Iraq summoned Iran's ambassador on Thursday to hand over a note of protest over the shelling of Iranian-Kurdish opposition groups in the country’s north, killing at least 13 people.
Ambassador Mohammad Kadhim Al Sadiq was handed a "strongly worded note of protest", Iraqi Foreign Ministry spokesman Ahmed Al Sahaf said.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a branch of Iran's armed forces, launched 73 ballistic missiles and 20 drones laden with explosives at Iraq's Kurdistan Region on Wednesday.
One of the drones was shot down by the US military after it appeared as a threat to American forces stationed in the regional capital Erbil, the Pentagon's Central Command said.
On Thursday morning, Iranian artillery hit the Sedekan area outside Erbil, a security official said. There was no immediate information on casualties or damage.
Iran has accused the Iranian-Kurdish groups of involvement in nationwide anti-government protests over the death of a young woman in police custody.
Mahsa Amini, 22, who died after being arrested by morality police in Tehran, was from Iran’s western Kurdish region, which borders Iraq.
Iran says armed Iranian-Kurdish dissidents are fanning the unrest, particularly in the north-west where most of Iraq's roughly 10 million Kurds live.
According to the counter-terrorism service in Iraqi Kurdistan, Iran launched a series of attacks from 1.15am on Wednesday that targeted the Azadi Kurdistan Party, the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan and the Toilers of Iranian Kurdistan, as well as camps housing Iranian Kurds.
The attacks were carried out in four stages in Erbil and Sulaimaniyah province, the statement said.
“These attacks targeted public places such as kindergartens, schools, hospitals and health centres, houses, cars and event halls,” it added.
At least 13 people were killed, including a pregnant woman, and 58 others wounded, the majority of whom were young children, teachers, students and journalists, it said.
Iraq's note of protest said it "condemns this crime in continuous aggression by the Iranian forces against Iraq's sovereignty and territorial sanctity", the Foreign Ministry said.
Iran's attack drew local and international denunciation.
The Foreign Ministry said the attack was a “dangerous development that threatens Iraq's security and sovereignty”.
The Kurdistan Regional Government said Iran's actions “under any pretext are an incorrect stance, which promotes a misleading interpretation of the course of events”.
US State Department spokesman Ned Price condemned the attacks as an “unjustified violation” of Iraqi sovereignty.
The UN mission to Iraq said the country "rejects the notion that it can be treated as the region’s 'backyard' where neighbours routinely, and with impunity, violate its sovereignty".
It said "rocket diplomacy is a reckless act with devastating consequences. These attacks need to cease immediately".
Wednesday's attacks were the third time Iran has hit targets in Iraq since protests over Amini's death began. The IRGC also launched drone and artillery strikes against Kurdish positions on Saturday and Monday.
Amini was arrested for allegedly breaching Iran's strict rules on wearing the hijab and modest clothing for women.
The protests have spread across more than 50 cities, towns and villages in Iran, including Tehran, since her death on September 16.
Iran's Fars news agency, linked to the IRGC, on Tuesday said “around 60" people had died in the protests. But the Oslo-based Iran Human Rights group says at least 76 have been killed so far.
In an interview with state TV on Wednesday, Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi described the protests as “chaos” and accused foreign powers of stoking the unrest.
Also on Thursday, four rockets landed around the Iraqi capital's Green Zone, home to government buildings and foreign missions, Reuters reported, citing Iraqi police.
The missiles were fired from eastern Baghdad, police said. There were no immediate reports of casualties from the strikes and no claim of responsibility.
A similar attack on Wednesday wounded seven members of the Iraqi security forces in the Green Zone and appeared to add a new dimension to a contest among power-hungry politicians.
Rocket attacks on the Green Zone have been regular in recent years but they are normally directed at western targets by Iran-backed militias.
Those attacks have been rare in recent months. Wednesday's attack took place as the Iraqi Parliament was holding a vote to confirm its speaker.
Iraq is going through a prolonged political stalemate that has left the country without an active government for nearly a year since a bitterly disputed election result and mounting violence.
The national elections last October were the fifth parliamentary vote for a full-term government since the 2003 US-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein.
TOURNAMENT INFO
Opening fixtures:
Friday, Oct 5
8pm: Kabul Zwanan v Paktia Panthers
Saturday, Oct 6
4pm: Nangarhar Leopards v Kandahar Knights
8pm: Kabul Zwanan v Balkh Legends
Tickets
Tickets can be bought online at https://www.q-tickets.com/apl/eventlist and at the ticket office at the stadium.
TV info
The tournament will be broadcast live in the UAE on OSN Sports.
Skoda Superb Specs
Engine: 2-litre TSI petrol
Power: 190hp
Torque: 320Nm
Price: From Dh147,000
Available: Now
THE SIXTH SENSE
Starring: Bruce Willis, Toni Collette, Hayley Joel Osment
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Rating: 5/5
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl
Power: 153hp at 6,000rpm
Torque: 200Nm at 4,000rpm
Transmission: 6-speed auto
Price: Dh99,000
On sale: now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Ponti
Sharlene Teo, Pan Macmillan
Miss Granny
Director: Joyce Bernal
Starring: Sarah Geronimo, James Reid, Xian Lim, Nova Villa
3/5
(Tagalog with Eng/Ar subtitles)
Hydrogen: Market potential
Hydrogen has an estimated $11 trillion market potential, according to Bank of America Securities and is expected to generate $2.5tn in direct revenues and $11tn of indirect infrastructure by 2050 as its production increases six-fold.
"We believe we are reaching the point of harnessing the element that comprises 90 per cent of the universe, effectively and economically,” the bank said in a recent report.
Falling costs of renewable energy and electrolysers used in green hydrogen production is one of the main catalysts for the increasingly bullish sentiment over the element.
The cost of electrolysers used in green hydrogen production has halved over the last five years and will fall to 60 to 90 per cent by the end of the decade, acceding to Haim Israel, equity strategist at Merrill Lynch. A global focus on decarbonisation and sustainability is also a big driver in its development.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
The Two Popes
Director: Fernando Meirelles
Stars: Anthony Hopkins, Jonathan Pryce
Four out of five stars
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Farage on Muslim Brotherhood
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister.
"We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know.
“All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.”
It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins.
Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
The%20specs
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Superliminal%20
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%3Cp%3EMannofield%2C%20Aberdeen%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3EAll%20matches%20start%20at%202pm%20UAE%20time%20and%20will%20be%20broadcast%20on%20icc.tv%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EUAE%20fixtures%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3EWednesday%2C%20Aug%2010%20%E2%80%93%20Scotland%20v%20UAE%3Cbr%3EThursday%2C%20Aug%2011%20-%20UAE%20v%20United%20States%3Cbr%3ESaturday%2C%20Aug%2014%20%E2%80%93%20Scotland%20v%20UAE%3Cbr%3EMonday%2C%20Aug%2015%20%E2%80%93%20UAE%20v%20United%20States%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EUAE%20squad%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3EAhmed%20Raza%20(captain)%2C%20Chirag%20Suri%2C%20Muhammad%20Waseem%2C%20Vriitya%20Aravind%2C%20CP%20Rizwan%2C%20Basil%20Hameed%2C%20Rohan%20Mustafa%2C%20Zawar%20Farid%2C%20Kashif%20Daud%2C%20Karthik%20Meiyappan%2C%20Zahoor%20Khan%2C%20Junaid%20Siddique%2C%20Sabir%20Ali%2C%20Alishan%20Sharafu%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETable%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20(top%20three%20teams%20advance%20directly%20to%20the%202023%20World%20Cup%20Qualifier)%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E1.%20Oman%2036%2021%2013%201%201%2044%3Cbr%3E2.%20Scotland%2024%2016%206%200%202%2034%3Cbr%3E3.%20UAE%2022%2012%208%201%201%2026%3Cbr%3E--%3Cbr%3E4.%20Namibia%2018%209%209%200%200%2018%3Cbr%3E5.%20United%20States%2024%2011%2012%201%200%2023%3Cbr%3E6.%20Nepal%2020%208%2011%201%200%2017%3Cbr%3E7.%20Papua%20New%20Guinea%2020%201%2019%200%200%202%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
RESULTS
2pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (Dirt) 1,200m
Winner: Najem Al Rwasi, Fabrice Veron (jockey), Ahmed Al Shemaili (trainer)
2.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Fandim, Fernando Jara, Majed Al Jahouri
3pm: Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 1,700m
Winner: Harbh, Pat Cosgrave, Ahmed Al Mehairbi
3.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 1,700m
Winner: Wakeel W’Rsan, Richard Mullen, Jaci Wickham
4pm: Crown Prince of Sharjah Cup Prestige (PA) Dh200,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Jawaal, Fernando Jara, Majed Al Jahouri
4.30pm: Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Cup (TB) Dh200,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Tailor’s Row, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer
The distance learning plan
Spring break will be from March 8 - 19
Public school pupils will undergo distance learning from March 22 - April 2. School hours will be 8.30am to 1.30pm
Staff will be trained in distance learning programmes from March 15 - 19
Teaching hours will be 8am to 2pm during distance learning
Pupils will return to school for normal lessons from April 5
Read more about the coronavirus
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
The five pillars of Islam
