Middle East

Turkey intensifies op. in northern Iraq after Ankara bombing

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Turkey said it unleashed air strikes on PKK targets in northern Iraq and detained suspects in Istanbul overnight, hours after the group said they orchestrated the first bomb attack in the capital Ankara in years on Sunday, Reuters reported.

Addressing the Parliament hours after the bombing attack, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan implied new “counterterrorism” operations beyond Turkey’s borders were imminent, according to Daily Sabah.

“We can come suddenly one night,” Erdogan said.

On Sunday morning, two attackers detonated a bomb near government buildings in Ankara, killing them both and wounding two police officers. 

After Turkey’s airstrikes, Iraqi President Abdul-Latif Rashid said in comments aired on Monday that Iraq rejected repeated Turkish air strikes or the presence of Turkish bases in its Kurdistan region and hoped to come to an agreement with Ankara to solve the problem.

Ankara has received widespread criticism from the Iraqi politicians and political groups for violating Iraqi sovereignty.

Turkey is said to have dozens of military bases in the Iraqi Kurdistan region.

MNA

Middle East

Erdogan: Turkey 'no longer expects anything from EU'

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has criticized Brussels for not honoring its long-time membership promise to Turkey, saying he “no longer expects anything from the European Union”.

Erdogan lambasted the EU for the many obstacles it had placed in front of Ankara during past decades to prevent the country from officially joining the European bloc.

“As Turkey, we have no expectations from the European Union, at whose door we have been kept waiting for 60 years. If they reverse their injustices, especially the visa imposition, which they use as a veiled sanction against us, they will correct their own mistakes. If they don’t, they completely lose the right to expect anything from us, politically, socially, economically and militarily,” he said. 

“We have kept all the promises we have made to the EU, but they have kept almost none of theirs,” Erdogan said, referring to a 2016 promise by the EU under a migrant deal to lift the need for Turkish citizens visiting EU countries to get visas.

Erdogan said EU leaders have changed over the years; however, there has been no change in the old “biased attitude of the EU towards Turkey, which is unfair.”

The Turkish leader said the behavior of the Europeans has been contrary to the internationally-accepted “principle of pacta sunt servanda” which requires all nations to honor their treaties and agreements.

For several decades Ankara and Brussels have been engaged in accession talks; however, progress in the talks has been essentially frozen due to political roadblocks by certain EU members.

Ankara sees the reasons hindering its EU accession as obstacles unrelated to its suitability for membership.

Erdogan told parliamentarians on Sunday that he would not “tolerate any new demands or conditions on the accession process.”

The Turkish leader’s EU remarks came after the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled against Ankara on Thursday for allegedly convicting a teacher for downloading an encrypted messaging app used by coupsters in an abortive putsch against the government in 2016.

Erdogan said the “decision of the ECHR was the straw that broke the camel’s back.”

Middle East

Iraqi president raps 'violations' after Turkish airstrikes in Kurdistan region

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Turkey has carried out an “air operation” in northern Iraq following a blast in the Turkish capital, with Iraqi President Abdul-Latif Rashid saying Baghdad rejects repeated airstrikes or the presence of Turkish bases in its Kurdistan region.

Turkey said on Sunday it carried out airstrikes in northern Iraq that destroyed 20 targets belonging to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) after the militant group said it orchestrated the first bomb attack in Ankara in years. 

Turkey regards the PKK as a terrorist group and regularly carries out airstrikes in northern Iraq. Turkey has also sent commandos and set up military bases on Iraqi territory to support its offensives.

“These violations are rejected by the Iraqi people, the (Kurdistan) region and all of Iraq’s inhabitants,” Rashid said in an interview with Saudi broadcaster al-Hadath, aired on Monday. 

Such strikes sometimes killed civilians, including people visiting the region who “become victims of Turkish bombing”, he added.

Rashid said Baghdad hoped to come to an agreement with Ankara to resolve the issue in a manner similar to a security agreement Baghdad has inked with Tehran to deal with anti-Iran separatist groups in the Kurdistan region. 

Turkey’s airstrikes in northern Iraq took place just hours after a bombing attack on the Turkish interior ministry in Ankara.

They targeted caves, depots and bunkers used as hideouts by the PKK in the Hakurk, Metina, Qandil and Gara regions, Turkish officials said.

Iraq’s foreign ministry condemned the “terrorist explosion” in Ankara that happened shortly before parliament was due to reconvene after a summer break.

The PKK has carried out numerous operations against the Turkish government, calling for a Kurdish state within Turkey where it is blamed for the deaths of over 40,000 people.

The group back-pedaled on its secessionist demands in the 1990s, calling instead on Ankara to give the people in Kurdish-dominated regions of Turkey more autonomy.

The conflict between the two sides flared up again after a two-year-old ceasefire ended in July 2015.

Middle East

Infanticide characteristic of Israeli regime: Iran FM

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Amir-Abdollahian made the remarks in a tweet on the occasion of the death anniversary of the 12-year-old boy Muhammad al-Durrah in his father’s arms in the Gaza Strip.

Mourning the loss, the minister said, “Infanticide is a characteristic of the Israeli regime”, noting that “since the beginning of 2023, 40 Palestinian children have been martyred by the apartheid, fake Zionist regime.”

Muhammad al-Durrah was killed by Israeli fire on September 30, 2000, the second day of the Second Intifada (uprising) against the Israeli regime.

A video showing Muhammad and his father, Jamal, sheltering by a concrete water barrel in a hail of bullets shortly before Muhammad’s death sparked anger across the world.

Over the past months, the Israeli regime has ramped up attacks on Palestinian towns and cities throughout the occupied territories. As a result of these attacks, dozens of Palestinians have lost their lives and many others have been arrested.

More than 200 Palestinians have been killed this year in the occupied Palestinian territories and Gaza. The majority of these fatalities have been recorded in the West Bank.

The United Nations said 2023 is the deadliest year for Palestinians in the West Bank since it began keeping track of fatalities almost two decades ago.

Previously, 2022 had been the deadliest year with 150 Palestinians killed, of whom 33 were minors, according to the UN.

The rising number of fatalities last year prompted UN experts to condemn the treatment of Palestinians, including attacks on their homes and destruction of their property.

MNA/PressTV

Middle East

Iranian FM: Infanticide characteristic of Israeli regime

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This photo shows Jamal al-Durrah trying to protect his son, Muhammad, from Israeli fire on September 30, 2000 in Gaza. (Photo by AFP)

Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian says the Israeli regime is notorious for killing Palestinian children as dozens have been killed so far this year.

Amir-Abdollahian made the remarks in a tweet on the occasion of the death anniversary of the 12-year-old boy Muhammad al-Durrah in his father’s arms in the Gaza Strip.

Mourning the loss, the minister said, “Infanticide is a characteristic of the Israeli regime”, noting that “since the beginning of 2023, 40 Palestinian children have been martyred by the apartheid, fake Zionist regime.”

Muhammad al-Durrah was killed by Israeli fire on September 30, 2000, the second day of the Second Intifada (uprising) against the Israeli regime.

A video showing Muhammad and his father, Jamal, sheltering by a concrete water barrel in a hail of bullets shortly before Muhammad’s death sparked anger across the world.

Over the past months, Israel has ramped up attacks on Palestinian towns and cities throughout the occupied territories. As a result of these attacks, dozens of Palestinians have lost their lives and many others have been arrested.

More than 200 Palestinians have been killed this year in the occupied Palestinian territories and Gaza. The majority of these fatalities have been recorded in the West Bank.

The United Nations said 2023 is the deadliest year for Palestinians in the West Bank since it began keeping track of fatalities almost two decades ago.

Previously, 2022 had been the deadliest year with 150 Palestinians killed, of whom 33 were minors, according to the UN.

The rising number of fatalities last year prompted UN experts to condemn the treatment of Palestinians, including attacks on their homes and destruction of their property.

Middle East

Ukraine may get enhanced Bayraktar drones from Turkey: CEO

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“With regard to Bayraktar Akinci, this matter is currently under consideration,” the businessman said.

“We have permits from our government for this, which demonstrates how close we are to implementation,” TASS quoted him as saying.

At the first International Defense Industries Forum in Kyiv on September 29, Bayraktar announced plans to complete the construction of a Bayraktar drone plant in Ukraine within the next 18 months. According to him, the company is investing a total of some $100 mn in Ukraine. Apart from building a plant, the Turkish manufacturing firm will spend the funds on a service center and its main office in Ukraine, he explained.

In August 2022, plans to build a Bayraktar drone plant in Ukraine were revealed. Ukrainian Ambassador to Turkey Vasily Bodnar said that the construction would take several months and that production could be launched before late 2023. However, the Ukrainian envoy said later that some adjustments were made to the original plan.

MP/PR

Middle East

Iran backs Oman's initiative on JCPOA revival: spox.

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Iran has repeatedly announced that it adheres to the negotiation process for the return of all parties to the deal and considers the negotiation process to be the right approach, the senior Iranian diplomat said in his weekly press conference on Monday morning.

“The initiatives proposed by some friendly countries, including the plan of the Sultan of Oman, are not a new agreement and plan, but initiatives to bring the views closer together for the return of all parties to JCPOA and implement their obligations within in the same framework, he added.

Multilateral diplomatic efforts to revive the JCPOA have been stalled since August 2022, with Iran blaming the United States for refusing to remove the sanctions that the nuclear deal had lifted and also failing to guarantee that it will not leave the deal again.

On Iran’s stance on Karabakh developments

Elsewhere in his remarks, Kan’ani referred to the visit of the Secretary of the Security Council of Armenia Armen Grigoryan to Iran. 

Grigoryan held a meeting with his Iranian top security official and presented a report on the latest developments in the relations between Baku and Yerevan, he said, adding that the Armenian official is also scheduled to hold a meeting with the Iranian foreign minister on Monday.

Saying that the developments in the Caucasus region are important for Iran, the senior Iranian diplomat added, “Iran’s position regarding the borders of the region is quite clear. We have expressed our views many times. We believe in the necessity of responsible efforts of all parties to resolve disputes within the framework of negotiations and political and peaceful methods.”

Iran welcomes the resolution of disputes between Armenia and Azerbaijan through political solutions, he continued, stressing that the country opposes any geopolitical change in the region and is also against extra-regional interventions.

This item will be updated…

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Middle East

Saudi Arabia expects budget deficit up to 2026

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The photo shows a general view of the Saudi capital city of Riyadh on February 20, 2022. (By Reuters)

Saudi Arabia is expecting to post a budget deficit up to 2026 despite earlier predictions of a surplus as the world’s biggest crude exporter is undergoing reforms to diversify its economy beyond oil revenues.

In a preliminary budget statement released on Saturday, the Saudi Finance Ministry projected budget deficits of 1.9, 1.6, and 2.3 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in the coming three years.

It said the “limited budget deficits” would continue in the medium term because of expansionary spending policies and conservative revenue estimates.

The ministry also said total revenues this fiscal year, which runs from January to December, were expected to be 1.18 trillion riyals ($314 billion), with expenditure estimated at 1.26 trillion riyals. This is while an earlier projection had put the numbers at 1.130 and 1.114 trillion riyals, respectively.

It further pared its growth forecast for this year from 3.1 to 0.03 percent. 

Inflation and supply chain problems have hampered growth, but “the government is working to expand government spending that has a transformative effect, while maintaining fiscal sustainability in the medium and long term,” the statement read.

Last December, Saudi Arabia announced it had recorded its first annual budget surplus in nearly a decade on the back of oil price hikes.

This year, however, the country’s oil revenue has fallen by 17 percent as prices have dipped and Riyadh has cut production “to stabilize the oil market.”

Meanwhile, the kingdom is pursuing its ambitious and very expensive Vision 2030 project meant to shift the economy away from fossil fuels.

In an assessment report last month, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) projected Saudi Arabia to swing to a fiscal deficit of 1.2 percent of GDP in 2023, from a surplus of 2.5 percent in the previous year.

 

Middle East

Turkey targets PKK in N Iraq after Ankara suicide attack

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A Turkish interior ministry statement on Sunday said some 20 targets of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) group were “destroyed” in the aerial operation, including caves, shelters, and depots.

The military ramped up air strikes in Iraq’s PKK bases in Gara, Hakurk, Metina, and Qandil, the statement said, Aljazeera reported.

The strikes came hours after a suicide bomber detonated an explosive device near an entrance of the interior ministry building in Ankara, injuring two police officers. A second assailant was killed in a shootout with police.

A media outlet close to the PKK said the group claimed responsibility for the suicide attack.

From time to time, the Turkish military carries out air strikes on PKK positions, which is listed as a terrorist group by the EU, US, and Turkey.

The Turkish military is said to have more than a dozen military bases in northern Iraq and many more in Syria under the pretext of fighting PKK terrorism.

Both Iraq and Syria have condemned the presence of the Turkish military on their soil as a violation of their territorial integrity and have called on Ankara to pull out its troops.

MP/PR