| We Could Be Approaching Peak Beef Posted: 23 Nov 2019 04:00 PM PST  (Bloomberg Opinion) -- If you want a picture of the future, imagine a human face biting into a burger — forever.That's certainly a popular view of the way the human diet is headed. As the world's population grows and incomes rise, we'll inevitably eat far more beef — the meat that's considered the most expensive and prestigious in a remarkably wide range of cultures.That's a worrying prospect for the planet. Grazing and providing animal feed for cattle already accounts for about 60% of the world's agricultural land despite the fact that beef provides just 2% of calories. Domesticated cows and buffalo produce about 5 billion tons of carbon-equivalent emissions each year, the same as roughly one-seventh of all fossil-fuel emissions. Western countries need to reduce beef consumption by about 90% to avert disastrous climate change, according to a report last year.The good news is that cutting back this craving isn't nearly as improbable as many think. Indeed, there's ample evidence around that we may soon be approaching peak beef. While production is still creeping up, the pace of growth has slowed markedly in recent years. The compound annual growth rate over the past decade was just 0.11%, based on data from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. That's the slowest rate since the decade to 2001, when the impact of bovine spongiform encephalopathy or "mad cow disease" dealt a severe blow to eating beef in Europe and elsewhere, and well below forecasts of a growth rate just shy of 1% a year over the coming decade.Even in beef-loving America, appetites are changing. Thanks to decades of health warnings about red meat, chicken consumption overtook beef all the way back in the 1990s. Pork has been threatening to move ahead of beef for several years, too. While the population of the U.S. has grown about 40% since the 1980s, beef consumption is up just 15%.The change is even more dramatic in other parts of the world. Beef production in Europe in 2017 was 26% below its peak level in 1991; in Russia, it had fallen 55% from a 1992 peak. Even the ranching cultures of the Americas appear to be losing their appetite for steak and chuck: Production in Canada and Argentina in 2017 had fallen 41% and 16% from peaks in the mid-2000s.The wildcard in all this is the pace of consumption growth in emerging economies. If they converge on the levels seen in the Americas and Oceania, then we're just in the foothills of the growth in beef consumption. But it's an open question whether that's going to be the case.China, a country that once considered beef as exotic an ingredient as palm civet and water deer, has been the driver of that growth in recent decades. That process may already be all but played out, though. China's per-capita beef consumption is already on a par with far richer Singapore and Taiwan, and is approaching the levels where Japan's appetites topped out in the early 1990s; among affluent East Asian countries, only South Korea is still showing a rising trend of beef consumption.(1)China's domestic beef industry appears to have long since hit capacity limits, with the inventory of cattle stable at around 100 million head to 108 million head for a decade. Imports have been supplementing that, a trend that may be accentuated by the decline in domestic pork production this year thanks to African swine fever. But a major shift to imports could be a challenge, given that outside of the wealthiest cities most beef is bought fresh from wet markets, rather than the frozen or chilled packaged meat that's best-suited to international trade.More to the point is the fact that China's population peak is just over three years away. After that, the next wave of growth in the global middle-class will be found in India, where for religious reasons eating cows is even less likely to reach rich-country levels. Buffalo is another matter, and comprises about two-thirds of India's bovine meat production — but that, too, has been caught up in often violent Hindu nationalist politics. Abattoirs in the country's largest state were ordered to shut in 2017 because of fears among religious groups that cows as well as buffalo were being slaughtered. Taken together, India's increase in beef and buffalo consumption over the past decade was smaller than that of Guatemala.Indeed, it's quite possible that the fastest growth in consumption over the coming decade comes not from the usual-suspect emerging markets in China and Southeast Asia, but from less-heralded regions like Central Asia, the Middle East and Africa. That may not be enough to compensate if the largest markets in North America, Europe, Oceania and India continue to decline or post flat growth.The world has had an almost unlimited appetite for beef in recent decades. It may soon be sated.(1) We're excluding Hong Kong, where the highest per-capita consumption rates in the world are likely due to transferacross the border to China.To contact the author of this story: David Fickling at dfickling@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Patrick McDowell at pmcdowell10@bloomberg.netThis column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.David Fickling is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering commodities, as well as industrial and consumer companies. He has been a reporter for Bloomberg News, Dow Jones, the Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times and the Guardian.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Johnson’s Conservatives Pledge to Lock U.K. Income Tax Rates Posted: 23 Nov 2019 04:00 PM PST ![Johnson's Conservatives Pledge to Lock U.K. Income Tax Rates]( "Johnson's Conservatives Pledge to Lock U.K. Income Tax Rates") (Bloomberg) -- Boris Johnson's Conservative Party will pledge not to increase several key tax measures if it wins next month's general election, part of a manifesto document that's set to promise to return the Brexit bill to Parliament before Christmas.In a document liberally sprinkled with phrases such as "get Brexit done," "unleash Britain's potential" and "the people's priorities," the headline pitch is a promise not to raise the rates of income tax, national insurance or value-added tax during the next Tory government.The manifesto, to be officially presented later on Sunday, also includes plans for record spending on infrastructure, science and training the workforce, as well as more money for the childcare and a promise not to export plastic waste to non-OECD countries. There's no mention of how the various measures would affect the government's finances."Our positive, One Nation agenda will unite this great country not just for Christmas but for years to come," Johnson said in a statement. "We are offering hope and optimism where the Labour Party only offer hate and division."It's Johnson's biggest attempt to build clear water between his party and Jeremy Corbyn's Labour -- and to show voters that the Tories have turned their backs on years of austerity. The Labour manifesto includes radical plans to bring the nation's railways, water supplies and broadband grid under state ownership -- measures that would be funded by taxes on companies and the rich.In another sign that the National Health Service is set to dominate at least part of the debate for the next few weeks, Johnson flicked at "our fantastic NHS staff" and announced measures to force hospitals to provide free car parking to certain groups. No NHS Trust will be left with less money because of the charge, according to the manifesto.While a slew of opinion polls suggest the Conservatives retain a solid lead, the nature of Britain's first-past-the-post voting system means that a majority government isn't necessarily a given. The election is set for Dec. 12.According to an analysis of YouGov polls conducted by Datapraxis, which used a similar model to accurately predict the 2017 result, the Tories would win a 48-seat majority, but several big names -- including Johnson and Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab -- are in danger of losing their seats if people vote tactically.Robert Struthers, BMG's head of polling, attributed an increase in the Conservatives' lead to the decision by the Brexit Party not to contest any seats held by the Tories."Much of this increase is likely a reflection of the Conservatives simply piling up more votes in seats they would have already won, and perhaps only making the difference in defending a handful of their own marginal constituencies," the Independent quoted him as saying.Backing BrexitJohnson also spelled out plans to bring his Brexit bill back to Parliament before the Christmas recess, assuming his party wins an absolute majority, with the aim of Britain leaving the European Union by the end of January. Johnson says all his party's candidates have promised to back the bill.He also took a swipe at Corbyn's recent declaration that he'd stay neutral in the event of another Brexit referendum and played on the idea of whether his opponent was trustworthy, a theme that was batted back and forth in the BBC's latest audience Q&A program, "Question Time.""If Corbyn can't decide how he would vote in his own referendum, why would the EU even give him a deal -- and, more importantly how can we possibly trust him to lead the country?" Johnson said.Transport minister Grant Shapps, in an article for the Sunday Telegraph, continued the Corbyn-bashing theme by accusing the Labour leader's "friends in the unions" of planning a politically motivated strike in the run-up to Christmas. In a play for the commuter vote in southern England, Shapps said a Conservative government would force train companies to run a minimum service even if there's a walkout.And in the Sunday Times, cabinet minister Michael Gove launched a more general, economics-based attack on Corbyn -- one that managed to make several war references, from "Great Escape" and "war of attrition" to "Stalingrad" and "trench warfare."(Adds comment from ministers)To contact the reporter on this story: James Ludden in New York at jludden@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Matthew G. Miller at mmiller144@bloomberg.net, Tony CzuczkaFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| UK's Johnson pitches 'Christmas present' Brexit push in manifesto Posted: 23 Nov 2019 02:00 PM PST ![UK's Johnson pitches 'Christmas present' Brexit push in manifesto]( "UK's Johnson pitches 'Christmas present' Brexit push in manifesto") British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will promise to bring his Brexit deal back to parliament before Christmas when he launches his manifesto on Sunday, the cornerstone of his pitch to voters to "get Brexit done". Voters face a stark choice at the country's Dec. 12 election: opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn's socialist vision, including widespread nationalisation and free public services, or Johnson's drive to deliver Brexit within months and build a "dynamic market economy". Opinion polls show Johnson's Conservative Party commands a sizeable lead over the Labour Party, although large numbers of undecided voters means the outcome is not certain.
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| US security adviser says world silent on China camps Posted: 23 Nov 2019 12:39 PM PST  President Donald Trump's new national security adviser is criticizing what he says is silence from the rest of the world over China's confinement of more than 1 million Muslims in reeducation camps, linking the lack of a global outcry to China's economic clout. National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien also questioned whether international leaders will stand up if Beijing carries out a Tiananmen Square-style crackdown on the pro -democracy protests in Hong Kong. O'Brien met with journalists and was interviewed by a moderator at the Halifax International Security Forum on Saturday.
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| Israeli PM’s challenger proposes unity government rotation Posted: 23 Nov 2019 10:51 AM PST  The chief challenger to Israel's embattled Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is proposing to lead a unity government with Netanyahu's Likud party. Blue and White candidate Benny Gantz says Saturday he would head the government for two years and then Netanyahu would lead the following two years — if he is acquitted of corruption charges. It was Gantz's first concrete offer to extract Israel from its political impasse since the country's attorney general announced Thursday Netanyahu would be indicted.
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| U.S. military officials are worried Iran could target desalination plants in the Gulf Posted: 23 Nov 2019 10:20 AM PST ![U.S. military officials are worried Iran could target desalination plants in the Gulf]( "U.S. military officials are worried Iran could target desalination plants in the Gulf") Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, the commander of U.S. Central Command, is wary of another attack from Iran in the Gulf, Foreign Policy reports."I think the strike on Saudi Aramco in September is pretty indicative of a nation that is behaving irresponsibly," McKenzie said. "My judgment is that it is very possible they will attack again."McKenzie did not cite any evidence, so perhaps it's more of a gut feeling, but his concern seems real. "I wouldn't discount anything from Iran," he said.He pledged Saturday while speaking at a conference in Bahrain that the United States would maintain its security commitment to the Gulf Region.The general said he fears that Iran could orchestrate a drone- and missile-heavy attack, in the same vein of the Aramco attacks, which the U.S. and its European allies blame Tehran for, despite the latter's denial. And it appears that the U.S. military has a worst-case scenario for where such a strike might take place. One official told Foreign Policy that they're particularly focused on potential threats on desalination plants in the arid Gulf region. An attack on the plants would put the region's primary source of drinking water at risk, which could spur a humanitarian crisis. The official said targeting the plants would be a "gamechanger." Read more at Foreign Policy.More stories from theweek.com Where is Nancy Pelosi on impeachment? Outed CIA agent Valerie Plame is running for Congress, and her launch video looks like a spy movie trailer Pence praises Kurds during surprise Iraq visit
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| Iran Has A New Missile, Should Israel Be Worried? Posted: 23 Nov 2019 09:00 AM PST  Iran wants to give its regional allies precision-guided missiles.
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| By Cracking Down On Protests, Iran's Regime Is Creating Its Own Worst Enemy Posted: 23 Nov 2019 08:30 AM PST  The real future of Iran—in the long term if not immediately—may rest among those already imprisoned for their beliefs.
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| Libya’s coast guard intercepts more than 430 migrants Posted: 23 Nov 2019 06:35 AM PST ![Libya's coast guard intercepts more than 430 migrants]( "Libya's coast guard intercepts more than 430 migrants") Libya's coast guard intercepted more than 430 Europe-bound migrants this week, including a pregnant woman who gave birth to a baby girl on a boat off the war-torn country's Mediterranean coast, the guard said Saturday. Four boats carrying 284 migrants were intercepted in separate operations off the coastal towns of Zawya, Garabulli and Abu-Kemmash, and the city of Tripoli, the coast guard said in a statement. In a separate statement, the coast guard stopped another boat with 99 migrants on board off the coast town of Khoms on Thursday.
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| The Latest: US, Kurds target Islamic State in joint action Posted: 23 Nov 2019 05:35 AM PST  American-led forces and their Syrian Kurdish allies have carried out their biggest joint operation against the Islamic State in Syria since President Donald Trump ordered a pullback of U.S. forces there. The U.S.-led coalition said Saturday that hundreds of U.S.-allied Syrian Kurdish forces took part in Friday's action. The news comes on the same day Vice President Mike Pence visited Iraq and worked to reassure America's Kurdish allies in the region.
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| Putin calls for initiative from Russia's crisis-hit ruling party Posted: 23 Nov 2019 05:11 AM PST  Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday told United Russia to take initiative rather than wait for his lead as the ruling party struggles to overcome plummeting popularity after a long period of political dominance. Putin addressed the annual convention of the party, which is widely seen as a rubber-stamp for the Kremlin and analysts say often takes the heat for any unpopular government decisions. United Russia, which was established in 2001 and turns 18 next weekend, has been a legislative powerhouse, enjoying a constitutional majority in the parliament's lower house since 2007.
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| Independent Egyptian media outlet says editor arrested Posted: 23 Nov 2019 05:04 AM PST ![Independent Egyptian media outlet says editor arrested]( "Independent Egyptian media outlet says editor arrested") A prominent investigative media outlet in Egypt says security forces have detained one of its editors, the latest arrest amid a wider crackdown on dissent. Mada Masr, one of a shrinking number of independent news websites in Egypt, said Shady Zalat, 37, was arrested from his home in Cairo early Saturday. Egypt has arrested at least 3,000 people since September amid a sweeping crackdown following rare anti-government protests.
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| The Latest: Advocacy group: Iran restoring internet access Posted: 23 Nov 2019 04:44 AM PST ![The Latest: Advocacy group: Iran restoring internet access]( "The Latest: Advocacy group: Iran restoring internet access") An advocacy group says internet connectivity is rapidly being restored in Iran after a weeklong government-imposed shutdown in response to widespread protests. There were reports that internet service remained spotty in the capital, Tehran, though others around the country began reporting they could again access it.
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| Pence works to reassure Kurdish allies in surprise Iraq trip Posted: 23 Nov 2019 04:43 AM PST  Vice President Mike Pence worked to reassure the United States' Kurdish allies in an unannounced trip to Iraq on Saturday, the highest-level American trip since President Donald Trump ordered a pullback of U.S. forces in Syria two months ago. Flying in a C-17 military cargo aircraft, Pence landed in Irbil, capital of Iraq's semiautonomous Kurdish region, to meet with Iraqi Kurdistan President Nechirvan Barzani.
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| Iraqi officials: 2 protesters dead amid ongoing clashes Posted: 23 Nov 2019 04:35 AM PST  Iraqi security forces fired rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse crowds of protesters Saturday, killing two people in a third day of fierce clashes in central Baghdad, security and hospital officials said. Two protesters were struck with rubber bullets and died instantly and over 20 others were wounded in the fighting on Rasheed Street, a famous avenue known for its old crumbling architecture and now littered with rubble from days of violence. At least 342 protesters have died in Iraq's massive protests, which started on Oct. 1 when thousands of Iraqis took to the streets to decry corruption and lack of services despite Iraq's oil wealth.
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| Bavarian Steals the Show as Merkel Party Wrestles With Leader Posted: 23 Nov 2019 04:33 AM PST ![Bavarian Steals the Show as Merkel Party Wrestles With Leader]( "Bavarian Steals the Show as Merkel Party Wrestles With Leader") (Bloomberg) -- The leader of Angela Merkel's Christian Democratic Union may have thwarted her critics for now, but a raucous speech by a key Bavarian ally made clear that questions over her leadership will linger.A day after CDU chairwoman Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer foiled rivals with a confidence vote at the party's annual meeting, Markus Soeder, the leader of the Bavarian Christian Social Union, gave a speech that drew cheers, sustained applause and highlighted some of the shortcomings of Kramp-Karrenbauer.The Bavarian state premier's focused and snappy speech contrasted with the CDU chief's 87-minute, often rambling, keynote address on Friday. AKK, as she's known, has been battered by missteps and electoral losses, and last month faced an open challenge to her leadership.Merkel, 65, who during much of the convention sat quietly observing the proceedings, perked up and walked across stage to sit down for a lengthy chat with AKK and Soeder, who has been mentioned as a possible successor to the chancellor who has been in office for 14 years.While AKK, 57, jumped from primary education to block-chain technology and family values in her address, Soeder cut to the point, tearing into the far-right Alternative for Germany, or AfD, as "the enemy" and accusing the Greens of having a moral double standard.CDU members lapped it up."AfD functionaries don't want to take us back to the 70s, they want to take us back to the 30s," Soeder said. The Greens, he said, support expanded mobile service, but protest every cellular base station.Soeder, 52, is far from a front runner. Over nearly two years as Bavarian prime minister and less than a year as CSU chief he focused mostly on building his power base in Munich.The CDU and Bavarian CSU, which campaign jointly on the national level, have put forward a Bavarian candidate for the chancellorship only twice in Germany's post-World War II history, in 1980 and 2002.To contact the reporters on this story: Patrick Donahue in Leipzig, Germany at pdonahue1@bloomberg.net;Arne Delfs in Leipzig, Germany at adelfs@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Ben Sills at bsills@bloomberg.net, Raymond ColittFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Your Weekend Reading: The Unthinkable Posted: 23 Nov 2019 04:30 AM PST  (Bloomberg) -- Want to receive a daily news briefing, including this weekend edition, in your inbox every day? Sign up here Charles Schwab is testing the limits of megadeals with its plan to buy TD Ameritrade, a tieup that would reshape the online brokerage industry. Investors face risk in many places these days: Congressional anger over the treatment of Hong Kong democracy protesters shaded trade talks with China; collaterallized loan obligations are a growing source of concern; even ArtGo's share bubble blew up. The U.K., meanwhile, may be headed for the unthinkable. Perhaps just in time, an old-school alternative is making a comeback—safe deposit vaults are booming.The U.K. general election on Dec. 12 is all about Brexit. Subscribe to our daily newsletter, follow us on Twitter and sign up for our podcast.What you'll want to read this weekendBloomberg Businessweek reports how former Barclays employees are haunted by a U.K. doctor's alleged sexual assaults.With Uber and WeWork struggling, investors are questioning how good venture capital firms really are at picking winners. Taking Walgreens private may make its CEO a winner, but $70 billion is pricey even for KKR.Another hedge fund giant bit the dust, a victim of central-bank easing.This year's vegan Thanksgiving options include a stuffed, soy-based, encrusted faux turkey breast. Real turkeys are cheaper, though sweet potato prices are up.After the bug-ridden release of iOS 13, Apple is overhauling how it tests software. Over at Google, many employees don't want to do business with the Pentagon.What you'll need to know next weekPowell makes his first speech since last week's White House visit. HP, Deere and Best Buy report earnings. Hong Kong holds municipal elections; Uruguay elects a president. Alibaba makes its trading debut in Hong Kong. Black Friday kicks off the U.S. holiday shopping season.What you'll want to see in Bloomberg GraphicsWhile his impeachment defense hanging by a thread, the Congressional inquiry is just one of many probes and lawsuits facing President Donald Trump. Here's a guide to the biggest, from allegations he obstructed the investigation into Russia's interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election to women who allege Trump sexually assaulted them. To contact the author of this story: Tony Czuczka in New York at aczuczka@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: David Rovella at drovella@bloomberg.netFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Internet outage forces Iranians to resort to old ways Posted: 23 Nov 2019 03:48 AM PST  The internet restrictions, for their part, apparently aimed to temper shows of dissent and anger over the move and stop footage of the unrest from being shared. Brigadier General Salar Abnoosh, a deputy head of the Basij volunteer militia, said Friday that the internet outage had helped to "disrupt the complicated" plans by Iran's enemies. On Saturday -- day seven of the internet restrictions and the start of the working week in Iran -- people in Tehran were trying to overcome problems brought on by the outage.
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| German 5G bidders must guarantee no foreign state meddling: CDU Posted: 23 Nov 2019 03:45 AM PST  Bidders for German 5G rollout contracts must guarantee the network will be free of foreign state influence, Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats agreed on Saturday, stopping short of singling out China's Huawei. After a heated debate, delegates at the Christian Democratic Union's (CDU) party congress backed a motion stipulating that 5G suppliers must fulfill a "clearly defined security catalog, which includes the exclusion of influence by a foreign state". Some CDU lawmakers want China's Huawei, which the United States fears could be used by Beijing for spying, to be excluded from 5G contracts in the country.
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| Egypt unveils animal mummies of lion cubs, crocodiles, birds Posted: 23 Nov 2019 03:43 AM PST  Egypt's Ministry of Antiquities on Saturday revealed details on recently discovered animal mummies, saying they include two lion cubs as well as several crocodiles, birds and cats. Items from the new find were displayed at a makeshift exhibition at the famed Step Pyramid of Djoser in Saqqara, south of Cairo, near where mummies and other artifacts have been found in a vast necropolis.
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| Germany again deports Lebanese convict back to Beirut Posted: 23 Nov 2019 03:23 AM PST ![Germany again deports Lebanese convict back to Beirut]( "Germany again deports Lebanese convict back to Beirut") German authorities have again deported a Lebanese man who was convicted of drug dealing and deported earlier this year but then returned to Germany. The German news agency dpa reported that Ibrahim Miri was handed over to Lebanese authorities on Saturday in Beirut. Miri was earlier deported to Lebanon in July and was banned from re-entering Europe's visa-free Schengen travel area, which includes Germany.
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| French minister criticizes US over ‘unanswered’ Iran attacks Posted: 23 Nov 2019 02:29 AM PST  France's defense minister criticized the U.S. on Saturday over what she described as "unanswered" attacks in recent months threatening the Persian Gulf, warning that the decades-long American deterrence in the oil-rich region appeared to be losing its power. Florence Parly separately said France "deplored" both U.S. President Donald Trump's unilateral withdrawal of America from Iran's 2015 nuclear deal with world powers that led to the re-imposition of crushing sanctions, as well as Tehran recently breaking the deal's enrichment, stockpile and centrifuge limits. While saying France would continue to talk to Iran, her speech before the annual Manama Dialogue in Bahrain struck a muscular tone for Paris, which maintains a naval base in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.
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| Blast in Syrian town held by Turkey-backed gunmen kills 3 Posted: 23 Nov 2019 01:44 AM PST  A car bomb exploded in a Turkey-controlled northern Syrian town on the border Saturday, killing at least three people, Turkey's Defense Ministry said. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based war monitor, put the death toll from the explosion in Tal Abyad at nine, saying four of them were from the same family. Turkish troops and Turkey-backed fighters captured Tal Abyad from Kurdish-led fighters in October as part of Ankara's ongoing invasion of northeastern Syria, where it is seeking to push back Syrian Kurdish fighters from its borders.
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| Merkel’s CDU Party Calls for Huawei Restriction From 5G Network Posted: 23 Nov 2019 01:32 AM PST ![Merkel's CDU Party Calls for Huawei Restriction From 5G Network]( "Merkel's CDU Party Calls for Huawei Restriction From 5G Network") (Bloomberg) -- Germany's ruling Christian Democrats approved a motion on Saturday that calls on the government to restrict Chinese equipment supplier Huawei Technologies Co. from participating in the country's planned 5G network.Merkel's Own Party Wants Outright Huawei Ban From 5G Networks"Only those suppliers can be trustworthy that are not under the influence of undemocratic states without a functioning rule of law," reads the text approved during the party convention in Leipzig.While the motion doesn't specifically mention Huawei, the debate preceding its approval left no doubt."Big companies in China have by law to serve the interest of the Communist party in China and cooperate with Chinese intelligence," said Norbert Roettgen, head of the parliamentary committee on foreign relations. "And therefore it must be clear -- we cannot entrust Germany's 5G network to the Chinese state and its Communist leadership."Roettgen's speech was met with strong applause. A previous proposal had called for an outright ban of Huawei, something the government said would not be tenable.Urged by hawks in Germany's intelligence service and the U.S. administration, the government recently agreed to ratchet up restrictions on Huawei that would block its components from the core network but allow them in less sensitive areas. Concerns in Washington and Berlin are over the risks of Huawei's ties to the Chinese government and 5G's susceptibility to sabotage or espionage.Chancellor Angela Merkel recently signaled she wouldn't consider the CDU motion as binding.(Updates with context.)To contact the reporter on this story: Arne Delfs in Leipzig at adelfs@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Ben Sills at bsills@bloomberg.net, Raymond ColittFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
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| France takes aim at US inaction in Mideast Posted: 23 Nov 2019 12:10 AM PST  French Defence Minister Florence Parly took aim Saturday at "gradual US disengagement" in the Middle East and said its failure to respond to provocations blamed on Iran set off a dangerous chain of events. Since May, tensions in the Gulf have increased with attacks against tankers, a US unmanned drone being downed, and strikes on key Saudi oil facilities. Iran was blamed but denied involvement.
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| Iran's internet blackout: What is happening, and why did the government turn it off? Posted: 23 Nov 2019 12:00 AM PST  What caused the internet shutdown in Iran? The Iranian government implemented a near-total shutdown of internet services after protests began on November 15. The uprisings were sparked by the announcement of hikes in petrol prices across the country of at least 50 per cent. They quickly spread to cities and towns across the country and turned political, with protestors demanding high-ranking officials step down. At least 106 protestors across 21 cities were estimated to have been killed in a report published Tuesday by Amnesty International. The Iranian government dismissed the estimate as "speculative." How does this compare to other internet shutdowns around the world? Iran is not the first country to employ an internet shutdown as a means to combat popular uprisings. Neighbouring Iraq, for instance, has sporadically cut citizens' access to internet since the start of anti-government protests on October 1. Over 320 protestors have been killed there since the uprising against rampant corruption and inefficiency began. Nevertheless, Iran's shutdown is unprecedented in its scale. Internet access – Change in Freedom Score Amin Sabeti, a researcher with digital security NGO Digital Impact Lab, said that no other shutdown has been implemented across such a large country, for such a length of time, and been so effective in preventing the dissemination of information. Citing recent shutdowns, he explained: "In Kashmir, Iraq or Sudan, you could still find journalists, they could report back – for instance from the BBC. For Iran it wasn't the case." Why did the government shut off the internet? The Iranian government has been trying to persuade users to subscribe to its own communications applications, but the vast majority of Iranians still use foreign-run apps like WhatsApp. Protestors were even using route planning app Waze to mobilise for demonstrations, explained Mahsa Alimardani, a PhD student and internet researcher at the Oxford Internet Institute and researcher at freedom of expression watchdog Article 19. As well as trying to reduce mobilisation, the Iranian government has been trying to control the narrative inside the country. "It's quite effective, when you force people not to have any sources of information but yours, controlling that narrative becomes very simple," said Ms Alimardani. What was the impact of the shutdown outside the country? The shutdown has also made the job of monitors and rights organisations outside the country very hard, explained Ms Alimardani. "Verification of some of these atrocities, mass deaths, mass arrests – it's become very hard with this internet shutdown because there's lots of misinformation," she said. "The misinformation is being promoted by the government itself and by outside forces with political agendas." How was the shutdown enacted? Shutting down internet services across a country of over 80 million people, with multiple internet providers, like Iran, is not easy. It took 24 hours to completely shut down traffic: authorities had to coordinate with a range of ISPs and mobile data providers to cut access, leaving connectivity levels at as little as five percent. Iran has been developing its own apps and a nationwide intranet, the National Information Network, for several years. Tehran has been encouraging businesses to sign up to and move their payment methods onto this national infrastructure for some time – this has made the economic impact of the shutdown easier to manage. What about international sanctions? Ironically, the Iranian government has perhaps been helped by wide-ranging American sanctions against it. With many US internet providers off-limits to Iranian consumers and businesses, many have been forced to use the state's platforms. "I don't think sanctions are entirely responsible for Iran's repressive policies and behaviour, but they've definitely been complimenting them," said Ms Alimardani. The situation on the streets in Iran remains unclear thanks to the internet shutdown Credit: Atta Kenare /AFP So what happens next? Internet access was reportedly being restored across the country as of Thursday, although by Friday it was still only at 15 per cent of normal levels, according to internet watchdog NetBlocks. The Iranian government may well have cause for concern in restoring full access to the internet, argued Mr Sabeti from Digital Impact Lab. All those protestors who have witnessed and recorded rights violations will once again be able to connect to the media: "If we see full connection, the scale of video evidence will be mindblowing," he said.
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| US military loses drone over Libyan capital Posted: 22 Nov 2019 10:11 PM PST ![US military loses drone over Libyan capital]( "US military loses drone over Libyan capital") The U.S. military said Friday it lost an unmanned drone aircraft over the Libyan capital, Tripoli, where rival armed groups have been fighting for control of the city for months. The U.S. Africa Command said the drone was lost Thursday while assessing the security situation and monitoring extremist activity. Since 2015, Libya has been divided between two governments, one based in Tripoli and the other in the country's east.
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| US judge awards $180M to Post reporter held by Iran Posted: 22 Nov 2019 06:34 PM PST  A U.S. federal judge has awarded a Washington Post journalist and his family nearly $180 million in their lawsuit against Iran over his 544 days in captivity and torture while being held on internationally criticized espionage charges. The order in the case filed by Jason Rezaian came as Iranian officials appeared to begin restoring the internet after a weeklong shutdown amid a security crackdown on protesters angered by government-set gasoline prices sharply rising. The U.S. government has sanctioned Iran's telecommunications minister in response to the internet shutdown.
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