Day: May 20, 2021

The Israeli army on Thursday detained 60 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, a Palestinian non-governmental organization said.

In a statement, the Palestinian Prisoners Society said those detained include activists and Hamas leaders.

Eyewitnesses told an Anadolu Agency correspondent that Nayef Rajoub, a Hamas leader, was detained in the city of Hebron.

According to the NGO, Israeli forces have detained 1,500 Palestinians in the West Bank since early April.

An estimated 4,500 Palestinians are believed to be held in Israeli prisons, including 39 women, and 350 administrative detainees, according to data compiled by organizations on the rights of prisoners.

At least 230 Palestinians have been killed, including 65 children and 39 women, and over 1,700 others injured in Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip since May 10, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. Health centers, media offices and residential neighborhoods have been targeted.

Recent tensions that started in East Jerusalem during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan spread to Gaza as a result of Israeli assaults on worshippers in the flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and the neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah.

Source: Anadolu Agency

The death toll in Myanmar military junta’s crackdown against pro-democracy protesters has risen to 807, according to a rights group.

In its latest briefing, the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners reported two more deaths from the Bogo region.

Pro-democracy protests have taken place in cities and towns across the Southeast Asian country since the Feb.1 military coup.

The military overthrew the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, detained her and other leaders of her National League for Democracy party, and then cracked down with lethal force on anti-coup protesters.

Suu Kyi’s party won a second term in November, but the military said rigging in the polls had forced it to seize power. Many countries, including the US, have announced sanctions against the regime.

The watchdog said children have also been severely oppressed under military control. A total of 73 children have been detained, and 53 children were killed.

“Even though Burma is one of the countries which has ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, considering the junta is an illegal terrorist group, it is unsurprising that these rights are not respected,” it said.

Source: Anadolu Agency

France, Egypt and Jordan have called on Israel and Palestine to immediately agree on a ceasefire and end the escalating conflict that has killed hundreds of civilians, a joint statement said on Wednesday.

The statement follows a meeting between President Emmanuel Macron, Egypt President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, and the King of Jordan, Abdullah II, on Tuesday, where they also agreed to reach a ceasefire agreement through the UN Security Council, a statement released by the French president’s office said.

France has stepped up diplomatic engagements with the countries in the Middle East, Europe and the US to put an end to hostilities, besides holding talks with Israel and Palestine leaders separately, to push for the adoption of a ceasefire resolution.

Macron also held a meeting with Tunisian president, Kais Saied, the only Arab member country of the UN Security Council.

The three countries have demanded Israel offer “full and unhindered access of humanitarian assistance into the Gaza Strip.”

Since the conflict flared in the last ten days, nearly 60,000 people have been displaced in Gaza and an estimated 47,000 have taken shelter in UN Relief and Works Agency (UNWRA) schools, according to the UN.

The World Food Programme has also warned that over 160,000 people in Gaza have been pushed into food insecurity.

Israel has currently blocked entry for cargo carrying humanitarian aid into landlocked Gaza.

Hours after opening the Kerem Shalom crossing on the border with Egypt after a nine days gap on Tuesday that allowed five of the 24 trucks carrying humanitarian supplies to Gaza, Israel shut down the gates.

Israeli authorities blamed militants who they said launched mortars at the crossing, a report by the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said.

France, Egypt and Jordan have assured to work jointly with international partners and the UN, to ensure delivery of humanitarian help for Gaza’s relief.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh urged Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Tuesday to mobilize support against Israeli aggression in Palestine.

“We call on you to urgently act and mobilize Arab, Islamic and international support, and to take a clear and firm stance to oblige the Israeli occupation to immediately halt its aggression and terror on the besieged Gaza Strip,” Haniyeh said in a letter sent to Widodo, Anadolu Agency reported.

He also encouraged Widodo to pressure Israeli to cede its violations against occupied Jerusalem and its people, including erecting illegal settlements, forced evictions in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, racial discrimination and “to take its hands off the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque” as well as violating the rights of worshippers.

Haniyeh also prayed for Widodo and for “more progress” for Indonesia.

Presidential spokesman Fajdruel Rachman did not respond to Anadolu Agency’s request for comment regarding the letter.

At least 227 Palestinians have been killed, including 64 children and 38 women, and 1,620 others injured in Israeli attacks across the blockaded territory since May 10, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

Meanwhile, 28 Palestinians, including 4 children, have been killed in the occupied West Bank as a result of clashes with Israeli forces.

Twelve Israelis have been killed in Palestinian rocket fire from the Gaza Strip.

Recent tensions that started in East Jerusalem during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan spread to Gaza as a result of Israeli assaults on worshippers in the flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.

Source: Anadolu Agency

At least 1,800 housing units have been demolished in Israel’s ongoing airstrikes on the Gaza Strip, a Palestinian official said on Thursday.

“The number of housing units completely destroyed has reached 1,800, while some 16,800 more housing units have been partially damaged,” Naji Sarhan, minister of public works and housing, said at a news conference in Gaza City.

He said Israel’s assault on the Gaza Strip has created “a difficult humanitarian reality,” with more than 120,000 Palestinians displaced from their homes.

“Five large residential towers in the middle of Gaza City have been completely destroyed. The number of government buildings destroyed has reached 74, including a police headquarters and other service facilities,” Sarhan said.

The minister said 66 schools have been damaged in Israeli bombardment, while three mosques have been destroyed, 40 mosques slightly damaged, and a church has also sustained minor damages.

“Today, we need $350 million to rehabilitate housing facilities that have suffered heavy damage in the repeated Israeli attacks,” Sarhan added.

At least 232 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s relentless assault on the Gaza Strip since May 10, including 65 children, 39 women, and 17 elderly people.

According to Palestine’s Health Ministry, over 1,700 more people have been injured as Israel continues to pound the besieged Palestinian territory in airstrikes.

Israel launched an offensive on Gaza after Hamas fired rockets in retaliation to days of violent Israeli assaults on Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem during the holy month of Ramadan.

Israeli police attacked Palestinian worshippers in and around the Al-Aqsa Mosque in the last week of the holy month, while also targeting Palestinians protesting in solidarity with residents of the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, who are facing eviction after a controversial Israeli court order.

Israeli forces have killed at least 29 Palestinians, including four children, and injured over 6,300 more in the occupied West Bank over the past few days.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and annexed the entire city in 1980 – a move that has never been recognized by the international community.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Turkey’s benchmark stock index closed on Thursday at 1,449.82 points, down by 0.67% from the previous close.

Starting the day at 1,450.52 points, Borsa Istanbul’s BIST 100 index lost 9.75 points over the Tuesday’s close of 1,459.57 points.

On Wednesday, the stock market remained closed as Turkey marked the Commemoration of Ataturk, Youth and Sports Day on May 19.


One ounce of gold was traded for $1,855.50 by market close, falling from $1,869.50 at the previous close, according to data from Borsa Istanbul’s Precious Metals and Diamond Markets.

The price of Brent crude oil was around $66.08 per barrel as of 6.00 p.m. local time (1500GMT).

Exchange Rates Tuesday Thursday

USD/TRY 8.3570 8.3640

EUR/TRY 10.2030 10.2150

GBP/TRY 11.8960 11.8740

Source: Anadolu Agency