DHAKA, Bangladesh (AA) – A fire in a slum located in an industrial area of Bangladesh’s capital gutted nearly 100 shanties Monday night, according to eyewitnesses and local residents. The fire erupted in the Tejgaon area of Dhaka around 7.50 p.m. local time (1350GMT) and was brought under control after nearly three hours of hectic [&hell...
ISTANBUL (AA) – Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday spoke over phone with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and discussed the normalization process with Azerbaijan, the Kremlin said. “The practical aspects of the implementation of the entire complex of well-known agreements between the leaders of Russia, Armenia and Azerbaij...
ISTANBUL (AA) – Azerbaijan has invited representatives of Armenians living in the Karabakh region to hold a second round of talks on their reintegration into Azerbaijani society. “The Office of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan invites the representatives of the Armenian public of Karabakh to continue contacts on reintegration ...
ANKARA (AA) – The death toll from earthquakes that struck southern Türkiye last month has risen to 48,448, the country’s interior minister said on Monday. “6,660 of the dead were foreign nationals, and most of them are our Syrian brothers,” Soylu said at a news conference in quake-hit Malatya province along with Culture and T...
TEHRAN, Iran (AA) – Iran has granted amnesty to 82,000 people, including 22,000 protesters, according to the judiciary chief. Addressing a meeting of the top judiciary council, Mohseni Ejei said so far 82,000 people have been pardoned following a decree issued by Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei last month. Of these, 22,000 people ...
Al-Haffah, Syria (AFP): Zuhair Hassoun examines worrying cracks in a Crusader-era castle in Syria, a UNESCO World Heritage site that survived centuries of conflict only to be badly damaged by last month’s deadly earthquake. Hassoun, the custodian of the Fortress of Salahuddin, an architectural treasure reminiscent of the prowess of the M...
Tehran, Iran (AFP): The presidents of Iran and Belarus hailed their close ties in talks in Tehran at a time both countries are sharply at odds with Western powers, including over Russia’s war in Ukraine. Ex-Soviet state Belarus serves as a rear base for Russian troops, and Iran is accused of supplying Moscow with armed […]
TUNIS, Tunisia (AA) – Tunisia’s newly-elected parliament sat for the first time on Monday. The opening session was chaired by the eldest lawmaker, Saleh Al-Mubaraki, 70, who stressed the significance of “joint work with the executive authority within the framework of the unity of the state.” “Our country is facing serio...
TEHRAN (AA) – Iran has said that discussion about the exchange of prisoners and other issues with the US is underway, stressing that Tehran is looking for “practical results” from ongoing negotiations. Speaking at a weekly news conference in Tehran, Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said talks are going on between the two sides t...
Beirut, Lebanon (AFP): Israeli airstrikes targeting a weapons depot in Syria killed an army officer and two pro-Iran fighters, a war monitor said, raising the death toll of the Sunday morning raid. “Israeli strikes targeted a weapons depot belonging to pro-Iran forces located… between Tartus and Hama provinces,” said Rami Abd...
