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Items by Anadolu Agency
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Burning holy books could be criminalised without major free speech impact
Denmark has legal options to ban Quran burnings in the country “without any profound limitations on freedom of speech,” according to a prominent Danish law scholar. Along with neighbouring Sweden, Denmark has been at the centre of the ongoing wave of attacks on the Muslim holy book in Europe, prompting...
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FACTBOX - What is BRICS and who are its members?
The BRICS group of major emerging economies – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – will hold its 15th heads of state and government summit in Johannesburg between 22 August and 24 August. Here are some key facts about the bloc and its members. What is BRICS? The acronym BRIC, which did not...
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People in need of humanitarian aid worldwide surge to over 363m
A total of 324.3 million people, worldwide, were in need of humanitarian aid last year, a number that rose to 363.3 million as of this month with the effects of war, climate change and the lingering socio-economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic. This year’s Global Humanitarian Assistance Report by the...
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US-Iran prisoner swaps: Key exchanges in history
The US and Iran, last week, reached a tentative agreement which will see the release of five Americans from a Tehran prison and several Iranians detained in the US. The deal, announced last Thursday, will also transfer to Qatar $6 billion of Iranian state assets frozen in South Korea. The White...
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Anadolu spots Saudi Consulate building in Jerusalem used before 1967
Strategically situated in Wadi Al-Joz, the Consulate building stands adjacent to the semi-official headquarters of the Palestine Liberation Organisation, known as the Orient House, which Israel closed down in 2001...
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2 years of Taliban rule: Where does Afghanistan stand?
15 August marks two years since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan, with the country and its people facing a myriad of challenges. Observers believe Afghanistan’s persisting problems are rooted in a political “standoff” that stems from differences in the value systems – those of the Taliban and the...
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The Middle East plays a vital role in global oil production
Countries in the Middle East, which possess 48.3 per cent of the world’s oil reserves, play a vital role in global oil production. Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait, Iran, Oman and the United Arab Emirates were among the top crude oil producers last year, according to London-based analysis and consultancy firm,...
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Migrants at greater risk of abuse after ‘ill-judged’ EU-Tunisia deal, experts warn
In mid-July, the EU finalised a much-anticipated agreement with Tunisia to cooperate on curbing a surge in migration flows to Europe’s Mediterranean shores, but international law experts and humanitarian groups warn that the €1 billion ($1.11 billion) deal could lead to severe rights violations instead of helping solve complex...
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Does Sweden provoke Turkiye to avoid joining NATO?
Focusing on Russia again, just like in the first Cold War, NATO has returned to its default settings. As of 2021, it has turned toward expanding its sphere of activity to cover the immediate vicinity of the People’s Republic of China. Russia’s war against Ukraine brought new expansion plans...
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Russia will seek expansion of UN Security Council with Asian, African, Latin American countries
Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, said on Friday that Russia will seek the expansion of the UN Security Council with Asian, African and Latin American countries. Speaking at a news conference in Moscow, Lavrov said the Security Council has to be reformed “in accordance with existing realities”, and the dominance of...
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Eid in Kashmir: ‘Our food brings us together’
Rubeena Akhtar has a lot to do before Thursday, the day Indian-administered Kashmir will celebrate Eid Al-Adha, or the “Feast of Sacrifice”. Relatives and friends will be coming over all through the day and Akhtar wants everything to be perfect. She has already made her trip to the neighbourhood baker to...
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The tragedy of being a refugee on earth
Today, 20 June, 2023, is “World Refugee Day”. In 2001, on the 50th anniversary of the United Nation’s (UN) adoption of the “Geneva Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees” in 1951, it was celebrated by the UN to raise awareness of the growing refugee crisis in the world....
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Tribulations to Trophies: Refugee athletes inspire in world of sports
They say sport has the power to change lives. What might sound like a cliché to many, holds immense truth for people like Marzieh Hamidi and Ahmad Badreddin Wais. It was sport that gave Hamidi and Wais a refuge from the tribulations of a life defined by war and conflict, factors...
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10th Arab-China Business Conference
The Arab-China Business Conference was launched by China in 2013 as a long-term strategy to enhance cooperation and integration between Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. It aims to upgrade infrastructure in the countries located on the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), enhance connectivity between countries and facilitate...
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Turkiye foreign policy in the new era
Turkiye is a middle power, and the transformation of the international system from the US-led unipolarity to a multi-actor centric multipolarity over the last decade is in its national interest. Assessing how Turkish foreign policy might evolve in the years to come with Hakan Fidan at the helm of...
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Is China filling a US-shaped void in the Middle East?
While in Saudi Arabia last week, America’s top diplomat, Antony Blinken, went out of his way to assert that Washington is “not asking anyone to choose between the US and China”. His words may have been quite general but, where he uttered them, gave a lot of context: Saudi Arabia,...
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Iran-Saudi Arabia ties: What comes next after ‘smooth restart’?
Less than three months after agreeing to restore diplomatic ties, long-time regional rivals, Iran and Saudi Arabia, have recently taken another significant step toward full reconciliation. In the presence of senior officials from both sides, the Iranian Embassy in the affluent diplomatic enclave in north-western Riyadh was re-opened last week,...
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Afghan girls turn cave into school, raise hope for children
Afghan girls who educate the children of poor families living in caves in a classroom in Bamyan, one of Afghanistan’s most deprived provinces, instil hope for the future of the children. Ruya Serferaz (18) and her English class friend, Besbegum Havari (19), set off every day, regardless of adverse weather...
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Nationalism is not on the rise in Turkiye
Turkiye’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) scored a clear victory in both the presidential and parliamentary elections held on 14 May. It won a majority of the seats (323 out of 600) in the Parliament combining with its alliance partners, the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and the...
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Somalia sees an intertwined destiny with the Turkiye people
Turkiye, which has a deep-rooted historical connection with Somalia, has gained an indispensable place in the hearts of Somalis through bilateral relations built on mutual trust, friendship and a win-win understanding. Millions of Somalis around the world express their unwavering gratitude for the unconditional support provided by Turkiye, under...
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Raisi visit signals Iran focus in Syria shifting from military to economic
In a first visit by an Iranian President to the war-ravaged Arab country in 13 years, Ebrahim Raisi led a high-ranking delegation to Syria last week and returned with a bagful of cooperation pacts. Raisi was accompanied by ministers of foreign affairs, petroleum, defence, roads and urban development, and telecommunications...
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‘They shot 16 bullets’: Journalist Shireen Abu Akleh’s family vows to keep up fight for justice
On 11 May last year, life for the Abu Akleh family changed forever. That was the day Shireen Abu Akleh, a senior Al Jazeera journalist widely respected for her extensive coverage of Palestine and Israel, was shot in the head while reporting on an Israeli military raid in the Occupied...
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TIMELINE - From ouster to arrest: Key dates in Imran Khan saga in Pakistan
Pakistan’s former premier, Imran Khan, was arrested on Tuesday as he appeared for hearings at the Islamabad High Court. He was charged in a number of cases that his party says are politically motivated, ranging from corruption, terrorism and rioting, since being ousted from power in a no-confidence vote last...
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The tantalising reconciliation between Turkiye and Egypt
After a decade of strained relations, Turkiye and Egypt finally show strong signs of a normalisation period. Following the solidarity and condolence visit of Egyptian Foreign Minister, Sameh Shoukry, to Turkiye after the devastating earthquake, Turkish Foreign Minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu visited Cairo on 18 March. And, most recently, Shoukry visited...