Foreign
Biden urged to act on detention of US citizens in Nigeria
The US Chamber of Digital Commerce is urging Biden’s administration to secure the release of American citizens detained in Nigeria.
Since February 26, 2024, the Nigerian government has detained Tigran Gambaryan, a Binance executive and a former federal agent of the United States, and Nadeem Anjarwalla, another Binance executive, without passports.
President Joe Biden’s administration is facing mounting pressure to expedite their release due to their passport-less detention. The United States Chamber of Digital Commerce published a blog post on its website on March 15, making its appeal.
The Chamber of Digital Commerce is leading the call for immediate diplomatic action to rectify what it considers to be a serious injustice. The incarceration of Gambaryan under questionable circumstances has established a dangerous precedent.
This precedent suggests that any American entrepreneur operating outside of the country, particularly those working in the cryptocurrency industry, could be subject to similar criminal measures by authorities in other countries.
The blog post made the following claims:
“The unwarranted detention of Tigran Gambaryan is more than a legal issue; it is a matter of national dignity and the protection of American citizens worldwide.”
Nigeria is a United States ally, receiving more than $1 Billion in humanitarian assistance every year. The initial reports of the arrests of Gambaryan and Anjarwalla surfaced towards the end of February. The Financial Times reported on the detentions, but the press coverage did not explicitly name the executives.
Gambaryan and Anjarwalla, who hold dual citizenship in the United Kingdom and Kenya, reportedly landed in Abuja on February 25. This information is provided by their respective families.
They traveled to Nigeria in response to an invitation from the government to discuss the ongoing disagreement with Binance regarding the latter’s allegedly illegal activities in Nigeria.
The following day, the executives allegedly met with Nigerian officials to discuss the government’s instruction to telecom providers in the nation to block access to cryptocurrency exchanges like Binance and others.
According to the authorities, cryptocurrency exchanges were responsible for the devaluation of the naira, which is Nigeria’s official currency, as well as the facilitation of “illicit flows” of funds.
However, instead of reaching a resolution, Nigerian officials immediately escorted Gambaryan and Anjarwalla to their respective hotels after their meeting.
Their families stated that the National Security Agency of Nigeria instructed them to gather their belongings before relocating them to a “guesthouse”.
A few days before Binance officially announced its departure from Nigeria
on March 5, they took Gambaryan and Anjarwalla into custody.
CoinXposure
France’s Foreign Ministry expresses in a statement its “deep concern” at the renewed outbreak of fighting in southern Lebanon.
The Quai d’Orsay condemns rocket attacks against Israel from Lebanon over the weekend, while calling on Israel to exercise restraint in its response.
“France reiterates the importance of not compromising the significant progress made in recent months to ensure the security of Israelis and Lebanese people on both sides of the Blue Line,” the statement reads, adding that French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot conveyed these messages to Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar and Lebanese Foreign Minister Youssef Rajji.
The Houthis announced an aerial blockade on Ben-Gurion Airport and threatened any airlines that fly to Israel.
Yemen’s Houthis announced a blockade on Ben-Gurion Airport and warned major airlines from flying to Israel, the terror organization said in a Saturday morning statement.
“After the success of our Yemeni Armed Forces in cutting off Israeli shipping in the Red Sea, a blockade is imposed on Ben-Gurion Airport in occupied Palestine,” the Houthis wrote in a statement on X/Twitter.
The Houthis warned Lufthansa, Turkish Airlines, Air France, British Airways, United Airlines, and easyJet from flying to Israel for “everyone’s safety.”
Footage released by Houthi Military Media says to show a launch of missile, which the Houthis say they fired at Israel, at an unknown location in this screen grab obtained from a handout video released on December 19, 2024. (credit: Houthi Military Media/Handout via REUTERS)
Houthis target Ben-Gurion Airport
The organization wrote that any other airlines flying to Ben-Gurion Airport would also be targeted.
“Please take the decision of the Yemeni Armed Forces seriously, as Ben-Gurion Airport is no longer safe until the aggression on Gaza stops,” the statement read.
The announcement comes after the Yemeni terrorist organization fired multiple ballistic missiles towards Israel in the past week.
The terror organization targeted Jerusalem with missiles for the third time in two months on Friday.
The removal of Majer came the day after an Israeli Air Force reservist was dismissed for a similar posting on social media.
An officer in the IDF’s intelligence branch has been removed from his reserve duty after a social media post that he refused to take part in a continuance of fighting, The Jerusalem Post confirmed Wednesday.
Michael Majer, an officer in intelligence, had written on X that he would not take part any continuance of action. His post criticized national leadership, stating that he was not going to obey decisions that he felt were contradictory to the best interest of the nation.
According to the IDF, Majer was permanently removed from his position on reserve duty.
“The thing that will most help protect my people now is to refuse to take part in the fighting in the service of a bunch of filthy traitors and in complete opposition to the interests of the people of Israel.”
Risking everything by speaking out against gov’t
Following the publication of his post, Majer emphasized that he made a difficult, personal decision to speak out as reservist, because it is a large part of his identity and social circle. He said that he stands behind every word he wrote, and even brought it up during his dismissal hearing.
“Every person must have red lines. As far as I am concerned, they were crossed a long time ago,” he wrote in response to his dismissal. “I will not take part in an action that is motivated by foreign interests and means abandoning the kidnapped to their deaths, sending soldiers to kill and be killed in vain, and continuing the multifaceted deterioration of the State of Israel. All of this under a regime that has long since lost all legitimacy and is solely for the preservation of its power.”
The removal of Majer came the day after an Israeli Air Force reservist was dismissed for a similar posting on social media, Israeli media reported. The IAF reservist navigator had written that they were fearful of the fate of the hostages and expressed extreme concern over efforts to fire Shin Bet head Ronen Bar and the attorney general.
These comments mimicked those of a pre-October 7 world, where hundreds of reservists threatened to not show up for duty in protest.
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