GENEVA (AA) – More than 5 million refugees have fled Ukraine since Russia launched a war in the country two months ago. The UN refugee agency said the number of people fleeing Ukraine is now 5,034,439 as it joined in a call for ceasing hostilities in Ukraine ahead of Orthodox Easter. More than 2.8 million […]
ISTANBUL (AA)- China has criticized Sweden after a recent incident took place involving the burning of copies of the Muslim holy book. “Freedom of speech cannot be a reason to incite racial or cultural discrimination and tear society apart,” said Wang Wenbin, spokesperson of China’s Foreign Ministry, referring to the incident...
BRUSSELS – The Belgian government will consider providing heavy weapons and military material to Ukraine as the war between Russia and Ukraine continues. In a meeting to be chaired by Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, members of the federal government will discuss providing additional support to Ukraine, including armored vehicles and ...
MOSCOW (AA) – Russia on Wednesday slammed Britain’s decision to extradite WikiLeaks co-founder Julian Assange to the US where he faces life in prison on espionage charges. Speaking at a weekly news conference in Moscow, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova called Assange’s extradition “a blow to freedom ...
BRUSSELS (AA) – EU countries have started banning Russian ships from their ports, with many critical imports, namely oil and natural gas, exempted under the bloc’s latest sanctions. The EU announced its fifth sanctions package on April 5, currently being implemented by Bulgaria, Romania, Estonia, Belgium, Italy, and Greece. As part...
MOSCOW – Russia has commenced the second phase of its “special military operation” in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said. Lavrov reaffirmed that “the sole purpose of this operation is the demilitarization and de-Nazification of Ukraine, since these are two intimately linked problems.” “The operation in the...
ANKARA – Turkiye has slammed a Swedish far-right politician for burning the Muslim holy book. The Turkish foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu while commenting on the hateful incident has said, “neo-Nazi movements have led to increased Islamophobia.” Urging collaboration against any form of racism and Islamophobic rhetoric, Mevlut Cav...
GENEVA – UN officials have warned of a worsening humanitarian situation in Ukraine, with access to food and health facilities among the top concerns in a country listed among the world’s leading grain producers. At a UN press conference in Geneva, UN Information Services head Alessandra Vellucci noted the concern expressed overnigh...
KYIV, Ukraine – Some 20,800 Russian soldiers have so far been killed in Ukraine, the Ukrainian military has claimed. Ukrainian forces have destroyed 169 Russian aircraft, 150 helicopters, 134 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), 802 tanks, 2,063 armored vehicles, and 386 artillery systems, according to the Ukrainian General Staff’s latest update. ...
ISTANBUL (AA) – The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Tuesday strongly condemned the burning of copies of the Muslim holy book Quran in Sweden. In a statement, OIC Secretary-General Hissein Brahim Taha denounced “the provocative actions of burning copies of the Holy Quran during anti-Muslim demonstrations, which have been taki...
