Author: Steven Sahiounie

Iran’s President Ebrahim Raeisi has criticized the silence of the world’s leaders in the face of the Israeli regime’s horrendous crimes against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, calling for efforts to end bombardment of the territory. Raeisi made the remarks in a Saturday phone call with Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, during which the two sides discussed bilateral relations and the latest developments related to the situation in the occupied Palestinian territories. “We believe that the silence and inaction of the world’s leaders and officials only embolden child-killing Zionist rulers [of Israel],” the Iranian president said. He added that various countries,…

President Mahmoud Abbas affirmed tonight that the people and leadership of Palestine will not surrender to the prevailing circumstances, nor will they allow another exodus similar to that of the 1948 Nakba, no matter the challenges or sacrifices. Addressing a meeting of the Palestinian leadership at the presidential headquarters in Ramallah, the President declared, “We will not kneel, nor surrender to the prevailing circumstances. We will not allow the recurrence of the Nakba of 1948, no matter the challenges or sacrifices.” Meantime, President Abbas held the United States responsible for failing to compel the Israeli government to cease its aggression…

President Mahmoud Abbas held a crucial meeting today at the Presidential headquarters in Ramallah with the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Karim Khan. During the meeting, President Abbas briefed the ICC Prosecutor on the ongoing developments in Palestine, especially in light of the persisting Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people. He highlighted the acts of genocide and ethnic cleansing being carried out these days by the Israeli occupation in Gaza, as well as the ongoing Israeli violations in the West Bank, including Jerusalem. President Abbas urged Prosecutor Khan to expedite investigations and pursue legal action against Israeli…

Iraq’s prime minister has cautioned Washington against launching any “attack” on Iraqi territory after renewed fighting between Israel and Hamas. The warning was conveyed by Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani during a phone conversation with United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken, according to Sudani’s office. Sudani also said his government is committed “to ensuring the safety of the international coalition advisers present in Iraq”. Source: AlJazeera

The French president has appealed for intensified efforts to stop the fighting in Gaza, saying he is very concerned about the situation on the ground. “This situation requires stepped-up efforts to reach a lasting ceasefire,” Emmanuel Macron said on the sidelines of the COP28 climate summit in Dubai. Earlier, we reported that Israel had ordered its Mossad negotiating team in Doha to return home due to what it called an “impasse”. Source: AlJazeera

US Vice President Kamala Harris reiterated Israel’s right to defend itself against Hamas but said international and humanitarian law must be respected. She noted too many Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s war. “Frankly, the scale of civilian suffering and the images and videos coming from Gaza are devastating,” Harris told reporters. “So we all want this conflict to end as soon as possible and to ensure Israel’s security and ensure security for the Palestinian people. We must accelerate efforts to build an enduring peace.” The death toll in Gaza has exceeded 15,200 with more than 40,000 people wounded. source;…

Deliveries have spiked tenfold since last year, according to Eurostat The EU has significantly increased imports of Russian grain despite the bloc’s sanctions against the country, RIA Novosti reported on Saturday, citing statistics agency Eurostat. According to the report, in September the EU increased imports of Russian grain by 22% month-on-month to 180,000 tons, roughly ten times what had been bought from Russia during the same period last year. This was the highest figure since the start of the Ukraine conflict and subsequent Western sanctions war on Russia. The surge in imports allowed Russia to retake its place among the…

Aggressive anti-inflation policies are hurting economic growth, a report warns Central bankers’ continued fight to bring rampant inflation under control could plunge developed countries into recession next year, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has warned. According to its global outlook, issued earlier this week, the tightening of monetary policy since early 2022 is slowing domestic demand growth, while interest rates continue to rise in many economies. Although the OECD forecasts a “soft landing” for the global economy, it warned that the risks to that view are “pretty high” due to actions by policymakers. “It is unclear how much of the past tightening…

Russia became Spain’s third-largest supplier of LNG this year, El Mundo reports According to the report, Spain has so far purchased the equivalent of 60,770 gigawatt of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Russia this year, a 43% increase from the same period in 2022. From January to October, Russia was the third largest exporter of LNG to Spain, supplying 18.1% of the country’s overall gas imports, surpassed only by Algeria (28.8%) and the US (20.1%). Since 2018, when Russian gas made up a mere 2.4% of Spain’s gas imports, the country’s dependence on Russian energy has spiked sixfold. Russian LNG…

Truckers and farmers have blocked border crossings in protest against the EU’s trade regulations with Kiev Ukraine’s exports through Poland have sharply dropped since Polish truckers and farmers staged a massive protest against the EU’s trade regulations with Kiev and blocked border crossings, the country’s Economy Ministry announced on Saturday. According to the ministry, some 282,000 tons of Ukrainian freight transport exports passed through the Polish border in November, a 40% decrease from the previous month. The ministry noted that at several checkpoints, exports have almost stopped entirely or have been cut in half. Earlier, Deputy Economy Minister Taras Kachka…