Author: Steven Sahiounie

Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan received a call from his Greek counterpart Giorgos Gerapetritis, the Saudi Press Agency said Wednesday. The pair discussed bilateral cooperation and regional and international developments. Source: Arab News

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met in Riyadh on Wednesday European Council President Charles Michel, the Saudi Press Agency said. The meeting discussed relations and ways of enhancing cooperation between the Kingdom and EU countries. The officials also tackled regional and international developments and the efforts made to achieve security and stability in the region and the world. Senior Saudi and EU officials attended the meeting. Source: Arab News

The United Kingdom has expressed its “deep concern” over reports of civilian casualties due to “large-scale” attacks by the Israeli army in the occupied West Bank. A statement issued by the British Foreign Office Spokesperson on Thursday said that, “It is clear that this situation is developing and we are monitoring it closely. “We continue to call for restraint, work to calm tensions, and adherence to international law,” it added. The death toll from the Israeli aggression on the northern West Bank, which is the largest since the invasion of 2002, rises to 17, while more than 30 wounded, which…

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will undertake an official visit to Slovenia on Friday. In a statement, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said during the visit, Fidan will discuss bilateral relations as well as current international and regional developments with Slovenian officials. Source: Anadolu Agency

The World Food Program (WFP) on Wednesday announced temporarily halting staff movement in Gaza after its vehicle came under fire by Israeli forces at a checkpoint. The UN vehicle returning from a humanitarian mission was hit by at least 10 bullets at an Israeli checkpoint near the Wadi Gaza bridge despite being clearly marked and having received prior clearance from Israeli authorities. “This is totally unacceptable and the latest in a series of unnecessary security incidents that have endangered the lives of WFP’s team in Gaza,” said WFP Executive Director Cindy McCain in a statement. She emphasized that the current…

A Palestinian young man was Thursday morning killed after he was shot by Israeli occupation forces in the city of Jenin. The Red Crescent Society said Mohammad Bassam Arabi, 32, succumbed to his serious injury by the bullets of the occupation in the eastern neighborhood of the city, adding that its crews transferred his body to Al-Razi Hospital. Local sources indicated that Arabi is the brother of the slain youth Fouad, who was killed in 1987, and Rashad, who was killed in 2003. With his killing, the death toll from the aggression on the northern West Bank, which is the…

Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi called on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to take immediate action against “Israel” concerning Israeli Police Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir’s recent call to build a synagogue on the grounds of Al-Aqsa Mosque. The Israeli minister claimed that building a synagogue on the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in the Old City would ensure equal rights for Muslims and Jews, which violates UN resolutions and the status quo of Al-Aqsa. “We urge the Security Council and all members of the Int’l community to take immediate effective action to stop the illegal Israeli measures that violate the historical and legal status quo at occupied Jerusalem’s Holy Sites.…

The current situation and rising tensions in the Middle East stem from the United States’ desire to maintain its dominant regional influence, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova stated. “In many ways, the current dramatic situation has become a consequence of the desire of the United States to maintain its dominant influence in the Middle East,” Zakharova said. The diplomat criticized Washington’s desire to “monopolize the mediation role” amid “Israel’s” ongoing genocide in Gaza, highlighting its concern about preserving the status quo and promoting “economic peace” in the region. Meanwhile, the US is neglecting a long-term, permanent ceasefire based on decisions from the UN General Assembly…

Türkiye on Wednesday called for “punitive and coercive measures” against Israel’s actions that completely disregard international law, according to Anadolu Agency. “It is imperative that the necessary punitive and coercive measures be taken against these actions by Israel in complete defiance of international law,” the country’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement, in response to Israel’s latest operation in the West Bank. The statement also condemned Israel’s “illegal operation” and Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz’s remarks on extending practices from Gaza to the West Bank. “We strongly condemn the illegal operation launched by Israel in the West Bank and the statement…

Arab League Secretary-General, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, today condemned the escalations of the Israeli occupation in the occupied West Bank. In a press statement, he said that the incursions, brutal attacks and killings carried out by Israel in the northern West Bank cities, including the destruction of infrastructure and the siege on hospitals, represent a dangerous trend aimed at subjugating the Palestinian people, disregarding the signed agreements, and the re-annexation of the Palestinian territories in implementation of the agenda of the far-right Israeli government. He also stressed that this trend cannot be separated from the dangerous and rejected statements made by…