalem as guests of Israeli firm bidding for military contract
Updated 11 sec ago

Senior UK defense figures toured Jerusalem as guests of Israeli firm bidding for military contract

Senior UK defense figures toured Jerusalem as guests of Israeli firm bidding for military contract
  • Elbit Systems took coordinator of training program on trip before submitting bid for £2bn contract
  • Whistleblower: Brigadier who later joined firm also went on trip before passing info to Elbit before bid

LONDON: A senior UK defense chief accepted a trip to Jerusalem partly paid for and run by an arms company while it was bidding for a British Army contract for a program he oversaw, The Times reported on Monday.

Mike Cooper, a top civil servant at the Ministry of Defence, visited the Mount of Olives, Wailing Wall and other sites in the city alongside two senior army officers and representatives of Elbit Systems Ltd. in September 2022.

Elbit is an Israel-based firm with its headquarters in the city of Haifa. It has a Britain-based arm, Elbit UK, with several factories across the country.

Cooper was, and remains, in charge of the British Army Collective Training Transformation Programme, designed to modernize the military’s training procedures.

Another of the three, Brig. Phil Kimber, later went to work for Elbit, to whom a company whistleblower alleges he passed information before it bid for the CTTP contract, The Times reported.

The trio also visited other companies in Israel, and an MoD source said the five-day trip was “normal business stuff.” All events and gifts during the trip, as well as its funding, were disclosed by the MoD.

The Times, though, reported that an Elbit employee said in an internal email that the trip had given the firm an “advantage” in winning the 15-year contract for the CTTP worth around £2 billion ($2.7 billion).

“The visit was a success — we won’t get another opportunity like this but neither will any other consortium,” The Times reported the employee as saying.

“They see us as highly credible and we need to be careful not to lose the advantage the Israel visit now gives us.”

The bidding process to partner for the CTTP was opened after the tour. A decision is expected soon, with Elbit UK bidding as part of a consortium that includes its Israeli parent company, The Times reported.

The employee told the newspaper that the trio visited Israel to see how Elbit could deliver training for the British Army similar to what it already provided to the Israeli military.

“Elbit was trying to impress them. They went round to see Elbit-delivered IDF (Israel Defense Forces) training,” the source added.

The Times reported that a letter to Cooper and Kimber from a senior Elbit UK figure in June 2023 allegedly said: “As you saw when you visited Israel last September, we understand what it takes to be an effective strategic partner, and we remain fully committed to bring this level of success to the army.” 

The letter added: “In a world of increasing complexity and global challenges, we recognise how critical CTTP remains to our army.”

The MoD previously decided that Elbit UK had gained no commercial advantage in the bidding process after a whistleblower alerted the ministry to Kimber passing information to the company, because Kimber was “not employed by the army at the time of the contract advert, pre-qualification questionnaire or invitation to negotiate.”

Elbit UK told The Times: “(We follow) the requirements and procedures advised by the advisory committee on business appointments regarding our employees who have served in the UK armed forces.”

The MoD told The Times: “This visit was part of routine engagement with industry and formally declared in the usual way.

“We maintain regular dialogue with defence companies interested in our programmes and ensure any conflicts of interest are managed during our procurement processes.”


OIC chief demands immediate ceasefire, end to Israeli aggression in Gaza

OIC chief demands immediate ceasefire, end to Israeli aggression in Gaza
Updated 13 min 3 sec ago

OIC chief demands immediate ceasefire, end to Israeli aggression in Gaza

OIC chief demands immediate ceasefire, end to Israeli aggression in Gaza
  • Taha said Israel’s “horrific war crimes” against the Palestinian people demanded a more effective international response

JEDDAH: The secretary-general of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, Hissein Brahim Taha, on Monday called for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza, urging an end to Israeli aggression and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces.

Speaking at the 21st Extraordinary Session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers in Jeddah, Taha condemned what he described as genocide, ethnic cleansing, forced displacement, systematic destruction, and the illegal blockade of Gaza, accusing Israel of using starvation as a weapon of war.

He also denounced the expansion of Israeli settlements, particularly in the E1 area of Jerusalem, and the targeting of journalists, saying such actions require legal prosecution under international law, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

Taha said Israel’s “horrific war crimes” against the Palestinian people demanded a more effective international response, warning that the Israeli government’s stated intention to impose full military control over Gaza and pursue a “greater Israel vision” was a flagrant violation of international law.

The session also addressed the escalating humanitarian crisis in the enclave.

Taha urged member states to implement resolutions adopted at the Joint Arab-Islamic Summit in Riyadh and welcomed the growing number of countries recognizing the State of Palestine, calling on others to follow suit.


GCC markets dominate Dubai Chamber exports in first 6 months

GCC markets dominate Dubai Chamber exports in first 6 months
Updated 25 August 2025

GCC markets dominate Dubai Chamber exports in first 6 months

GCC markets dominate Dubai Chamber exports in first 6 months
  • The total value of Dubai Chamber members’ exports and re-exports in the first half of 2025 rose 18%

DUBAI: Gulf Cooperation Council markets were the top destination for Dubai Chamber of Commerce members’ exports and re-exports in the first half of the year, accounting for nearly half of all shipments, according to the trade body.

The region accounted for 48.6 percent of exports and re-exports, worth a combined $22.7 billion, highlighting its strategic significance for Dubai-based businesses, Emirates news agency WAM reported.

Non-GCC countries in the Middle East accounted for 29 percent ($13.5 billion), African markets 9.7 percent ($4.55 billion) and the Asia-Pacific region for 8.5 percent ($3.9 billion).

European markets accounted for 3 percent of exports and re-exports ($1.4 billion) followed by North America with 0.7 percent ($327 million) and Latin America with 0.4 percent ($185 million).

The total value of Dubai Chamber members’ exports and re-exports in the first half of 2025 rose 18 percent year on year to $46.8 billion, the report said.


Jordan condemns settler attacks on Gaza aid convoy

Jordan condemns settler attacks on Gaza aid convoy
Updated 25 August 2025

Jordan condemns settler attacks on Gaza aid convoy

Jordan condemns settler attacks on Gaza aid convoy
  • Jordan has dispatched on Monday its 193rd humanitarian convoy into the enclave to deliver essential food supplies aboard 59 trucks

DUBAI: Jordan on Monday denounced the attacks on Jordanian relief trucks en route to the Gaza Strip by Israeli settlers, describing their actions as dangerous for aid drivers aside from obstructing humanitarian operations for the besieged enclave.

A group of settlers tried Sunday evening to block a convoy of 59 relief trucks, which later managed to cross into Gaza, Mohammad Momani, government spokesperson and Minister of Government Communication, said in a report from state news agency Petra.

Momani said four of the trucks were attacked, with settlers pelting them with stones, smashing windshields, slashing tires as well as damaging front and side panels

The Jordanian official emphasized that Israeli authorities were responsible for failing to restrain such incidents, calling the response “lax” and warning that the attacks posed risks to driver safety, hindered relief work and violated international conventions and agreements.

Meanwhile, Jordan has dispatched on Monday its 193rd humanitarian convoy into the enclave to deliver essential food supplies aboard 59 trucks.

The deliveries, according to Momani, would continue despite obstacles such as requirements for electronic applications to transport aid, limited inspection hours at border crossings and newly imposed customs fees.

These measures, he said, have stretched delivery times from about two hours to as long as 36 hours.


Syria president to speak at UN General Assembly: official

Syria president to speak at UN General Assembly: official
Updated 25 August 2025

Syria president to speak at UN General Assembly: official

Syria president to speak at UN General Assembly: official
  • Syria’s interim president, Ahmed Al-Sharaa, will speak at the United Nations General Assembly next month, a foreign ministry official told AFP on Monday

DAMASCUS: Syria’s interim president, Ahmed Al-Sharaa, will speak at the United Nations General Assembly next month, a foreign ministry official told AFP on Monday, the first Syrian leader to do so in decades.
Sharaa “will take part in the United Nations General Assembly in New York where he will deliver a speech,” the official said, requesting anonymity as they were not authorized to brief the media.
Sharaa took power in December after his Islamist group led a coalition of forces that toppled longtime ruler Bashar Assad after nearly 14 years of gruelling civil war.
“He will be the first Syrian president to speak at the United Nations since former president Nureddin Al-Atassi (in 1967), and the first Syrian president ever to take part in the General Assembly’s high-level week,” scheduled for September 22-30, the official added.
Since taking power, Syria’s new authorities have gained regional and international support.
In April, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shaibani addressed the United Nations for the first time and raised his country’s new flag at the body’s New York headquarters.
Sharaa met US President Donald Trump in May in , a week after meeting French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on his first trip to the West.
Sharaa remains under United Nations sanctions and a travel ban due to his past as a wanted jihadist, and must request an exemption for all foreign trips.