A screen grab from a video released by Demiroren News Agency shows a German soldier landing from a helicopter on a Turkish cargo ship in the eastern Mediterranean Sea on November 23, 2020. AFP / Demiroren News Agency
A screen grab from a video released by Demiroren News Agency shows a German soldier landing from a helicopter on a Turkish cargo ship in the eastern Mediterranean Sea on November 23, 2020. AFP / Demiroren News Agency
A screen grab from a video released by Demiroren News Agency shows a German soldier landing from a helicopter on a Turkish cargo ship in the eastern Mediterranean Sea on November 23, 2020. AFP / Demiroren News Agency
A screen grab from a video released by Demiroren News Agency shows a German soldier landing from a helicopter on a Turkish cargo ship in the eastern Mediterranean Sea on November 23, 2020. AFP / Demir

German attempt to search Turkish ship followed signs of arms smuggling to Libya


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The German military reportedly had prior intelligence to suspect that a Turkish cargo ship it searched last week was smuggling weapons to Libya.

Analysts from the EU mission Irini, which aims to stop arms reaching Libya's warring factions, found satellite images showing that armoured military vehicles had been unloaded from the ship, the Rosaline A, during a previous visit to the Libyan port of Misurata, Der Spiegel reported on Friday.

Satellite imagery also showed suspicious goods being loaded onto the ship at the Turkish port of Ambarli earlier this month, the German paper said.

Turkey prevented German forces belonging to the Irini mission from carrying out a full search of a  cargo ship when it was stopped in the Mediterranean 200 kilometres north of the Libyan city of Benghazi on Sunday.

Soldiers from the frigate Hamburg boarded the freighter but had to abandon checks and withdraw after Turkey protested to the EU mission, the German defence ministry said on Monday.

"By the time the soldiers left the ship, they had not found anything suspicious," a ministry spokesman said.

Turkish security sources said the Rosaline A was carrying food and paint, and that the search team had breached international law by not waiting for Turkey's permission.

It said the soldiers had found nothing despite spending the entire night opening containers on board. But not all of them were checked.

Turkey protested to the German and Italian ambassadors in Ankara hours after the cargo ship was stopped. On Monday, the Turkish foreign ministry called the operation “illegal” and accused the German military of using to force to search the ship.

Ankara on Friday launched an inquiry into the incident. The chief prosecutor’s office claimed the search was conducted without “Turkey’s authorisation and against international regulations”. The investigation is not expected to lead to arrests or the extradition of officials involved in the search.

MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW

Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman

Director: Jesse Armstrong

Rating: 3.5/5

Labour dispute

The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.


- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law 

Honeymoonish
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BMW M5 specs

Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor

Power: 727hp

Torque: 1,000Nm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh650,000

The specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylturbo

Transmission: seven-speed DSG automatic

Power: 242bhp

Torque: 370Nm

Price: Dh136,814

In the Restaurant: Society in Four Courses
Christoph Ribbat
Translated by Jamie Searle Romanelli
Pushkin Press 

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WE%20NO%20LONGER%20PREFER%20MOUNTAINS
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Paltan

Producer: JP Films, Zee Studios
Director: JP Dutta
Cast: Jackie Shroff, Sonu Sood, Arjun Rampal, Siddhanth Kapoor, Luv Sinha and Harshvardhan Rane
Rating: 2/5

'C'mon C'mon'

Director:Mike Mills

Stars:Joaquin Phoenix, Gaby Hoffmann, Woody Norman

Rating: 4/5

The specs

Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel

Power: 579hp

Torque: 859Nm

Transmission: Single-speed automatic

Price: From Dh825,900

On sale: Now

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

Read part one: how cars came to the UAE

The specs

Engine: 6.2-litre V8

Transmission: ten-speed

Power: 420bhp

Torque: 624Nm

Price: Dh325,125

On sale: Now

Company profile

Name: GiftBag.ae

Based: Dubai

Founded: 2011

Number of employees: 4

Sector: E-commerce

Funding: Self-funded to date

Notable cricketers and political careers
  • India: Kirti Azad, Navjot Sidhu and Gautam Gambhir (rumoured)
  • Pakistan: Imran Khan and Shahid Afridi (rumoured)
  • Sri Lanka: Arjuna Ranatunga, Sanath Jayasuriya, Tillakaratne Dilshan (rumoured)
  • Bangladesh (Mashrafe Mortaza)
The bio

Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

Favourite travel destination: Maldives and south of France

Favourite pastime: Family and friends, meditation, discovering new cuisines

Favourite Movie: Joker (2019). I didn’t like it while I was watching it but then afterwards I loved it. I loved the psychology behind it.

Favourite Author: My father for sure

Favourite Artist: Damien Hurst

Fight card

1. Featherweight 66kg: Ben Lucas (AUS) v Ibrahim Kendil (EGY)

2. Lightweight 70kg: Mohammed Kareem Aljnan (SYR) v Alphonse Besala (CMR)

3. Welterweight 77kg:Marcos Costa (BRA) v Abdelhakim Wahid (MAR)

4. Lightweight 70kg: Omar Ramadan (EGY) v Abdimitalipov Atabek (KGZ)

5. Featherweight 66kg: Ahmed Al Darmaki (UAE) v Kagimu Kigga (UGA)

6. Catchweight 85kg: Ibrahim El Sawi (EGY) v Iuri Fraga (BRA)

7. Featherweight 66kg: Yousef Al Husani (UAE) v Mohamed Allam (EGY)

8. Catchweight 73kg: Mostafa Radi (PAL) v Ahmed Abdelraouf of Egypt (EGY)

9.  Featherweight 66kg: Jaures Dea (CMR) v Andre Pinheiro (BRA)

10. Catchweight 90kg: Tarek Suleiman (SYR) v Juscelino Ferreira (BRA)

World Cup warm up matches

May 24 Pakistan v Afghanistan, Bristol; Sri Lanka v South Africa, Cardiff

May 25 England v Australia, Southampton; India v New Zealand, The Oval

May 26 South Africa v West Indies, Bristol; Pakistan v Bangladesh, Cardiff

May 27 Australia v Sri Lanka, Southampton; England v Afghanistan, The Oval

May 28 West Indies v New Zealand, Bristol; Bangladesh v India, Cardiff

FIGHT CARD

From 5.30pm in the following order:

Featherweight

Marcelo Pontes (BRA) v Azouz Anwar (EGY)

Catchweight 90kg

Moustafa Rashid Nada (KSA) v Imad Al Howayeck (LEB)

Welterweight

Mohammed Al Khatib (JOR) v Gimbat Ismailov (RUS)

Flyweight (women)

Lucie Bertaud (FRA) v Kelig Pinson (BEL)

Lightweight

Alexandru Chitoran (BEL) v Regelo Enumerables Jr (PHI)

Catchweight 100kg

Mohamed Ali (EGY) v Marc Vleiger (NED)

Featherweight

James Bishop (AUS) v Mark Valerio (PHI)

Welterweight

Gerson Carvalho (BRA) v Abdelghani Saber (EGY)

Middleweight 

Bakhtiyar Abbasov (AZE) v Igor Litoshik (BLR)

Bantamweight:

Fabio Mello (BRA) v Mark Alcoba (PHI)

Welterweight

Ahmed Labban (LEB) v Magomedsultan Magemedsultanov (RUS)

Bantamweight

Trent Girdham (AUS) v Jayson Margallo (PHI)

Lightweight

Usman Nurmagomedov (RUS) v Roman Golovinov (UKR)

Middleweight

Tarek Suleiman (SYR) v Steve Kennedy (AUS)

Lightweight

Dan Moret (USA) v Anton Kuivanen (FIN)

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