Author: Anadolu Agency

The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child on Wednesday condemned the continued blockade of humanitarian aid to Gaza for over 2 months, warning of a worsening hunger crisis that has already killed over 50 children. “More than eleven weeks after the obstruction of humanitarian access, the food security crisis is deteriorating rapidly to the point that more than 50 children have died from hunger and many others are on the verge of death,” the committee said in a statement, citing UNICEF and WHO data. “If the blockade continues, more children will die and up to 71,000 children under…

Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday renewed his appeal for an immediate end to the war in Gaza and entrance of humanitarian aid to the besieged Palestinian enclave. “I renew my appeal to allow the entry of dignified humanitarian aid and to put an end to the hostilities, whose heartbreaking price is paid by the children, elderly, and the sick,” pontiff said during his first general audience at the Vatican’s St. Peter’s Square, according to Vatican News Agency. In the past few days, the Israeli army intensified its attacks in Gaza, killing more than 500 Palestinians and injuring hundreds of others.…

Italy on Wednesday renewed its call for Israel to stop attacks on Gaza and allow humanitarian aid into the besieged Palestinian enclave. “I once again called on Israel to halt military operations involving civilians and to immediately open all crossings to allow humanitarian aid to enter,” Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on X. “We want a ceasefire and the release of the hostages: the war in Gaza must end,” he said. Tajani also announced that 52 Palestinians, relatives of those who were evacuated from Gaza to Italy for medical treatment, were transferred to Jordan. They will eventually be brought to…

China, Pakistan and Afghanistan on Wednesday agreed to extend the multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project into Afghanistan, according to an official statement from Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry. The agreement was reached during a trilateral meeting of the countries’ foreign ministers in Beijing, hosted by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and acting Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi also attended. “They agreed to deepen Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) cooperation and extend the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to Afghanistan,” the ministry said. A separate readout from Beijing said the three countries would “deepen cooperation in jointly…

Greece’s leftist opposition parties on Wednesday slammed the government for opposing an EU decision to review trade ties with Israel amid the “catastrophic” situation in the embattled Gaza Strip. Decrying how nine member states opposed the EU decision, including Athens and the Greek Cypriot Administration, main opposition party PASOK leader Nikos Androulakis said on X: “The government is exposing our country internationally with its stance. We have a duty to the Greek people to always be on the sidelines of respecting international law and human rights.” He added: “The government must condemn the heinous events in Gaza, actively supporting every…

Hungary’s premier on Wednesday praised Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan over last week’s Russia-Ukraine peace talks in Istanbul, the first in over three years. In a speech in Budapest at an informal meeting of the Organization of Turkic States, Viktor Orban said it was Erdoğan’s personal efforts that made the landmark talks possible. Orban also thanked Erdoğan for helping make the TurkStream natural gas pipeline-which provides Hungary with natural gas at a time when most European countries are facing an energy crisis-into a reality. The premier also thanked Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev for exporting natural gas to his country via…

The US State Department highlighted a “new era of partnership” in Türkiye-US relations following a meeting Tuesday of the Türkiye-US Syria Working Group in Washington, DC. The meeting brought together Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Nuh Yilmaz and US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau. According to a State Department readout, Landau “underscored the strong U.S.-Türkiye bilateral relationship as a new era of partnership, advancing cooperation between our two nations across a broad range of issues toward common goals of peace, trade and commerce.” “The two sides discussed the importance of fulfilling President (Donald) Trump’s announcement of sanctions relief for Syria…

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Wednesday said his country is interested in Armenia’s active participation in the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). Last February, Armenia suspended its participation in the CSTO, and later in May said it will also not take part in financing the military alliance formed in 2002. Armenia’s distancing itself from the CSTO is tied to several factors, primarily stemming from its dissatisfaction with the bloc’s response to its security concerns, especially regarding the 2020 conflict with Azerbaijan in Karabakh. Lavrov, addressing a news conference with Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan in Yerevan, said the two…

South Korea and the US have begun a search for the remains and belongings of soldiers killed during the 1950-53 Korean War, the South Korean Defense Ministry said on Wednesday. The six-week search project was launched in Mungyeong area, where a US F-51D fighter jet crashed during the war, according to the Yonhap news agency. During the search, officials from the South Korean Defense Ministry and the US Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) will focus on recovering components of the fighter jet to help with identification efforts for the aircraft’s pilot. Last year, similar search efforts failed, according to the…

Wildfires fueled by climate change have pushed global forest loss to record levels in 2024, with fires overtaking agriculture as the leading cause of deforestation for the first time, new data shows. According to new research from the US’ University of Maryland, the world lost 6.7 million hectares of tropical primary forest this year-nearly double the amount lost in 2023. Wildfires accounted for nearly half of total forest destruction worldwide, marking a major shift in the drivers of deforestation. The blazes released an estimated 4.1 gigatons of greenhouse gases, more than four times the emissions generated by all global air…