Author: Steven Sahiounie

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received Aguila Saleh, the speaker of the Libyan House of Representatives, for a meeting on Wednesday, the Turkish presidency said. No further information was provided about the meeting held at the presidential palace in the capital Ankara. Separately, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan hosted Saleh in Ankara. The Foreign Ministry did not share further details about the closed-door meeting. Turkish Parliament speaker Numan Kurtulmus also held a face-to-face meeting with Saleh. Türkiye’s first priority regarding Libya is to ensure political stability in Libya and to take the prosperity and economic development in Libya to further…

The US-based Friends of the Jenin Freedom Theatre identified the staff members as General Manager Mustafa Sheta and Artistic Director Ahmed Tobasi and said they were taken from their homes. Tobasi’s brother, Mohammed, was also taken. “We have no information on the whereabouts or condition of these two vital members of a beloved cultural institution in Jenin. The last word we had from Ahmed Tobasi was, ‘They are going house to house. They are taking everyone,’” the organisation said in a statement. “More than 100 Palestinians have been seized in Jenin … The Israeli army has repeatedly, violently invaded the…

The foreign minister of Saudi Arabia said the kingdom’s stance on the crisis in Gaza is identical with that of Iran, calling for constant collective efforts to end the Israeli onslaught against Palestinians. Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian and his Saudi counterpart Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud held a meeting on the sidelines of the Global Refugee Forum (GRF) in Geneva on Wednesday. The two senior diplomats discussed a range of bilateral, regional and international issues in the meeting, particularly ways to end the Zionist regime’s strikes on Gaza. Bin Farhan said Saudi Arabia shares views with Iran on the need to…

The US national security adviser’s visit later this week comes after Biden said the country risks losing international support over its “indiscriminate bombing” of Palestinian civilians in Gaza. “The United States will continue to urge Israel to be more precise in the future to try and protect civilian infrastructure,” Al Jazeera’s Kimberly Halkett reported from Washington, DC. “And as for a ceasefire, the United States continues to support Israel’s desire for there not to be one.” source: AlJazeera

The Lebanese group identified the fighters as Salah Mustafa and Ali Barakat without specifying where or how they were killed. Hezbollah has lost dozens of men in cross-border clashes with Israel since the Gaza war began. The group eulogises fighters who die in the current conflict as having been “martyred on the road to Jerusalem” in a nod to the Palestinian struggle. The Iran-allied organisation has been launching daily attacks on Israeli military targets across the Lebanese border, saying they are acting in support of Palestinians in Gaza. Israel also has regularly bombed Hezbollah positions and border villages in Lebanon…

Jordan’s King Abdullah called for a more coordinated humanitarian response in Gaza and reiterated his country’s commitment to supporting Palestinian refugees and the UN agency tasked with helping them, UNRWA. Speaking at the Global Refugee Forum in Geneva on Wednesday, he highlighted that Jordan “is still bearing the heavy costs and burdens of the refugee communities in our midst,” urging the international community not to leave the most vulnerable behind. The forum was co-convened by Jordan, Colombia, France, Japan, and Uganda, and co-hosted by Switzerland and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. “As serious crises compete for international attention, the…

With the participation of Syria, the activities of the 2nd Global Refugee Forum kicked off in the Swiss city of Geneva, which will continue until the 15th of December. Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates ,Bassam Sabbagh, headed the Syrian delegation . UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi pointed out in his opening speech before the forum that there are 114 million refugees and internally displaced people around the world, pointing out that almost every refugee seeks to return to their homeland. Grandi warned of a humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza Strip, adding: The Security Council’s inability in this…

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan led the Kingdom’s delegation at an event commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Saudi Press Agency reported on Tuesday. The high-level event, which ran from Dec. 11-12 in Geneva, focused on boosting international cooperation for the protection of human rights amid global challenges, including wars. During his speech, Prince Faisal highlighted that the anniversary of the declaration coincided with the human rights violations taking place in occupied Palestine. He emphasized the critical role of the international community in upholding and advancing human rights through cooperation in both times…

The foreign minister of Iran said the US government is masterminding political plots for the post-war era in the Gaza Strip in order to make up for the Zionist regime’s failure to defeat the Palestinian resistance groups. Hossein Amirabdollahian held talks with his Tunisian counterpart Nabil Ammar on the sidelines of the World Refugee Forum meeting in Geneva on Tuesday. Stressing the need for Islamic nations to decisively support Palestine against the ongoing war crimes and brutal attacks by the Zionist regime in Gaza and the West Bank, Amirabdollahian highlighted the blow to the dignity of the Zionist regime on…

The US secretary of state has responded to international media outlets that wrote to him at the end of October urging his help in protecting journalists in Gaza. “The United States has and will continue to underscore with Israel, and with all countries, that journalists must be protected from harm,” Blinken wrote in a letter that the French news agency AFP says it received on Tuesday. “We stand unequivocally for the protection of journalists during armed conflict and mourn those who have been killed or injured,” Blinken also said, according to the AFP. Israel has killed dozens of Palestinian journalists and media…