Category: English

JERUSALEM — A missile launched from Yemen early Saturday morning struck a playground and a building in the central Israeli city of Tel Aviv, causing minor injuries to 16 people, according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Magen David Adom (MDA) rescue service.

The strike caused a crater in the playground and damage to the residential building, video footage released by the MDA, the army, and Israeli media showed.

Following the missile launch, sirens were activated across large areas of central Israel.

The IDF said it identified the projectile but failed to intercept it.

Earlier in the day, Yemen’s Houthi group claimed responsibility for the attack, which was launched “in support of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, and in response to the latest Israeli aggression on Yemen,” as announced by Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea in a statement, aired by Houthi-run al-Masirah TV.

XINHUA

HAVANA — Around 700,000 people marched outside the U.S. Embassy in Havana on Friday, demanding an end to Washington’s decades-long blockade of Cuba and calling for the removal of the island from the U.S. State Department’s list of state sponsors of terrorism.

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel led the march, joined by former president Raul Castro. Diaz-Canel condemned the United States for maintaining the terrorist label on Cuba, calling it both “false and immoral.” He also accused the United States of training paramilitary groups to target Cuba’s infrastructure and slashed the Biden administration for continuing harsh economic measures from the Trump era.

Diaz-Canel also denounced the United States for intensifying the blockade, calling it “ruthless.”

Cubans hold no hostility toward the American people, he said, vowing to stand firm against any attempts to undermine its sovereignty or socialist system.

“If the United States persists in its efforts to break our resolve, they will only find rebellion and unwavering determination,” he said.

The crowd, waving Cuban flags and chanting “Down with the blockade,” was a diverse mix of supporters. Among them was Yanquiel Cardoso, wearing a shirt reading “Cuba sponsors peace, love, and unity,” marching with his son, who wore a shirt wishing to “grow up without a blockade.” Cardoso decried the “cruel and inhumane” blockade, which he said hinders Cuba’s development.

Many healthcare workers joined the protest, including Colombian medical student Silvia Juliana Casadiego, who praised Cuba’s global solidarity and condemned U.S. sanctions.

“Despite its limitations, Cuba always extends a helping hand — not just to Colombia, but all of Latin America,” she said.

Cuban medical student Kevin Perez highlighted the toll U.S. policies have taken on Cuba’s healthcare system. “Healthcare has been one of the most affected sectors, but we will always stand to defend our homeland.”

This march was the first major protest in years outside the U.S. diplomatic mission to denounce the blockade.

XINHUA

BERLIN — A car drove into a group of people at a Christmas market in the eastern German city of Magdeburg on Friday, German news agency dpa reported.

The driver of the car was arrested, the agency said, citing unidentified government officials in the state of Saxony-Anhalt.

There was no immediate information on whether people were killed or injured.

Magdeburg, which is west of Berlin, is the state capital of Saxony-Anhalt and has about 240,000 inhabitants.

AN/Dec 20, 2024/19:07

DUBAI — Syrian Al-Jazeera presenter Ahmad Fakhouri received an overwhelming welcome from crowds of hundreds of people as he returned to his hometown Hama after 12 years in exile.

In a video posted on his social media channels, Fakhouri is seen waving at huge crowds who gathered in the streets in a collective moment of celebration after the fall of Bashar Assad’s regime.

“Come to us, Fakhouri,” people were seen cheering and chanting in the video which Fakhouri captioned “The people of Hama. None but you are my family and my support.”

Fakhouri, a former presenter at the Syrian TV station, fled the country in 2012 after tight censorship was placed on the media during the days of the revolution.

During a 2013 interview with Al Jazeera, Fakhouri said he was not allowed to cover the protests, then later was asked to use derogatory terms, such as “terrorists, infiltrators, and enemies of the homeland,” to describe the demonstrators.

“I was naive enough to ask Bouthaina Shaaban (media advisor to the Syrian Presidency) during high-level meetings to allow us to conduct interviews with the opposition, thinking that Syrian television belonged to the people and not to a specific faction,” Fakhouri had told Al Jazeera at the time.

He also reported being under constant surveillance from security and intelligence officers as a presenter.

Rejecting the regime’s policies that insisted on denying the protests, Fakhouri said he refrained from presenting live news, limiting his work to the weekly news bulletin. When he first decided to leave Syria, he discovered he was banned from travelling.

Shortly afterwards, he was summoned for an interrogation at the State Security Department, facing charges of inciting sectarian divisions and cooperating with foreign entities to disrupt public security. He was also accused of receiving money from his expatriate brother “to fund armed terrorists.”

He reported being blindfolded, and hearing “sounds of torture” and insults directed at detainees across from his interrogation room.

When he was released at the request of the media minister, Fakhouri decided to head to Aleppo where he hid for several months before the Free Syrian Army facilitated his escape.

“I do not need to mention why I decided to leave the regime’s grip as everyone is aware of Assad’s crimes against the Syrian people,” said Fakhouri, noting that several of his media colleagues were detained over extended periods, including some who were died under torture.

“I can confirm that most of those working in Syrian media are looking for an opportunity to escape like I did.”

Fakhouri begun his journey in the media at the state radio in 2004 before moving to become a presenter in the Syrian TV.

After he left Syria, he became known for hosting the “Trending” news bulletin at BBC Arabic until he joined Al Jazeera as a presenter and documentary maker in 2022.

Fakhouri was among many Syrian expats who returned to a nation where jubilation took over since Assad’s iron-fisted regime was toppled by a lightning 11-day rebel offensive spearheaded by the Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham group on Dec. 8.

Since the fall of Assad’s five-decade dynastic rule, harrowing accounts of torture and executions of political prisoners, activists, and regime critics in state prisons — most notably the infamous Sednaya — have emerged publicly.

AN/Dec 20, 2024/21:31

ATHENS — Greece’s Coast Guard on Friday said at least eight people drowned during the pursuit of a speedboat carrying migrants that sank in the Aegean Sea.

The Coast Guard said the boat capsized as it attempted to flee, adding that another 26 people had been rescued.

Public broadcaster ERT said that 17 of those were taken to hospital.

A Coast Guard statement said the boat driver had “lost control” while attempting to evade a Greek patrol vessel.

The incident struck near the island of Rhodes, opposite the Turkish coast, on a route frequently used by migrant smugglers.

Coast Guard vessels and a helicopter were looking for more survivors.

Greece has seen a 25 percent increase this year in the number of migrants arriving, with a 30 percent increase to Rhodes and the southeast Aegean, according to the Migration Ministry.

Several similar accidents have struck in recent weeks.

In late November, nine migrants, including six minors and two women, died after two boats sank in separate incidents near the islands of Samos and Lesbos.

Another five people died in a sinking near the island of Crete last weekend.

Greece, at the southern tip of the EU, has long been a favored gateway to Europe for migrants and refugees from the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.

In 2015, nearly 1 million people landed on its islands.

The number of migrants traveling illegally to Greece is expected to top 60,000 this year, with Syrians making up the largest number, followed by Afghans, Egyptians, Eritreans, and Palestinians, according to government data.

AN-AFP/AP, Dec 20, 2024 / 21:25

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.

XINHUA

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.

XINHUA

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.

XINHUA

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.

XINHUA

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)