Category: Governance

ISTANBUL: Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on Monday met Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who is on a three-day visit to Qatar. The talks, held in Doha, covered bilateral relations and ways to boost and develop them across various areas of cooperation, regional and international issues of common concern, especially the latest developments in the Gaza Strip and the occupied Palestinian territories, Qatar News Agency reported. The visit comes as the two countries mark 50 years of diplomatic ties. This is the Malaysian premier's first official visit to the Gulf country since being appointed in November 2022. The last meeting between the two leaders was in Riyadh last month. Also accompanying him in the delegation are the ministers of investment, trade and industry, and higher education. In a post on X, Ibrahim said he discussed in detail the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, 'where all parties need to play a role in finding a solution to end the suffering of the Palestinian people.' In this r egard, like-minded countries need to work together to realize this dream, he said. According to him, also discussed was bilateral cooperation and facilitating investment and higher education. He later met Qatar's Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani. 'Hopefully the bond of friendship between Malaysia and Qatar will continue to grow for mutual benefit, God willing,' Ibrahim said. Source: Anadolu Agency

JERUSALEM: Israeli protesters blocked humanitarian aid trucks on their way to the besieged Gaza Strip on Monday. Video clips shared on social media showed protesters vandalizing several aid trucks near the Tarqumiya checkpoint near the West Bank city of Hebron, climbing onto the trucks, ripping aid off and throwing it onto the road, Israeli Army Radio reported. Similar protests were staged in the past week with protesters demanding the release of Israelis held captive by Hamas in return for allowing aid into the Gaza Strip. Last week, Hamas, which is believed to be holding nearly 130 Israelis since its Oct. 7 cross-border attack, accepted a proposal drawn by Egypt and Qatar for a cease-fire in Gaza. But Israel said the truce offer did not meet its key demands and decided to push ahead with an operation in Rafah, home to more than 1.5 million displaced people, to apply "military pressure on Hamas with the goal of making progress on freeing the hostages and the other war aims.' Nearly 35,100 Palestinians h ave been killed and over 78,800 others injured in a brutal Israeli onslaught on the Gaza Strip since the Hamas attack that killed nearly 1,200 people. The Palestinian group demands an end to Israel's ongoing military offensive on the Gaza Strip in return for any hostage swap with Tel Aviv. More than seven months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine. Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). An interim ruling in January said it is "plausible" that Tel Aviv is committing genocide in Gaza, ordering it to stop such acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza. Source: Anadolu Agency

ISTANBUL: Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said on Monday that the US wants Malaysia "to stop sending humanitarian aid" to Gaza. "The Americans think humanitarian aid should not be given to Gaza. It is because it may help Hamas to survive," Mahathir wrote on X. "The proper thing to do according to the Americans is for bombs and rockets to be supplied to Israel. These can kill Gaza Palestinians who are said to be sheltering Hamas," he added. About the Malaysian aid, he said: "The pitifully small amounts of money can only buy food and drinks. Weapons are very costly, running into millions of dollars." The Southeast Asian nation has donated over $4.2 million in aid to Palestinians since Israel launched its war on Oct. 7. It is besides its annual commitment of $200,000 to the UN refugee agency for Palestinians (UNRWA) from 2021 until next year. "There may be no Hamas. Only Gaza Palestinian women, children and babies will be killed. It is collateral damage. It's okay, according to the America ns," Mahathir added." Israel has waged a brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip in retaliation for an Oct. 7 Hamas attack, which killed 1,200 people. More than 35,000 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza, mostly women and children, and over 78,700 others injured, according to Palestinian health authorities. Over seven months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave's population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine, according to the UN. Source: Anadolu Agency

MADRID: Spain and Ukraine are poised to sign a bilateral agreement, according to sources from the Spanish government who spoke to the Spanish news agency EFE on Monday. The announcement comes as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy prepares for an official visit to Madrid in the coming days, where discussions are expected to culminate in the signing of the agreement. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Zelenskyy will oversee the signing ceremony, solidifying commitments to defense and security cooperation between the two nations. The upcoming agreement follows a recent phone call between Sanchez and Zelenskyy on May 7, during which the leaders affirmed their intention to convene in Madrid for this purpose. Zelensky's last visit to Spain was in October 2023, coinciding with the European Political Community meeting held in Granada. Meanwhile, addressing questions during a press conference on Monday, Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares declined to specify the exact timing of Zelenskyy's arr ival in Madrid, citing security concerns. Albares reaffirmed Spain's stance on Russia's occupation of Ukraine, labeling it as "unjust," and pledged continued support for Ukraine across all fronts. In addition to the forthcoming agreement, reports circulating in the Spanish media and corroborated by government sources indicate Spain's intention to provide Patriot missiles to Ukraine. Source: Anadolu Agency

BERLIN: German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Monday renewed his call for Israel to refrain from a large-scale military offensive on the southern Gazan city of Rafah. 'We are very clearly saying that there should be no broad attack against Rafah,' Scholz told a joint press conference in Stockholm, with the leaders of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. 'There are too many people living there and we have no idea how this [a broad military offensive] could happen without too many civilian casualties, which could not be accepted,' he stressed. Scholz reiterated that Germany supports Israel in its fight against Hamas, but also underlined that Israeli army should respect international law, and protect the civilian population. 'We are so clearly saying that Israel has every right to fight back against Hamas. While saying this, we are also very clear in what is necessary to do. First, the way of doing this war against Hamas, has to follow international rule of law, and international rules, and we're very mu ch looking to this,' the chancellor said. 'Second, we are absolutely clear that there must be enough humanitarian aid coming to Gaza. My request was always that it should be about 500 trucks a day, every day, so that there is enough support with food, with medical aid, and all what is needed in Gaza,' he added. Scholz also urged Israeli authorities to take the necessary steps to stop the violence by extremist Israeli settlers against Palestinians. 'We were also very clear in speaking about the situation in the West Bank, saying that settlers' violence cannot be tolerated,' he said. The chancellor reiterated that his government supports a two-state solution, which he said can end the long-running conflict between Israelis and Palestinians, and bring peace to the region. 'Looking at the future we are very clearly saying there must be a two-state solution. So this is what we support intensely, saying that peaceful cooperation between Israel and the Palestinian state, consisting of West Bank and Gaza, is wha t we are aiming for,' Scholz said. Germany has been a staunch ally of Israel, and German government officials have repeatedly said the country bears special responsibility for Israel's security due to its Nazi past. But the government has come under growing pressure in recent weeks due to the Israeli military's disproportionate and indiscriminate use of force in Gaza. In a recent poll, 69% of Germans said Israel's military actions in Gaza are unjustified as they have claimed too many civilian victims. Only 18% voiced support for Israel. Israel has waged a military offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7 cross-border attack by Hamas which killed less than 1,200 people. More than 35,000 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and 78,700 others injured amid mass destruction and severe shortages of necessities. Over seven months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave's population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clea n water, and medicine, according to the UN. Israel is accused of 'genocide' at the International Court of Justice, which has ordered Tel Aviv to ensure its forces do not commit acts of genocide and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza. Source: Anadolu Agency

ATHENS: Improvement of bilateral relations with Trkiye is yielding concrete and positive results, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Monday. Speaking at the joint press conference with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara, where he arrived on a day-long working visit, Mitsotakis said: "I can only begin by thanking you for the warm hospitality today in Ankara, it was a fourth meeting in the last 10 months, which I believe proves that the two neighbors can now establish this approach of mutual understanding, no longer as some exception, but as a productive normality that is not negated by the known differences in our positions.' He said bilateral relations have been progressing, as agreed by the parties, on three levels: political dialogue, positive agenda and confidence building measures. 'I believe that it is a positive development in a difficult time for international peace, but also for the broader stability in our region,' the Greek premier said. Mitsotakis maintained that inte rest of Turkish tourists in Greek islands, which was facilitated by 'visa at the gate" policy, and collaboration of agencies of the two states in dealing with irregular migration are among the tangible results of the thaw in relations. On cooperation in dealing with irregular migration, he said Athens supports more EU aid to Trkiye, which has also been suffering from the flow of migrants. Recalling Erdogan's emphasis on increasing bilateral trade volume, Mitsotakis said they agreed on further cooperation in mutual trade and investment. "Despite the adversities of the international environment, despite the obstacles in international supply chains, we are undoubtedly moving in the right direction,' he said. Source: Anadolu Agency

HAMILTON: The UN on Monday voiced deep concern over the lack of protection and safety for not only civilians but also humanitarian operations in Gaza. "We remain deeply concerned about the lack of protection for civilians and the lack of safety for humanitarian operations. Civilians must be protected and have their basic needs met, whether they move or stay," UN deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said at a news conference. Haq's remarks came following Israeli shelling in northern Gaza, which caused "some 100,000 people" forcibly displaced. Reiterating UN's call for "concrete assurances and actionable measures to facilitate the safe and secure movement of humanitarian cargo via all routes into and throughout the Gaza Strip," Haq said: "The ground incursions and heavy fighting continued to be reported in eastern Rafah, as well as Gaza City and the Jabalia refugee camp." Responding to Anadolu's question on illegal Israeli settlers attacking humanitarian aid convoys heading to Gaza, Haq defined it as "appalling." " Obviously, there should be no attacks on humanitarian convoys anywhere and we stand firmly against them," he said. Haq further dismissed reports of UN changing the number of overall fatalities in Gaza, saying "the number remains unchanged and its had more than 35,000 people since October 7." "What's changed is, the Ministry of Health and Gaza has updated the breakdown of fatalities, for whom details have been documented," he said, adding that the documentation of identifying casualties is ongoing. He also noted that the UN does not have the capability to independently verify figures on the ground. Haq mentioned that the UN has previously relied on data from the Ministry of Health in Gaza, expressing confidence in the reliability of the numbers. Source: Anadolu Agency