Author: Anadolu Agency

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney urged Russia on Saturday to “come to the table in good faith” for a ceasefire deal in Ukraine or face additional punitive measures. Carney wrote on X that he spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and allied leaders as part of the Coalition of the Willing. He stressed that Canada supports a month-long, unconditional ceasefire starting Monday, describing it as a path toward ending the “senseless and brutal war.” “Now, Russia must come to the table in good faith,” he said. “If it chooses to reject or delay the ceasefire, we’ll pursue further and stronger…

The Palestinian Water Authority PWA) warned Saturday about the imminent humanitarian catastrophe in the Gaza Strip because of the collapse of water and sanitation services amid Israel’s offensive. It said the enclave has become a region “dying of thirst.” The PWA accused Israel of “committing a grave and systematic war crime by using thirst and starvation as tools of genocide.” It said that “water extraction in Gaza has declined by 70-80% since the beginning of the ongoing genocide.” “Current water consumption has dropped to an alarming 3-5 liters per person per day—far below the World Health Organization’s emergency minimum of…

The US should advocate for free and fair trade globally, especially with key partners like Türkiye, where numerous collaboration opportunities exist, said the head of the chamber of commerce in Denver, the capital of the Western US state of Colorado, visiting Istanbul for a trade event. The opportunities between Colorado and Türkiye, particularly Istanbul, are tremendous, J. J. Ament, the chamber’s president and CEO, told Anadolu. The Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce has been Colorado’s largest business organization and the leading voice for the region’s business community for over 150 years. “We need to make sure that those barriers are…

Voters in Albania headed to the polls on Sunday for the country’s 11th general elections since the 1991 fall of the country’s communist regime. Polling began at 7 am local time (0500GMT) and will continue until 7 pm (1700GMT). Over 3.71 million registered voters are eligible to cast ballots. Fifty-three political parties and three pre-election coalitions are competing for the 140 seats in parliament. The ruling Socialist Party, led by Prime Minister Edi Rama, has been leading in pre-election polls. The main opposition Democratic Party, led by former Prime Minister Sali Berisha, is also among the favorites and is running…

Rights groups have criticized controversial comments by the UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI) that suggested the “war” in the Gaza Strip may reduce obesity. The controversial statement has brought criticism from rights groups, as UN agencies have long warned about the great risk of famine that Palestinians face. The UK-based Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) said UKLFI’s statement is “utterly sickening.” “As children in the Gaza Strip face the growing risk of starvation, illness and death, the suggestion by the head of UK Lawyers for Israel that they might benefit from weight loss is utterly sickening,” the group wrote on X.…

Protests were held in various cities across France on Sunday, in response to the growing Islamophobia in the country. The protests were sparked by the fatal stabbing of Aboubakar Cisse at Hatice Mosque in the town of La Grand-Combe, Gard region on April 25. The attacker, identified as Olivier H., a French citizen of Bosnian origin, stabbed Cisse dozens of times, and filmed the assault on a phone while shouting insults against Islam. His death triggered widespread outrage among the Muslim community in the country. To voice opposition against the increasing Islamophobia in French media and politics, demonstrations took place…

A Kremlin spokesman rejected claims Saturday that Vladimir Putin’s upcoming media appearance is designed to “blow up” coverage, saying the internet often exaggerates matters, according to TASS. “The internet always wants to blow something up. We are not going to blow anything up,” Dmitry Peskov told reporters, addressing speculation that Putin’s remarks would dominate the American media in prime time. Peskov made the comments as Putin’s media appearance was delayed due to prolonged meetings with foreign guests in Moscow for Victory Day commemorations. The Kremlin initially planned the appearance for the evening, but Putin’s engagements with visiting dignitaries continued later…

South Korea logged the lowest economic growth among 19 major economies in the first quarter, following a months-long domestic political crisis and uncertainties caused by US President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs, data showed Sunday. The real gross domestic product (GDP) — a key measure of economic growth — of Asia’s fourth-largest economy shrank 0.246% in the January-March period from the previous quarter, Yonhap News reported, quoting data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). It marked the weakest quarterly performance among 19 major nations, including the US, Canada, France, Germany and China. Ireland recorded the highest growth rate at 3.219%, followed…

US President Donald Trump on Sunday welcomed a proposal by his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to hold direct talks with Ukraine in the Turkish city of Istanbul starting on Thursday. “A potentially great day for Russia and Ukraine! Think of the hundreds of thousands of lives that will be saved as this never ending ‘bloodbath’ hopefully comes to an end. It will be a whole new, and much better, WORLD,” Trump said on social media. Trump went on to say that he will continue to work with both Moscow and Kyiv to “make sure that it happens.” “A BIG week…

US President Donald Trump has a Middle East policy that is different from Israel, a former US envoy said, amid growing divisions between Washington and Tel Aviv over a host of regional issues. “I think what you’re seeing is the Israelis recognizing that as much as they welcomed the election of President Trump and thought that would really give them a blank check to pursue whatever agenda they wanted, Trump has his own agenda,” NBC News quoted Frank Lowenstein, a former Middle East envoy under the Obama administration, as saying during a virtual briefing organized by J Street, an advocacy…