The US on Monday announced sanctions on a Syrian military intelligence officer for his killings in the Syrian capital Damascus 10 years ago.
Amjad Yousef is accused of "coldly and methodically" murdering at least 41 unarmed civilians in Tadamon, a neighborhood in the city, on April 16, 2013.
The designation came days ahead of 12th year of conflict in Syria.
The State Department is "designating Amjad Yousef, a Warrant Officer in the Syrian Military Intelligence Directorate ... due to his involvement in gross violations of human rights, namely extrajudicial killings," said Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a statement.
"As a result of today's action, Yousef, as well as his wife, Anan Wasouf, and their immediate family members, are ineligible for entry into the United States," said Blinken.
Citing the killings, the top diplomat also urged nations against normalizing ties with the Bashar al-Assad regime "absent enduring progress towards a political resolution."
"The United States calls on the Assad regime to cease all violations and abuses of human rights, including but not limited to extrajudicial killings, arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance, and torture," he added.
Source: Anadolu Agency
zczc
Belgian media joins efforts for fundraiser to aid quake victim in Türkiye, Syria
Belgian broadcasters called on Monday to make donations for the victims of the powerful earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria last month.
Following the call of the 12-12 consortium assembling the seven biggest charity organizations, Belgian media outlets across the country urged their audience to contribute to the fundraising campaign for the people affected by the natural disaster.
Radios and TV channels dedicated spots to talk about the disastrous effects of the earthquakes, while newspapers and online outlets presented articles and advertisements for the campaign.
The radio stations also played all day the song “People help the people,” featuring 30 singers, including Turkish artist Hadise.
The timing of the media campaign is “symbolic” since the earthquakes happened exactly a month ago, the 12-12 consortium said in a press statement.
This is the first time that all the Belgian media outlets regardless of their linguistic differences joined their efforts for a charity campaign since the tsunami and earthquake in the Indian Ocean in 2004, Gilles van Mortel, the coordinator of the 12-12 consortium stressed.
Caritas International, Red Cross Belgium, Handicap International, Medecins du Monde, Oxfam Belgium, Plan International Belgium and UNICEF Belgium are members of the 12-12 consortium.
The charities raised over €8.27 million ($8.83 million) in the first two weeks after the earthquakes, according to their numbers.
More than 46,000 people were killed in Türkiye by magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 quakes that hit on Feb. 6, according to officials.
The strong tremors, which were centered in Kahramanmaras province, also hit 10 other provinces: Hatay, Gaziantep, Adiyaman, Malatya, Adana, Diyarbakir, Kilis, Osmaniye, Sanliurfa, and Elazig.
Some 13.5 million people have been affected in Türkiye by the massive quakes which struck in less than 10 hours.
They also rattled several neighboring countries and caused widespread destruction in northern Syria, where nearly 3,500 people were killed, according to combined figures given by both the regime and opposition.
Source: Anadolu Agency