News

She had to flee Iran. Now she’s won best actress at Cannes

Published

3 years ago

June 3, 2022

She had to flee Iran. Now she’s won best actress at Cannes

Written by Mohammed Abdelbary, CNNAbu Dhabi

A version connected with this story first came out throughout CNN’s Meanwhile in the Middle East e-newsletter, a three-times-a-week look within the region’s biggest testimonies. Sign up here.

When Iranian actress Zar Amir Ebrahimi fled her nation in 2006 due to help a leaked tape, the lady thought her career was initially over. But on Weekend she became the earliest Iranian to win the very best occasional actress award at the famous Cannes Film Festival.

Ebrahimi rose to fame throughout her native Iran, however the crowning moment of the girl career at Cannes arrived while she was throughout exile, for a film that was shot throughout Jordan.

Directed by Iran-born Ali Abbasi, “Holy Spider” is based on often the true story of some sort of serial killer inside the o city of Mashad, Usa. It follows a writer, Rahimi, as she protects the hunt for some sort of construction worker who was initially a suspect in often the murder of 16 sexual intercourse workers.

Winning the honor “was just like some sort of dream,” she informed CNN’s Becky Anderson in Thursday.

The movie meets in the topic of patriarchy, which Rahimi hopes is going to send “a message connected with courage, some text of expect, for not only females, but men and females all over the world.”

The earn has thrust her backside into the limelight throughout Iran and has now caused some sort of backlash. The actress informed CNN that she possesses received around 200 hazards. “The problem is they will didn’t even watch that movie, and they are usually judging this movie, merely from a trailer,” she said, attributing often the reaction to the absence of freedom of phrase throughout Iran.

1/43

Now in its 75th year, often the Cannes red carpet is usually one of the nearly all revered fashion events in the calendar. Scroll by means of the gallery to find the best looks through each day with the festivity.

Helen Mirren and Andie MacDowell looked stunning because they posed together ahead of the screening of “Mother In addition to Son (Un Petit Frere).” Credit:

JP Pariente/JM Haedrich/SIPA France/AP

Ebrahimi fled Usa for France in 06 from a “private video” connected with hers leaked, fearing charge and lashings from contencioso authorities, she said. The lady needed to start her employment afresh “in a nation where That i knew of no 1.”

“I needed to work away from my nation, from my home. I actually left my friends and even family behind,” the lady told CNN. But the lady refused to let often the scandal mar her employment. “From the day right after that scandal happened to help me, I just spoken about cinema, I merely thought that I are alive, and I need to have to work. So you find out, I will be in existence because I have theatre, because I like my job, because I like life.”

Ebrahimi said her following film will likely be shot throughout Australia. She has not any plans to help return to her homeland.

Related Topics:arts Featured Zar Amir Ebrahimi was exiled from Iran. Now she's won best actress at Cannes - CNN

Click to comment

News

Joe Biden prepares to bow out

Published

35 minutes ago

January 5, 2025

Press Room

This article is an on-site version of our The Week Ahead newsletter. Subscribers can sign up here to get the newsletter delivered every Sunday. Explore all of our newsletters here

Hello and welcome to the working week.

On Monday, the US Congress will preside over the electoral college vote count, which will certify Donald Trump’s election victory. Although this is typically no more than a small formality, the last occurrence four years ago was tarnished by the attack on the US Capitol building.

The Biden administration’s days are numbered. The FT’s Washington team will be keeping a close eye on any last-minute initiatives from the White House over the coming days, especially on Ukraine and the climate, as the outgoing president looks to consolidate his legacy.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken will meet South Korean foreign minister Cho Tae-yul on Monday, the first high-level diplomatic talks since President Yoon Suk Yeol’s impeachment. (Last week’s Lunch with the FT is an illuminating guide to Blinken’s foreign policy thinking.) Over the coming days, South Korea’s main opposition, the Democratic party, plans to summon Yoon to a parliamentary hearing and appoint special counsels to investigate his failed bid to impose martial law.

On Friday, Trump is set to appear for sentencing in the New York “hush money” criminal case. Justice Juan Merchan, who has presided over the trial, signalled in last week’s order that the president-elect could attend the hearing virtually and would not face jail time over the conviction.

That same day, the US Supreme Court will hear arguments on a law that would outlaw TikTok in the country if it is not sold to an American company. The ban is set to come into effect on January 19, a day before Trump’s inauguration. However, the president-elect has urged the court to delay the ban, saying he would prefer “to pursue a political resolution” instead.

Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro is set to be sworn in for a third term following his disputed election victory in July. Since the vote, Maduro has clamped down on his political opponents. Dozens of human rights campaigners and journalists have had their passports cancelled and opposition leader Edmundo González has sought political asylum in Spain. Expect a tightly choreographed show of power as his government remains on high alert.

There are a raft of trading updates from UK retailers this week, including Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Marks and Spencer. Anticipate analysis on what the reports reveal about consumer strength this Christmas season. Moreover, analysts will study the reports for clues on which supermarkets will be able to withstand the headwinds from the Labour party’s Budget in 2025, as increased employers’ national insurance contributions squeeze grocers’ margins.

One more thing . . .

It’s a big week for film and TV. Movie buffs can binge-watch the Critics Choice Awards, the National Board of Review gala, the AARP awards and the Golden Globes over the coming days. I won’t be joining them. I haven’t watched much of anything this year. And shamefully, I missed all 10 of our film critic’s best films of 2024.

What must-see film of the last 12 months did I miss? Let me know at harvey.nriapia@ft.com.

Key economic and company reports

Here is a more complete list of what to expect in terms of company reports and economic data this week.

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Greggs Q4 trading update, B&M Q3 trading statement, Marks and Spencer Christmas trading update, Tesco Q3 and Christmas trading statement
Peru interest rate
Bank of Mexico monetary policy minutes

Friday

World events

Finally, here is a rundown of other events and milestones this week.

Monday

US Congress meets to certify Trump’s election
Antony Blinken to meet South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul
Golden Globe Awards
Malaysia’s court of appeal to hear jailed former prime minister Najib Razak’s bid for house arrest
Epiphany

Tuesday

Friday

US Supreme Court to hear arguments on a law that would ban TikTok if it is not sold to an American company
Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro to be sworn in for a third term following his disputed election victory
President Joe Biden to meet Pope Francis and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in Rome
Donald Trump to be sentenced in ‘hush money’ trial

Saturday

Sunday

Recommended newsletters for you

Inside Politics — What you need to know in UK politics. Sign up here

US Election countdown — Money and politics in the race for the White House. Sign up here

News

FBI says suspect in New Orleans attack twice visited the city to conduct surveillance

Published

57 minutes ago

January 5, 2025

Press Room

FBI says suspect in New Orleans attack twice visited the city to conduct surveillance

Nathan Williams, a University of New Orleans student, lights a candle at a memorial on Bourbon Street on Friday for the victims of a deadly truck attack on New Year’s Day in New Orleans.

Gerald Herbert/AP

hide caption

toggle caption

Gerald Herbert/AP

The FBI has revealed that the man who allegedly carried out the New Year’s Day attack in New Orleans had recently visited the city twice beforehand, and used “smart glasses” to record video of the area he later targeted.

In a press conference on Sunday, Lyonel Myrthil, the FBI special agent in charge of the New Orleans field office, said that Shamsud-Din Jabbar had traveled to New Orleans just weeks ahead of the attack that killed 14 people and injured many more.

One trip took place in October, while the other was in November. Myrthil also said Jabbar had ridden through the city’s French Quarter on a bicycle wearing smart glasses made by Ray-Ban that are capable of recording video and are connected to a user’s Facebook account.

Crowds return to a reopened Bourbon Street on Jan. 2, 2025, the day after the deadly truck attack in New Orleans.

Myrthil also said Jabbar traveled to Cairo, Egypt, in 2023 and Ontario, Canada, in the summer of 2024, although it is not clear whether those trips were connected to the attack. Jabbar was a former U.S. Army soldier who became inspired by ISIS, according to investigators.

The FBI said it is pursuing leads in Houston, where Jabbar lived, as well as Tampa, Fla.

“Our agents are getting answers to where he went, who he went with and how those trips may or may not tie into his actions here,” Myrthil said.

Sunday’s press conference offered a more detailed timeline of Jabbar’s actions in the moments leading up to the attack, when he allegedly drove a truck into a crowd celebrating the New Year on New Orleans’ storied Bourbon Street.

FBI agents showed video of Jabbar planting improvised bombs before the attack. Jabbar’s rental truck contained a transmitter that was meant to trigger the devices, according to investigators, but they did not explode. Two of the bombs were left in coolers, one of which was said to have been dragged around by unsuspecting revelers on New Year’s Eve.

Law enforcement officers from multiple agencies work the scene on Bourbon Street after a person drove a truck into the crowd.

After his truck crashed at the end of the attack, Jabbar exited the vehicle and fired at police, wounding at least two officers, before he was fatally shot.

The FBI said it had recovered two semi-automatic guns that Jabbar had with him in the truck: a 9mm pistol and a 308-caliber rifle. The rifle had a “privately-made silencer,” which was purchased during a private sale in Texas, investigators said.

On leaving the house he was staying in before the attack, Jabbar also set a small fire in a hallway, but the flames burned out before firefighters arrived, the FBI said.

The FBI still believes Jabbar carried out the attack by himself.

“All investigative details and evidence that we have now still support that Jabbar acted alone here in New Orleans,” said FBI Deputy Assistant Director Christopher Raia. “We have not seen any indications of an accomplice in the United States, but we are still looking into potential associates in the U.S. and outside of our borders.”

Officials said they are still unsure what the motive was for the attack, or why he chose New Orleans.

Also at the press conference, New Orleans mayor LaToya Cantrell said the city is working to improve safety, bringing in a tactical expert to assess security across the region. Mardi Gras parades begin Monday, and the city is hosting the Super Bowl next month. Police have used multiple vehicles and barricades to block traffic at Bourbon and Canal streets since the attack.

Cantrell also spoke of preparations for the visit of President Biden, who is planning to travel to New Orleans with first lady Jill Biden on Monday to grieve with the families of victims.

Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry also spoke at the start of the press conference, saying the innocent lives lost will never be forgotten. Landry has declared a period of mourning for the victims, beginning on Monday, with a different victim to be remembered each day.

On Saturday, the last of the 14 victims of the attack were identified: LaTasha Polk, a nursing assistant in her 40s, and a British man, Edward Pettifer. Pettifer was the stepson of a former nanny to the Royal Family, which led Prince William, son of King Charles, to express his shock and sadness at the death.

The coroner’s office said all the victims died from blunt force injuries. Most victims were in their 20s, with the youngest victim 18 years old and the oldest 63. About 30 people were injured, and 16 remained hospitalized as of Friday.

Later on Saturday night, New Orleans residents held a vigil on Bourbon Street, tearfully carrying memorial crosses and pictures of victims.

News

As Democrats Reel, Two Front-Runners Emerge in a Leadership Battle

Published

7 hours ago

January 5, 2025

Press Room

As Democrats Reel, Two Front-Runners Emerge in a Leadership Battle

Days before Republicans take full control of Washington, the Democratic National Committee is mired in an intramural fight that is less about how the party found itself locked out of power than about disputes over donor influence, personality conflicts and past slights and jealousies.

The two candidates who have emerged as front-runners to become D.N.C. chair, Ken Martin of Minnesota and Ben Wikler of Wisconsin, are both middle-aged white men from the upper Midwest and chair of their state parties whose politics are well within the Democratic mainstream.

Yet, as is common during internal Democratic squabbles, fault lines in the race have formed not over ideological differences but over arguments about party mechanics.

Mr. Martin, 51, is campaigning on a platform of returning power and resources to state parties, while his supporters are attacking Mr. Wikler, 43, as a tool of major donors and Democratic consultants in Washington.

Mr. Wikler’s supporters include a host of D.N.C. officials who have been perturbed at Mr. Martin for creating a group of state party chairs that has competed within the national committee for influence. They say that the Wisconsinite, who turned his state party into a fund-raising juggernaut, is the more dynamic figure who managed to turn state elections, like a 2023 Supreme Court contest, into national causes.

At the same time, Democrats who are not directly involved in the D.N.C. race described the field to succeed the departing chair, Jaime Harrison, as uninspiring. Among the party’s top leaders, only Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the majority leader, has weighed in on the race (for Mr. Wikler). Some Democrats see the D.N.C. contenders’ arguments about relationships with donors and their regular promises of more money for state parties as papering over a broader discussion of why Vice President Kamala Harris lost the election.

“Had Kamala or Biden made a call and said, ‘Look, we want to rally around X, Y and Z,’ I may have taken an interest in someone,” said Donna Brazile, a veteran D.N.C. member who has served in the past as interim party chair. “Other than giving state parties more resources, which is as old as the Republic itself, I haven’t heard anything new.”

Aides to President Biden and Ms. Harris declined to say whether either of them would back a candidate for party chair.

The post of D.N.C. chair is often described as one of the worst jobs in American politics — especially when Democrats do not hold the White House. Whoever wins the vote on Feb. 1 will be responsible for helping lead a party grappling with why it lost again to Donald J. Trump while keeping peace among a constellation of interest groups, donors, congressional committees, ambitious governors and state parties.

And when the 2028 presidential primary race begins in earnest, the D.N.C. chair will set the rules for the contest (including which state goes first and who qualifies for debates) and presumably try to remain neutral about whom Democrats choose as their nominee.

Mr. Martin now has endorsements from “well over 100” of the 448 members of the D.N.C., according to Justin Buoen, a campaign adviser. He entered the race in November claiming support from 83 members. Another candidate, former Gov. Martin O’Malley of Maryland, has the backing of “more than 60” D.N.C. members, according to a spokesman, Chris Taylor. And James Skoufis, a New York state senator, said he was “the first choice” of 23 D.N.C. members.

Mr. Wikler’s team has not revealed his whip count.

None of the candidates have released a list of members supporting them, and if multiple contenders remain in the race, it appears unlikely that anyone will receive the majority required to win the election on the first ballot — leaving candidates jockeying to be a second choice should voters recalibrate their options.

Four other candidates have also qualified for four party-sanctioned candidate forums scheduled for this month, as well as for the Feb. 1 ballot. They are Nate Snyder, a former Homeland Security official in the Biden and Obama administrations; Marianne Williamson, the perennial presidential candidate; Quintessa Hathaway, who lost an Arkansas congressional race in 2022; and Jason Paul, a Massachusetts lawyer who self-published a book titled “Trench Warfare Politics in the Tinder Era.”

Jeff Weaver, who was a senior aide to Mr. Sanders’s 2016 and 2020 presidential bids and to Representative Dean Phillips’s long-shot 2024 primary challenge to Mr. Biden, has argued to allies that Mr. Wikler is too tied to the party’s major donors.

Mr. Weaver has pointed in particular to the billionaire Reid Hoffman, whom he blames for Mr. Wikler’s attempt to keep Mr. Phillips off the Democratic presidential primary ballot last year in Wisconsin. The state’s Supreme Court subsequently ordered that Mr. Phillips’s name appear on the primary ballot, though he ended his campaign before Wisconsin voted.

“In my view, one of the most important roles of the new D.N.C. chair is to ensure we have a fair and open process in the 2028 Democratic primaries,” Mr. Weaver said. “We need to make sure we have someone at the D.N.C. who is a guardian of the fair process.”

Mr. Hoffman, who over the years has contributed millions of dollars to the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, is supporting Mr. Wikler, according to a person briefed on the billionaire’s deliberations.

Mr. Wikler’s other backers argue that he can help unite the party.

“The best thing about him, in my view, is he is a completely honest broker between the ideological factors in the party,” said Matt Bennett, a founder of Third Way, a centrist think tank that has backed Mr. Wikler and has a long relationship with Mr. Hoffman. “That has got to be the ideology of the D.N.C. chair: Get to 50 percent plus one, and then once you’re in office, go with God.”

And yet still others look at both Mr. Wikler and Mr. Martin and see party leaders who underperformed in 2024. Ms. Harris lost Wisconsin to Mr. Trump, and in solidly Democratic Minnesota, the party lost control of the Legislature because one Democrat elected to the State House was found not to be a resident of his district.

The D.N.C. chair occupies a high-profile position but answers to a very small electorate. The D.N.C. members who will vote on the post are party insiders elected from their states, ex officio members based on other offices they hold and at-large members appointed over the years by national chairs.

There is little utility to advertising or appearing on cable television: Several D.N.C. members pointed out that Mr. Wikler probably swayed more votes by appearing last month on a radio show in Fargo, N.D., that was hosted by one of North Dakota’s D.N.C. members than he did by going on “The Daily Show” with Jon Stewart.

Yet some of the candidates’ messaging has not gone over well. Mr. Skoufis, an admitted long-shot candidate who has attacked the party and its strategies, sent holiday postcards to members. “Wishing you lots of cheer this holiday season” the front of the card read, and on the back: “Unless you’re a political consultant who’s been ripping off the D.N.C. Nothing but coal for them!”

Among those who received the postcards were D.N.C. members who have at times been on the party’s payroll and who were not amused.

Other attempts by supporters to sway the party vote have been discouraged. Some donors who organized efforts to call D.N.C. members on behalf of either Mr. Martin or Mr. Wikler were asked to stop for fear the work would backfire, according to a person briefed on the conversations.

“Nobody is really addressing the elephant in the room, which is we need to have a knock-down, drag-out fight about what the future is going to look like,” said Mr. Snyder, one of the long-shot candidates. “I haven’t met anybody with overbearing enthusiasm for the process or a particular candidate, Ben or Ken.”

Theodore Schleifer contributed reporting.