Bank Mellat has 1,800 branches in Iran, in addition to branches in Turkey, South Korea and London. Above, a bank branch in Istanbul. Murad Sezer / Reuters
Bank Mellat has 1,800 branches in Iran, in addition to branches in Turkey, South Korea and London. Above, a bank branch in Istanbul. Murad Sezer / Reuters

UK seeks to renew Iran sanctions despite court setback



The United Kingdom government is seeking to renew sanctions against Iran's largest private bank, despite Britain's Supreme Court finding no evidence Bank Mellat had helped to fund Iran's nuclear programme.

Last month nine UK senior judges ordered the sanctions against the Tehran-based lender be removed after labelling the measures as "irrational". But Britain's treasury is now seeking to reinstate the listing through European Union courts. The treasury is attempting to intervene in the EU Council's appeal against an earlier decision by the EU General Court to declare EU sanctions against Bank Mellat as unlawful.

"The treasury's evidence has been found wanting by the highest court in the UK. These continued actions at the EU are an attempt to maintain sanctions against Bank Mellat by the back door," said Sarosh Zaiwalla, senior partner at Zaiwalla & Co, Bank Mellat's London law firm.

It is requesting the European Court of Justice to strike out the treasury's intervention.

Bank Mellat has branches in Turkey, South Korea and London. The lender has a presence in Dubai through Persia International Bank, Bank Mellat's 60 per cent-owned subsidiary. The assets of the branch, along with Bank Mellat's global assets, were frozen in 2010 as a result of EU sanctions.

Bank Mellat was first put on the UK sanctions list in 2009.

As a result of the loss at the Supreme Court, the UK government already faces a bill of several hundred million pounds in damages that Bank Mellat is seeking for loss of business. Further delay at the European Court is likely to increase this sum, said Zaiwalla & Co.

The European General Court told governments in the EU last January to ease asset freezes against Bank Mellat and Bank Saderat, ruling that the EU had failed to provide sufficient evidence the banks were involved in financing Iran's nuclear programme. The EU Council had appealed that decision.

MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid

When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid

THREE

Director: Nayla Al Khaja

Starring: Jefferson Hall, Faten Ahmed, Noura Alabed, Saud Alzarooni

Rating: 3.5/5

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2 A little chocolate is a good thing. “It’s emergency energy,” says Craig Paul Smith, La Perle’s head coach and former Cirque du Soleil performer, gesturing to an almost-empty open box of mini chocolate bars on his desk backstage.

3 Take chances, says Young, who has worked all over the world, including most recently at Dragone’s show in China. “Every time we go out of our comfort zone, we learn a lot about ourselves,” she says.

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1984 - Apple unveiled the Macintosh on January 24
1985 - Steve Jobs departed from Apple and established NeXT
1986 - Apple introduced the Macintosh Plus, featuring enhanced memory
1987 - Apple launched the Macintosh II, equipped with colour capabilities
1989 - The widely acclaimed Macintosh SE/30 made its debut
1994 - Apple presented the Power Macintosh
1996 - The Macintosh System Software OS underwent a rebranding as Mac OS
2001 - Apple introduced Mac OS X, marrying Unix stability with a user-friendly interface
2006 - Apple adopted Intel processors in MacBook Pro laptops
2008 - Apple introduced the MacBook Air, a lightweight laptop
2012 - Apple launched the MacBook Pro with a retina display
2016 - The Mac operating system underwent rebranding as macOS
2020 - Apple introduced the M1 chip for Macs, combining high performance and energy efficiency
2022 - The M2 chip was announced
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Enric Sala is an expert on marine conservation and is currently the National Geographic Society's Explorer-in-Residence. His love of the sea started with his childhood in Spain, inspired by the example of the legendary diver Jacques Cousteau. He has been a university professor of Oceanography in the US, as well as working at the Spanish National Council for Scientific Research and is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Biodiversity and the Bio-Economy. He has dedicated his life to protecting life in the oceans. Enric describes himself as a flexitarian who only eats meat occasionally.

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According to the United Nations Environment Programme, all life on earth – including in its forests and oceans – forms a “rich tapestry of interconnecting and interdependent forces”. Biodiversity on earth today is the product of four billion years of evolution and consists of many millions of distinct biological species. The term ‘biodiversity’ is relatively new, popularised since the 1980s and coinciding with an understanding of the growing threats to the natural world including habitat loss, pollution and climate change. The loss of biodiversity itself is dangerous because it contributes to clean, consistent water flows, food security, protection from floods and storms and a stable climate. The natural world can be an ally in combating global climate change but to do so it must be protected. Nations are working to achieve this, including setting targets to be reached by 2020 for the protection of the natural state of 17 per cent of the land and 10 per cent of the oceans. However, these are well short of what is needed, according to experts, with half the land needed to be in a natural state to help avert disaster.

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Date started: 2013

Founder/CEO: Othman Al Mandhari

Based: Muscat, Oman

Sector: Additive manufacturing, 3D printing technologies

Size: 15 full-time employees

Stage: Seed stage and seeking Series A round of financing 

Investors: Oman Technology Fund from 2017 to 2019, exited through an agreement with a new investor to secure new funding that it under negotiation right now. 

Tips to keep your car cool
  • Place a sun reflector in your windshield when not driving
  • Park in shaded or covered areas
  • Add tint to windows
  • Wrap your car to change the exterior colour
  • Pick light interiors - choose colours such as beige and cream for seats and dashboard furniture
  • Avoid leather interiors as these absorb more heat
Sri Lanka-India Test series schedule
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Started: 2018

Founders: Roman Axelrod, Valentyn Volkov

Based: Dubai, UAE

Industry: Smart contact lenses, augmented/virtual reality

Funding: $40 million

Investor: Opportunity Venture (Asia)

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Rating: 3/5

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Started: 2017
Founders: Dr Noha Khater and Rania Kadry
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Number of staff: 120
Investment: Bootstrapped, with support from Insead and Egyptian government, seed round of
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'O'

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Name: Direct Debit System
Started: Sept 2017
Based: UAE with a subsidiary in the UK
Industry: FinTech
Funding: Undisclosed
Investors: Elaine Jones
Number of employees: 8