Day: July 4, 2021

At least 17 people were killed after a Philippine military plane carrying 92 people crashed in the country’s south on Sunday, while 40 have been rescued so far, local media reported, citing army officials.

Armed Forces chief Gen. Cirilito Sobejana confirmed that a C-130 plane transporting troops crashed in the province of Sulu at 11.30 a.m. (0330GMT), according to CNN Philippines.

Onboard the aircraft were three pilots, five crew members, and 84 army personnel.

Sobejana also said that the 40 rescued were being treated at a military hospital in the area, added the report.

Firefighters are on site to put out the blaze that reportedly engulfed the aircraft as search and rescue operations for passengers and crew are ongoing.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Bangladesh on Sunday witnessed 153 COVID-19 deaths, the highest number since the pandemic hit the country, amid a weeklong strict nationwide lockdown in effect since July 1 to curb the spread of the virus.

The death toll in the South Asian country reached 15,065, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).

Some 8,660 infections over the past 24 hours raised the total number of infections to 944,917, it said, adding some 29,879 COVID-19 samples were tested across the country over the past day.

The daily positivity rate of 29% raised fears among public health experts as the World Health Organization recommended a 5% or below rate.

Bangladesh also imposed a strict lockdown on July 1 amid soaring infections and deaths, asking people to stay home unless there was an emergency.

Meanwhile, the law enforcement agencies arrested over 600 people in the capital Dhaka on the fourth day of the weeklong lockdown over alleged violations of the safety guidelines.

In the last four days, at least 2,100 people have been arrested in Dhaka, according to police.

More than 5.82 million people have received their first doses, while over 4.28 million have been fully vaccinated, according to Our World in Data, a tracking website affiliated with Oxford University.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Lionel Messi-led Argentina qualified for the 2021 Copa America semifinals after a 3-0 win against Ecuador in the last eight on Saturday.

Messi made two assists and scored a freekick to lift Argentina to the semis, where they will play against Colombia on Tuesday.

Argentina took the lead in minute 40 as Rodrigo De Paul scored the opener. Lautaro Martinez doubled the lead for the Argentine national team against Ecuador in the 84th minute. Messi served two assists for both players.

Barcelona veteran Messi, who is a free agent now, scored from freekick in the stoppage time of the second half to name the result 3-0 for Argentina.

Meanwhile, Colombia eliminated Uruguay in the quarterfinal stage.

Colombian goalkeeper David Ospina saved two penalties in a shootout as Colombia won 4-2 on penalties to advance to the semifinals.

Copa America’s semifinal ties are as follows:

Host nation Brazil will face Peru on Monday and Argentina will play against Colombia on Tuesday.

The losing teams in the semifinal round will play a third-place playoff on Friday.

The winners of the semis will vie for the 2021 title on Saturday.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Turkey has administered over 52.34 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines since it launched a mass vaccination campaign in January, according to official figures released on Saturday.

More than 35.78 million people have received their first doses, while over 15.58 million have been fully vaccinated, the Health Ministry said.


Meanwhile, Turkey confirmed 4,537 new coronavirus cases and 45 fatalities in the last 24 hours.

The latest figures put the number of COVID-19 patients in critical condition at 702.

Turkey’s overall case tally is now over 5 million, while the nationwide death toll has reached 49,874 with 45 new fatalities over the past day.

Some 4,913 more patients won the battle against the novel coronavirus in the last 24 hours in Turkey, bringing the number of recoveries to 5,310,769.

Amid a nationwide fall in virus cases and an expedited inoculation drive, Turkey has entered a new normalization phase, lifting almost all virus-related restrictions.

But seeking to limit the spread of the virus’ Delta variant, it has suspended flights from Bangladesh, Brazil, South Africa, India, Nepal, and Sri Lanka.

Meanwhile, passengers from the UK, Iran, Egypt, and Singapore are required to have a negative COVID-19 test result taken within the last 72 hours.

Source: Anadolu Agency

A missile attack targeting an army camp in Yemen’s southern Abyan province killed two soldiers and injured 20 others on Sunday, a government source told Anadolu Agency.

“A missile targeted a mosque in the Army’s Fifth Infantry Brigade camp in Modiya district in Abyan governorate when soldiers were performing the afternoon prayers, killing two soldiers and injuring 20 others, with some in critical condition”, said the source who preferred not to be named.

Condemning the attack, Muhammad Qayzan, advisor to the Yemeni Information Ministry, said on Twitter that a “cowardly terrorist act” targeted the soldiers while they were performing prayers.

No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack.

The government forces and others affiliated with the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council share the control of Abyan which witnesses frequent confrontations.

Yemen has been engulfed by violence and instability since 2014, when Iran-aligned Houthi rebels captured much of the country, including the capital Sanaa.

A Saudi-led coalition aimed at reinstating the Yemeni government has worsened the situation, causing one of the world’s worst man-made humanitarian crises with 233,000 people killed, nearly 80% or about 30 million needing humanitarian assistance and protection, and more than 13 million in danger of starvation, according to the UN estimates.

Source: Anadolu Agency

There are no longer backdoor contacts with India to resume the long-stalled talks between the two nuclear neighbors, Pakistan’s national security advisor said Saturday.

The contacts, according to Moeed Yusuf, have been abandoned because New Delhi failed to take any confidence building measures, mainly the reversal of its August 2019 move on Kashmir.

“It’s over now,” Yusuf said in an interview with local broadcaster Geo News, claiming it was New Delhi that approached Islamabad for resumption of talks.

“It was India that approached us. They (New Delhi) said they wanted to talk on all disputed issues, including on Kashmir,” he said without specifying the time period and location of the contact.

“We clearly conveyed them our demand i.e. reversal of Aug. 2019 move, for resumption of talks,” he went on to say.

On Aug. 5, 2019, the Indian government revoked Article 370 and other related provisions from its Constitution, scrapping the country’s only Muslim-majority state with its autonomy. It was also split into two federally administered territories.

Simultaneously, it locked the region down, detained thousands of people, imposed movement restrictions and enforced a communications blackout, according to Amnesty International.

Islamabad, in turn, suspended trade ties and downgraded diplomatic relations with New Delhi.

“Since, they [the Indian government] haven’t done anything [favorable] in this regard, so it’s over now,” he said, foreseeing “no change” in India’s stance on the August 2019 move.

“India is trapped in Kashmir after taking this step. It’s in their own interest to reverse it,” he further argued.

Commenting on the last week’s meeting of pro-Indian Kashmiri politicians with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Yusuf said New Delhi has failed to convince even its own allies over the controversial Kashmir move.

“They [politicians] too openly demanded the revocation of the August 2019 step and asked Prime Minister Modi to talk to Pakistan [over Kashmir issue],” he contended.

The top intelligence officials of the two nuclear-armed neighbors reportedly met in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in January in an attempt to stem heightened tensions between the two sides.

In April, UAE’s Ambassador to the US Yousef Al Otaiba confirmed that Abu Dhabi was mediating between New Delhi and Islamabad to help reach a “healthy and functional” relationship.

Addressing a virtual session with Stanford University’s Hoover Institution, Otaiba said his country had a role in the recent cease-fire at the Line of Control (LoC), the de-facto border that divides Kashmir between India and Pakistan, which could get relations back to a “healthy level.”

In March, the two militaries agreed to honor the 2003 cease-fire along the LoC, followed by an exchange of letters between the two premiers, which was widely viewed as an outcome of the reported backdoor diplomacy.

– Disputed region

Kashmir, a Muslim-majority Himalayan region, is held by India and Pakistan in parts and claimed by both in full.

A small sliver of Kashmir is also held by China. Some Kashmiri groups in Jammu and Kashmir have been fighting against the Indian rule for independence or unification with neighboring Pakistan.

Indian defense officials said it has some 500,000 troops in one of the world’s most militarized regions.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Nine provinces in the southeastern Anatolia region whose history, culture, gastronomy and nature are registered by UNESCO are preparing to gain from tourism activity with “Mesopotamia,” –promoted as Turkey’s first destination-oriented regional tourism brand.

As part of the Tourism-Oriented promotion and branding project within the Southeastern Anatolia Project (GAP) Region, which was launched to bring the rich cultural heritage of Adiyaman, Batman, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep, Kilis, Mardin, Siirt, Sanliurfa and Sirnak to tourism and to ensure regional development, the tourism values of the region gained a global identity through the brand.

With Mezopotamya, the tourism circulation in the region is gathered under one roof.

The brand provides domestic and foreign visitors a mobile travel guide, including included maps, dining, accommodation and city routes.

Foreign tourists who want to travel the southeastern provinces with their ever-increasing historical and cultural values will be able to visit all of the cities that host beautiful places with their unique history, culture, gastronomy and nature, planned and programmed in a period ranging from three to nine days.

Gobeklitepe, Mount Nemrut, Diyarbakir Castle and Hevsel Gardens, Gaziantep with its unique tastes, Mardin with its churches and monasteries, Halfeti with natural beauties, Hasankeyf, Botan Valley and Mount Cudi stand out as historical and tourist attractions in the region.

-Increasing attention

Tourists showed interest, especially in cultural routes in the region, Muslum Coban told Anadolu Agency as Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Turkish Tourist Guides Association and President of the Sanliurfa Regional Chamber of Tourist Guides.

“Especially the whole world knows the region as Mesopotamia. It was a very nice launch and promotion. We believe that we will receive the benefits and returns of this in a positive way in a short time,” said Coban.

He added that with the coronavirus pandemic slowly leaving, the attention to the region and the brand would increase.

-‘Mezopotamya,’ world brand

Mehmet Kamil Turkmen, a member of the Mesopotamian Tourism Platform, said the region was previously referred to by GAP tours, but the name is especially difficult for foreign tourists to perceive.

He emphasized that “Mezopotamya” is a concept that expresses the historical and cultural past very well.

“Mezopotamya is a world brand. The region is already called Al Jazeera in Islamic civilization and Mesopotamia in Greek culture,” said Turkmen. “Tourists living abroad can perceive this region when it is called Mesopotamia.”

“If our guests from abroad want to visit the entire region, they travel in nine days. If their time is very limited, they travel in the locomotive provinces of the region, they are subject to four-day travel plan programs,” he said. “We look forward to welcoming all our tourists. Let them come to Mesopotamia, and we will travel through history together.”

-Opportunity to travel entire region with one plan

Soner Bacaksiz, a member of the Board of Directors of the Association of Turkish Travel Agencies (TURSAB), said the new brand created a new expectation for the region’s tourism.

“The brand Mezopotamya contributes to the growth of interest and demand in the region in the coming days. We are talking about a very large destination that completely covers the southern line with the tour route starting from Gaziantep,” he said.

He also emphasized that the brand will allow tourists to visit the entire region with one plan.

Mehmet Akyil, chairman of the Executive Board of the TURSAB Diyarbakir region, believes the brand will help the region’s name to be well-known around the world.

Akyil, who said GAP tours were previously limited to Gaziantep, Sanliurfa and Mardin, expressed that the new brand is much more inclusive with nine provinces.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Israeli jets on Saturday carried out a series of airstrikes against the positions of the Palestinian resistance group Hamas in the blockaded Gaza Strip, according to the Israeli army.

Warplanes launched missiles against two targets reportedly belonging to the Al-Qassam Brigades, one in the south and the other in the north of Gaza, the Israeli army said on Twitter.

The jets targeted a Hamas weapons factory and a rocket launch pad, it said, adding that the strikes were carried out in retaliation for incendiary balloons sent off from the enclave.

No information on casualties was provided by the Palestinian Health Ministry.

Israeli jets had hit another place belonging to the Al-Qassam Brigades earlier on Friday.

Source: Anadolu Agency

India registered more than 43,000 new coronavirus cases on Sunday and 955 deaths, according to the Health Ministry.

It said the death toll stands at 402,005 and infections have reached 30.5 million, including 43,071 cases.

The active caseload has declined to 485,350.

“Daily recoveries continue to outnumber the daily new cases for the 52nd consecutive day. Recovery rate increases to 97.09 %,” it said.

Officials maintain that cases are seeing an overall decline after a deadly second wave.

Authorities in several cities are now allowing more activities to resume.

According to official figures, more than 350 million vaccine doses have been administered under a nationwide vaccination drive.

A total of four vaccines have been approved by authorities.

Source: Anadolu Agency