Day: March 9, 2024

ISTANBUL: Hamas urged "a neutral international commission of inquiry" on Friday to look into allegations about its fighters committing sexual violations during the group's cross-border attack on Israeli locations around the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7. The Palestinian resistance group rejected accusations by a UN Special envoy that its fighters sexually assaulted Israeli women during the cross-border attack. Pramila Patten, the UN Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, said in a report Monday that there are 'reasonable grounds to believe' sexual violence, including rape and gang rape, occurred during the Hamas attack. Basem Naim, a member of the group's political bureau in Gaza, reiterated Hamas' rejection of Patten's report and stressed that the report came after Israel failed to prove any such allegations. The group also affirmed its willingness to fully cooperate with the inquiry commission and to respect its outcomes. Hamas' statement came as the UN Security Council is set to convene Monday to discuss Patten's report, according to the Times of Israel news website. UN experts expressed alarm last month about 'credible allegations' of egregious human rights violations that Palestinian women and girls continue to face in Gaza and the West Bank. Israel has launched a retaliatory offensive on Gaza since a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7. The offensive has killed more than 30,800 victims and injured nearly 73,000 amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities. Israel has also imposed a crippling blockade on the Palestinian enclave, leaving its population, particularly residents of northern Gaza, on the verge of starvation. About 85% of Gazans have been displaced by the Israeli onslaught amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN. Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which in an interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and tak e measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza. Source: Anadolu Agency

ANKARA: Three people, including two National Guard members and a US Border Patrol agent, were killed in a National Guard helicopter crash near the US-Mexico border in Texas on Friday. "A UH-72 Lakota helicopter assigned to the federal Southwest border support mission crashed at approximately 2:50 p.m. MST today while conducting aviation operations near Rio Grande City, Texas," the Joint Task Force North said in a statement. Another soldier on board sustained injuries, with the cause of the incident currently under investigation, said the military unit that supports federal law enforcement agencies along the US border. "The names of the deceased will not be released until the next of kin have been notified," it added. Source: Anadolu Agency

ANKARA: At least 82 Palestinians were killed and 122 others injured in the last 24 hours as Israel continues its onslaught on the besieged Gaza Strip, the territory's Health Ministry said on Saturday. 'The Israeli occupation committed 10 massacres against families in the Gaza Strip, leaving 82 martyrs and 122 injured during the past 24 hours,' the ministry said in a statement. 'Many people are still trapped under rubble and on the roads as rescuers are unable to reach them,' the statement said. '72% of victims of the Israeli aggression on Gaza are children and women,' it added. Flouting the provisional ruling of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), Israel continues its onslaught on the Gaza Strip where at least 30,960 Palestinians have been killed, mostly women and children, and 72,524 injured since Oct. 7, according to Palestinian health authorities. Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack by Hamas, which Tel Aviv says killed nearly 1,200 people. The Israeli war on Gaza has p ushed 85% of the territory's population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water, and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN. Israel is accused of genocide at the ICJ. 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. Hostilities have continued unabated, however, and aid deliveries remain woefully insufficient to address the humanitarian catastrophe. Source: Anadolu Agency

ANKARA: South Korean authorities are expected to begin suspending the medical licenses of trainee doctors from next week, as the doctors' protest enters its 19th day. The government has been sending notices to protesting doctors since Tuesday, warning them that their medical licenses will be suspended if they do not return to work, Seoul-based Yonhap News agency reported. For the past three weeks, approximately 13,000 medical interns and residents have been absent from work. The doctors' protests have forced hospitals to postpone surgeries and emergency medical treatment, while the South Korean military has opened its health facilities to civilians, the news agency said. Doctors are protesting the government's plans to increase the number of medical seats to address the shortages of doctors, particularly in rural areas and critical medical fields such as high-risk surgery, paediatrics, obstetrics, and emergency medicine. Doctors, on the other hand, argue that the government should focus on increasing com pensation to encourage more physicians to practice in such unpopular areas. South Korea has some 13,000 trainee doctors. The government wants to add 2,000 more seats to the 3,058 students who enrol each year. To overcome the shortage, the government expanded the authorization for nurses to work in major hospital emergency rooms on Friday. Last month, the Health Ministry launched a pilot program, to increase the medical roles of nurses to fill the vacuum in medical service, nurses were allowed to perform more medical roles under legal protection. Source: Anadolu Agency

The UN team led by Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza, Sigrid Kaag is coordinating in cooperation with the partners in Cyprus the operation of the maritime corridor for the transfer of humanitarian aid to Gaza, UN Secretary General's Spokesperson, Stefan Dujarric said on Friday. Dujarric, who was replying to questions during the press briefing at UN headquarters in New York, said that Kaag "had been in close contact with Cyprus and she's been involved in discussions on the initiative as an additional access route to Gaza, in line with her mandate." He added that Kaag "has a technical team in Cyprus to work with the partners who are organising this." Obviously, he noted, within the framework of the mechanisms under Resolution 2720, Kaag "has been in close contact with the government of Cyprus as they are leading the maritime corridor." He added that she has been involved "in discussions on the initiative as an additional access route to Gaza, in line with her mandate." According to Dujarric "the operational details of the specific maritime shipments or the building of the dock or of the port are being managed by the partners to the initiative." "Everything is fast moving, he said, adding that "Kaag and her team had been in touch with the partners." The UN SG's spokesperson also said that "Jamie McGoldrick had also been in Cyprus. I think I mentioned Tor had been there, as well. But right now, Kaag has a team in Cyprus. We're working through all the details." "As more becomes available, we will share that with you, but I think it's also important to speak to those who are in the lead," he added. The UN coordinator has a mandate from the Security Council to help, strengthen and monitor the arrival of humanitarian aid that has given life to the thousands of Palestinians in need. Source: Cyprus News Agency

ISTANBUL: The US denied involvement on Saturday in the killing of five Palestinians who were waiting for much-needed humanitarian aid when several parachutes dropped from a plane failed to open northwest of Gaza City on Friday. 'We are aware of reports of civilians killed as a result of humanitarian airdrops,' US Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a statement. 'Contrary to some reports, this was not the result of U.S. airdrops,' it added. CENTCOM extended 'sympathies to the families of those who were killed.' The Palestinian Civil Defense Service announced on Friday that five people were killed and several others were injured by airdropped aid boxes in Gaza City after several parachutes failed to open properly. For more than a week, Arab countries, including Egypt, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Jordan, Qatar, Sultanate of Oman, and Bahrain, have been conducting joint operations to drop food aid on the Gaza Strip, in addition to similar operations carried out by the US. Israel has launched a retaliatory off ensive on Gaza since a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7. The offensive has killed more than 30,800 victims and injured nearly 73,000 others amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities. Israel has also imposed a crippling blockade on the Palestinian enclave, leaving its population, particularly residents of northern Gaza, on the verge of starvation. About 85% of Gazans have been displaced by the Israeli onslaught amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN. Israel is 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

CYPRUS DEPARTMENT OF METEOROLOGY FORECAST FOR THE SEA AREA OF CYPRUS (A) FOR THE PERIOD FROM 0600 09/03/2024 UNTIL 0600 10/03/2024 Area covered is 8 kilometers seawards. Winds are in BEAUFORT scale. Times are local times. Atmospheric pressure at the time of issue: 1015hPa (hectopascal) Weak low pressure is affecting the area. Locally increased cloud coverage will be present with isolated rain showers. Visibility: Good, at times moderate Sea surface temperature: 19°C Warnings: NIL Source: Cyprus News Agency ISTANBUL: US and coalition forces on Saturday destroyed 'at least' 28 Houthi drones in the area of the Red Sea, said the US military's Central Command, its division responsible for the Middle East. Between 4 and 8.20 a.m. local time (0100-520GMT), 'U.S. and Coalition forces downed a total of at least 28 uncrewed aerial vehicles,' said CENTCOM on X. It added that the attack caused no damage to US or coalition navy vessels, and there were no reports from commercial ships indicating any harm. Yemen's Houthis have been targeting cargo ships in the Red Sea owned or operated by Israeli companies or transporting goods to and from Israel in solidarity with the Gaza Strip, which has been under an Israeli onslaught since Oct. 7. The Red Sea is one of the world's most frequently used sea routes for oil and fuel shipments. Last December, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced the creation of a multinational mission, Operation Prosperity Guardian, to counter the Houthi attacks.??????? Source: Anadolu Agency

ANKARA: US military officials are investigating a large balloon and payload discovered by fishermen off the coast of Alaska last week, according to the Defense Department. "A US commercial fishing vessel recovered portions of … what appears to be a large balloon and payload caught in their nets while fishing off the coast of Alaska," according to a report published by USA Today, citing Sue Gough, a spokesperson for the Defense Department. Upon the fishermen's report, the Coast Guard was notified, and they instructed the vessel to keep the material onboard until officials could collect it when the boat returned to port, according to Gough. The FBI, in a statement, confirmed its awareness of debris found off the coast of Alaska by a commercial fishing vessel and offered assistance in debris recovery. The investigation into the balloon and its payload is still ongoing, while the purpose of the balloon's presence off the coast of Alaska remains unknown. The discovery and subsequent takedown of a Chinese spy balloon drifting over the US last year caused a diplomatic rift with China. The incident attracted international attention, highlighting tensions surrounding espionage activities and territorial airspace violations. Source: Anadolu Agency

ISTANBUL: Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Saturday that he will propose recognition of a Palestinian state by 2027 to the lower half of Spain's parliament. "We will do it because of moral conviction, because it's a just cause, but also because it is the only way that two states - Israel and Palestine - can live together and co-exist in peace and security," he said on X. As Sanchez's mandate will end by 2027, he said he would push the Congress of Deputies to recognize a Palestinian state before that time. Since the current Gaza conflict began last Oct. 7, Spain has stood out among European countries as showing the strongest support for Palestine, with Sanchez saying last November that Madrid could unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state even if the EU disagrees. Source: Anadolu Agency