#nautical deborah

[theshadowsnetwork]

The chain of command for Lux Hall was clear, and often hotly debated. Like everything else in the Weaving Shadows organization, Lux Hall’s final word fell to Pan Annnalis’e Doi-Zhou. Also, like everything else, Mors De Lumine could make decisions in her absence, with a few choice scenarios requiring Pan’s attention. In the absence of all Mors De Lumine members, the Board makes decisions and files reports for Pan and the rest of MDL to see later. In this, the Shadows and Lux Hall chain of command is starkly different. In MDL’s absence, the running of Lux Hall falls squarely on the shoulders of Pan’s secretary and librarian, Deborah Marks.

Over the past two to three years since London’s bombing, Lux Hall had been slowly expanding from a small space beneath Pan’s home at Moonlight Palace, eventually becoming something of a small town hidden in the mountains. In those three years, Deborah had never seen the chain of command call on her to be anything more than a librarian. Now, with MDL scattered in three directions… Deborah was something of a temporary mayor to a group of spies. It was a heavy burden, and many felt that Marks was unfit to manage the Lux Hall grounds. But more and more, the Shadows began to see the capabilities of a single librarian with temporary power.

After only a few days, carrying reports to Deborah’s desk became comfortable for some. Finding her in the library, doing whatever she was doing in that book of hers, was as routine and natural as, and oftentimes more welcome than, knocking on Pan’s door, especially in the instances involving the Department of Lux Hall Security. “There was an incident involving a reconditioning initiate,” a clerk from security told her. “Jasmine Ellis was relieved of her duties after an argument with the Chief of Security.”

“What was the argument about?” she asked.

“I’m afraid I’m unsure. The chief dismissed Ellis for insubordination, but his report is light on details.”

It wasn’t the first such report involving Chief Warrick. In fact, other it was the fifth involving his office that week. What would Pan do?

“Where is the initiate now?”

“Housing. Awaiting reassignment.” The Shadows were not yet ready to refer to Shadow Housing at Lux as simply having an apartment nearby. Everyone was still getting used to the idea of being a small town.

Deborah stood and closed her book. “Can you take me to her? I’d like to get her account of what caused her dismissal.”

“Yes, ma’am,” the clerk obliged. “From my limited understanding, Ellis flew an unauthorized drone to investigate another boat coming from the east.’

“Ah. More art from our friends.”

“That’s what the Chief believed it to be. But the boats with Deng Jia pieces aboard were just unmanned dinghies pointed in our direction and let go. The waves carried them wherever and they’d end up on various places on the shore. Sometimes they didn’t make it past the rock wall. But, according to Ellis, this vessel is much larger and it’s actively calculating a course to make landfall at the beach.”

Deborah’s brow furrowed. “It’s being steered?”

“That’s why initiative Ellis was trying to secure authorization for a drone, to get a closer look, and maybe some heat signatures. When the chief denied her, she flew the drone in secret. Before she could report on what she found, the chief dismissed her.”

Deborah retreated into herself for a moment. …What would Pan do…? “...On second thought, have the initiate meet me at the beach. Tell the office that the drone recon op is approved. And if Chief Warrick has any reservations, tell him we can call Eleanor Novak and tell her about the alleged oversized dinghy making educated maneuvers to our shoreline. But I’d to be well and underway with the drone before he even objects to it. How close is the seafaring object?”

“Before she was relieved, radar suggested the object was about 67 nautical miles from shore. It would theoretically make it here by tomorrow morning.”

Deborah shook her head. “You know what? Don’t even tell him. Just collect Ellis and ready the drone. I’ll pass my credentials along. We can figure out what happened between them after we discern the nature of the object.”

@ofcarnvge

@shadedjasmine

[chicagoarchaeologyevents]

APRIL 2024 CHICAGO ARCHAEOLOGY LECTURES AND EXHIBITS

LECTURES

April 11, 7:00 PM AIA Society Chicago Lecture "Crouching Tigers, Hidden Elephant” Lecturer: Noel Tan While a global phenomenon, rock art has been a relatively recent subject of study in Southeast Asia with the number of known sites growing from a handful in the 1960s to over a thousand today. Research accelerated in the last 20 years with better recording and analytical techniques as evidenced by the increased number of papers on Southeast Asian rock art in international conferences and journals since the 2000s. The majority of sites are located from Indonesia and Thailand, where sustained episodes of research have been conducted. New dates from Indonesia challenge long-standing ideas about the ‘origin’ of art while other discoveries shed light on the movements and activities of peoples across this diverse landscape. This lecture presents a survey of rock art across Southeast Asia from the deep past to more modern times and shows how rock art can help us better understand the archaeology of Southeast Asia. DePaul University Levan Center 2322 North Kenmore Avenue Chicago

April 13, 5:00 PM American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE) Chicago, Illinois Chapter

"New Evidence of the 25th Dynasty God’s; Wives of Amun at Luxor Temple”

Catherine Witt, Egyptology PhD Candidate at the University of Chicago

In Person only in the LaSalle Banks Room at ISAC This year there is one lecture, 20 minutes long (in keeping with the ARCE Meeting lecture format) so this will be a short meeting.

April 17, 8:00 pm ET, 7:00 PM CT AIA Society, Chicago Online Lecture This is an online event.

"Excavating a Shipwrecked Marble Column Destined for the Temple of Apollo at Claros"

Deborah Carlson (Texas A&M)

Between 2005 and 2011, researchers from the Institute of Nautical Archaeology at Texas A&M University excavated and raised the remains of an ancient ship that was wrecked off the Aegean coast of Turkey at Kızılburun in the first century B.C. This ship was transporting about 60 tons of white marble blocks and architectural elements that originated in the quarries on Proconnesus Island in the Sea of Marmara. Ceramic artifacts and coins help narrow the date of the shipwreck, but the pieces of a single monumental Doric column suggest that the ship was destined for one of the most important oracular sanctuaries in the ancient Mediterranean. Join underwater archaeologist Deborah Carlson as she lays out the evidence to solve this maritime mystery!

Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_uCFCjR1iQ-SNbtaZkrd48Q#/registration

MUSEUM EVENTS

April 25 – August 18, 2024 The Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures (formerly the Oriental Institute) Exhibit

"Pioneers of the Sky: Aerial Archaeology and the Black Desert"

The University of Chicago, 1155 E 58th St.

January 26-May 12, 2024 Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Photography Exhibit “Native America in Translation” https://www.mocp.org/exhibition/native-america-in-translation/

January 6-June 16, 2024 The National Puerto Rican Museum Chicago Exhibit “Caribbean Indigenous Resistance / Resistencia indígena del Caribe ¡Taíno Vive!” https://nmprac.org/exhibition/taino-vive-caribbean-indigenous-resistance/?back=ago

[burecopul]

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[kayla1993-world]

Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle Are Putting Their Own Spin on Summer Shorts

Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle are embracing a summer-style staple. On Sunday, Kate headed to the historic naval town of Plymouth to take part in the Great Britain Sail Grand Prix. Before changing into a wetsuit for the boat race, the Duchess of Cambridge wore a nautical-inspired look featuring a striped navy sweater with white linen shorts.

It wasn't until 2019 that Kate first wore shorts in public as a member of the royal family. That was for a charity sailing race, with her sea-friendly outfit also comprising New Balance sneakers and a baseball cap.

Kate, 40, also opted for a pair of khaki shorts during her visit to the Caribbean with Prince William earlier this year for yet another sailing outing.

Meghan, 40, has been spotted rocking shorts several times this summer. While supporting Prince Harry and his polo team at the Santa Barbara Polo Club, near to their Montecito home, the Duchess of Sussex twice wore shorts with a blouse in the same color — once in white, and once in blue.

Meghan put a dressy yet casual spin on the style during the couple's recent trip to New York City. She stepped out to lunch with friend and political activist Gloria Steinem at the Crosby Hotel in SoHo wearing a white button-down blouse tucked into a pair of tailored Bermuda shorts and accessorized with a cognac brown belt that matched her pointed-toe pumps and beaded clutch.

Although Meghan did not step out in shorts as a working member of the royal family, they've been part of her wardrobe since moving to California. At a drive-through charity event with Baby2Baby in 2020, Meghan wore olive shorts as she helped distribute school supplies, books, backpacks, clothing, food, hygiene items and more to those in need.

They were also part of Meghan's wardrobe ahead of her marriage to Prince Harry, like in 2016 when she arrived at Today in striped shorts with a matching blazer.

Although it's rare for women of the royal family to wear shorts during engagements — Queen Elizabeth has never worn them in public and has been seen in pants only a handful of times throughout her reign — there are no rules against it.

Not only has Kate worn shorts during her athletic outings, but the Queen's daughter-in-law Sophie, Countess of Wessex, recently sported a pair of pink shorts with a t-shirt supporting Dame Deborah James' Bowelbabe found while paddle boarding in Gibraltar.

Kate has recently incorporated trousers and suits into her royal wardrobe, and it's not uncommon to see her in jeans for casual events.

#royals

[vessel-finder-gold]

#suez canal #ever given #vessel finder #femme fatale #hamburg eagle #lorax #and our international superstar #nautical deborah #meme #ship #memes #nautical memes

[lazergeoffs]

some of my favorite ships currently stuck in the canal <3

#nautical Deborah my beloved #Suez canal #canalposting hours #ever given

[puppetsoftomorrow]

tumblr is so fucking broken my post has 13 notes and yet somehow Nautical Deborah is the top post in the legends tag

#phoebe lifeblogs #i'm a nautical deborah supremicist

[rosenfey]

jonathan and debbie getting signatures of their partner tattooed after marriage is 👌👌👌

#ambie.txt #pairing: i promise #oc: deborah seed #they also have a matching tattoo of john's nautical star on the back of the right hand #there are tattoo hoes in the seed ranch only 😩✌ #hnhn you thought i finally shut up about them? well welcome to the new era i have no filter now

[you-had-me-at-legend-of-zelda]

also, today in my literature class, my prof pulled up the vessel finder website so we could check on the Suez Canal situation and at one point he moused over Nautical Deborah, one of my favorite ships from this whole debacle

#but I didn’t want to out myself as being on tumblr bc i haven’t seen that ship mentioned in memes elsewhere #so i kept silent #z speaks #ever given #suez canal

[nabtime]

there's a uquiz of which ship stuck in the Suez are you by user bingimages 👀

anon im going to kiss you on the lips this is funniest piece of info ever dropped into my inbox i love you

suez canal ship uquiz bc why not   everyone say ty tumblr user bingimages

anyway i got nautical deborah ;)

#nap shitposts in the afterlife #ty anon lmao #Anonymous

[ambassadorquark]

i love Nautical Deborah the boat

#beep boop

[theshadowsnetwork]

Her phone rang only once. "You're on speaker," Eleanor answered while she busied herself with packing her rifle. "The director is in the room."

Deborah hesitated. "...Madam Director. I'm pleased to hear you're doing better--"

"Madam Director?" Pan cackled. "Let's...let's not make that a thing, especially with you. 'Pan' will suffice. What can we do for you?"

"Okay..." Deborah began. "There is a security issue at the hall. We have an ocean-fairing object bearing approximately 050 degrees off the eastern shoreline."

"More art," assumed Eleanor.

"We have a reconditioning initiate here in security that believes otherwise," Deborah replied. "I'm with her now. We're on the beach with a surveillance drone."

Eleanor and Pan shared a look. "It seems like you're handling it. What do you need from us?"

Deborah carried the phone to the drone case where Jasmine looked out to sea.

It was only the fourth or fifth time Jasmine had seen the sky since her arrest. Her shoulders were tense, her wrists and ankles bound in cuffs. She could never be too sure if she were going to be escorted back to her apartment, or a transport bound for the pillbox. She was the brass's least favorite initiate at the moment, in no small part due to her actions. But her peers? Her peers were fond of her--also due to her actions.

Deborah sat the phone down on the case near Jasmine and her handler Savannah. "You're on with the Director and Eleanor."

The words made Jasmine's heart skip a beat. It was either this worked, or a frozen prison cell in Antarctica. "Madam Director--"

"Pan. Please."

Jasmine struggled to swallow. "Ms. Doi."

"Fair enough. How can Eleanor and I help you?"

"Ms. Doi, I am one of the clerks assigned to border security. I and my group were in charge of coastal watch, keeping an eye out for naval presences and, eventually, collecting any Deng Jia pieces that crashed ashore."

"And you think that this is something other than a Deng Jia dinghy?" Eleanor asked.

"Yes," Jasmine continues. "There is a jagged rock formation about 40 nautical miles out that Sieri Lycar has to avoid. At least five of the dinghies hit them, so they started launching them further south. But this craft sailed through them and continued at its current speed. It's also much faster than their dinghies and its radar reflection is stronger, which suggests it's much larger."

"Both of which suggest it's a manned vessel," Eleanor replied.

"Yes. I wanted to investigate further, but Chief Warrick wouldn't have it."

Pan's brow furrowed. "Why??"

Jasmine opened her mouth but couldn't find the words. But Deborah was willing and able. "You may recall Jasmine Ellis's campaign against the Child Conditioning Program a year or so before London. Opponents against the program rallied around Ellis to release children who were given or sold to the Shadows for training. One of the initiates helping her was Warrick's adopted daughter, Meredith Kim. Jasmine helped Meredith escape capture, and to this day, remains at large. Jasmine was stripped of her title and after being held in the Pillbox while the events and fallout in London unfolded, she was finally sent here to be a clerk."

There was a long, pregnant pause on both ends. "I see," Pan replied. "So, Warrick has a personal issue with you that is interfering with his work."

Jasmine opened her mouth to agree but ultimately said nothing. There was much she could say about Warrick, much she disliked about him and his treatment of the women in his life, much less, the women that worked for him. But it wasn't the time. "I was concerned about the object, so I flew a drone over the sea to investigate further. Warrick flagged it immediately, shot it down, and confined me to my apartment, pending transfer back to the Pillbox. 'Unauthorized use of Security Tech' Like he needed a reason to lock me up anyway--" Jasmine clamped her mouth shut.

"I see." Pan reached for her phone and sent a short email. "I'm authorizing a drone flight. Gather what data you can. Deborah, report back to me when we learn anything. I expect to hear from you before the evening closes."

"Yes, Ma'am," they both said.

"And Ms. Ellis," Pan concluded. "We'll talk about your situation at a later date. But you will not be a prisoner in your own home. While I cannot permit you to leave Lux without a formal inquiry into your case, you are allowed to roam it at your leisure. Stay close to your phone, I'll need of you soon."

Jasmine's heart began to steady itself. "Yes ma'am."

"Get started, right away. We need to know what's out there." The line went dead.

--

Pan paused for a moment. She searched Eleanor's face for...something.

"...what?" Eleanor chuckled nervously.

"Her Majesty the Queen placed you on a doorstep and you became a Shadow instead of a princess," Pan said. "If given the choice, would you have changed anything?"

Eleanor's brow furrowed. "...no. But I'm sure many others in Child Conditioning would have loved to have a choice...if they were old enough to make such decisions when they were..." The words turned to gravel in her mouth.

"There's so much...wrong in this organization. Wrong that we are just supposed to be ok with. Wrong that my father helped perpetuate." Pan shook her head. "No one else gets taken. No one. Child Conditioning is over."

@shadedjasmine

[galacticterror]

how many people know that ‘nautical deborah’ is a liberian crude oil tanker?

#this post has no emotion as i am tired. just thinking about her #ZO 1 #(i should make a 1am post tag. these are awful posts)

[cchexmex]

Nautical Deborah

#some of these names are #hmmm yes

[softlouve]

Tagged by Miss Elsa (@strawberryhabit) thank you!! 💗

name: Deborah (I go by debbie)

nickname: debbie, deb, debo

zodiac sign: Capricorn

height: 160cm

nationality: Indonesian

languages spoken: Indonesian and English

what time is it: 5:10 pm

celebrity crush(es): OT5, Lana Del Rey, Margot Robbie, Felicity Jones etc

favourite fictional character(s): Jack Shephard (from LOST)

favourite musician: The 1D boys + Zayn, Coldplay, Lana, KoL, etc

favourite sports team: umm....

favourite season: we only have 2 seasons (hot & dry) but idk

favourite flower: roses, daisies, sunflowers and peonies 

favourite scent: fresh, florally and sweet

favourite animal: doggies n kitties

favourite food: bread, pasta and spicy food!!

dream car: Range Rover or vintage Cadillac

dream trip: Europe

instruments: recorder (lol)

coffee, tea or hot chocolate: coffee & tea 

dog or cat person: both ♡

following: 200

followers: 170 (this blog is still a baby but thanks so much for following! x )

other blogs: I have a multifandom one

blog established: April 14th 2020 (told ya, a baby :>)

do you have a tumblr crush: yea all my wonderful mutuals <333

do you get asks: sometimes :)

what is your lucky number: 2

what are you wearing right now: shorts and tee

drink of choice: water or lemon water 

number of blankets you sleep with: one

average sleep hours: 7-9 hours

random fact: I love pirates/nautical fiction so much sjdjaks

Tagging: @pupperlouis @thesunflowertour @moonshinelouis @tomllnsons @herefortommo @inspiredbylouis if you guys want (and anyone else who wants to do this, just say I tagged you :) x

#about

[newstfionline]

Headlines

Social distancing could last months, White House coronavirus coordinator says (Washington Post) Some form of social distancing will probably remain in place through the summer, Deborah Birx, the White House’s coronavirus task force coordinator, said Sunday—the same day several governors expressed optimism about the course of the virus and outlined their plans for a piecemeal reopening of their economies. After weeks of being told to simply stay home to halt the spread of the virus, individuals and business owners are now facing more complex decisions about how to proceed. In places where restaurant dining rooms are reopening, is it safe to go? Is it a good idea to return to the hair salon for a much-needed trim? And for business owners facing a litany of new guidelines about how to reopen without endangering their workers or customers, are the risks worth it?

Las Vegas and the jobs crisis (NYT) As the bottom fell out of the American economy, few places were hit harder than Las Vegas, where a full one-third of the local economy is in the leisure and hospitality industry, more than in any other major metropolitan area in the country. Most of those jobs cannot be done from home. Nearly 350,000 people in Nevada have filed for unemployment benefits since the crisis began, the highest number in the history of the state. Applied Analysis, a Las Vegas-based economic research firm, estimates the city’s current jobless rate to be about 25 percent—nearly double what it was during the Great Recession—and rising. “From an analytical standpoint, this is unprecedented,” said Jeremy Aguero, a principal analyst with the firm. “We have no frame of reference for what we are seeing.” Before the crisis, Nevada’s economy was one of the fastest growing in the country. Then, practically overnight, the glittering Vegas strip shut down, throwing thousands of waiters, bartenders, hotel cleaners and casino workers out of work, often without severance or benefits, and leaving the most bustling and storied stretch of the state’s economy boarded up and empty.

Bolsonaro Pulls Back Justice Minister Pick as Critics Cry Foul (Foreign Policy) Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has postponed the appointment of a new justice minister after numerous news reports suggested Bolsonaro loyalist Jorge Oliveira would be the favorite for the role. The decision follows an explosive few days at the top of Brazilian politics as allegations of presidential corruption mount and public confidence in Bolsonaro’s handling of the country’s coronavirus epidemic crumbles. The latest episode began on Friday with the abrupt resignation of Justice Minister Sergio Moro, after Bolsonaro had fired the head of Brazil’s equivalent to the FBI, Maurício Valeixo. In his resignation press conference, Moro alleged Bolsonaro had fired Valeixo for personal and political reasons relating to ongoing federal investigations into Bolsonaro’s children. Immediately following Moro’s remarks, Brazil’s chief prosecutor asked the Supreme Court to authorize an investigation of Moro’s accusations against Bolsonaro. Writing in FP last week, Eduardo Mello observed that Brazilian lawmakers will be loath to remove Bolsonaro if that risks empowering Vice President Hamilton Mourão, a retired four-star general. “While most in Congress know that Bolsonaro’s populist rhetoric is a threat to them, they also think that having a general with no links to the country’s political power brokers is a bigger risk at the moment,” he wrote.

Chile plans coronavirus certificates (Foreign Policy) Chile is moving forward with a plan to issue “release certificates” to those who have recovered from the coronavirus. The plan, according to Chile’s top health official, Jaime Manalich, would mean holders would be “freed from all types of quarantine or restriction, specifically because they can help their communities enormously since they pose no risk.”

Virus spreads fear through Latin America’s unruly prisons (AP) The spreading specter of the new coronavirus is shaking Latin America’s notoriously overcrowded, unruly prisons, threatening to turn them into an inferno. The Puente Alto prison in downtown Santiago, Chile, had the largest of Latin America’s largest prison virus outbreaks so far, with more than 300 reported cases. The prison’s 1,100 inmates are terrified. Social distancing is hard to practice in jail. Latin America’s prisons hold 1.5 million inmates, and the facilities are often quasi-ruled by prisoners themselves because of corruption, intimidation and inadequate guard staffs. Low budgets also create ideal conditions for the virus to spread: There is often little soap and water and cell blocks are crowded.

As Europe confronts coronavirus, the media faces a trust test (Nieman Reports) By and large, European COVID-19 coverage is not increasing the public’s trust in the media. In an Edelman survey, journalists were the least trusted information source on the coronavirus, falling behind politicians and healthcare CEOs. This response follows five years of declining trust in the European Union’s media, and in some countries, the numbers are quite stark. About a week into Italy’s COVID-19 lockdown, a TradeLab study found that only 16 percent of those surveyed believed news on the pandemic was balanced and transparent.

Dutch teens sail across Atlantic after becoming stranded in Caribbean (Washington Post) When the global pandemic made air travel impossible, a group of Dutch high school students stranded in the Caribbean got home the old-fashioned way—sailing a 200-foot schooner across the Atlantic. The 25 teenagers on board the Wylde Swan sailed into the port of Harlingen and were reunited with their families on Sunday, roughly five weeks after leaving the island of Saint Lucia. Many of the students had minimal sailing experience when they signed up for an educational program aboard the two-masted schooner and had anticipated spending only six weeks cruising the relatively calm waters of the Caribbean. They eventually embarked on a journey of nearly 4,500 nautical miles across the ocean. Along the way, the students gradually got past their seasickness and watched dolphins swim alongside the vessel. One 17-year-old told the Omrop Fryslan Dutch radio station that it had been “an even more exciting journey than what I had signed up for.”

Face masks become mandatory in public across most of Germany (Washington Post) Most federal states across Germany implemented rules on the wearing of face masks in public on Monday, amid hopes that it will allow businesses to reopen without sparking a second wave of infections. The details differ between federal states. For instance in Berlin, face masks are mandatory on public transport, but violating the rule will not be penalized. In Munich and other cities, however, the rules are expected to be more strictly enforced with hefty fines. Face masks are now also mandatory in supermarkets and other shops across much of the country.

Dry Germany, drying Rhine (Bloomberg) Germany’s spring showers haven’t materialized this year, and that’s drying out the country’s most important river (the Rhine), prompting concerns that key industrial goods might have trouble making it to their destination. Typically one of the wettest months, Europe’s biggest economy has received just 5% of its normal April rainfall so far, according to Germany’s federal weather service. It’s on course to be the driest month since records began in 1881.​

The right to work from home (Bild am Sonntag) German Labor and Social Affairs Minister Hubertus Heil has called to enshrine the right to work from home into German law, in a move that could become more common as advanced economies emerge from their coronavirus epidemics. “Anyone who wants to, and whose workplace allows it, should be able to work at home—even when the coronavirus pandemic is over,” Heil told Bild am Sonntag.

Saving Czech pubs (Worldcrunch) With more than 90% of pubs closed due to lockdown measures, the Czech Republic has been deprived of an emblematic part of its culture. In response, Czechs have spent 7 million CZK (257,124 euro) since the beginning of April on beer and food vouchers to be consumed in better times, reported iROZHLAS.cz. Started by the Czech Beer and Malt Association, the site “Zachraň svou hospodu!” (Save Your Pub!) enables concerned drinkers to buy vouchers in order to support their favorite bars and restaurants through the coronavirus shutdown, and use them whenever the cash-strapped pubs reopen.

Mideast economies take massive hit with oil price crash (AP) Iraq is planning painful cuts in social benefits relied on by millions of government workers. Saudi Arabia will likely have to delay mega-projects. Egypt and Lebanon face a blow as their workers in the Gulf send back less of the much-needed dollars that help keep their fragile economies afloat. The historic crash in oil prices in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic is reverberating across the Middle East as crude-dependent countries scramble to offset losses from a key source of state revenue—and all this at a time when several of them already face explosive social unrest. While some Gulf countries can rely on a cushion of foreign currency reserves, nowhere in the region are the circumstances more dire than in Iraq, where oil sales fund 90% of the state budget. Iraq saw massive protests in the past months by a populace angry over the weak economy and rampant corruption—and the turmoil could erupt again. Cutbacks in spending will only add to the pain for a population struggling to get by under coronavirus restrictions.

Lebanese defy coronavirus lockdown and block roads, protesting deteriorating economy (AP) Protesters took the streets across Lebanon late Sunday, blocking roads and highways to protest the worsening economy, in defiance of a coronavirus-triggered lockdown and curfew imposed by authorities, according to the country’s official news agency. Sunday’s demonstrations were the latest to rock Lebanon in recent days, even as a lockdown and a dusk-to-dawn curfew remained in place. The coronavirus pandemic has deepened Lebanon’s worst economic crisis since the nation’s 15 year civil war that ended in 1990. Since October, hundreds of thousands have demonstrated against the government and its elites, decrying corruption and other mismanagement that has crippled the economy.

Netanyahu confident of U.S. backing on annexation (Foreign Policy) On Sunday, Benjamin Netanyahu told a pro-Israel Christian group, the European Commission for Israel, that he was confident the United States would give its blessing to a planned annexation of parts of the occupied West Bank in a matter of months. A condition of Netanyahu’s newly formed coalition with Benny Gantz is that Washington must approve any annexation decision first. Writing in Foreign Policy on April 23, a trio of seasoned Israeli military commanders warned Netanyahu against such a move. Ami Ayalon (a former chief of the Israeli Shin Bet security service), Tamir Pardo (a former director of the Mossad), and Gadi Shamni (a former commander of the Israel Defense Forces Central Command) argued that annexation would undermine Israeli security and could spark a popular backlash in Jordan and Egypt—endangering hard-won peace treaties with those countries. “This irreversible step, once taken, is likely to trigger a chain reaction beyond Israel’s control,” they wrote.

#headlines #news