Archives for January, 2024

Mourners gather outside a Tehran mosque for the funeral of 89 people killed in twin blasts in the southern city of Kerman claimed by the jihadist Islamic State group

Iran lays to rest victims of IS twin bombings

Agence France-Presse

Kemi Badenoch 1

UK, Turkish trade ministers meet in Turkey, announce joint railway deal

The two countries have an existing trade deal that covers goods but not services, digital trade or data.

A general view of the International Court of Justice during a public hearing, The Hague, June 6, 2023.

Will South Africa be successful in its Gaza genocide case against Israel?

Israel has selected a British lawyer to represent it against the South African complaint to the International Court of Justice.

Maersk ships have been attacked in the Red Sea

Maersk says to avoid Red Sea for foreseeable future

Agence France-Presse

TOPSHOT - Palestinian journalists attempt to connect to the internet using their phones in Rafah on the southern Gaza Strip on December 27, 2023, amid continuing battles between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas. Power cuts have become a fact of life in war-torn Gaza. But thanks to embedded SIM cards, Palestinians can still access the internet and stay in touch with loved ones abroad. (Photo by SAID KHATIB / AFP) (Photo by SAID KHATIB/AFP via Getty Images)

Gaza journalists killed at rate of 7.5%, higher than US soldiers in recent wars: IFJ

IFJ has recorded the death of 75 journalists in Gaza since Oct. 7 out of an estimated 1,000 working there before the war began.

Gallant Blinken

Blinken returns to Middle East as concern of war's escalation grows

The US secretary of state's latest shuttle diplomacy comes amid mounting concerns the Israel-Hamas war could spiral into a wider regional conflict.

TOPSHOT - An Israeli soldier wearing a patch on the back of his flack jacket showing Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah as a target, stands in front of a self-propelled artillery howitzer in Upper Galilee in northern Israel, as an artillery unit shells southern Lebanon on January 4, 2024. Nasrallah warned Israel against all-out conflict, after Israeli army chief Herzi Halevi, in a visit to the Lebanese border, said troops were "in very high readiness". (Photo by jalaa marey / AFP) (Photo by JALAA M

Analysis

Israel uncertain of Hezbollah's intentions, prepares for all options

While Israel does not expect Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah to launch an all-out war, it is preparing for anything to happen.

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

Smoke billowing over Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip during Israeli bombardment

UN warns Gaza 'uninhabitable' as fighting rages on

Agence France-Presse

Members of a band play music s they participate in a demonstration in support of Somalia's government following the port deal signed between Ethiopia and the breakaway region of Somaliland at Eng Yariisow Stadium in Mogadishu on January 3, 2024. Somalia vowed to defend its territory after a controversial Red Sea access deal between Ethiopia and the breakaway state of Somaliland that it branded as "aggression". (Photo by ABDISHUKRI HAYBE / AFP) (Photo by ABDISHUKRI HAYBE/AFP via Getty Images)

Ethiopia-Somaliland deal receives wide condemnations, including from Egypt, Turkey

Several countries in the region condemned a recent deal giving Ethiopia access to Somaliland’s coast.

Members of Iraq's Hashed al-Shaabi stand guard at the entrance of their headquarters in Baghdad

US strike kills pro-Iran commander in Iraq

Agence France-Presse

A ritual of hope: Exploring Istanbul's 'First Day of the Month Church'

On the first day of 2024, hundreds from different faiths, including Muslims, flock to a famous Istanbul church, engaging in ancient rituals that transform New Year's aspirations into realities.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks during his end-of-year news conference

Blinken returns to Middle East for tough Gaza talks

Agence France-Presse

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with US envoy Amos Hochstein, Tel Aviv, Israel, Jan. 4 2024 Credit: Amos Ben Gershom/GPO

In Israel, US envoy Hochstein struggles to defuse tension with Lebanon's Hezbollah

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told US envoy Amos Hochstein that Israel is determined to profoundly change the security situation on its border with Lebanon by both diplomatic and military means.

The Soloturk aerobatic demonstration team of the Turkish Air Force flies an F-16 aircraft over Anitkabir, the mausoleum of Turkish Republic's Founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, during celebrations to mark the 100th anniversary of the Republic of Turkey in Ankara, on October 29, 2023. Turkey marked its centenary as a post-Ottoman republic on October 29, 2023, with somewhat muted celebrations held in the shadow of Israel's escalating war with Hamas militants in Gaza. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo by ADEM ALT

Ahead of Blinken's trip, Turkey's patience is wearing thin on F-16s sale

Ahead of the US top diplomat’s visit, Ankara has signaled that its patience over its bid to purchase new F-16 fighter jets from the United States is wearing thin.

This picture shows people and Iranian emergency personnel at the site where two explosions in quick succession struck a crowd marking the anniversary of the 2020 killing of Guards general Qasem Soleimani, near the Saheb al-Zaman Mosque in the southern Iranian city of Kerman on Jan. 3, 2024.

Breaking | Last Updated: January 4, 2024, 11:32 pm

ISIS claims responsibility for twin Iran blasts that left nearly 100 dead

Two Islamic State operatives were responsible for the attacks, according to the group.

WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 27: Actress Cynthia Nixon speaks as she announces a hunger strike calling for a ceasefire in Gaza outside the White House on November 27, 2023 in Washington, DC. Nixon, who was joined by state legislators, community leaders and activist, demands that President Biden call for a permanent ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war and stops military aid to Israel. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

'Quietly complicit': second US official quits over Biden’s Gaza war handling

Tariq Habash, a Department of Education political appointee, said he could no longer represent an administration that “does not value all human life equally.”