Author: Anadolu Agency

Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Tuesday that no one can prevent China’s reunification with Taiwan, according to state media. “We Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Strait belong to one and the same family. No one can ever sever the bond of kinship between us,” Xi said in his 2025 New Year message, Xinhua News Agency reported. “No one can block the historical momentum of the reunification of the motherland,” he added. Xi’s remarks come as tensions over Taiwan continue to escalate. Since Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te took office in May, Beijing has staged three major military…

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal on Tuesday said that “more than half” of his country’s state budget for the past year was spent on defense. “This year, more than half of state budget expenditures were directed towards defense. Literally, every hryvnia collected within the country,” Shmyhal said in his address at a government meeting, the excerpt of which he shared on Telegram. Expressing that the investments of the state and the private sector have increased the capabilities of Ukraine’s defense industry six-fold, Shmyhal said more than 800 state and private companies operate in the country’s defense sector. Shmyhal said that…

Ukraine said on Tuesday that at least one person was injured due to overnight Russian missile and drone strikes that targeted multiple regions of the country, including the capital Kyiv. Serhiy Popko, the head of the Kyiv City Military Administration, said on Telegram that debris from downed Russian missiles was recorded over the capital’s Darnytskyi district, resulting in damages to three private buildings and two cars. “No casualties were reported,” Popko further said, calling on Kyiv residents to be attentive to air raid warnings sounded in the capital. Later, the Kyiv Regional Military Administration said on Telegram that a woman…

The US sanctioned a Russian judge Tuesday for the arbitrary detention of activist Alexei Gorinov for comments on the Russia-Ukraine war. The Treasury Department said Olesya Mendeleeva ordered the arbitrary detention of Gorinov — a Moscow city councilor, public defender, and human rights activist. Mendeleeva sentenced Gorinov in July 2022 to seven years in prison for voicing opposition to the war against Ukraine. Gorinov suffered physical abuse and was denied medical treatment while in detention, according to the statement. “Russia’s manipulation of its legal system silences dissent and suffocates the truth about Russia’s indefensible war against Ukraine,” said Acting Under…

The Ukrainian military said on Tuesday its forces had hit a Russian oil depot in the western Smolensk region, setting fire to tanks storing oil products. Ukraine’s general staff said on the Telegram app that the depot was used for military purposes. It did not specify the weapon used for the strike but said it was carried out in cooperation with drone forces. Smolensk region governor Vasily Anokhin said that the attack caused a fuel spill and fire According to his statement on Telegram, 10 Ukrainian drones were shot down by Russian air defences but the wreckage of one of…

Iraq said Tuesday that the country’s border with Iran are “fully secured.” “All shared borders with Iran are fully secured and protected against any smuggling operations or border violations,” Border Guard Commander Lt. Gen. Mohammed Abdul Wahab Sukka said during a meeting with Iranian border guard commanders. He said Iraqi authorities are ready to cooperate with the Iranian border guards “to ensure border protection and facilitate the movement of pilgrims,” according to the state news agency INA. Iranian Border Guard Commander Ahmad Ali Goudarz, for his part, said border forces in the two countries “are working shoulder to shoulder for…

Bosnia-Herzegovina’s top diplomat has hailed Türkiye’s role as a mediator in the Balkans region, pointing out “strong regional ties and growing global influence.” Speaking to Anadolu Agency (AA) on Thursday, Foreign Minister Elmedin Konakovic described Türkiye as a key player on the world stage: “Türkiye is an important and major political factor in the world. In the Balkans, it can often serve as a serious mediator because it maintains relationships with other countries. I have great respect for this.” He also expressed admiration for Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and his expertise: “I value him greatly. I consult him on…

Many Palestinian detainees in Israeli custody have gone unaccounted for with the army denying any knowledge about their whereabouts, according to Israeli media on Monday. “The fate of many Palestinians from Gaza who were detained by the Israeli army is unknown,” Haaretz newspaper said. “The army claims there is no indication that those Palestinians have been detained, despite the fact that they were last seen by the soldiers or before their arrest,” it added. The newspaper said Palestinians and rights groups have filed 27 petitions to Israeli courts to know the fate of those detainees. “Most of these petitions, however,…

A group of UN experts on Monday said that Israel “must face the consequences” of its campaign to undermine the legal framework for the protection of civilians in armed conflicts as the military aggression continues unabated. “As we have repeatedly reminded Israel, international humanitarian law comprises a set of universal and binding rules to protect civilian objects and persons who are not, or are no longer, directly participating in hostilities and limits permissible means and methods of warfare,” the experts said in a statement. “Rather than abide by these rules, Israel has openly defied international law time and again, inflicting…

An Israeli soldier was killed and seven others injured, including three in critical condition, on Monday when a house sheltering soldiers in Beit Hanoun, northern Gaza, was hit by an anti-tank missile, according to multiple sources. The Israeli military identified the fallen soldier as Sergeant Uriel Peretz, 23, from the Beitar Illit settlement near Jerusalem. He served in the Netzah Yehuda Battalion (97th) under the Kfir Brigade. In the same attack, three other members of the Netzah Yehuda Battalion sustained severe injuries and were taken to an Israeli hospital, the military said in a statement on X. While the army…