from the United States . These dictatorships ( some even having ties to terrorist organizations ) donated somewhere between $ 50 and $ 150 million to the Clinton Foundation . The FBI , already investigating Hillary ’s unsecured e - mail transmissions , has reportedly opened up a second investigation looking into the possibility that she accepted funds and delivered political favors .
The mining sector is a key part of North Korea 's economy , which is already largely cut off from the rest of the world . Experts believe revenue from the sector helps underwrite North Korea 's military expenditures . The ministry said it would also ban coal shipmentsmovement.transportartifact.disperseseparatefrom North Korea , although it made exemptions consistent with sanctions , including uses intended for " the people 's well - being " and not connected to nuclear or missile programs . North Korea delivered around 20 million tonnes of coal to China last year , up 27 percent on the year , overtaking Russia and Mongolia to become China 's third biggest supplier , behind Australia and Indonesia . An exception was made for coal originating in third countries and supplied via North Korea 's port of Rason .
to train rebels trying to oust Mr. Assad . The decision was made in part to try to gain control of a chaotic situation in which Arab countries were funneling arms into Syria for various rebel groups with little coordination . The Qataris had paid to smuggle shipmentsmovement.transportartifact.disperseseparateof Chinese - made FN-6 shoulder - fired weapons over the border from Turkey , and Saudi Arabia sent thousands of Kalashnikovs and millions of rounds of ammunition it had bought , sometimes with the C.I.A. ’s help . By late 2013 , the C.I.A. was working directly with Saudi Arabia , the United Arab Emirates and other nations to arm and train small groups of rebels and send them across the border into Syria .
[ Washington ’s foreign policy elite breaks with Obama over Syrian bloodshed ] If so , Obama ’s successor will inherit an array of unattractive options . Critics of the proposal to increase arms shipmentsmovement.transportartifact.disperseseparatewarn that it would only worsen the violence in Syria without fundamentally changing the outcome . But inaction has its own risks — increasing the likelihood that Aleppo will fall , that tens of thousands of CIA - backed fighters will search for more - reliable allies , and that the United States will lose leverage over regional partners that until now have refrained from delivering more - dangerous arms to Assad ’s opponents . The proposed expansion of the agency program — dubbed “ Plan B ” because it was seen as a fallback for failed diplomatic efforts — still has supporters , including CIA Director John Brennan and Defense Secretary Ashton B. Carter .
Qatar denies the claims . The BBC says the row is actually a culmination of a complex regional schism that puts Doha on the side of Saudi Arabia 's rival Iran , which ironically represents a branch of Islam that is opposed to both IS and Nusra . Qatar , a member of the Opec oil cartel , relies on the Strait of Hormuz waterway , says the Daily Telegraph , and as that passes through both Iranian and UAE waters , regional shipmentsmovement.transportartifact.disperseseparatecould be disrupted , which would have consequences for global oil supply . The oil price has long been in the thrall of supply trends : Brent crude fell below $ 50 a barrel last week over doubts that supply cuts by Opec , Russia and others would be enough to rebalance the market . Oil price drops below $ 50 as ' game of chicken ' starts again
Despite his forces being part of the truce , President Assad vowed to take back the country from " terrorists " - a term used to describe all opposition groups . Israel has largely remained on the sidelines of the fighting along its border , but has carried out reprisals on Syrian positions when errant fire has previously landed in Israel . The IDF is also widely believed to have carried out airstrikes on arms shipmentsmovement.transportartifact.disperseseparatedestined for the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah , a close ally of Assad . Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in the Six Day War of 1967 , before Syrian forces led an unsuccessful counter - offensive in 1973 , and Israel effectively annexed the vast majority of the occupied territory in 1981 . The United Nations Disengagement Observer Force ( UNDOF ) was set up to monitor a ceasefire established in the region but fighting between the Syrian regime and rebels has frequently spilled over into the demilitarised area since 2012 , sparking Israeli air strikes in Syrian territory .
State - owned Russian news agencies have quoted military officials as saying that Syrian rebels have violated the ceasefire agreement 55 times already . Rebels have alleged violations by Assad ’s forces . Aid shipmentsmovement.transportartifact.disperseseparateinto the devastated city of Aleppo have yet to be allowed to reach civilians . More than 470,000 people have been killed in the Syrian civil war since 2011 , according to the Syrian Center for Policy Research . On Saturday , Putin blamed ceasefire violations and the aid blockade on resistance from Washington , saying Americans “ still can not separate the so - called healthy part of the opposition from the half - criminal and terrorist elements .
Aid trucks carrying non - food items such as blankets on Monday entered Mouadamiya , a suburb of Damascus under siege by government forces , the Syrian Arab Red Crescent said . The United Nations and other agencies hope to deliver aid to more than 150,000 people in besieged areas over the next five days . Kerry said he was concerned by reports the Syrian government was creating obstacles for the delivery of humanitarian aid and hoped it would stop its officials and troops from taking medicine or other supplies from the shipmentsmovement.transportartifact.disperseseparate. GLOOMY ASSESSMENT Asaad al - Zoubi , head of the HNC 's delegation to the peace talks , gave a gloomy assessment of the truce .
In Arizona , a state that has voted Democratic once in nearly 70 years but has a growing Hispanic population , his lead has slipped to 44 % to 42 % . Marco Rubio : women with Zika should not be allowed abortions Read more Trump ’s broader polling numbers have plummeted in a period during which , among other controversies , he again refused to release his taxes , insulted the family of a war hero , claimed that Russia had not invaded Ukraine – two years after it had , said his daughter should “ find another company ” if sexually harassed and briefly claimed to have seen a nonexistent video of cash shipmentsmovement.transportartifact.disperseseparateto Iran . Republicans have tried to tie Clinton ’s foreign policy to that money , $ 400 m owed to pre - revolutionary Iran for a failed arms deal in the 1970s , describing it as “ ransom ” for hostages who were freed in January , around the time of delivery and sanctions relief for a nuclear arms deal . Clinton began tentative nuclear talks with Iran but the money dispute predated her and was concluded by her successor as secretary of state , John Kerry , who also oversaw the hostage release .
“ In recent years Israel has gained a great diplomatic advantage in that the claim that the source of all troubles in the Middle East is the Israeli - Arab conflict has been disproved by developments , such as the developments in Syria , Iraq and Libya that have no connection to Israel , ” Mr. Rabinovich told Israel Radio , adding , “ I ’m not necessarily coming out against the stand but against this demonstrative act that returns us to the heart of the argument . ” The cabinet meeting came a week after Mr. Netanyahu made another unusual declaration acknowledging that Israel had carried out “ dozens ” of strikes across the Syrian frontier in recent years to prevent Hezbollah from obtaining advanced weapons . While Israel has generally hewed to a policy of nonintervention in the internal fighting in Syria , it has acted to prevent weapons shipmentsmovement.transportartifact.disperseseparatefrom Syria to Lebanon but has rarely admitted responsibility for the strikes , in part to avoid pushing the other side to retaliate .
China is constructing a modernized version of the old silk roads , with the intent not only of integrating the region under Chinese influence , but also of reaching Europe and the Middle Eastern oil - producing regions . It is pouring huge sums into creating an integrated Asian energy and commercial system , with extensive high - speed rail lines and pipelines . One element of the program is a highway through some of the world ’s tallest mountains to the new Chinese - developed port of Gwadar in Pakistan , which will protect oil shipmentsmovement.transportartifact.disperseseparatefrom potential U.S. interference . The program may also , China and Pakistan hope , spur industrial development in Pakistan , which the United States has not undertaken despite massive military aid , and might also provide an incentive for Pakistan to clamp down on domestic terrorism , a serious issue for China in western Xinjiang Province . Gwadar will be part of China ’s “ string of pearls , ” bases being constructed in the Indian Ocean for commercial purposes but potentially also for military use , with the expectation that China might someday be able to project power as far as the Persian Gulf for the first time in the modern era .
Aid was delivered to the besieged town of Talbiseh in Homs province on Monday , the Red Cross said , for the first time since July . The convoy brought in food , water and hygiene supplies for up to 84,000 people , it said . But most aid shipmentsmovement.transportartifact.disperseseparateenvisaged under the truce have yet to go in . The United Nations said it had received government approval to reach nearly all the besieged and hard - to - reach areas where it sought to bring aid , but access to many areas was still constrained by fighting , insecurity and administrative delays . Already widely violated since it took effect , the ceasefire came under added strain at the weekend when Russia said jets from the U.S.-led coalition against Islamic State killed more than 60 Syrian soldiers in eastern Syria .
for treason over a 2015 story they published with pictures of trucks alleged to have belonged to Turkey 's MIT intelligence agency carrying weapons to Syria . At the time , in January 2014 , the trucks were stopped by gendarmerie . The government first said the shipmentsmovement.transportartifact.disperseseparatewere a national secret , then said they were carrying food and medicine . cw / jm ( AFP , AP )
Washington has sold weapons and provided training , targeting information , and aerial refueling support to the Saudi - led coalition fighting in Yemen . It has also sold Riyadh millions of dollars’ worth of cluster bombs in recent years . Asked about the hold on the shipmentsmovement.transportartifact.disperseseparate, a senior U.S. official cited reports that the Saudi - led coalition used cluster bombs “ in areas in which civilians are alleged to have been present or in the vicinity . ” “ We take such concerns seriously and are seeking additional information , ” said the official , who spoke on condition of anonymity . The hold applies to CBU-105 cluster bombs manufactured by the U.S .- based firm Textron Systems , a subsidiary of Textron .
The US has resolved to prevent the fall of Aleppo and is preparing to allow its Gulf allies to flood the city with shoulder - fired , anti - aircraft missiles , according to a source with close contacts to rebel forces . The Reuters news agency this week reported anonymous US officials as saying that the recent intense bombardment of Syria 's second city had " heightened " the possibility of the Obama administration lifting a long - held ban by allowing Qatar and Saudi Arabia to arm rebels with man - portable missiles . A source on Tuesday told Middle East Eye that the US had confirmed it would allow the two Gulf states to begin shipmentsmovement.transportartifact.disperseseparate. " The US confirmed the green light to begin sending them to rebels through supply routes still open through Jordan and Turkey , " the source said . " Rebels are being told only to target Syrian helicopters , not Russian - but it 's not clear they will abide by this .
Gandhi was blunter – if anything , less tactful than Nixon . Kissinger later wrote that her tone was that of “ a professor praising a slightly backward student , ” which Nixon received with the “ glassy - eyed politeness ” that he showed when trying to muscle down his resentment . She ripped into US arms shipmentsmovement.transportartifact.disperseseparateto Pakistan , which had outraged the Indian people , despite her efforts to restrain her public . She hammered away at Pakistan ’s “ persistent ‘ hate India ’ campaign , ” which she blamed for the two previous India - Pakistan wars . Then she gave an expansive denunciation of Pakistan .
But Rosneft 's purchase of Essar Oil will complicate Iran 's play . Roughly 40 % of the crude imported from Iran was refined at Essar Oil 's massive refinery in the state of Gujarat . Now that the refinery is under new ownership , it 's likely to be processing more shipmentsmovement.transportartifact.disperseseparatefrom Russia . Lalit Kumar Gupta , Essar Oil 's chief executive officer , told Bloomberg in August that shipments from Iran would decline if Rosneft bought a stake in the Indian firm . " When they are on board we will see how much to buy , what to buy , " he said .