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Iranian police say 139 foreigners arrested over unrest in Yazd province

Iranian police said 139 foreign nationals have so far been arrested in the central province of Yazd for their participation in recent protests, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Tuesday, without specifying their nationalities. Yazd, a predominantly desert province with a relatively small population above 1 million, was one of many provinces affected by nationwide protests in January. The protests, which started in December over economic hardships and quickly turned political, were repressed in the most violent crackdown since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The official death toll stands at 3,117, although rights groups say many more people have been killed. US-based rights group HRANA has said that nearly 50,000 people have so far been arrested. Authorities blame Israel and the United States for fomenting the violence. "These (foreign) individuals played an active role in organising, inciting, and directing riotous actions, and in some cases were in contact with netwo...

Trump withdraws Canada’s invitation to join Board of Peace

US President Donald Trump withdrew on Thursday an invitation for Canada to join his Board of Peace initiative aimed at resolving global conflicts. Trump's about-face follows Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, where he openly decried powerful nations using economic integration as a weapon and tariffs as leverage. "Please let this Letter serve to represent that the Board of Peace is withdrawing its invitation to you regarding Canada’s joining, what will be, the most prestigious Board of Leaders ever assembled, at any time," Trump wrote in a Truth Social post directed at Carney. Neither Carney's office nor the White House immediately responded to Reuters requests for comment on Thursday evening. Last week, Carney's office said he had been invited to serve on the board and planned to accept. Carney received a rare standing ovation in Davos after the speech, in which he urged nations to accept the end of a rules-based global order. Canada, which recently signed a trade deal with China, can show how "middle powers" might act together to avoid being victimized by American hegemony, he added. Trump retorted that Canada "lives because of the United States," and told listeners in Davos that Carney should be grateful for the United States’ previous largesse. Read: Trump launches ‘Board of Peace’ as PM Shehbaz, other global leaders sign charter "Remember that, Mark, the next time you make your statements," he added, addressing Carney directly. The withdrawal of Canada's invitation came hours after Trump officially launched the board, which was initially meant to cement a Gaza ceasefire. Permanent members must help fund the board with a payment of $1 billion each, according to Trump. "Once this board is completely formed, we can do pretty much whatever we want to do," Trump said in Switzerland on Thursday. "And we'll do it in conjunction with the United Nations. The board's establishment was endorsed by a United Nations Security Council resolution as part of Trump's Gaza peace plan, and UN spokesperson Rolando Gomez said on Thursday that UN engagement with the board would only be in that context. Member nations include Argentina, Bahrain, Morocco, Pakistan, and Turkey. Other US allies, such as Britain, France, and Italy, have indicated they will not join for now.

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