Author: Akpulat Erentoz

The Vatican has blocked discussions over women’s rights at the UN climate summit following a row over gay and transgender issues, sources have told BBC News. Pope Francis’ representatives have aligned with Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iran, and Egypt to obstruct a deal which would have provided more support, including financial help, for women at the forefront of climate change, Colombia’s environment minister told the BBC. Charities including ActionAid said it is crucial a deal is reached as the UN estimates women and girls currently make up 80% of those displaced by climate change. A Vatican spokesperson said the Holy See…

U.S. President Joe Biden said on Tuesday that his country will continue to work closely with partners in the Middle East, including Lebanon, to prevent the ongoing Gaza conflict from expanding. Biden made the pledge in a letter sent to Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati on the occasion of Lebanon’s 80th Independence Day, which falls on Nov. 22. The U.S. president also said, “I look forward to working with you in the coming year to shape a safer, more prosperous, and more integrated future for the peoples of the region.” He added that the long-term U.S.-Lebanon relations are “of great…

The presidents of Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan met on October 13 for talks on the demarcation and delimitation of their shared border amid indications that some differences have been resolved. The offices of the leaders issued similarly worded statements on the encounter in Bishkek, noting in both cases that unspecified agreements are in the works. A breakthrough in the border delimitation would be eagerly welcome by communities in the areas of north Tajikistan and south Kyrgyzstan, where flareups of fighting over recent years have left many dozens dead and caused significant destruction. A press release on the October 13 talks from Tajik President…

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s philanthropic venture, the Archewell Foundation, has reported a significant drop in donations, amounting to a staggering $11 million decrease in funding. This alarming decrease in financial support comes as a shock to many, given the high-profile nature of the couple and their previous success in raising funds for various charitable initiatives. Sources close to the foundation attribute the decline to a variety of factors, including changing economic conditions and shifting donor priorities. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on the philanthropic landscape, with many individuals and organizations reevaluating their giving strategies. Despite this…

The Palestinian Presidency warned on Monday that Israel’s ongoing withholding of Palestinian tax revenues bears serious repercussions on government services. The presidency said in a statement published by the official Palestinian news agency (WAFA) that Israel’s continuous hold on Palestinian tax revenues is “piracy and collective punishment against the entire Palestinian people.” “This action has grave implications on the services provided by the Palestinian government to all sectors, specifically the health sector, which has experienced a drastic decline, along with education and all aspects of life,” said the statement. The Palestinian government “will never cease transferring the rightful funds to…

A top Iranian military commander said on Monday Iran will soon expel U.S. aircraft carriers from the region as “they have come to incite sedition,” according to the official news agency IRNA. At a national conference in the capital Tehran, Commander of the Iranian Navy Shahram Irani slammed transregional states’ military presence, including the recent deployment of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower aircraft carrier in the region. “Everybody said the (U.S.) aircraft carrier has come to the region to change the equations. But they have come to incite sedition and meet their needs. We will soon expel them from the…

The Israeli government’s 12-month budget deficit sharply rose to 62.3 billion shekels (about 16.8 billion U.S. dollars), or 3.4 percent of its GDP, the state’s Finance Ministry said on Sunday. The deficit figure, for the period between December 2022 and November 2023, is 31.99 percent higher than the deficit reported a month ago, which referred to the November 2022-October 2023 period. For a year-over-year comparison, the Israeli budget registered a surplus of 7.5 billion shekels between December 2021 and November 2022. The ministry noted that the deficit surge was due to an abnormal increase in expenditures alongside a decrease in…

Israeli factories have been recovering from a large-scale shutdown witnessed at the beginning of the country’s conflict with Hamas, according to an industry survey published Wednesday. The Manufacturers Association of Israel (MAI) surveyed 106 to 127 factories ranging from food, textile, to electronics manufacturers over a span of six weeks since the conflict began on Oct. 7. Among the surveyed factories, 29 percent were closed in the first working week starting Oct. 8, but the shutdown rate gradually decreased to six percent in the fourth week and just one percent in the sixth working week of Nov. 12-16, according to…

An Israeli fighter jet intercepted a cruise missile launched towards the Red Sea resort city of Eilat on Wednesday, the Israeli army said. “An Israeli Air Force fighter jet successfully intercepted a cruise missile that was launched toward Israel,” read the Israeli army’s statement. The statement added that “no infiltration into Israeli territory was identified.” Israel’s southernmost city Eilat has been targeted multiple times by Houthi forces in Yemen since the start of the conflict between Israel and Hamas on Oct. 7.  source

Lebanon saw an increasing popularity of Chinese language learning among students this academic year starting in October, said the director of the country’s Confucius Institute. Nisrine Abdel Nour Lattouf told Xinhua that the Confucius Institute at Saint Joseph University of Beirut has been offering Chinese language courses to 325 students at five other schools across the country, more than doubling the 120 students enrolled in the previous academic year ending June 2023. Lattouf expected the number to increase remarkably in the future since there has been a growing demand from Lebanese schools, which she said is due to the job…