Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been accused of being involved in sanctions-busting in a New York trial. AP
Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been accused of being involved in sanctions-busting in a New York trial. AP
Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been accused of being involved in sanctions-busting in a New York trial. AP
Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been accused of being involved in sanctions-busting in a New York trial. AP

Turkey seizes assets of commodity broker testifying against country in New York sanctions-busting trial


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Turkish prosecutors on Friday ordered the seizure of assets belonging to a Turkish-Iranian gold trader who is giving evidence in the trial of a banker accused of helping Iran evade American sanctions.

A day earlier Reza Zarrab implicated Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the plot, telling a New York court that the then prime minister had approved some of the sanctions-breaking financial deals.

Zarrab is appearing as the prosecution’s star witness in the trial of Mehmet Hakan Atilla, an executive at Turkey’s state-owned Halkbank, who has pleaded not guilty in Manhattan federal court.

The case had strained relations between Washington and Ankara even before Zarrab implicated Mr Erdogan. The president has denied that Turkey breached any sanctions and dismissed the case as politically motivated.

On Friday the Istanbul prosecutor’s officer announced that Zarrab’s assets would be confiscated, according to Turkish state media, as part of an investigation into the trader.

Binali Yildirim said he hoped the 34-year-old would “turn back from his mistake”.

He added: “This court case has stopped being judicial and became completely political, with the sole aim to corner Turkey and its economy.”

Zarrab was arrested last year after arriving in Florida for a family holiday at Disney World.

He began giving evidence on Wednesday, after striking a plea bargain last month, describing the complex financial arrangements that were used to allow Iran to free up cash held in Turkish bank accounts.

Zarrab said he used a string of front companies as well as his experience as a gold dealer to disguise what were essentially sanctions-busting cash transfers as legal gold deals.

On Wednesday, he told the court he offered Zafer Caglayan, then Turkey's economy minister, a cut of the profits in return for his help. That came to some $59 million in bribes, he said, as the court was shown a spreadsheet which was used to keep track of the huge sums of money.

Zarrab said the scheme shifted from gold to phantom food sales when the US closed a loophole in 2013.

The court heard audio recordings of conversations with Atilla while Zarrab testified that the banker was initially unclear about how the new arrangements would work.

However, on Friday, Zarrab explained that it was Atilla himself who identified a way to move money from one company to another to hide the link to Iran. He also testified that it was Atilla who found another loophole allowing Iran to use proceeds from sales of gas - but not oil - to buy gold.

The evidence has played out before a courtroom packed with Turkish journalists. Not only does the trial threaten major repercussions across Turkey’s financial and political spheres, but Zarrab is a prominent figure at home.

His colourful lifestyle, married to a pop star, was frequently splashed across magazines. And he is reputed to own 20 properties, a personal submarine and gold-plated pistol.

That was not enough for one juror, however.

Richard Berman, the US district judge hearing the case, was forced to dismiss one man for sleeping - “really sound asleep, not just dozing,” he said - throughout the testimony on Friday afternoon.

Zarrab’s evidence will continue on Monday, providing more opportunities to embarrass Mr Erdogan’s government.

Yet the case could still strengthen his grip on domestic politics.

“This will bolster his claim that he is fighting an independence battle against foreign enemies,” said Halil Karaveli, editor of the Turkey Analyst, a policy journal told the Associated Press.

“If there is going to be any political impact, I suspect it will actually help in the electoral sense.”

The Sand Castle

Director: Matty Brown

Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea

Rating: 2.5/5

How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
  1. Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
  2. Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
  3. Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
  4. Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
  5. Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
  6. The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
  7. Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269

*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year

A timeline of the Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language
  • 2018: Formal work begins
  • November 2021: First 17 volumes launched 
  • November 2022: Additional 19 volumes released
  • October 2023: Another 31 volumes released
  • November 2024: All 127 volumes completed
WOMAN AND CHILD

Director: Saeed Roustaee

Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi

Rating: 4/5

The specs: Rolls-Royce Cullinan

Price, base: Dh1 million (estimate)

Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbo V12

Transmission: Eight-speed automatic

Power: 563hp @ 5,000rpm

Torque: 850Nm @ 1,600rpm

Fuel economy, combined: 15L / 100km

Bundesliga fixtures

Saturday, May 16 (kick-offs UAE time)

Borussia Dortmund v Schalke (4.30pm) 

RB Leipzig v Freiburg (4.30pm) 

Hoffenheim v Hertha Berlin (4.30pm) 

Fortuna Dusseldorf v Paderborn  (4.30pm) 

Augsburg v Wolfsburg (4.30pm) 

Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Monchengladbach (7.30pm)

Sunday, May 17

Cologne v Mainz (4.30pm),

Union Berlin v Bayern Munich (7pm)

Monday, May 18

Werder Bremen v Bayer Leverkusen (9.30pm)

RESULTS
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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How%20to%20avoid%20getting%20scammed
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88 Video's most popular rentals

Avengers 3: Infinity War: an American superhero film released in 2018 and based on the Marvel Comics story.  

Sholay: a 1975 Indian action-adventure film. It follows the adventures of two criminals hired by police to catch a vagabond. The film was panned on release but is now considered a classic.

Lucifer: is a 2019 Malayalam-language action film. It dives into the gritty world of Kerala’s politics and has become one of the highest-grossing Malayalam films of all time.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
What is the FNC?

The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning. 
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval. 
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
 

FROM%20THE%20ASHES
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The specs

Engine: 4-litre twin-turbo V8

Transmission: eight-speed PDK

Power: 630bhp

Torque: 820Nm

Price: Dh683,200

On sale: now

LILO & STITCH

Starring: Sydney Elizebeth Agudong, Maia Kealoha, Chris Sanders

Director: Dean Fleischer Camp

Rating: 4.5/5

Most sought after workplace benefits in the UAE
  • Flexible work arrangements
  • Pension support
  • Mental well-being assistance
  • Insurance coverage for optical, dental, alternative medicine, cancer screening
  • Financial well-being incentives 
How to avoid crypto fraud
  • Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
  • Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
  • Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
  • Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
  • Critically assess whether a project’s promises or returns seem too good to be true.
  • Only use reputable platforms that have a track record of strong regulatory compliance.
  • Store funds in hardware wallets as opposed to online exchanges.
About Karol Nawrocki

• Supports military aid for Ukraine, unlike other eurosceptic leaders, but he will oppose its membership in western alliances.

• A nationalist, his campaign slogan was Poland First. "Let's help others, but let's take care of our own citizens first," he said on social media in April.

• Cultivates tough-guy image, posting videos of himself at shooting ranges and in boxing rings.

• Met Donald Trump at the White House and received his backing.

SPECS
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%202-litre%20direct%20injection%20turbo%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%207-speed%20automatic%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%20261hp%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%20400Nm%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%20From%20Dh134%2C999%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Star%20Wars%3A%20Episode%20I%20%E2%80%93%20The%20Phantom%20Menace
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDeveloper%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Big%20Ape%20Productions%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20LucasArts%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EConsoles%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20PC%2C%20PlayStation%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable
Amitav Ghosh, University of Chicago Press