Day: May 18, 2023

The UN children's agency, UNICEF, warned of a "children's crisis" in Afghanistan on Thursday with nearly 16 million children going to bed hungry. "They don't have clean water to quench their thirst or so blankets in which to sleep," Fran Equiza, UNICEF Afghanistan representative, told reporters. The Taliban's return to power in Afghanistan on Aug. 15, 2021, followed by the disruption of international financial assistance, has left the worn-torn country in economic, humanitarian and human rights crises. Some 2.3 million children are expected to face acute malnutrition in 2023, according to UNICEF. Equiza said that children were laboring at home, on the streets, in fields, mines and shops with approximately 1.6 million trapped in child labor in Afghanistan. "Children as young as six are in dangerous conditions to help their parents put a little food on the table," he said. "Too many live in fear of violence, or early marriage. Too many are burdened by the weight of a dual responsibility," he said. "Too many people have forgotten that Afghanistan is a children's crisis." He urged the international community to help alleviate the suffering of children.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Tens of thousands of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar's Rakhine state and locals in Bangladesh's coastal areas, severely affected by Sunday's devastating Cyclone Mocha, are seeking immediate humanitarian aid, according to victims and officials. 'At least 1,000 houses have been damaged by the strong cyclone on this island (Bangladesh's St. Martin's Island) and we are acutely suffering now from the accommodation crisis,' Absar Shawon, a resident of the island, told Anadolu over the phone on Thursday. St. Martin's Island is the only coral island of the South Asian delta nation of 170 million people and it is the most attractive tourist spot in Bangladesh located in the country's southeastern Bay of Bengal. Shawon added that after the ghostly cyclone swept over the island, the government and some NGOs have served dry food and mineral water. 'But we immediately need materials for rebuilding our houses. Just now, when I am talking to you, there is heavy rain here and a nor'wester storm (a seasonal storm, locally called Kalboishakhi Jhar) is going on,' he said. Citing official sources, he added that they had come to know about the government's plan to immediately rebuild their damaged houses on the island, home to nearly 10,000 people. Meanwhile, speaking to Anadolu, additional refugee relief and repatriation commissioner in Bangladesh, Shamsud Douza, said most of the damaged tents of Rohingya people in the country have been rebuilt. Currently, over 1.2 million persecuted Rohingya Muslims live in 33 congested camps in Bangladesh's southeastern border district of Cox's Bazar and most of whom fled a brutal military crackdown in Myanmar's Rakhine state in August 2017. 'Almost all of their damaged houses have been fixed and other assistance for the cyclone victims of the Rohingya is continuing,' Douza said. Dire condition in Rakhine Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya living in Myanmar's Rakhine state have still been suffering from a serious humanitarian crisis since the super cyclone Mocha hit the region most devastatingly. Preferring anonymity, a Rohingya from Sittwe, the capital of the Rakhine state, shared some photos and videos showing damaged houses in Rakhine with many dead bodies of cattle lying on the riverside. More than 400 Rohingya Muslims have been reportedly killed in Rakhine state due to the impacts of the cyclone while dozens are still missing. Human Rights Watch in a statement on Thursday accused the military junta of Myanmar of failing to address the crisis. 'Myanmar authorities have held about 140,000 Rohingya arbitrarily and indefinitely in camps for more than 10 years and the camps, which have been in constant disrepair due to Myanmar authorities' restrictions, were severely damaged by Cyclone Mocha on May 14,' said the statement. It added that about 600,000 Rohingya still remaining in Rakhine state, are confined to squalid camps and villages that leave them exceptionally vulnerable to extreme weather events such as Cyclone Mocha. '(Those Rohingya people are) compounded by the (Myanmar) junta's severe restrictions on humanitarian aid,' the statement added. Assistance from international communities Australian Foreign Minister and Senator Penny Wong in a tweet on Thursday said her country would mobilize support for the cyclone victims in both Bangladesh and Myanmar. 'Australia will provide an initial $1 million through the @UN and NGO partners to support those affected by Cyclone Mocha in Myanmar and in Bangladesh,' Wong tweeted. She added that Australia was also working with partners to reprioritize existing funding for immediate support. The World Food Program (WFP) in a report issued on Tuesday said: 'In Myanmar, WFP is mobilizing food and cash assistance for at least 800,000 people affected by the cyclone. Figures could still increase following the assessments.' Regarding Bangladesh, the global food provider added that 28,000 Bangladeshis in the Teknaf area were provided with cash before the cyclone struck, and 6,000 Rohingya refugees with fortified biscuits and hot meals immediately after the cyclone hit the region. India sends aid Meanwhile, India has launched "Operation Karuna (Compassion)" to help cyclone-affected people in Myanmar. Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar said three Indian navy ships carrying relief material have reached Myanmar's Yangon city on Thursday. A fourth ship will reach on Friday, he added. "The ships are carrying emergency food items, tents, essential medicines, water pumps, portable generators, clothes, sanitary and hygiene items, etc.," Jaishankar said, adding: "India continues to be the first responder in the region."

Source: Anadolu Agency

Five terror suspects, who were trying to illegally flee abroad, were nabbed in northwestern Trkiye, security sources said on Thursday. They included three suspected members of the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) and two of the PKK terror group, said the sources on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media. The suspects were nabbed at a restricted military zone in the Edirne province, which borders Greece. FETO orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, in Trkiye, in which 251 people were killed and 2,734 injured. Ankara accuses FETO of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary. In its almost 40-year terror campaign against Trkiye, the PKK - listed as a terrorist organization by Trkiye, the US, and EU - has been responsible for the deaths of over 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants.

Source: Anadolu Agency

The top diplomats of Iran and Afghanistan on Thursday discussed over the phone the long-running water dispute, according to the Afghan Foreign Ministry. During the conversation between the Taliban administration's acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi and his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amirabdollahian discussed various issues, the ministry said. "During this phone call, the foreign ministers of the two countries discussed and exchanged views on issues of interest between the two countries and on the expansion of cooperation in various fields, especially trade, electric energy, railways," Hafiz Zia Ahmad, the deputy spokesman of the Afghan Foreign Ministry, tweeted. Ahmad added that Muttaqi described the problems of water scarcity and a decrease in rainfall in the western regions of the country, stressing his country's official position under the existing bilateral agreement. Meanwhile, the Iranian Foreign Ministry said Amirabdollahian urged his Afghan counterpart to release the water and facilitate a visit by a joint technical team to the Kajaki Dam in southern Afghanistan. "He emphasized the strict and complete implementation of the clauses envisioned in the 1351 (1973) treaty regarding Helmand, including the possibility of a joint technical committee between the 2 countries visiting the water situation on the Afghan side and called it very important for Iran," the Iranian Foreign Ministry tweeted. The latest development came after Iranian lawmakers called on the government of President Ebrahim Raisi to take up the matter with the Taliban administration in Kabul. The water dispute between the two countries is centered around the Hirmand River, also known as the Helmand River, which originates in the Hindu Kush Mountains near Kabul and streams into Iran's Hamoun wetlands in the Sistan-Baluchestan province after flowing 700 miles. Iran has over the years accused Afghanistan of restricting the flow of water from the river by constructing dams on it, a charge that Afghan authorities have denied. According to a 1973 water-sharing pact between Tehran and Kabul, Afghanistan was required to allow an average of 820 million cubic meters of water per annum to Iran. However, Iranian authorities said only 27 million cubic meters of water reached Iran last year compared to the 820 million cubic meters Iran is entitled to under the water-sharing treaty.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Oil prices fell on Thursday as economic data raised concerns about oil demand in the world's largest oil consumer, the US. International benchmark Brent crude traded at $76.69 per barrel at 09.54 a.m. local time (0654 GMT), a 0.35% decrease from the closing price of $76.96 a barrel in the previous trading session. The American benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) traded at the same time at $72.56 per barrel, down 0.37% from the previous session's close of $72.83 per barrel. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) data released late Wednesday showed a jump of 5 million barrels in crude oil inventories, raising concerns about demand and driving down prices. Talks on raising the US debt ceiling have also put pressure on prices. Negotiations between US President Joe Biden and Republican leaders continue over raising the debt ceiling. Biden said Wednesday that he is "confident" his team and congressional leaders will strike a deal to ensure the country does not default on its national debt. The US is facing a June 1 deadline to raise the debt ceiling-the amount the country is legally allowed to borrow-or face a default that would send shockwaves through the global economy. If no deal is agreed upon, the US could default on its $31 trillion debt on June 1, sparking fears of a recession with severe implications worldwide. Biden intends to hold a news conference on the negotiations on Sunday.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Deutsche Bank has agreed to pay $75 million to victims of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein to settle a federal lawsuit, US media reported Wednesday. The lawsuit alleges that Deutsche Bank knew about Epstein's network of underage girls and enabled his sex trafficking scheme. The German bank managed Epstein's money until June 2019 and paid a $150 million fine to New York regulators in 2020 for compliance failures. US bank JP Morgan Chase is also accused of similar allegations. Financier Epstein killed himself in a New York City jail cell in 2019 while awaiting his sex trafficking trial.

Source: Anadolu Agency

China's Eurasian affairs envoy Li Hui held a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Beijing said on Thursday. "The two sides exchanged views on the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis, and China-Ukraine relations," a statement by the Chinese Foreign Ministry said. Li, who was picked by Chinese President Xi Jinping last month as the special envoy on Ukraine, paid a two-day visit to Kyiv that ended Wednesday. The statement said Li also met with other senior Ukrainian officials, including Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba. An earlier statement by the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry on Wednesday said Kuleba and Li discussed topical issues between Kyiv and Beijing, both at the bilateral level and within the framework of international organizations. The statement said Kuleba spoke to Li about "the principles of restoring a stable and just peace based on respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine." "He emphasized that Ukraine does not accept any proposals that would involve the loss of its territories or the freezing of the conflict," the statement further said. Ukraine has emphasized Russia's withdrawal from its territories as a precondition for peace talks with Moscow. Kuleba also underlined the importance of Chinese involvement in implementing a peace plan proposed by Zelenskyy during a recent G-20 summit in Indonesia. China's role in guaranteeing nuclear safety, as well as in other important international efforts including a Black Sea grain deal that allows Ukrainian food exports to other countries, was also on the agenda, the statement said. "The parties separately discussed the long-term prospects for the development of bilateral relations between Ukraine and China and agreed to increase dialogue on key issues of the bilateral and international agenda," it added. Li also held talks with officials from Ukrainian ministries of infrastructure, energy, and defense. Referring to China's 'position on the political solution to the Ukrainian crisis,' Li said: 'There is no panacea to resolve the crisis.' 'All parties need to start from themselves, accumulate mutual trust, and create conditions for ending the war and peace talks,' Li told Ukrainian officials, the statement said. 'China is willing to promote the international community to form the greatest common denominator for resolving the Ukrainian crisis, and make its own efforts to stop the war, to cease fire, and restore peace as soon as possible,' Li added. The Ukrainian side 'welcomed China to play an active role in ending the war and restoring peace,' the statement also noted. It said Kyiv assured the Chinese envoy of its adherence to the one-China principle. The appointment of Li as the special envoy on Ukraine came after Xi held his first phone call with Zelenskyy last month since the Moscow-Kyiv war began in February 2022. Besides Ukraine, Li will visit Poland, France, Germany, and Russia toward finding a solution to the Ukraine crisis.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Trkiye's communications director on Thursday criticized the West's silence over detention of two Turkish journalists in Germany over their story against the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), the group behind the 2016 defeated coup in Trkiye. In a Twitter post, Fahrettin Altun said: "Blind leading the blind! Both the shameless operation targeting Turkish journalists legally operating in Germany and those keeping silent have done something completely unacceptable." Earlier, TRT World's Washington correspondent asked US State Department's deputy spokesman Vedant Patel to comment on the arrest of Turkish journalists in Germany. Patel declined to comment and said: 'I don't know the specifics of this case.' Altun said that "those daring to lecture Trkiye, where hundreds of foreign reporters work freely, at every turn have revealed the true face of their so-called values today." "It is perfectly clear that this operation, intended to intimidate Turkish journalists, was planned with the assumption that certain politicians, who promised to make Trkiye toe the Western line in their meeting with foreign ambassadors, could actually win on May 14," he added. 'Our message is clear: One way or another, you will come to terms with the fact that Trkiye will continue to be a great state that defends its citizens and hold accountable anyone daring to hurt them under the strong leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan,' Altun said. Ismail Erel and Cemil Albay, senior journalists working for Turkish daily Sabah, were arrested in the early hours on Wednesday, after dozens of police personnel raided their homes in German city of Frankfurt. Their phones, laptops and electronic storage devices were also seized by the police. They were released several hours after their arrest.

Source: Anadolu Agency

We will continue to increase our capabilities towards assisting any humanitarian operation or contingency in the region, National Guard Chief Lt. General Demokritos Zervakis said Thursday, during a drill at Joint Rescue Coordination Center in Larnaka.

Lt. General Zervakis said that to this end, exercise Argonaut will remain the centre of their efforts, "as an outstanding opportunity to enhance the corporation with all neighbouring and friendly countries, always in the pursuit of peace and stability in this area of the world".

He said that this year’s exercise is divided into 3 phases and that yesterday, during the search and rescue phase, the participants dealt with a mass rescue operation due to an aircraft accident with Larnaka Airport and in parallel a Maritime accident within the Larnaka Search and Rescue region.

He explained that National plan Tefkros was activated, under the coordination of the joint rescue and coordination centre, adding that in order to rescue all people in distress, national forces, aeronautical assets and personnel from 8 other countries were involved.

The 2nd phase of Non-Combatant Evacuation Operation was in process in “Zenon Coordination Centre” yesterday the National Guard Chief said. More than 200 diplomats and military were involved, from 17 countries in addition to the UN and the EU, he said.

Zervakis also said that currently during the 3rd phase, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, coordinates the implementation of the National plan “ESTIA” where 16 competent services of the Republic, coordinate to assist and support 18 embassies and two international organisations for the mass reception of their citizens.

"This exercise demonstrated clearly that the Republic of Cyprus plays a constructive regional role and functions is a reliable interlocutor, acting as an interconnecting bridge and a peace facilitator between North Africa, the Near and Middle East and the European Union," he said.

Crisis in Sudan an opportunity to cooperate closely, test our readiness to react, said Ambassador Mavromatis

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Ambassador Omiros Mavromatis, who delivered Minister of Foreign Affairs' speech, said that the crisis in Sudan has given us the opportunity to cooperate closely, test our preparedness and readiness to react.

It also gave us the opportunity to see in practice how we can best use our resources and implement our plan in order to offer effective evacuation not only to the UK and Cypriots, eligible persons but also to individuals from another 27 partner countries such as the USA, Australia, Ireland, Canada and Switzerland.

He said that the MFA assumed, this year the organization of the Distinguished Visitor Day during which visitors will have the opportunity to see how the Special National Plan ESTIA is implemented and how the authorities of the Republic of Cyprus, in cooperation with respective embassies and relevant stakeholders act and react to possible scenarios dealing with issues pertaining to solving consular issues that may arise during an evacuation operation, terrorism, illegal drug trafficking, human trafficking, medical emergencies, etc.

Ambassador Mavromatis added that during ESTIA's activation 31 flights were carried out, 29 by the British and 2 by Australians which carried 2,611 individuals out of Sudan, 14 of which were of Cypriot descent / connection.

As regards the Argonaut drill he said that the next 3 days including today, the NEO CG tabletop Exercise was executed with the addition of a lessons learnt session stemming from the recent evacuation of non combatant individuals from Sudan.

He expressed his certainty that this session was extremely useful since it provided all participating nations with valuable lessons learnt that will be incorporated in their operational planning.

Ambassador Mavromatis noted that this is also the case for the Special National Plan ESTIA, in which all interested parties and stakeholders – Ministries and Agencies of the Republic of Cyprus will proceed with the necessary changes to their planning in order to evolve and synchronize it with the current needs.

He paid special tribute to the Ministry of Defence and all other Ministries and Agencies of the Republic of Cyprus, as well as to the Cypriot Red Cross, not only for their participation in the Argonaut 2023 Exercise, but also for their valuable assistance and cooperation during the actual activation of the ESTIA Special National Plan for the evacuation from Sudan.

He also thank the Chief of the National Guard for the close cooperation and his commitment to upgrade the National Guard.

Source: Cyprus News Agency