The State Department on Thursday announced the appointment of Aimee Cutrona as acting special representative for Syria engagement.
The US embassy in Syria said on Twitter that Ms Cutrona, who also serves as the deputy assistant secretary of state for Levant affairs, assumed the new role last month.
It said she “has extensive experience supporting US diplomacy in the region".
Ms Cutrona has served as the Biden administration's acting envoy for Syria engagement since January 25, replacing Joel Rayburn who held the position under president Donald Trump.
Mr Rayburn also served as the deputy assistant secretary of state for Levant affairs.
Ms Cutrona was deputy chief of mission in Bahrain from 2016 to 2019 and has extensive experience in Middle East diplomacy.
She also served as a political affairs officer at the US embassies in Qatar and Egypt.
A veteran in the State Department's Near Eastern Affairs Bureau, she helped to craft US policy in Iraq, Tunisia and Algeria from Washington.
Ms Cutrona served as special assistant to the undersecretary for global affairs, working on the battle against human trafficking and promoting international women’s issues.
Despite her appointment, President Joe Biden has yet to nominate an assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs, which requires Senate confirmation.
Barbara Leaf, the former ambassador to the UAE who serves on the National Security Council's Middle East team at the White House, is a top contender for that position.
Ms Leaf's current director at the National Security Council, Middle East co-ordinator Brett McGurk, has extensive Syrian experience as the former envoy to the coalition fighting ISIS under the administrations of Barack Obama and Mr Trump.
Mr McGurk resigned from the Trump administration after the former president withdrew US troops from the northern Syrian border.
That paved the way for a Turkish offensive against the US-backed Kurdish forces who were mainly responsible for defeating ISIS’s self-styled caliphate.
Correction: An earlier version of this story stated that Ms Cutrona was appointed as deputy secretary of state for Levant affairs. She already held that position when she was appointed acting special representative for Syria engagement on January 25.
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
What sanctions would be reimposed?
Under ‘snapback’, measures imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council in six resolutions would be restored, including:
- An arms embargo
- A ban on uranium enrichment and reprocessing
- A ban on launches and other activities with ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, as well as ballistic missile technology transfer and technical assistance
- A targeted global asset freeze and travel ban on Iranian individuals and entities
- Authorisation for countries to inspect Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines cargoes for banned goods
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
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GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
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Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
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Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
Tewellah by Nawal Zoghbi is out now.
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
UAE-based players
Goodlands Riders: Jamshaid Butt, Ali Abid, JD Mahesh, Vibhor Shahi, Faizan Asif, Nadeem Rahim
Rose Hill Warriors: Faraz Sheikh, Ashok Kumar, Thabreez Ali, Janaka Chathuranga, Muzammil Afridi, Ameer Hamza
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
