Barbados’ Ambassador to CARICOM, David Comissiong has lauded the relationship between Bridgetown and St. Vincent and the Grenadines, as that island marked 45 years as an independent nation. Ambassador Comissiong acknowledged the closeness of the two nations, noting they are bound together in several spheres. The Ambassador, who is Vincentian-born, says the connection goes way back to the 1700’s. He was speaking during the Conversation on CARICOM segment of Mornin’ Barbados. Vincentians who call Barbados home observed and celebrated their 45th year of political Independence in “Vincy Town” in the Fairchild Street Market Village. President of the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Association of Barbados Noel Adams, expressed gratitude to Barbados for welcoming Vincentians and its assistance over the years.

The Barbados Police Service (TBPS) is asking for the public’s help in locating 20-year-old Javonnte Shakir Harewood. He’s wanted for questioning in connection with serious criminal matters. Harewood, whose last known address is # 41 Martins Road, Pinelands, St. Michael is of a brown complexion and has a slim built. He’s advised he can present himself to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the District ‘A’ Police Station located at Station Hill, St. Michael accompanied by an attorney of his choice. Anyone who may know the whereabouts of Javonnte Shakir Harewood, is asked to contact the CID of the District ‘A’ Police Station at telephone numbers 430-7242 or 430-7270, Police Emergency at 211, Crime Stoppers at 1-800-8477 or the nearest police station. Members of the public are also reminded that it is a serious offence to harbour or assist wanted individuals and anyone caught committing this offence can be prosecuted.

By Benjamin Brown and Hamdi Alkhshali, CNN (CNN) — A German-Iranian national and longtime US resident has been executed in Iran after being convicted of terrorism offences, according to Iranian state media citing the country’s judiciary-affiliated Mizan news agency. Jamshid Sharmahd, 69, was executed Monday morning for “planning and orchestrating a series of terrorist acts,” state-run IRNA and Press TV reported. His execution sparked condemnation from the United States and Germany. Sharmahd’s daughter Gazelle has repeatedly said her father is innocent and that he faced a sham trial due to his political activism and criticism of the Islamic Republic. In a post on Instagram Monday, she accused the German and US government of failing her father, and described his reported death as “apparently retaliation (for) Israeli strikes on the regime.” Israel struck Iran multiple times on Saturday in an escalating regional tit-for-tat. Sharmahd was arrested in 2020 by Iranian authorities who claimed he headed a group accused of a deadly 2008 bombing in the city of Shiraz, according to state-run news agencies ISNA and IRNA. He was sentenced to death in 2022 for “corruption on Earth”, sparking widespread condemnation from human rights groups and Western governments. “He has been sentenced to death after a legal proceeding that has been widely criticized as a sham trial,” Vedant Patel, the US State Department’s principal deputy spokesperson said in a briefing last fall. Amnesty International also described the trial as “grossly unfair.” Following the news of his execution, German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock said that Sharmahd’s “murder” showed Tehran to be an “inhumane regime” that “uses death as a weapon.” Baerbock said the execution would have “serious consequences.” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi pushed back against Baerbock’s criticism, saying, “A German passport does not provide impunity to anyone, let alone a terrorist criminal.” Germany and Iran summoned each other’s diplomats on Tuesday to protest their respective concerns. The United States’ Office of the Special Envoy for Iran said it was looking into reports of Sharmahd’s execution and said his killing would “represent the latest abhorrent act in the regime’s long history of transnational repression and accelerating rate of executions.” Sharmahd’s “kidnapping and rendition, as well as sham trial and reports of torture, were reprehensible,” the envoy’s office added. Abram Paley, the US Deputy Special Envoy, last year met with Sharmahd’s family to discuss his imprisonment and death sentence. The-CNN-Wire & © 2024 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.