Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Cuts the Income of Royal Family, and Princes Sell Yachts, Real Estate, Artwork
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Wealthy Arab royals spend as much as $30 million a month to operate their lavish palaces, and now Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is cracking down. He has ordered the income of Saudi princes to be reduced, and they are hurriedly selling off real estate, yachts, and art to raise cash and avoid his scrutiny, remembering the hotel imprisonment of scores of Saudi princes and officials in 2017.
That oil tanker that sank off Tunisia. The one that was reported loaded with 750 tons or more of oil. It was empty. Nothing but water was found inside by divers, and Tunisia has arrested the crew on suspicion of criminal activity. The ship's bridge had been vandalized, the GPS system destroyed, and the bill of lading disappeared.
Oman negotiated the freedom of 14 foreigners from Yemen Houthi imprisonment, and the Houthis are offering a new prisoner swap with the Yemen government and the Saudi-backed coalition An Al Qaeda commander was killed in Yemen's Hadramout province, and an Iranian commander escaped an assassination attempt in an area near Pakistan and Afghanistan.
A papal delegation will go to Lebanon to prepare for the visit of Pope Francis, Algeria's president supports Libya's interim prime minister, and President Joe Biden names an ambassador to Saudi Arabia more than 18 months after taking office.
And news from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Jordan, and More.
Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has cut the income of Saudi princes, and now they're selling off real estate, yachts, and artwork. Senior princes are trying to raise cash and avoid scrutiny from the crown prince, who in 2017 detained hundreds in Riyadh's Ritz-Carlton hotel. Household spending for some royals with lavish lifestyles that require large staffs has been estimated to be as much as $30 million a month. More than 15,000 are believed to be members of the extended royal family, with many living in lavish palaces.
Wall Street Journal, Saudi royals are selling homes, yachts, and art as Crown Prince cuts income.
The tanker that sank off Tunisia was empty, not carrying 750 tons of oil, and now its crew members are arrested on suspicion of criminal activity. The commercial tanker was sailing under the Equatorial Guinea flag and bound for Malta when it sank and caused widespread concern about a possible environmental disaster. "There was only seawater inside the ship," Rear Adm. Mezri Latif of Tunisia's environment ministry said, after divers inspected the sunken ship and found no fuel in the containers. "The ship's valves and pumps were corroded. We deduced that the ship has not been carrying oil for a certain period." He said the ship's bridge had been vandalized, navigation devices ripped off, the GPS system destroyed with hammer blows, and that the ship's bill of lading had disappeared. The seven-member crew, from Georgia, Turkey, and Azerbaijan, has been detained.
Associated Press, Tanker which sunk on way to Malta carried no fuel, Tunisia says.
Yemen's first flight in six years from the rebel-held capital of Sanaa failed, in a blow to the fragile truce and peace prospects. The two warring sides —Yemen's government backed by the Saudi Arabia-led coalition, and the rebel Houthis— failed to cooperate for the flight, and they traded blame for the failure. A Yemeni government official said 104 passengers were to be allowed on the flight to Jordan, but that the Houthis insisted on adding 60 more passengers "with unreliable passports." The Houthi side accused the coalition of failing to issue permits for the flight, without explaining further.
Associated Press, Yemen war sides fail to operate 1st flight as part of truce.
A delegation from Oman is in Yemen, trying to mediate the peace process. Television news reports said the group arrived over the weekend in the rebel-held capital of Sanaa, where they were to meet with leaders of the Houthis. The Houthis forces want an end to a blockade before they will negotiate any peace settlement, but a ceasefire brokered by the United Nations has been in effect since April 2, designed for two months.
IANS, Omani delegation arrives in Yemen to mediate peace process.
Fourteen foreigners have been released by Yemen's rebel Houthis after negotiations with Oman. The group included a British man, Luke Symons, who was detained in 2017 on espionage charges, which were strongly denied. The former detainees were transferred from the Houthi-controlled capital Sanaa to Oman's capital of Muscat, flying on an Oman Royal Air Force plane. The group will be returned to home countries including the Philippines, Indonesia, Ethiopia, and Myanmar.
Middle East Eye, Yemen: Fourteen foreigners released by Houthis after Omani negotiations.
Yemen's rebel Houthis are offering a new prisoner swap, 200 from each side, before Eid al-Fitr. Reports said the offer was made to the United Nations and cited the head of the Houthis' prisoner affairs committee, Abdul Qader al-Murtada. Earlier, the warring sides in Yemen discussed a possible prisoner exchange that would have included 16 Saudi nationals and a brother of former Yemeni president Mansour Hadi, but no final agreement was reached.
Reuters, Yemen's Houthis offer to release 200 prisoners before Eid al-Fitr: Al-Masirah.
A senior Al Qaeda commander was killed in a shootout in Yemen. The gun battle took place in the Sudaf area of Hadramout province in Yemen's southeast when security forces raided an Al-Qaeda hideout. Yemeni officials confirmed that the commander killed was wanted for involvement in terror attacks in Hadramout. His identity was not revealed. Officials said the operation had dealt a setback to Al Qaeda's attempts to gain ground in Yemen.
Xinhua, Al-Qaeda commander killed in operation in Yemen.
A fifth round of direct talks between Iran and Saudi Arabia has been held in Iraq and described as a "positive atmosphere." Iranian news reports said the talks were held in Baghdad, resuming after a previous round ended in September. Oman was credited with bringing the two sides together.
RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty, Iran, Saudi Arabia hold fifth round of talks in Baghdad.
A senior commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps survived an attack that killed one of his bodyguards. Brig. Gen. Hossein al-Massi survived an ambush in Zahedan, capital of Iran's Sistan-Baluchistan province, a region bordering Pakistan and Afghanistan. The bodyguard, Mahmoud Absalan, is the son of of another Guard Corps commander in the region, Gen. Parviz Absalan. News reports said security forces arrested the attackers, but did not identify their numbers.
Asharq Al-Awsat, IRGC commander survives assassination attempt in Sistan-Baluchistan.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called on Iran to release an American citizen he said is being held as a "political pawn." Emad Sharghi was sentenced to ten years in prison on spying charges, and Blinken said: "For four years, the Sharghi family has waited anxiously for the Iranian government to release Emad. Like too many other families, their loved one has been treated as a political pawn. We call on Iran to stop this inhumane practice and release Emad."
Asharq Al-Awsat, Blinken calls on Iran to release detained American.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has seized a ship in the Gulf for smuggling fuel. "The ship was seized in the northern part of the Persian Gulf. Its eight crew members have been handed over to legal authorities in the southern port city of Bushehr," a senior Guard Corps commander said, without giving the nationalities of the crew. The ship was reported carrying 200,000 liters of smuggled fuel.
Reuters, Iran guards seize foreign ship in Gulf for smuggling fuel - Fars.
U.S. State Department careerist Michael Ratney has been nominated by President Joe Biden to be the United States ambassador to Saudi Arabia. Ratney is a career member of the Senior Foreign Service with the rank of minister-counselor. He speaks fluent Arabic and has served across the Middle East, most recently as charge d'affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem.
He has been a special envoy for Syria. The position in Riyadh has been open for more than a year and a half after Biden took office.
Saudi Gazette, Biden nominates Michael Ratney as ambassador to Saudi Arabia.
Egypt, UAE, and Jordan's leaders met in Cairo and issued a plea for calm in Jerusalem, where scores of people have been injured in confrontations around the Al Aqsa compound. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi hosted the crown prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, and King Abdullah II of Jordan. The three leaders emphasized the "historical Hashemite guardianship" over religious sites in Jerusalem and called on Israel to "stop measures that undermine the two-state solution."
The National, Egypt, UAE and Jordan call for peace in Jerusalem.
Egypt released 41 political prisoners. They were in pre-trial detention, and Mohamed al-Sadat said they had been held on political charges related to "freedom of thought and expression." Sadat is a nephew of former Egyptian president Anwar al-Sadat and is an unofficial negotiator for political prisoners. Among those freed were Mohamed Salah, a journalist; Abdo Fayed, a researcher, and activists Walid Shakky, Haithami al-Banna, and Hassan al-Barbary. Along with activist Radwa Mohamed, another of those released, the six had been charged with belonging to a terrorist organization and spreading false news, charges frequently used against dissidents in Egypt.
AFP, Egypt releases 41 political prisoner: negotiator.
Algeria's president said all Arab countries have agreed to participate in this year's "Arab summit at the level of leaders." The meeting will be held in Algeria in November, and Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune said there is continuing coordination with all countries on issues. Earlier, Tebboune said he expected the meeting to produce positive results because "the Arab world needs it."
The Peninsula, All Arab countries to participate in Arab summit: Algerian president.
Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune reiterated his support for Libya's Government of National Unity led by interim Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah. "We said it and repeat it, there is no solution in Libya without returning to the people," he said. "When there is a parliamentary election, there will be a national Libyan council. At that time Libya returns to its popular legitimacy." Dbeibah has said he will not resign until elections are held, but he is challenged by Libya's parliament meeting in Tobruk which voted for its own prime minister.
Anadolu Agency, Algeria's Tebboune reiterates support for Dbeibah in Libya.
A Vatican committee will visit Lebanon preparing for Pope Francis' visit in June. The delegation is expected on April 27 to review the visit's program and go to the sites that the Pope will tour. The papal ambassador to Lebanon has sent a draft of the visit's program that has been coordinated with Lebanon's presidential palace. Lebanon's tourism minister, Walid Nassar, is chair of the Lebanese ministerial committee that is preparing for the Pope's visit, which is scheduled for June 12-13.
Asharq Al-Awsat, Vatican committee visits Beirut to complete preparations for Pope's visit.
MORE: Libya's state oil company says armed clashes at key oil port damaged storage tanks, Al Arabiya... Turkey closes its airspace for Russian flights to Syria, Associated Press... Sudan group says renewed tribal clashes kill 168 in Darfur, Associated Press... Tebboune: Algeria has wheat reserves for 8 months, Asharq Al-Awsat... Algeria to continue gas supply to Spain despite Western Sahara row, Anadolu Agency... Growth expected in Kuwait economy by 5.8% in 2022, Zawya... Iran failed to present any evidence justifying Erbil missile attack: Iraqi FM, Kurdistan 24... UAE economic growth to accelerate in 2022, 2023: Swiss bank, Khaleej Times.
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