NUR SULTAN, Kazakhstan (AA) – Kazakhstan will not recognize the self-proclaimed independence of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has said. “If the right to self-determination is put into practice all over the world, then there will be over 600 countries instead of the 193 states that are current...
ANKARA (AA) – Droughts may affect more than three-quarters of the world’s population by 2050, the UN said on World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought which was observed on June 17. This year’s theme, “Rising up from drought together,” highlighted the need for early action to avoid disastrous results for humanity ...
MOSCOW (AA) – Russia is not concerned that Ukraine could get the status of a European Union candidate “because the EU is not a military organization,” Russian President Vladimir Putin has said. Speaking at the plenary meeting of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Putin questioned whether joining the EU will benefit Ukraine,...
MOSCOW (AA) – The Russian Defense Ministry has claimed that nearly 2,000 foreign mercenaries fighting on Ukraine’s side have died in battles. According to the ministry, 6,956 people have arrived in Ukraine since February 24, when the war started; 1,779 left the country. At least 3,221 foreigners are fighting on the Ukrainian side, ...
JERUSALEM (AA) – Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett is considering the possibility of forming an alternate government with opposition leader and former premier Benjamin Netanyahu, according to local media on Friday. Bennett met late Thursday with his political advisers, including Aron Shaviv in the headquarters of the Defense Ministry in T...
MOGADISHU, Somalia (AA) – The World Bank has announced that it will give Somalia $100 million in the next 12 months to address the government’s priorities. The announcement comes after the bank’s country director Kristina Svensson met Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud in Mogadishu. They discussed strengthening the cooperation ...
WASHINGTON (AA) – The US on Thursday sanctioned an alleged network of Iranian petrochemical producers and front companies established in China and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The petrochemical producers that have been added to the US blacklist include Iran-based Marun Petrochemical Company, Kharg Petrochemical Company Limited and Fan...
ANKARA (AA) – UN human rights experts have denounced Israel for the conviction of a Gaza aid worker for “financing terrorism.” The conviction of Mohammed el-Halabi, the former program director of World Vision’s Gaza office, was “a clear violation of Israel’s obligation” to respect the right to a fair trial, the UN...
JERUSALEM (AA) – An Israeli court on Wednesday accused the former director of the World Vision aid organization in Gaza, Mohammad el-Halabi, of being affiliated with a “terrorist organization” and transferring the organization’s funds to the group. The court, however, did not specify a sentence range for el-Halabi but s...
ANKARA (AA) – Annual consumer inflation in Nigeria rose to 17.71% in May, highest in 11 months, according to figures released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday. While the market expectation for the figure was 17.4%, annual consumer inflation stood at 16.82% in April. On a monthly basis, consumer inflation increased to 1.7...
