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Lebanon

Hezbollah Calls For New Anti-US Protests As Islamic Furor Spreads Worldwide

BBC NEWS (UK), AL JAZEERA (Qatar), LE MONDE (France), THE AUSTRALIAN, THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD (Australia)

Worldcrunch

BEIRUT – Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Lebanon's Shiite Muslim movement Hezbollah, has called for new protests over the controversial anti-Islam film which has sparked furor in the Muslim world.

The religious and political leader called the movie “the worst attack ever on Islam, worse than the Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie, the burning of the Quran in Afghanistan and the cartoons in the European media,” reports Al Jazeera.

He urged for new protests in Hezbollah’s stronghold South Beirut on Monday and other Lebanese cities during the week.

"The whole world needs to see your anger on your faces, in your fists and your shouts," Nasrallah said in a televised speech on Sunday, reports BBC News.

Protests over the film at many U.S. diplomatic missions have been continuing in Niger, Turkey, Yemen, and Tunisia.

In Afghanistan capital Kabul, demonstrators fired guns, torched police cars and shouted anti-US slogans on Monday.

In Pakistan, one person was killed in clashes with the police (watch video below).

Demonstrations also took place in Western capitals over the weekend. More than 150 protesters were arrested Saturday in Paris in front of the U.S. embassy.

In Australia, which holds an important Muslim community, riot police used tear gas Saturday in clashes with hundreds of protesters outside the U.S. consulate in Sydney. Six policemen where injured and eight people were arrested, reports The Australian.

Angry members of the Muslim community tipped off police that radical Islamists were sending around inflammatory text messages garnering support for Saturday's protest, said the Sydney Morning Herald.

Early last week, the U.S. Ambassador to Libya and three officials were killed in Benghazi in a rocket attack after the movie caused major outbursts of violence in the country.

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Economy

Soft Power Or Sportwashing? What's Driving The Mega Saudi Image Makeover Play

Saudi Arabia suddenly now leads the world in golf, continues to attract top European soccer stars, and invests in culture and entertainment... Its "soft power" strategy is changing the kingdom's image through what critics bash as blatant "sportwashing."

Footballer Karim Benzema, in his Real Madrid kit

Karim Benzema during a football match at Santiago Bernabeu stadium on June 04, 2023, in Madrid, Spain.

Pierre Haski

-Analysis-

PARIS — A major announcement this week caused quite a stir in the world of professional golf. It wouldn't belong in the politics section were it not for the role played by Saudi Arabia. The three competing world circuits have announced their merger, putting an end to the "civil war" in the world of pro golf.

The Chairman of the new entity is Yassir Al-Rumayan, head of the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund. Add to this the fact that one of the major players in the world of golf is Donald Trump – three of the biggest tournaments are held on golf courses he owns – and it's easy to see what's at stake.

In the same week, we learned that two leading French footballers, Karim Benzema and N'Golo Kanté, were to join Saudi club Al-Ittihad, also owned by the Saudi sovereign wealth fund. The amount of the transfer is not known, but it is sure to be substantial. There, they will join other soccer stars such as Cristiano Ronaldo.

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