Turkey News Gazette

ANKARA: Israeli forces injured at least three Palestinians on Monday evening in the occupied northern West Bank, said a report. According to the official Palestinian news agency Wafa, clashes between the army and Palestinians broke out near the town of Azzun, east of Qalqilya city, resulting in injuries to two Palestinians from live ammunition. In a separate incident in the al-Razzaza area of Qalqilya city, a third Palestinian youth was shot by Israeli live bullets. All injured people were taken to hospital, Wafa reported. Tensions have been high across the occupied West Bank since Israel launched a deadly military offensive against the Gaza Strip, which killed nearly 34,500 people following a Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023. Over 490 Palestinians have since been killed and over 4,800 others injured by Israeli army fire in the occupied West Bank, according to the Health Ministry. Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which in an interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza. Source: Anadolu Agency

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak thanked on Tuesday President of the Republic Nikos Christodoulides for his work to expand the delivery of lifesaving humanitarian aid into Gaza by sea, alongside the urgent priority of getting more aid in via land routes. The two leaders spoke over the phone on Tuesday afternoon focussing on Gaza, 10 Downing Street has said. The UK Prime Minister said he was pleased that Royal Navy support ship RFA Cardigan Bay was sailing from Cyprus to support these efforts. Sunak also emphasised the importance of tackling illegal migration, and the leaders agreed that it was a pan-European challenge and one which was growing across the continent. Both leaders agreed to stay in close touch and continue working together to strengthen the historic ties between the two countries, and on issues including on migration, support to Ukraine and wider regional security. Source: Cyprus News Agency

Azerbaijan's Minister of Foreign Affairs Jayhun Bayramov met today with Abdallah Bou Habib, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants of Lebanon, in Qatar. The discussions during the meeting centered around various aspects of the bilateral cooperation agenda between Azerbaijan and Lebanon, spanning political, economic, humanitarian, cultural, and other areas. They underscored the importance of holding political consultations between the foreign ministries of the two countries. The FMs also highlighted the significance of cooperation within international organizations such as the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM). Minister Bayramov briefed his Lebanese counterpart on the latest regional developments, including the Azerbaijan-Armenia normalization process and the agreement resulting in the de-occupation of four Azerbaijani villages. During the meeting, they also exchanged views on other bilateral and regional issues of mutual interest. Source: Azerbaijan State Ne ws Agency

District returning officers on Tuesday declared the election of 180 Community Leaders and 592 Community Councilors who ran unopposed for the June 9 local government elections. They will, however, assume their duties on July 1, which is when the rest of the elected local government officials will assume theirs, after the June 9 elections. In the Nicosia district, the uncontested election of 62 Community Leaders and 220 members of community councils was announced. In total, 29 Community Leaders and 117 Community Councillors were elected unopposed in the Limassol District, while in Larnaca District, the uncontested election of eight Community Leaders and eight Councillors was announced. In the Paphos District, 29 Community Leaders and 27 Community Council Members, and, in the Famagusta District, 52 Community Leaders and 220 Community Councillors were elected unopposed for the Councils of 55 occupied communities. These were among the candidates running for 285 Community Leader posts and 1,464 Community Coun cil member posts for Communities in the government-controlled area of the Republic of Cyprus, and 138 Community Leader posts and 552 Councillor posts for occupied Communities. Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres appointed in January María Ángela Holguín Cuéllar of Columbia as his personal envoy for Cyprus, to assume a Good Offices role on his behalf and search for common ground on the way forward in the Cyprus issue. Source: Cyprus News Agency

Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, received the leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints of the United States of America including David Bednar, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Jack Gerard, a member of the Quorum of the Seventy as well as Miles Hansen, President of the Stirling Foundation and Edward Rowe, CEO of the Stirling Foundation. During the meeting, the importance of the upcoming World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue in Baku was discussed, with confidence expressed that this event would contribute to the expansion of intercultural dialogue on an international scale. The participation of many distinguished guests from various countries in the forum was seen as a sign of the strong international interest in the event. The conversation also touched on Azerbaijan's contributions to intercultural and interfaith dialogue. It was acknowledged with satisfaction that historically, representatives from different cultures and religions in Azerbaijan have liv ed together peacefully as a united family. Source: Azerbaijan State News Agency

Cyprus' Foreign minister Constantinos Kombos on Tuesday discussed, in a telephone conversation, with his Indonesian counterpart, Retno Marsudi, on further developing and strengthening the two countries' bilateral relations. In a post on 'X', Kombos said that he had a 'timely and forward-looking' discussion with the Foreign Minister of Indonesia on further developing and strengthening the two countries' bilateral relations. He added that they exchanged views on the Cyprus Question, 'as well as developments in our respective regions, with emphasis on the situation in the Middle East'. In her own post on 'X', Marsudi said she received a phone call from Kombos and that the Palestine issue was one of the topic of discussions. Source: Cyprus News Agency

Nihad Ahmedli, a 5th-year Chemical Engineering student at Baku Higher Oil School (BHOS), has been accepted directly into the Ph.D. programs of 6 universities in the USA. Thus, the BHOS student was accepted to the University of Houston, the University of Louisiana, the University of Kansas, the University of Tulsa, the University of Central Florida, and the University of New Hampshire. The first four of the above universities offered him a full scholarship. Nihad will continue his studies at the University of Houston, where he will also work as a research assistant. There, he will receive an annual scholarship in the amount of 55,000 dollars. Nihad is one of the active students at Baku Higher Oil School. He entered BHOS in 2019 with 638.3 points. Nihad was one of the finalists of the "TECHNOFEST 2023" competition. He interned in several SOCAR enterprises, including SOCAR Trkiye, as well as in other companies. Source: Azerbaijan State News Agency

ENI's discoveries in Cyprus' Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and the scenarios for the exploitation of the confirmed drillings as well as the preferred solutions to efficiently meet domestic energy priorities were discussed in a meeting the President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulides, and ENI's CEO Claudio Descalzi held Tuesday in the presence of the Ministers of Energy and Foreign Affairs at the Presidential Palace. According to a joint written statement by the Republic of Cyprus and Eni, President Christodoulides and Descalzi met today to discuss "Eni's activities and future projects in the country". In particular, President Christodoulides and ENI's CEO reviewed the discoveries made in 2022 by Eni and its partner TotalEnergies of Cronos and Zeus which led to the drilling of Cronos 2 appraisal well in late 2023. It is added that the latter included a production test in early 2024 that delivered excellent performances and increased volumes. 'While the acquired data are still under study, the encourag ing outcomes of the previous wells have been confirmed,' the statement says. It is noted that the meeting was the occasion to discuss a shared fast-track approach that allowed the appraisal well to be drilled while evaluating multiple development scenarios. It is further noted that 'highlights of the preferred solutions to efficiently meet domestic as well as regional and European energy priorities in the short and longer period have been outlined.' Eni has been present in Cyprus since 2013 and the company operates Blocks 2, 3, 6, 8 and 9 and has interests in Blocks 7 and 11 of the Cypriot EEZ, the statement concludes. Source: Cyprus News Agency

On April 30, the leadership of the Defense Ministry attended the solemn ceremony held in a military unit on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Special Forces, Azerbaijan's Ministry of Defense told AZERTAC. 'First, flowers were laid at the bust to the National Leader Heydar Aliyev and the monument of Martyrs. The leadership of the Defense Ministry planted memorial trees in the territory of the military unit. Then, the modern weapons and equipment used by the special forces were reviewed at the training ground. The leadership of the Ministry attended the command control post and watched the exemplary classes of the special forces. Afterwards, the leadership of the Defense Ministry made a speech. It was noted that the bravery and heroism demonstrated by the special forces in the Patriotic War and other operations was highly appreciated by the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Ilham Aliyev. The speakers extended their best wishes for the servicemen. The Commander of the Special Forces presented Defense Minister Colonel General Zakir Hasanov and other senior staff badges commemorating the 25th anniversary of the Special Forces. At the end of the event, a group of distinguished military personnel was presented with honorary certificates, valuable gifts and military ranks prematurely,' the ministry said. Source: Azerbaijan State News Agency