Author: Anadolu Agency
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Wednesday his “good offices remain available to support all efforts towards peace” following US-led discussions on the Black Sea. Guterres “welcomes the discussions and reported commitments reached in Saudi Arabia by the United States, the Russian Federation and Ukraine,” spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement. “Reaching an agreement on freedom of navigation in the Black Sea to ensure the protection of civilian vessels and port infrastructure will be a crucial contribution to global food security and supply chains,” he said, underscoring the importance of trade routes from Ukraine and Russia. The statement noted the…
The UN on Wednesday called for an end to hostilities in Ukraine, warning that the humanitarian crisis continues to worsen as more than 12,800 civilians have been killed since February 2022. “We hope for a full cessation of hostilities and ultimately peace in Ukraine. The situation for civilians has continued to worsen since we last briefed the council,” Acting Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Joyce Msuya told the Security Council. She noted that “not a day has passed without an attack harming civilians” since March 1, with frontline communities enduring relentless shelling. “Civilians are confronted with relentless shelling and face impossible…
The European commissioner for equality, preparedness and crisis management expressed concern Tuesday over “alarming reports” regarding Israeli attacks targeting health personnel, hospitals and aid workers in Gaza. “I am concerned by the alarming reports emerging from Gaza, where health personnel, ambulances and hospitals have come under Israeli attack-yet again,” Hadja Lahbib said in a statement. She said these acts undermine the essential and heroic efforts of aid workers striving to save lives in the midst of hostilities. “Humanitarian aid efforts must continue to help people in desperate need. International Humanitarian Law must be respected by all,” she added. Lahbib said…
The European commissioner for equality, preparedness and crisis management expressed concern Tuesday over “alarming reports” regarding Israeli attacks targeting health personnel, hospitals and aid workers in Gaza. “I am concerned by the alarming reports emerging from Gaza, where health personnel, ambulances and hospitals have come under Israeli attack-yet again,” Hadja Lahbib said in a statement. She said these acts undermine the essential and heroic efforts of aid workers striving to save lives in the midst of hostilities. “Humanitarian aid efforts must continue to help people in desperate need. International Humanitarian Law must be respected by all,” she added. Lahbib said…
Israeli police removed dozens of anti-government protesters Tuesday who were blocking the Knesset in western Jerusalem, following hours of demonstrations that began in the morning. Israeli Army Radio reported that officers cleared protesters who sat on the ground outside the parliament building. Clashes broke out as police evicted demonstrators after they sat on the road to the Knesset entrance, hours after lawmakers approved the 2025 state budget, Channel 13 added. By 1715GMT, police arrested nine protesters, it noted. Earlier, demonstrators used cars to block Knesset entrances, forcing Defense Minister Israel Katz to arrive by military helicopter, while far-right National Security…
An Israeli court upheld a detention order Tuesday against Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in the Gaza Strip. “The Israeli Beersheba court today upheld the detention of Abu Safiya as an unlawful combatant for a period of six months,” the Prisoners’ Information Office, affiliated with the Palestinian resistance group, Hamas, said in a statement. No further details were provided. Israel arrested Abu Safiya, 52, in late December after storming the Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza. He was forcibly removed at gunpoint after the hospital was destroyed and rendered non-operational. Israel’s 2002 Unlawful Combatants Law…
Alexander Lukashenko on Tuesday was sworn in for the seventh time as the president of Belarus. The inauguration ceremony took place in the Ceremonial Hall, the largest venue within the Palace of Independence in Minsk, the country’s capital. Over 1,100 guests were invited to attend the event. Just moments before Lukashenko’s arrival, the national flag of the Republic of Belarus and the presidential standard were brought into the hall. With his right hand on the Constitution, Lukashenko took the oath of office, followed by the national anthem. The chairman of the Central Election Commission then presented Lukashenko with the official…
Russian and US delegations held a “detailed and complex but quite useful” meeting in Riyadh on Monday, focusing on the Ukraine conflict and security issues, Grigory Karasin, the co-head of the Russian delegations, said Tuesday. The high-level talks lasted over 12 hours, marking one of the longest discussions between the two sides since their diplomatic dialogue resumed in February. Karasin described the talks as constructive, emphasizing that they covered multiple issues. “The dialogue was detailed and complex but quite useful for both us and the Americans,” he told Russian media, according to the Russian state news agency TASS. “Many problems…
Pushing back on possible new tariffs by President Donald Trump over importing oil from Venezuela, Beijing on Tuesday slammed the US’ “illegal” sanctions which “grossly interfere in other nations’ internal affairs,” state media reported. “China firmly opposes the US’ long-term abuse of illegal unilateral sanctions and so-called long-arm jurisdiction,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun told reporters in Beijing. He was responding to questions over Trump’s executive order declaring any country buying oil or gas from Venezuela will pay a 25% tariff on trades with the US. Urging the US to “cease meddling in Venezuela’s domestic affairs,” Guo asked the Trump…
Six people, including three journalists, were killed in a Ukrainian artillery strike on its eastern Luhansk region, Russian authorities said Monday. A correspondent for the daily newspaper Izvestia, Alexander Fedorchak, and two employees of the Zvezda TV channel — cameraman Andrey Panov and driver Alexander Sirkeli — were killed in the strike, the Russian Investigative Committee said in a statement. The committee added that it opened a criminal case following the incident. A 14-year-old teenager and a correspondent for the Russian state news agency TASS, Mikhail Skuratov, were also injured, receiving shrapnel wounds. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova strongly…