Category: English

ANKARA — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday that his country would support Syria’s transition process, and contribute to the country’s recovery and stability.

“We are supporting the Syrian people in managing the transition process smoothly, without any setbacks along the way,” the state-run TRT broadcaster quoted Erdogan as saying.

“Drafting a constitution is one critical step in rebuilding the state,” Erdogan told journalists on his return flight from Cairo, where he attended the 11th Summit of the Developing Eight Organization for Economic Cooperation.

“For this, we have initiated communication with key figures in Syria’s new administration.”

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan is set to visit Syria soon to discuss creating a “collaborative framework” for Syria’s future, he said, adding, “If Syria establishes a truly stable structure with this new formation, in my view, it will hold a very strong position in the Islamic world.”

He noted that Türkiye and Syria would collaborate on multiple sectors, including defense, education, and energy.

“Currently, Syria is facing serious challenges in energy, but we aim to resolve these issues swiftly,” Erdogan said.

With years of conflict devastating Syria’s infrastructure and cities, Erdogan underscored the importance of reconstruction. “To mend the wounds, it is essential to rebuild cities and create sustainable livelihoods,” he said, pointing to plans for new housing, energy facilities, and initiatives in agriculture and livestock as priorities.

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MOSCOW — Russia launched a group strike with long-range precision weapons on Friday morning in retaliation for Ukrainian attacks on its chemical plant with Western-made missiles.

The strike targeted the Ukrainian Security Service command post, the state-run Kiev design bureau “Luch,” and positions of the Patriot anti-aircraft missile system, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement.

It said the raid was in response to Ukraine’s Wednesday attack on a Russian chemical plant in the Rostov region with six U.S.-made ATACMS tactical missiles and four Storm Shadow air-launched cruise missiles.

Ukraine’s General Staff of the Armed Forces said on Telegram that five Russian missiles targeted Kiev but were shot down by Ukrainian air defense at around 7 a.m. (0500 GMT).

The fragments of downed missiles resulted in deaths and injuries as well as damage in five districts of Kiev, it said.

In a major shift of policy on the Ukraine crisis, the United States in November authorized Ukraine to use U.S. long-range missiles to strike targets in Russia, triggering an escalation of tension around the conflict.

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NEW DELHI — The death toll in Friday’s fire mishap involving several vehicles in India’s western state of Rajasthan rose to 9, confirmed local officials over the phone.

The identity of most of the deceased could not be done yet as they were burnt beyond recognition.

Nearly 40 people with burn injuries were undergoing treatment at a government hospital in the state capital Jaipur.

The death toll was feared to rise further as some of the injured persons were in serious condition.

The gory incident happened on the Jaipur-Ajmer highway when a tanker filled with inflammable substance collided with a heavy vehicle, resulting in a massive fire engulfing nearby vehicles, including trucks, a passenger bus, and private cars, among others.

According to eyewitnesses, repeated blasts could be heard amid the fire even as vehicles parked up to 300 meters from the site of the mishap were also burnt.

The fire was of such a magnitude that fire department officials faced a tough time in dousing it.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed condolences at the loss of human lives and announced a monetary compensation to the victims’ families.

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KABUL — At least 14 people were killed due to carbon monoxide poisoning in Afghanistan’s capital Kabul, during the past two months, Kabul police spokesman Khalid Zadran said Friday.

“The deadly gas poisoning incident caused the death of 14 Afghan people, including women and children, in different districts of Kabul city, the capital of Afghanistan, over the past two months,” Tolo quoted Zadran as saying.

Due to high prices for firewood and other necessities, many Afghans have turned to gas to heat their homes during the harsh winter months.

The tragedy has highlighted the unstable circumstances that many Afghan families face across the country, where they are especially vulnerable due to limited prospects and economic difficulties.

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GENEVA — The UN human rights office will send a small team of human rights officers to Syria next week for the first time in years following the overthrow of President Bashar Assad, UN spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan told a press briefing on Friday.

As part of the takeover, rebels have flung open prisons and government offices and raising fresh hopes for accountability for crimes committed during Syria’s more than 13-year civil war.

Under Assad, the UN human rights team has not been allowed in Syria for years, Al-Kheetan said, and has been monitoring abuses remotely.

He said that the team would support human rights issues and help ensure that any power transition is “inclusive and within the framework of international law.”

“It is important for us to start establishing a presence,” he said. A UN investigative body also hopes to travel to Syria to secure evidence that could implicate top officials of the former government.

Earlier on Friday, the head of the UN migration agency warned that large-scale returns of refugees to Syria could overwhelm the country and even stoke conflict at a fragile moment with the fall of Assad regime.

“We believe that millions of people returning would create conflict within an already fragile society,” said Amy Pope, director-general of the International Organization for Migration, told a Geneva press briefing after a trip to the country.

“We are not promoting large scale returns. The communities, frankly, are just not ready to absorb the people who are displaced.”

AN-REUTERS

Residents stand in line to buy bread from a bakery in Aleppo, Syria. (File/AP)

OSLO — Sweden will no longer fund the UN refugee agency for Palestinians (UNRWA) but instead provide humanitarian assistance to Gaza via other channels, the Nordic country’s aid minister, Benjamin Dousa, told Swedish broadcaster TV4 on Friday.

Israel, which will ban UNRWA’s operations in the country from late January, has repeatedly accused the agency of being involved in the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas-led attacks on Israel that triggered the ongoing war in Gaza.

Sweden’s decision to end funding for UNRWA was in response to the Israeli ban, as it will make channelling aid to the Palestinians via the agency more difficult, Dousa said.

Sweden plans to increase its overall humanitarian assistance to Gaza next year, he added.

“There are several other organizations in Gaza, I have just been there and met several of them,” the minister said, naming the UN World Food Programme as one potential recipient.

The United Nations General Assembly threw its support behind UNRWA this month, demanding that Israel respect the agency’s mandate and “enable its operations to proceed without impediment or restriction.”

AN-REUTERS

KYIV, Ukraine — A Russian ballistic missile attack on Ukraine’s capital Kyiv early Friday killed at least one person and injured nine others, officials said. Moscow claimed it was in response to a Ukrainian strike on Russian soil using American-made weapons.

At least three loud blasts were heard in Kyiv shortly before sunrise. Ukraine’s air force said it intercepted five Iskander short-range ballistic missiles fired at the city. The attack knocked out heating to 630 residential buildings, 16 medical facilities, and 30 schools and kindergartens, the city administration said, and falling missile debris caused damage and sparked fires in three districts.

“We ask citizens to immediately respond to reports of ballistic attack threats, because there is very little time to find shelter,” the air force said.

During the almost three years since the war began Russia has regularly bombarded civilian areas of Ukraine, often in an attempt to cripple the power grid and unnerve Ukrainians.

Meanwhile Ukraine, struggling to hold back Russia’s bigger army on the front line, has attempted to strike Russian infrastructure supporting the country’s war effort.

The Russian Ministry of Defense said the strike was in response to a Ukrainian missile attack on Russia’s Rostov border region two days earlier. That attack used six American-made Army Tactical Missile System, known as ATACMS, missiles and four Storm Shadow air-launched missiles provided by the United Kingdom, it said.

That day, Ukraine claimed to have targeted a Rostov oil refinery as part of its campaign to strike Russian infrastructure supporting the country’s war effort.

The use of Western-supplied weapons to strike Russia has angered the Kremlin. Ukraine fired several American-supplied longer-range missiles into Russia for the first time on Nov. 19 after Washington eased restrictions on their use.

That development prompted Russia to use a new hypersonic missile, called Oreshnik, for the first time. President Vladimir Putin suggested the missile could be used to target government buildings in Kyiv, though there have been no reports of an Oreshnik being used for a second time.

Answering the Ukrainian attack on Rostov on Wednesday, the Defense Ministry said it carried out a group strike with “high-precision, long-range weapons” on the command center of Ukraine’s military intelligence agency and another location where it said Ukraine’s Neptune missile systems are designed and produced.

The attack also targeted Ukrainian ground-based cruise missile systems and US-made Patriot air defense systems, the Defense Ministry said.

“The objectives of the strike have been achieved. All objects are hit,” the defense ministry said in a Telegram post.

Its claims could not immediately be verified.

AN-AP

NEW DELHI — At least five persons died and over 35 were injured after a truck carrying a chemical substance hit other vehicles in India’s western state of Rajasthan early on Friday, confirmed a local police.

The mishap occurred on the Jaipur-Ajmer highway near the Bhankrota area. There were a couple of petrol pumps in the immediate vicinity of the site of the mishap, which were fortunately safe.

The injured, many of whom were in serious condition, were rushed to a government hospital in the state capital city of Jaipur. The death toll was feared to rise.

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WASHINGTON — The United States said Thursday it disagreed with New York-based Human Rights Watch’s accusation that Israel was carrying out “acts of genocide” in the Gaza Strip by damaging water infrastructure.

“When it comes to a determination of something like genocide, the legal standard is just incredibly high, and so the finding in this scenario we just disagree with,” State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters.

“That does not take away from the fact that there is a dire humanitarian crisis in Gaza.”

The report released Thursday by the Human Rights Watch follows a similar accusation by London-based Amnesty International.

In a separate report on Thursday, Doctors Without Borders (MSF) accused Israel of “ethnic cleansing” in its 14-month war in Gaza launched after a massive Hamas attack.

The medical group said it documented 41 attacks on MSF staff including air strikes on health facilities and direct fire on humanitarian convoys.

Patel distanced the United States from the finding but, in contrast to Israel, stressed the value of non-governmental organizations.

“Even within their report, they make pretty clear that they don’t have the legal authority to determine intentionality” in the strikes on MSF, Patel said.

“But we continue to appreciate the important role that’s played by civil society organizations, including Doctors Without Borders, and we’re deeply concerned about the scale of civilian harm in this conflict,” he said.

AN-AFP

UNITED NATIONS — UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday urged Israel to stop violations of Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Speaking at a press conference, Guterres condemned Israel’s extensive airstrikes on Syria aimed at destroying strategic weapons and military infrastructure and its troops’ entry into a demilitarized zone between Syria and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

“They are violations of Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and they must stop,” he said. “Let me be clear: There should be no military forces in the area of separation other than UN peacekeepers. And those peacekeepers must have freedom of movement to undertake their important work.”

Guterres underscored that Israel and Syria must uphold the terms of the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement, which remains fully in force.

“This is a decisive moment — a moment of hope and history, but also one of great uncertainty,” the UN chief told reporters.

“Some will try to exploit the situation for their own narrow ends. But it is the obligation of the international community to stand with the people of Syria who have suffered so much,” he said.

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