Day: March 18, 2023

Ukraine on Saturday voiced support for extending the Black Sea grain corridor initiative for at least 120 more days.

Speaking at a meeting of the UN Security Council in New York, Kyiv's envoy to the council Sergiy Kyslytsya also underlined that ideally, the landmark deal would be extended indefinitely to continue grain exports from three Ukrainian Black Sea ports, which had been halted after the war with Russia began in February 2022.

"The Black Sea Grain Initiative should be extended after it expires on March 18 for at least 120 days, as provided, or for an unlimited period," said Kyslytsya, suggesting that it should also be expanded to cover Ukrainian ports in the Mykolaiv region as well.

Trkiye, the UN, Russia, and Ukraine had signed a deal in Istanbul last July to resume grain exports from Yuzhny, Chornomorsk, and Odesa.

The deal, extended for 120 days in November, expires on Saturday.

Source: Anadolu Agency

As part of a NATO-coordinated air-bridge, Japan sent relief aid to quake-hit Trkiye, the military alliance said on Saturday.

'Japan's decision to deploy aid to Trkiye as part of a NATO-coordinated air-bridge is a historic first, and demonstrates again how Japan's cooperation with NATO helps to bolster international peace and security," NATO's spokeswoman Oana Lungescu said in a statement.?

The statement said that the first shipment landed in Trkiye on Friday and 'more planes carrying aid are due to arrive in Trkiye, as NATO Allies and partners continue to provide assistance following the devastating earthquakes in February.'

On Feb. 6, magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 quakes struck 11 provinces - Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Elazig, Hatay, Gaziantep, Kahramanmaras, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, and Sanliurfa - in southern Trkiye, claiming the lives of 49,589 people.

"This is the first international emergency relief operation conducted by the Japanese Self-Defense Forces in cooperation with NATO, and more Japanese flights are planned for the coming days," the statement said.?

'The earthquakes that struck Trkiye earlier this year were the deadliest natural disaster on Alliance territory since NATO's foundation,' it said.

Source: Anadolu Agency

The death toll from powerful earthquakes that struck southern Trkiye last month has risen to 49,589, the country's vice president said on Saturday.

Speaking at a news conference, Fuat Oktay said that 6,807 foreign nationals were also among the dead.

Oktay said that the Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) has sent 31 billion liras ($1.6 billion) to provinces affected by the earthquakes, while 22.3 billion liras ($1.1 billion) have been sent by public institutions and organizations.

On Feb. 6, the magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 quakes struck 11 provinces - Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Elazig, Hatay, Gaziantep, Kahramanmaras, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, and Sanliurfa.

More than 13.5 million people in Trkiye have been affected by the devastating quakes, as well as many others in northern Syria.

Source: Anadolu Agency

As the wave of solidarity and grief continues to resonate all over the world after last month's powerful earthquakes in southern Trkiye, the Turkish diaspora in Denmark has been on the forefront to help their compatriots in need.

One place where aid has been collected is the Tyrkisk Kulturcenter Brabrand Ulu Camii, a mosque managed and run by local Turkish community members settled in the Denmark's city of Aarhus.

The mosque administration, with the support of the Turkish diaspora and local Danish community, raised for over 1 million Danish krones (over $143,200) in two well-attended relief fundraisers.

"This natural tragedy pains every single person who heard about it. We may live miles away from the earthquake victims and survivors, but they are always in our hearts and prayers," said Davut Ataman, a representative of the mosque who looks after media affairs.

"We could not just continue our life as if nothing happened."

On the appeal of the mosque's administrators, local peopls, including those of non-Turkish background, continue to come in to give donations.

Ataman said there had been no major challenges in getting donations for the two back-to-back fundraisers as the idea had received enthusiastic support from community members.

"I was making announcements on Facebook and Instagram about the fund drive under the name 'Hand-in-hand for earthquake victims'," he said.

"Within a week, we managed to raise 1 million Danish Kroner, Besides that, 2,500 blankets were also collected."

Women in the Turkish-Danish community were especially helpful in the fundraising effort triggering a massive response to the appeal for donations, Ataman said.

Esma Ataman, head of women's affairs in the mosque administration, who has been living in Denmark for the last 38 years, said the community took action as soon as they heard of the devastating earthquakes on Feb. 6.

"We were nine people in the mosque. We quickly had a meeting to discuss what could be done and how we could best help people in Trkiye. It started small. Each Wednesday, we sold homemade breakfast food in the mosque for donations. Then we branched it out further with a grand fundraiser and social media appeals," she said.

Esma said that under the motto "One heart, one nation," the volunteers sold Turkish street food to raise money.

"We were able to reach our desired donation goal."

But, while the event was planned by mid-career professionals, it were the young Turkish-Danish student volunteers who were doing the donation drives, setting up food stalls and mobilizing the community.

'Surely, they did the hard part," Esma chuckled. "Our Turkish children may not live in Trkiye but they are deeply connected with their homeland and their people. Along with us, they also feel the pain. They also want to play their part in comforting the people in need. I can gladly say that they have the Turkish spirit."

Azra Shahin, a student who was part of the volunteering team, said that helping the community in this time of need gave her a sense of identity and empathy. She was at the forefront in setting up food stalls and helping guests at the fund raiser.

"Making a difference in the life of people through our efforts is special. Through these efforts, I just want to show the Turkish people in distress that they are not forgotten, and in our humble capacity, we'll try to make our utmost efforts," she said.

Davut Ataman believes that community leaders are planning more relief efforts in the coming days. He expects huge donations in the month of Ramadan for earthquake victims and said the mosque and community would go the extra mile to help and support the people in need.

"Our message to our people back in Trkiye is simple. We are with you, in this time of crisis."

Source: Anadolu Agency

France on Saturday banned protests on a Paris square opposite parliament as unrest continued over the government imposing a pensions reform without a parliamentary vote.

Macron's move sparked fierce criticism, including from opposition lawmakers who have filed two motions of no-confidence against the government to be debated in parliament on Monday afternoon, according to France 24.

Police banned protests at the capital's Place de la Concorde and its surroundings after two days of unrest.

According to the French BFMTV channel, at least 61 protesters have been arrested by police on Friday.

Meanwhile, Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes and Rhone authorities in Lyon also banned demonstrations from 12:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. local time after clashes on Friday.

A total of 36 people were arrested in Lyon on Friday.

After the pension reform bill was passed by the Senate on Thursday, the final version of the draft bill was supposed to be taken up for parliamentary approval.

However, after consultations with President Emmanuel Macron, ministers, and other political officials, Prime minister Elisabeth Borne on Thursday invoked Article 49.3, which allows the prime minister to bypass parliament.

Borne then headed to the parliament to give a speech and invoked Article 49.3, which angered opposition members who previously said they would submit a censure motion in case such a step was taken.

Source: Anadolu Agency

A strong earthquake struck Ecuador on Saturday, killing at least four people, according to the country's Risk Management Secretariat.

The 6.8 magnitude quake, which was also felt in Peru, hit near the town of Balao in the Azuay province at around 12:12 p.m. local time (1712GMT), according to the US Geological Survey (USGS).

The earthquake occurred about 65 kilometers (40 miles) below the surface.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said there is no threat of a tsunami.

In a Twitter post, President Guillermo Lasso urged residents to remain calm.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh on Saturday accused Israel of seeking to 'erase' the 1967 borders.

'The Israeli government seeks to reoccupy the West Bank, erase the 1967 borders and settle the conflict in favor of the occupation,' Shtayyeh told a meeting in the West Bank city of Ramallah.

US-sponsored peace talks between the Palestinians and Israel collapsed in 2014 over Israel's refusal to halt settlement building and release Palestinians imprisoned before the 1993 Oslo Accords.

Israel occupied the whole of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, following the 1967 war.

The Palestinians want the West Bank - along with the Gaza Strip - for the establishment of a future Palestinian state.

International law views both the West Bank and East Jerusalem as occupied territories and considers all Israeli settlement-building activity there as illegal.

Israel "is extensively carrying out assassinations and arrests and pursuing a systematic destruction of the possibility of establishing a Palestinian state,' Shtayyeh said.

Tension has escalated across the occupied West Bank in recent weeks amid repeated Israeli military raids into Palestinian towns.

According to Palestinian figures, more than 80 Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire since the beginning of this year. Fourteen Israelis were also killed in separate attacks during the same period.

* Ikram Imane Kouachi contributed to this report

Source: Anadolu Agency

The US on Saturday welcomed the Turkish foreign minister's visit to Egypt - the first such visit in over a decade.

Mevlut Cavusoglu is the first Turkish foreign minister to visit Egypt after 11 years upon the invitation of his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry.

"We welcome today's visit to Cairo by Turkey's FM @mevlutcavusoglu for meetings @MFAEgypt with FM Shoukrey, the first such visit in over a decade. An important step towards a more stable and prosperous region," National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said on Twitter.

Diplomatic relations between Trkiye and Egypt are maintained at the level of charges d'affaires on both sides since Egypt's 2013 military coup which overthrew the late President Mohammed Morsi.

Source: Anadolu Agency