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Student jailed 34 years for using Twitter 

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•Jailed student Salma al-Shebab

A Saudi student at Leeds University, Salma al-Shebab, 34, who was said to be returning to the United kingdom for a holiday when she was arrested, has been sentenced to 34 years for using a Twitter account and for following and retweeting dissident activists.

The mother of two was accused of using Twitter to cause public unrest and destabilise civil and national security after she posted tweets calling for women’s rights in Saudi Arabia.

The Daily Mail reports that Al-Shebab, who has two young sons aged four and six, was earlier sentenced to six years in prison but a Saudi terrorism court, Monday, increased her jail term to 34 years after the activist appealed her sentence.

She is said to also be facing a 34-year travel ban upon the expiration of her jail term.

Al-Shebab was said to have been arrested in January 2021 while on holiday in Saudi Arabia just as she planned to return to the United Kingdom, where she was a PhD student at the University of Leeds.

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It was gathered that in delivering the judgement, the court cited Al-Shebab’s social media activity where she tweeted in support of women’s rights in Saudi Arabia and expressed solidarity with imprisoned women right activists such as Loujain al-Hathloul, and subsequently called for their freedom.

She was said to have been arrested after she retweeted a post from Al-Hathloul’s sister, Lina.

The post read, “Freedom for Loujain Al-Hathloul … Freedom for all prisoners of conscience. Your freedom is my first wish for this New Year – Happy New Year.” the Daily Mail reported.

She was accused of ‘providing succour to those seeking to disrupt public order and undermine the safety of the general public and stability of the state, and publishing false and tendentious rumours on Twitter‘

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Security Alert: CCTV Footage of White House shooting suspect released By Trump goes viral

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The President of the United States, Donald Trump, has released CCTV footage and images of a suspect linked to a shooting incident at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington.

The released video, shared shortly before the President spoke to the press, reportedly shows the suspect entering the ballroom of the Washington Hilton and bypassing a security metal detector before armed security personnel moved in to intercept him.

Trump described the individual as a “would-be assassin,” alleging that he was heavily armed and managed to breach a key security checkpoint.

According to BBC reporting, the President said the suspect forced his way past screening procedures while carrying multiple weapons.

Photographs also released by the President show a shirtless man lying face down in a lobby area with his hands restrained behind his back, believed to be the suspect involved.

Authorities confirmed that the suspect is now in custody. Trump also stated that a law enforcement officer was shot during the incident but survived due to wearing a bulletproof vest.

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The shooting occurred on Saturday night during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, an annual event attended by journalists, government officials, and other dignitaries.

The incident caused panic at the venue, leading to the evacuation of guests and officials.

Investigations are ongoing to determine the motive behind the attack and how the security breach occurred.

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U.S., Iran agree two-week ceasefire as Iran reopens Strait of Hormuz

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Iran has confirmed a two-week ceasefire announced by U.S. President Donald Trump, the Tasnim news agency, which is close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), reported early on Wednesday.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz would be possible for two weeks in coordination with Iran’s armed forces “and with due consideration of technical limitations.”

Trump had made reopening the waterway a condition for the ceasefire and had threatened to target Iran’s energy sector and infrastructure, including bridges, if Tehran failed to comply, setting a deadline of 0000 GMT.

The Strait of Hormuz, crucial to global oil and gas trade, has been largely closed since the United States and Israel launched large-scale attacks on Iran on Feb. 28.

According to a senior U.S. official, Israel will also adhere to what Trump described as a “double sided CEASEFIRE.”

Pakistan, which has mediated between Tehran and Washington, said that an immediate ceasefire between Iran and the US had taken effect.

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Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif wrote on X that the Islamic Republic of Iran and the U.S., along with their allies, had agreed to an “immediate ceasefire everywhere,” including in Lebanon.

“I warmly welcome the sagacious gesture and extend deepest gratitude to the leadership of both the countries and invite their delegations to Islamabad on Friday … to further negotiate for a conclusive agreement to settle all disputes,” Sharif said.

Trump earlier said Sharif had asked him to refrain from carrying out the threatened attacks.

The U.S. has received a 10-point proposal from Iran and believed it offered a “workable basis” for negotiations, Trump wrote on his platform Truth Social.

According to The New York Times, the plan calls for lifting all sanctions imposed on Iran. (dpa/NAN)

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Earthquake kills 8 members of same family in Afghanistan

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An earthquake that struck Afghanistan overnight killed eight members of the same family in Kabul province, the health ministry said on Saturday.

The 5.8-magnitude quake struck at 8.42 pm (1612 GMT) on Friday at a depth of 186 kilometres (115 miles) at the epicentre in northeastern Badakhshan province, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS).

Shaking was felt in multiple parts of the country, including the capital Kabul, according to AFP journalists.

“In the Gosfand Dara area of Kabul Province, eight members of a family died as a result of the earthquake,” Health Ministry spokesman Sharafat Zaman said in a message to media.

He added that a child aged around two years old was the only survivor from the household and the country’s disaster management agency said the boy had been injured in the tremor.

Afghanistan is frequently jolted by earthquakes, particularly along the Hindu Kush mountain range near where the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plates meet.

In August, a shallow magnitude 6 earthquake wiped out mountainside villages and killed more than 2,200 people in eastern Afghanistan, making it the deadliest tremor in the country’s recent history.

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AFP

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