Category: Key Issues

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the Israel war on Gaza Strip led in catastrophic results and unprecedented numbers of victims.

He strongly denounced the Western countries for siding with the Israeli occupation in the genocide against the Palestinian people in Gaza and the West Bank.

President Erdogan, speaking at a joint press conference with his German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier in Ankara on Wednesday, said the atrocity being perpetrated in Gaza Strip over the past 200 days is unparalleled.

He accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of jeopardizing the regional security for the sake of his own political career.

He expected the friends of Germany to look objectively at the horrific scene in Gaza where more than 34,000 Palestinians, including women, children and elderly people, were killed by the Israeli occupation forces.

He affirmed that Turkiye has no longer intensive trade relations with Israel.

President Erdogan noted that his country jointed the international mediatio
n efforts aiming to resume hostage and prisoner swaps between Israel and the Palestinian groups.

He voiced hope that the efforts will succeed in stablishing ceasefire, release the hostages on both sides and ensure unhindered delivery of humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people.

On the trade volume with Germany, the Turkish leader said his country seeks to expand it from the current USD 50 billion to USD 60 billion.

He expressed hope that Turkiye and Germany, two NATO allies, would start discussing joint ventures in the defense industry.

On his part, the German president, now on a visit to Turkiye, said it’s unlikely to guarantee the security of Israel without a political perspective for the Palestinian people.

The two-state solution is the only way to ensure peace and security for both sides, Steinmeier explained.

Regarding the German-Turkish relations, he said both sides need each other and have to deepen cooperation and solidarity. Earlier today, Erdogan and Steinmeier held talks on the bilateral re
lations, the Turkish-European relations, and the latest developments of the conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine.

Source: Kuwait News Agency

The Secretary-General of the Council of Ministers, Judge Mahmoud Makieh, distributed, upon the request of Prime Minister, Najib Mikati, the agenda for an upcoming cabinet meeting, which includes 36 items.

Source: National News Agency – Lebanon

Progressive Socialist Party Head, MP Taymour Jumblatt, on Wednesday received at his Clemenceau office, Acting Director General of General Security, Brigadier General Elias Baissari, Brigadier General Youssef Al-Mdawar.

This took place in the presence of ‘Democratic Gathering’ bloc MP Wael Abou Faour, and MP Jumblatt’s Advisor Houssam Harb.

Discussions reportedly touched on the latest political and security developments.

MP Jumblatt also received the Ambassador of Argentina to Lebanon, Maria Virginia Ruiz Quintar, in the presence of MP Abou Faour, PSP Vice Head Zaher Raad, and MP Jumblatt’s Advisor Houssam Harb.

The latest developments in Lebanon and the region featured high on their talks.

Source: National News Agency – Lebanon

Prime Minister Muhammad Shiaa Al-Sudani made a visit to the Anbar combined power station project in the Euphrates district, during his visit to the governorate, which he arrived on Wednesday morning.

At the project headquarters, Al-Sudani held a meeting with the implementing company, and was briefed on the details and progress of the ongoing implementation work that had reached advanced stages of work. He listened to the proposals of the engineering team and directed speedy completion in accordance with the required specifications, stressing that no delay would be possible after the government had provided all requirements for the completion of the station. The meeting also witnessed reviewing the status of the electricity service throughout the governorate, and following up on the Akkaz gas project, which will feed the Anbar power station with fuel after its completion.

The Anbar power station is one of the important strategic projects, and work began on it in 2013. Due to the occupation of the governorate
by ISIS terrorist gangs, work on the project was halted for approximately 8 years. As part of the government’s approach to removing obstacles to lagging projects, work on the project was resumed in December 2022. Today, the completion rate has reached 50%.

The station consists of four gas units with a capacity of (273) megawatts, and two steam units (275) megawatts. The project aims to provide the national grid with an electrical capacity of (1640) megawatts, and local natural gas from the Akkaz gas field is used as fuel, thus reducing the cost of energy production and ensuring the stability of its equipment./End

Source: National Iraqi News Agency

Arab League Secretary General Ahmad Abul-Gheit welcomed UN-appointed independent committee’s findings on Israeli allegations against United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees’ (UNRWA) neutrality and members’ involvement in the October seventh attacks.

Abul-Gheit stated in a Wednesday release by the Arab League that the report of the independent committee, led by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna, unequivocally proves the baselessness of Israel’s allegations, which were made without any solid evidence.

The report clearly indicated that these allegations were merely part of a concerted campaign to undermine the agency and terminate its pivotal role in providing for and employing nearly six million Palestinians, as well as undermining its indispensable role in dealing with the humanitarian catastrophe caused by the Israeli occupation’s crimes and atrocities in the Gaza Strip over the past months, he added.

He reiterated his call to the countries that refused to contribute to
UNRWA’s funding based on Israel’s false allegations to review the indisputable findings of the review committee, including its credible internal investigation into the Israeli allegations.

In this context, he stressed that it is a humanitarian obligation and moral duty for these countries, especially the US, the largest contributor to the agency’s budget, to review their stance towards millions of Palestinians.

The report recognizes the concrete steps UNRWA has taken at the technical level including the creation of a Neutrality Framework, a dedicated Humanitarian Principles Team, and the prioritization of humanitarian principles, integrity, accountability and oversight.

The work of the independent review group was conducted in parallel to the UN’s internal investigation into the allegations concerning the involvement of UNRWA employees in Gaza in the 7 October attacks against Israel. That investigation is ongoing and is being undertaken by the UN Office for Internal Oversight Services, the highest investig
ative body of the UN.

Source: Kuwait News Agency