OUTSOURCING TO CHINA

How North Korean hackers keep the regime afloat

As international sanctions increasingly isolate North Korea from global sources of finance, Pyongyang's army of hackers is ramping up attacks on vulnerable cryptocurrency accounts around the world.

Kim Jong Un's regime is reportedly using its hackers to access other people's money

A report released in mid-August by the US-based blockchain analysis company Chainalysis suggests that hackers stole $1.9 billion (€1.9 billion) in the first seven months of this year, up significantly from the $1.2 billion in cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, or Litecoin that was taken in the same period last year.

And from the digital fingerprints left in the hackers' wake, the company estimates that more than $1 billion of the total was stolen by "bad actors affiliated with North Korea, especially elite hacking units like Lazarus Group."

The hackers have a number of approaches to access cryptocurrency accounts, with North Korea's state-sponsored units presently focusing on exploiting decentralized finance protocols, it said. Also known as DeFi, this is an emerging technology in the sector that permits users to privately exchange cryptocurrencies without the need to go through an intermediary or involving public blockchains.

The problem with DeFi protocols, analysts point out, is that they use open source code that can be studied for weaknesses and then exploited by cybercriminals.

Hacks in a variety of guises take place on a daily basis, the experts agree, with criminals recently exploiting a vulnerability in General Bytes Bitcoin ATM servers to syphon off cryptocurrency during transactions and crypto start-up Nomad resorting to offering bounties for anyone who helps the company to trace $190 million in digital currency that was seized in a hacking attack in early August.

"Crypto hacks have been getting bigger year on year simply because the TVL [total value locked] in DeFi has been growing consistently," a South Korea-based analyst for a digital asset investment firm told DW.

'Preying on South Korean users'

"North Korean hackers have been extremely successful since the early 2000s, preying on South Korean users with voice phishing attacks and on local banking services, which is why Korean banks are so over the top with security in comparison with Western banks," said the analyst, who declined to be identified for security reasons.

South Korea's concerns first began to be realized in a series of incidents two decades ago in which hackers were able to carry out denial-of-service attacks on the South's infrastructure, from banks to power plants, hospitals and government ministries and agencies. Those attacks soon went further afield, with North Korea linked to the 2019 hacking attack on a nuclear power plant in India and the WannaCry ransomware attack that caused chaos in hospitals and other critical facilities around the world.

With sanctions on Pyongyang tightening as Kim Jong Un refused to bow to increasing international pressure over his nuclear and ICBM programs, the regime has been using its hackers to access other people's money. Some $81 million was taken in a 2016 robbery that is commonly known as the Bangladesh Bank cyber heist, but the emergence and rapid growth in relatively unregulated cryptocurrency has been an opportunity for North Korea.

There are broadly two methods that hackers employ, according to Aditya Das, an analyst at cryptocurrency research firm Brave New Coin in Auckland, New Zealand.

"As well as taking advantage of DeFi vulnerabilities — which the North Koreans have become very good at — another frequent tactic is spearfishing, or using social media sites under an assumed name to contact people who are in the cryptocurrency sector, opening a conversation with them, building a friendship and then asking about the technology they are working on," Das told DW.

Kim Jong Un has refused to bow to increasing international pressure over 

his nuclear and missile programs

"In many cases, they will then make an offer of a very well-paid job but ask for some evidence of the technology that the person is working on," he said. "As soon as they have some inside information or direct access, they can send a file with malware attached and access a system."

Das admits that unknown individuals reach out to him numerous times a day and that his spam file "is full of these approaches."

"Part of the problem is that the crypto space is not regulated or registered as these companies favor revenue over security," he added.

Once the cryptocurrency has been taken, it can often be very difficult to trace, although the authorities are getting more adept.

US sanctions hackers

On May 6, the US Department of the Treasury sanctioned virtual currency mixer Blender.io for supporting the "malicious cyber activities and money-laundering of stolen virtual currency" by North Korea. The agency identified the Lazarus Group as being behind a series of heists and providing the funds to the North Korean government "for its unlawful weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and ballistic missile programs."

The most lucrative hacking attack to date took place in March, when Ronin Network, a critical bridge chain, was attacked. The theft was put down to a "social engineering attack combined with human error" — suggesting that someone let down their guard and opened an infected attachment to an e-mail — and the hackers made off with more than $620 million.

North Korea's hunger for currency is not diminishing and Kim Jong Un has an army of skilled hackers at his disposal, so the experts fear more similar cases are inevitable.

"The DeFi community has a strong network of 'white hat' hackers who actively seek to combat this and assist," said the South Korea-based analyst. "But there is only so much they can do."

BITCOIN EXPLAINED: HOW IT WORKS AND WHAT IT IS GOOD FOR
The cryptic token
Bitcoin is thought of as a digital currency because it exists only virtually, without any physical coins or notes. It resides in a decentralized, encrypted network that is independent of commercial or central banks. This allows Bitcoin to be exchanged under the same conditions all around the globe. It's also a cryptocurrency, because it uses encryption to conceal users' identities and activities.
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Edited by: Shamil Shams

 

 

Russian propaganda spread on fake news sites

The website looks authentic, but it isn't. Fake news sites showing well-known media brand names are acting as vehicles for Russian propaganda, among other things.

These days it is getting increasingly difficult to tell real from fake news

A teenager falls off his bike and dies because he didn't see potholes in the dark without street lights. Ukrainians are allegedly buying apartments in Russia with aid money from Europe. Or there's a strange gas explosion in a school in the German city of Bremen caused by savings measures.

All of these fake reports have circulated online in the past few days. What is special about them is this: They appeared on websites closely resembling those of German news outlets such as spiegel.de, welt.de, bild.de and t-online. It is often barely possible to tell the difference from the original.

Misusing trusted brands

"Imitating websites and spreading fake news and propaganda via apparently reputable media outlets whose name has been misused is something that has not yet existed in this form in Germany," said Felix Kartte, head of Reset, an NGO that campaigns for the regulation of tech companies.

The journalist Lars Wienand, who exposed the most recent pro-Russian disinformation campaign in an article for t-online, found more than 30 such faked sites, and the German outlet succeeded in putting an end to the phenomenon relatively quickly.

"We saw it on August 26 and wrote to the server in the Netherlands straightaway. On August 29, the site had disappeared," Wienand told DW. "But it popped up again in Colombia shortly afterward."

The site has since been removed from the web there as well. "The colleagues were able to solve the problem with the help of the IT service company Cloudflare and the company with which the site had been registered," Wienand said.

No site notice, no contact

Unfortunately, such successes are rare. Many media outlets do not manage to contact the websites in question. "Because faked websites basically never have a site notice," says Weinand, there are no addresses or people to contact. And when the host is outside Europe, he said, any legal action is mostly in vain.

That is also the experience of publisher Axel Springer, which runs two of Germany's biggest daily newspapers, Die Welt and Bild. "Unfortunately, the instigators can almost never be pinned down," the company said in a statement. "As a rule, we examine whether anything can be done legally and, depending on the prospects of success, initiate our own proceedings or instruct external law offices to enforce our demands."

The publisher of Germany's Der Spiegel reached out to its readers directly, informing them in an article about the almost perfectly faked news websites with pro-Russian propaganda using the Spiegel design.

"Normally, we are very reticent about reporting on imitated websites because there are usually dubious, commercially motivated interests behind them that we do not want to reward by attracting our readers to them," the publishing house said. But it added that in the case of this current fake news campaign, the need to provide information took precedence.

EU Commissioner for Competition Policy Margrethe Vestager wants to better regulate online platfroms

Salvation through the 'Digital Services Act'?

This powerlessness to act in the face of constant fake-news waves on the internet could soon be over, says expert Felix Kartte. These practices would be "a good place to apply the Digital Services Act (DSA)," he said.

This act, passed in July this year by the European Parliament, requires platforms, among other things, to ratchet up their prevention and monitoring of, and reactions to, disinformation campaigns. It will probably go into force in the fall and must then be implemented by the EU member states.

Kartte is certain that "if the DSA was already in force, media outlets would have more effective ways to lodge complaints against the platforms, and the fake sites would have been taken down." He says media outlets are interested in the measure being implemented, as it would mean that fake sites would be deleted more quickly and that their effect would be curtailed in scope.

Evading regulators

Spiegel hopes the DSA will "make it easier to enforce the law with regard to content shared over major platforms."

The past had, however, shown time and time again that "distributors of illegal content usually find ways to keep reaching their audiences while evading regulators."

Even though Germany has never before experienced such a wave of fake reports circulated via phony websites, disinformation is hardly a new phenomenon in Europe. Back in 2018, a major Swedish fact-checking platform, established by five publishing houses, was imitated by a fraudulent website of the same appearance.

Josef Holnburger of Cemas, an organization that analyzes conspiracy theories and far-right content, argues that individuals who run disinformation campaigns should be banned from social media platfroms.

"Deplatforming works! Removing bad actors from platforms like YouTube means reducing their reach," says Holnburger. Adding that while they may set up new accounts on other platforms, in most cases, they will then be sharing these with a much smaller group of like-minded users only.

This article was translated from German

Russia warns Moldova over Transnistria troops

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has warned Moldova not to endanger its troops in Transnistria, or risk an attack. Russian forces have been stationed in the breakaway region in the country's east since the 1990s.

Transnistria's coat of arms

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov this week warned Moldova not toendanger Russian troops stationed in Transnistria, a pro-Russian breakaway region in the country's east, saying doing so could spark military confrontation.

In a television interview with a Russia station this Thursday, Lavrov said "any action that would threaten the security of our troops would be considered under international law as an attack on Russia."

Several hours earlier, Lavrov had accused Moldova's pro-European President Maia Sandu of blocking talks to resolve the Transnistria conflict. "Transnistria and Russia support direct dialogue, but judging by statements made by President Maia Sandu and her team, they do not want such dialogue, as they are being directed by the US and EU to reject talks," Lavrov said. "Apparently, they are seeking a non-diplomatic solution to the Transnistria problem."

Sergey Lavrov warned Moldova a military confrontation could be on the cards

Disingenious reasoning

Several days earlier, Transnistria's separatist leader Vadim Krasnoselsky had sent a letter to President Sandu requesting talks over a peaceful political solution to the Transnistria conflict. Moldova, however, only communicates with Transnistria's pro-Russian breakaway government through its bureau of reintegration, a governmental body headed by Moldovan Deputy Prime Minister Oleg Serebrian.

In the television interview, Lavrov also said Russia would defend Russian speakers in Moldova, reminding viewers that apart from Transnistria, the region of Gagauzia was also seeking special recognition in the country. He said he hoped "Molvoda's leadership would end the Western-dictated geopolitical games and instead think about the interests of the people, living side by side." In July this year, Lavrov already accused Moldova of working to "annul everything Russian, just like in Ukraine."

That same month, Moldova and Ukraine were granted EU candidate status.

Moldova's firm stance

Moldova's bureau of reintegration was quick to respond to Lavrov's comments. In a public statement, it said the country was committed to a peaceful resolution of the Transnistria conflict.

This, it added, entails "identifying a sustainable and comprehensive solution that respects the unified, sovereign and indivisible character of Moldova." It further said that such a solution would aim to consolidate Moldovan statehood, restore its territorial integrity and complete reforms throughout the country.

The governmental body also vehemently rejects claims that the rights of Russian speakers are being infringed. Instead, it claims that the rights of Romanian speakers with Moldovan passports are having their rights curtailed in Transnistria, where they are allegedly treated as foreigners.

Moldovan President Maia Sandu has urged Moldovans not to fall for Russian propaganda

Manipulation

Speaking via video link at the Bled Strategic Forum in late August, President Sandu said she was aware of numerous inappropriate Russian comments towards her country, as well as statements disrespecting Moldovan sovereignty. She also said her country was in a delicate place, with war raging nearby.

In an interview with Moldovan television, Sandu warned her citizens not to let themselves be manipulated by statements originating "from Transnistria, Moscow or pro-Russian politicians in [the Moldovan capital] Chisinau." She said she had received letters from Transnistria's separatist administration, yet stressed all communication must go through Moldova's bureau of reintegration. She said everything would be done to keep the peace.

Sandu said both sides had begun communicating more frequently since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which had stemmed from a desire to avoid any kind of destabilization.

Russian speakers are not being discriminated against

This is not the first time Russia is using the Russian language as a pretext to foment instability in Moldova. In March this year, Russia's Moldava embassy contacted Russians in the country, asking them to report any instances of "national, linguistic, cultural or religious" discrimination. Scores of Russian speakers in Moldova responded by launching an online petition, urging Moscow to leave the country alone, saying they had experienced no discrimination whatsoever.

Tiraspol, the capital of Moldova's breakaway region Transnistria

Moldova's foreign ministry warned the Russian embassy not to stir unrest in the country, with President Sandu stating all citizens of the country can live in peace, regardless of their spoken language.

Following Lavrov's statements, Moldovan Foreign Minister Nicu Popescuon Thursday summoned Moldova's Russian ambassador. His ministry also issued a statement underscoring Moldova's commitment to respect the rights of Russian, Ukrainian, Gagauzian, Bulgarian and other ethnic minorities.

Russia has kept what it calls peacekeeping troops stationed in Transnistria since the early 1990s, after pro-Russian separatists took control of the region following a violent struggle. Moldova has demanded the withdrawal of Russian troops, which Moscow has previously committed to, as well as a UN monitoring mission dispatched to Transnistria.

This article was translated from German.

Russia-Ukraine updates: Kyiv offers nuclear energy to Germany

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal has said a proposal to export electricity to Germany amid the ongoing energy crisis would be "a very good deal for both sides." DW rounds up the latest.

Concerns still remain over the safety of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant,

 which has been captured by Russian troops

Ukraine has said it plans to provide its surplus energy to Germany, in a bid to help Europe's largest economy end its dependence on Russian energy.

"Currently, Ukraine exports its electricity to Moldova, Romania, Slovakia and Poland. But we are quite ready to expand our exports to Germany," Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal told the dpa news agency on Saturday.

"We have a sufficient amount of electricity in Ukraine, thanks to our nuclear power plants," he said. The issue will be discussed during Shmyhal's visit to Berlin over the weekend, where he will be meeting with Chancellor Olaf Scholz. 

Electricity consumption in Ukraine has fallen since the start of the Russian invasion, due to the mass exodus of refugees and an economic slump.

Shmyhal said such a deal "would be very good for both sides."

"The EU would get more energy and we would get the foreign currency we urgently need," the prime minister said.

Ukraine operates four nuclear power plants with a total capacity of more than 14 gigawatts.

However, observers fear Russia's capture of the Zaporizhzhia facility — the largest nuclear power plant in Europe — could lead to a serious accident if the war intensifies.

Meanwhile, European Council President Charles Michel discussed the situation at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant (ZNPP) with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Rafael Grossi.

"The EU fully supports IAEA's work and efforts. Their courage and professionalism in accomplishing the first mission to ZNPP is impressive," Michel wrote on Twitter.

He also added that "ensuring nuclear safety and security is key" and "continued IAEA presence at the plant is necessary."

Here's a look at some of the other major news stories from Russia's war in Ukraine, on September 3.

IAEA says Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant again cut from main power line

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said that Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant had been disconnected from its last remaining main power line to the grid and is now relying on a reserve line.

"Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant has once again lost the connection to its last remaining main external power line, but the facility is continuing to supply electricity to the grid through a reserve line, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was informed at the site today," the agency said in a statement.

The Zaporizhzhia plant has been occupied by Russian troops since March. It has remained on the frontlines ever since, and, in recent weeks, Moscow and Kyiv have traded blame over shelling around the complex in southern Ukraine.

Oleksii Makeiev to be new Ukrainian ambassador to Germany

Ukraine officially announced Oleksii Makeiev as its new ambassador to Germany, succeeding Andriy Melnyk in the role. Makeiev worked as political director in the Foreign Ministry in Kyiv for many years.

The Ukrainian government sought an agrément — the agreement of Germany to receive a diplomatic mission — for Makeiev, a German Foreign Ministry spokesperson said.  German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier has already given his approval.

Melnyk was recalled from his post in mid-July by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and is due to leave Germany on October 14 to take up a post in the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry.

Melnyk often criticized the German government for its stance on Russia, even before Moscow's invasion began. Since then, he has repeatedly demanded more weapons from Germany to help Ukraine fight off the attacks.

Germany's gas situation tense and could worsen, regulator warns

Gas is flowing in Germany, but the country's regulator has warned the situation is "tense and further deterioration cannot be ruled out."

Russia has scrapped a Saturday deadline to resume flows via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, saying it had found an oil leak in a turbine during maintenance near St. Petersburg.

"The defects alleged by the Russian side are not a technical reason for the halt of operations," the German regulator said.

Turkey can be facilitator on Ukraine nuclear plant, Erdogan tells Putin

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, that Turkey could mediate in a standoff over Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.

"President Erdogan stated that Turkey can play a facilitator role in the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, as they did in the grain deal," the Turkish presidency said after a phone call between the two leaders.

The grain agreement brokered by the UN and Turkey in July allowed ships carrying Ukrainian food products to leave the country's Black Sea ports for the first time since the war began in late February.

Last month, Erdogan warned of the danger of a nuclear disaster when he visited Lviv for talks with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

"We are worried. We do not want another Chernobyl,"  the Turkish leader said.

Erdogan and Putin are scheduled to meet face-to-face in Uzbekistan on September 15.

EU expects Russia to respect energy contracts

EU Economy Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni said Saturday that he expects Russia will still meet its contractual obligations to supply gas, despite the Nord Stream pipeline being taken offline on Friday. But he is also prepared for the opposite scenario.

"We expect Russia to respect the contracts that they have," he said. "But even if weaponization of energy continues or increases, the EU is ready to react."

His comments came hours after Gazprom announced on social media that it intended to export gas to Europe via pipelines in Ukraine.

Ukraine offensive putting Russia under pressure

A broad Ukrainian offensive in Kherson province is putting pressure on Russian troops, according to the latest intelligence update from the British Defense Ministry on Saturday.

The ministry said the advance of Ukrainian troops into Russian-occupied areas west of the Dnieper River "likely achieved a degree of tactical surprise." It said the Ukrainian maneuver likely exploited "poor logistics, administration and leadership in the Russian armed forces."

The development could impact the war in other regions.

"With fighting also continuing in the Donbas and Kharkiv sectors, a key decision for Russian commanders in coming days will be where to commit any operational reserve force they can generate," the ministry said.

Russia 'alarmed' at not receiving US visas for UN meetings

Russia's UN ambassador has said it is "alarming" that none of the 56-member advance team and delegation headed by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has received a US entry visa, less than three weeks prior to the United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York. 

"This is even more alarming since for the last several months the authorities of the United States have been constantly refusing to grant entry visas to a number of Russian delegates assigned to take part in the official United Nations events," Vassily Nebenzia said in a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.  

He emphasized that the US, as host country of the UN, is legally required to issue the visas. The UN meetings start on September 19. 

Ukraine bombs Russian base near occupied nuclear plant

Ukraine said it had bombed a Russian base in the town of Energodar, near the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant on Friday.

"Targeted strikes by our troops in the localities of Energodar and Kherson have destroyed three artillery systems of the enemy as well as an ammunition depot," the Ukrainian army said.

The nuclear facility, which is Europe's largest, is being assessed by United Nations inspectors over safety concerns. A team from the UN's nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, is currently visiting Zaporizhzhia. 

More on the conflict in Ukraine

Russian energy giant Gazprom has said gas supplies to Western Europe via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline have completely stopped due to equipment issues. Berlin has accused Moscow of weaponizing energy supplies.

Just how important is the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant for Ukraine? It's Europe's largest nuclear power plant, but can the electricity grid function without it? DW's Ukrainian department explains the situation.

dh, zc, tg,/sri  (dpa, AFP, AP)

Barack Obama: president, Nobel laureate, and now an Emmy winner



Issued on: 04/09/2022 - 

A TOUCH OF GREY

Former US president Barack Obama attends the premiere of the Netflix film "Descendant," which his production company helped finance, during the Martha's Vineyard African-American Film Festival on August 05, 2022 

Arturo Holmes GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File

Washington (AFP) – Hollywood newcomer Barack Obama was awarded an Emmy for narrating his Netflix documentary series "Our Great National Parks," the Television Academy announced Saturday.

The former two-term US president had already won a pair of Grammy Awards -- for audio versions of his memoirs "The Audacity of Hope" and "Dreams from My Father" -- so he now only needs an Oscar and a Tony to complete the estimable EGOT.

According to an Entertainment Weekly tracker, only 17 people have achieved an EGOT, including Mel Brooks, Whoopie Goldberg, Audrey Hepburn and -- most recently -- Jennifer Hudson.

One other president had already been awarded an Emmy -- Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1956 -- although his was an honorary award.

After leaving office in 2017, both Obama and his wife Michelle have each written best-selling memoirs, and in addition to their non-profit foundation, have established a production company which has inked a major deal with Netflix, reportedly worth tens of millions of dollars.

Their company's first documentary for the streaming service, "American Factory," won the Oscar for best documentary feature and an Emmy for directing, though the awards went to the filmmakers and not to the Obamas themselves.

Obama's successor to the presidency, Donald Trump, did not win an Emmy for his reality competition show "The Apprentice," although he was nominated twice.

Obama also received the Nobel Peace Prize after his 2008 presidential election win, for his "extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples."

© 2022 AFP

Film opens debate on spy who leaked US nuke plans to Russia

Sat, September 3, 2022 


The little-known story of a teenage scientist who passed US nuclear secrets to the Soviet Union is the subject of a new documentary that premiered at the Venice Film Festival this week.

"A Compassionate Spy", by celebrated US filmmaker Steve James, hopes to reignite debate about nuclear weapons at a time of rising geopolitical tensions.

"Climate change and other issues have taken our attention away from that threat but it's always been there and it's coming back," James told AFP in Venice.

Ted Hall was just 19 when he was recruited to work on the top-secret Manhattan Project during World War II that led to the creation of the world's first nuclear weapon.

Sympathetic to the Communist cause, and fearing a future in which only the US had the bomb, Hall decided to pass designs to Moscow.

The story has been largely forgotten, even though Hall came clean in the last years of his life in the 1990s.

"Many people will no doubt conclude that he should not have done it, that his fears of the US becoming fascist or the US pre-emptively striking the Soviet Union were not grounded," said James, who is known especially for his landmark 1994 documentary "Hoop Dreams".

"But there's no question he did it for the right reasons -- he didn't do it for profit or fame, he did it because he had a genuine fear of what the US is capable of.

"And ultimately, we're the only ones who have dropped a nuclear bomb so it's not an unreasonable fear."

Although the FBI long suspected Hall of espionage, they were never able to find conclusive evidence.

But the tension for him and his family was almost unbearable, especially when two other spies, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, were executed in the US in 1953.

The film makes clear the vastly different attitudes towards Russians in 1944, when the Soviet Union was a wartime ally, seen as heroically standing up to Nazism.

Hall later said he would not have done it had he known about the crimes of Joseph Stalin at the time.

"Maybe he was wilfully naive," said James. "But we have to remember, he was so young."

er/gw

‘A period of repression’: Iran’s crackdown on filmmakers escalates

Bahar MAKOOI - Yesterday 

One year after ultraconservative President Ebrahim Raisi came to power, Iranian authorities are targeting the country's cinema, an industry that includes directors Jafar Panahi and Mohammad Rasoulof who are both icons abroad. Their arrests in July reflect the pressure that filmmakers and actors are under.

The Iranian film community has been asking "who will be next?" ever since Panahi and Rasoulof were arrested in July in Tehran.

Panahi, who was sentenced to six years in prison in 2010 for "spreading anti-regime propaganda", is one of Iran’s most celebrated filmmakers. Most notably, he won the Golden Bear in Berlin for "Taxi Tehran" in 2015 and three years later, the screenplay prize at Cannes for "3 Faces". For his part, Rasoulof won the Golden Bear in 2020 for "There is no evil", and the prize in the "Un Certain Regard" category in Cannes for his feature "A Man of Integrity" in 2017. Both filmmakers are very well known and their arrests have been publicised abroad, but other directors have also been touched by the wave of repression that has hit Iranian cinema in recent months.

"This wave of arrests did not start with Panahi and Rasoulof," says Asal Bagheri, a teacher-researcher at Cergy-Paris University and a specialist in Iranian cinema. A few days before the Cannes festival in May, a dozen documentary filmmakers were arrested, including Mina Keshavarz and Firouzeh Khosravani, two directors who are regularly invited to France and awarded prizes at international festivals.

Bagheri fears that "this is only the beginning", as other filmmakers have also been put under pressure. Majid Barzegar and Mohsen Amir-Yousefi, two documentary filmmakers, received a summons from the Iranian justice system at the end of August.

"We are entering a period of repression that is damaging to culture," says the Iranian film specialist.

The team behind "Leila’s Brothers" under pressure

The team behind Saeed Roostaee's film, "Leila’s Brothers", which was well received at the festival and is currently showing in French cinemas, found itself in trouble following its return from Cannes.

Not only has the film, which takes a no-holds-barred look at the ravages of Iran's economic crisis, been banned in the country, but its cast and crew have also been under duress. One of the lead actors, Navid Mohammadzadeh, has had several plays suspended.

"In his film, Saeed Roostaee managed to play very intelligently with the red lines, but the film’s release at Cannes, at a time when the country has been going through a serious social crisis, has put the Iranian authorities on edge," says Bagheri.

Beyond the film's political aspect, "certain behaviour at Cannes displeased the authorities" adds the researcher. "In Iran, when a film is judged for its morality, this not only includes the film’s content but also everything that happens around it, including the attitude and statements of actors and directors in the media, especially abroad."

A joyful Mohammadzadeh kissed his wife on the steps of Cannes in front of the cameras, for the whole world to see. The Iranian authorities saw this sign of affection as immoral, even though the two artists are married.

Actress Taraneh Alidoosti, famous for her roles in several films by Asghar Farhadi, is another member of the cast of "Leila’s Brothers" whom authorities targeted. "Extremely popular in Iran, she is one of the leading figures of the #MeToo movement in the Iranian film industry and has a sharp tongue," says Bagheri.

A list of banned filmmakers

The Cinema Organisation of Iran, a body under the authority of the ministry of culture, announced on August 16 that, for the first time, a list of banned filmmakers would soon be made public. Although nothing has been decided yet, Alidoosti, whose name may be on the blacklist, has already addressed authorities in a letter posted on Instagram. The actress called the publication of such a list "unfortunate" and "illegal".

Bans were previously imposed on a case-by-case basis, according to judicial convictions of the filmmakers, or, sometimes, unofficially. "But never before have the authorities talked about an official list. This marks a repressive turning point," says Bagheri.

The arrival of Ebrahim Raisi, an ultraconservative cleric who was elected president in June 2021, has a lot to do with this. "The cultural community knew that repressive measures would increase once the ultraconservative government was in place. This is reminiscent of the darkest hours of the Mahmoud Ahmadinejad era (2005-2013), during which many documentary filmmakers were arrested."

A cinematic reflection of a society on the verge of implosion

Relations between the authorities and Iranian filmmakers are also tense because the country is currently experiencing one of the worst economic crises in its history with high inflation. Iranians protested en masse in June, accusing the authorities of incompetence and corruption in the city of Abadan after a building collapsed.

"Iranian society has become increasingly vocal and bold," says Bagheri. "But the work of this wave of directors, who constitute a form of 'social cinema', reflects society’s ills. They are simply a reflection of this anger."

Filmmakers are now showing solidarity with the protesters. Some 100 leading Iranian figures, including Panahi, Rasoulof and many artists, signed a letter in June calling on the authorities to "put down their arms" in the face of the Abadan protests.

This is one of the reasons the authorities give for the recent arrests. "Some people are still under pressure and being held accountable. They are being asked to publicly withdraw their support for the petition," says Bagheri. However, none of them have yet agreed to do so.

This article is a translation of the original in French.

Argentina's 'Dirty War' trial on screen at Venice

Issued on: 03/09/2022 - 

'Argentina 1985' star Ricardo Darin and director Santiago Mitre presented their film in competition at the Venice Film Festival

 Tiziana FABI AFP

Venice (AFP) – Argentine director Santiago Mitre still has vivid memories of the 1985 trial that put the country's repressive military junta on the stand for the disappearances of tens of thousands of citizens.

That historic episode -- and the success of Prosecutor Julio Strassera in winning guilty verdicts for many of those responsible -- is now the subject of Mitre's latest film that premiered at the Venice Film Festival Saturday, "Argentina, 1985".

"I still remember the day Strassera read his indictment: the commotion in the courtroom, the emotion of my parents, the streets finally able to celebrate something that wasn't a soccer game, the idea of justice as an act of healing," said Mitre.

An estimated 30,000 people disappeared during the 1976-1983 military dictatorship, whose "Dirty War" against opponents unleashed a wave of kidnappings, torture, rapes and murder.

The film traces the prosecutors as they take on the uphill challenge of putting the military ringleaders on trial, relying on an energetic team of idealistic novices while facing intimidation and threats.

"This story touched me deeply and gave me the desire to make a film about justice... based on facts that really happened," said Mitre.

The film, in which moments of droll humour interrupt its more serious subject matter, is at its most moving when witnesses take the stand, one by one, to testify to the horrors they suffered in secret torture centres across Argentina.

Among the most atrocious, one woman testifies how she was forced to give birth handcuffed and blindfolded in the car of her torturers, her baby tumbling to the car's floor after delivery.

Some 400 babies were born in captivity and illegally handed over to others, according to the rights organisation Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo.

Since the resumption of the dictatorship's trials in the mid-2000s -- after more than a decade of amnesty laws and other controversial measures -- some 1,060 people have been convicted of crimes against humanity.

Most recently in July, the Argentine judiciary sentenced 10 former military and police officers to life imprisonment for homicide, kidnapping, torture and rape.

© 2022 AFP


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Money transfer firms replace banks in crisis-hit Lebanon


Elie Wehbe and Jonathan Sawaya
Sat, September 3, 2022 


Like many people in crisis-hit Lebanon, Elias Skaff used to wait for hours to withdraw cash at the bank but now prefers money transfer companies as trust in lenders has evaporated.

Anyone who relies on traditional banks to receive their money "will die 100 times before cashing it", said Skaff, 50, who has survived Lebanon's three-year-old economic downturn with the help of US dollar payments from a relative abroad.

Once the flagship of Lebanon's economy, the banking sector is now widely despised and avoided after banks barred depositors from accessing their savings, stopped offering loans and closed hundreds of branches and slashed thousands of jobs.

Last month, a local man was widely cheered as a folk hero after he stormed a Beirut bank with a rifle and held employees and customers hostage for hours to demand some of his $200,000 in frozen savings to pay hospital bills for his sick father.

Increasingly, as Lebanon's deep crisis shows no sign of abating, money transfer agencies are filling the gap, also offering currency exchange, credit card and tax payment services and even setting up wedding gift registries.

Skaff said he now receives his money via a Beirut branch of Western Union's Lebanese agent OMT, which says it operates more than 1,200 branches nationwide and handles 80 percent of money transfers outside the Lebanese banking sector.

"We create services similar to those that banks provide at the request of our customers," said OMT spokesman Naji Abou Zeid.

Lebanon has been battered by its worst-ever economic crisis since the financial sector went into meltdown in 2019. The local currency has lost more than 90 percent of its value on the black market, as poverty and unemployment have soared.

Angry protesters have often targeted banks, trashing their ATM machines with rocks and spray cans.

"We can't even withdraw a penny" from the bank, said 45-year-old Alaa Sheikhani, a customer standing in line at an OMT branch.

"How are we supposed to trust them with our money?"

- Surviving on remittances -

Elie, 36, who recently got married, said he used Whish Money, a Lebanese money transfer firm, to set up his wedding gift registry, something he said saved wedding guests time, hassle and money in fees.

"Rather than waiting for hours at the bank, which is often crowded, they can hand over the money to an agency," said the man who asked not to be fully named. "In terms of time saved and costs, it's incomparable."

Whish Money's marketing director Dina Daher said the company is winning customers by charging "zero fees" on Lebanese pound transfers.

Some companies are now even paying salaries through money transfer companies instead of banks.

"When the crisis began, we were forced to pay salaries in cash, and it was a waste of time," because accountants had to count out large bundles of banknotes, said Rachelle Bou Nader, a human resources manager.

But now her firm, sporting goods retailer Mike Sport, pays its employees through Whish, allowing them to "withdraw their salary easily, in instalments, and free of charge", said Bou Nader.

Sami Nader, director of the Levant Institute for Strategic Affairs, said remittances from the Lebanese diaspora have become crucial to help families weather the crushing economic crisis.

"Today, a young Lebanese employee living abroad won't hesitate to send $100 to his parents because this sum now makes a difference," he said.

Lebanese banks have drastically increased fees on the few services they still offer -- including foreign currency transfers, now their only meaningful source of income -- said Nader, who added that this has further fuelled the exodus to money transfer companies.

About 250,000 residents of Lebanon received remittances in the first half of 2022, according to OMT, up eight percent from the same period last year.

The World Bank has reported that Lebanon received $6.6 billion in remittances in 2021, one of the highest levels in the Middle East and North Africa.

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Norway’s future CO2 cemetery takes shape

A photo taken on April 24, 2022 in Oygarden near Bergen, Norway, shows the construction site for a terminal which will collect liquefied carbon dioxide CO2. (AFP)

The future terminal is to pump tons of liquefied carbon dioxide captured from the top of factory chimneys across Europe into cavities deep below the seabed

Climate experts see the technique, called carbon capture and storage, as a means to partially reduce emissions from fossil-fuel-based industries

OYGARDEN, Norway: On the shores of an island off Norway’s North Sea coast, engineers are building a burial ground for unwanted greenhouse gas.

The future terminal is to pump tons of liquefied carbon dioxide captured from the top of factory chimneys across Europe into cavities deep below the seabed.

The project in the western municipality of Oygarden aims to prevent the gas from entering the atmosphere and contributing to global warming.

It “is the world’s first open-access transport and storage infrastructure, allowing any emitter that has captured his CO2 emissions to deliver that CO2 for safe handling, transport and then permanent storage,” project manager Sverre Overa told AFP.

As the planet struggles to meet its climate targets, some climate experts see the technique, called carbon capture and storage, or CCS, as a means to partially reduce emissions from fossil-fuel-based industries.

FRACKING BY ANY OTHER NAME
Norway is the biggest hydrocarbon producer in Western Europe, but it also boasts the best CO2 storage prospects on the continent, especially in its depleted North Sea oil fields.

The government has financed 80 percent of the infrastructure, putting 1.7 billion euros ($1.7 billion) on the table as part of a wider state plan to develop the technology.

A cement factory and a waste-to-energy plant in the Oslo region are set to send their CO2 to the site.
But the most original feature of the project is on the commercial side: inviting foreign firms to send their CO2 pollution to be buried out of harm’s way.

Using CCS to curb carbon pollution is not a new idea, but despite generous subsidies the technology has never taken off, mainly because it is so costly.

One of the world’s largest carbon capture facilities, at the Petra Nova coal-fired plant in Texas, was mothballed in 2020 because it was not economical.

There are only a couple of dozen operational CCS projects around the world, according to the industry-run Global CCS Institute.

But the failure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in line with Paris Agreement goals and a massive influx of government subsidies have breathed new life into the technology.

Energy giants Equinor, TotalEnergies and Shell have set up a partnership — dubbed Northern Lights — which will be the world’s first cross-border CO2 transport and storage service at its scheduled launch in 2024.

A pipeline will inject the liquefied CO2 into geological pockets 2,600 meters below the ocean floor, and the idea is that it will remain there for good.

On Monday, the Northern Lights partners announced a first cross-border commercial agreement.

From 2025, it is to ensure 800,000 tons of CO2 are captured each year at a plant in the Netherlands owned by Norwegian fertilizer manufacturer Yara, then shipped to Oygarden and stored there.

On Tuesday, two energy firms — Norway’s oil and gas giant Equinor and Germany’s Wintershall Dea — announced a project to take carbon dioxide captured in Germany to the Norwegian offshore storage site.

If confirmed, the partnership between Equinor and Wintershall Dea could involve building a 900-kilometer (560-mile) pipeline connecting a CO2 collection facility in northern Germany with storage sites in Norway by 2032.

A similar project with Belgium is already in the works.

In its first phase, the Northern Lights scheme will be able to process 1.5 million tons of CO2 per year, then later between five and six million tons.

But that is just a tiny fraction of annual carbon emissions across Europe.

The European Union emitted 3.7 billion tons of greenhouse gases in 2020, according to the European Environment Agency.

Many climate experts warn carbon capture is no silver bullet for the climate crisis.

Critics caution that CCS could prolong fossil fuel extraction just as the world is trying to turn toward clean and renewable energy.

Greenpeace Norway’s Halvard Raavand said the campaign group had always opposed the practice.

“In the beginning it was very easy to oppose all kinds of CCS (carbon capture and storage) and now because of the lack of climate action it’s of course a more difficult debate to be in,” he said.

“This money should instead be spent on developing (a) proper solution that we know (works) and that could reduce the electricity bills for regular people, such as insulating homes or solar panels.”

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