Lebanon cabinet backs army plan to disarm Hezbollah, Shi’ite ministers walk out
Lebanon’s cabinet on Friday endorsed an army plan to disarm Hezbollah as Shi’ite ministers stage walk out in protest....
Turkish and Israeli officials held first technical talks aimed at preventing unwanted incidents in Syria, where militaries of the two regional powers are active, Turkish ministry sources and an Israeli political source said on Thursday.
The Turkish sources said the technical talks on Wednesday, in Azerbaijan, marked the beginning of efforts to set up a channel to avoid potential clashes or misunderstandings over military operations in the region.
"Efforts will continue to establish this mechanism," one of the Turkish sources said, without providing further details on the scope or timeline of the talks.
An Israeli political source confirmed the meeting took place and said that "Israel made it unequivocally clear that any change in the deployment of foreign forces in Syria – and in particular the establishment of Turkish bases in the Palmyra area – is a red line and will be considered a breaking of the rules."
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office confirmed in statement that an Israeli delegation led by National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi had held talks with Turkish officials in Azerbaijan on Wednesday.
The statement did not give details about the talks.
The initiative comes a week after Israel stepped up airstrikes on Syria, which it described as a warning to the newly formed government in Damascus. It has also accused Türkiye of attempting to turn Syria into a Turkish protectorate.
Reuters reported last week that Turkish military teams had inspected at least three air bases in Syria where they could deploy forces as part of a planned joint defence pact with Damascus - before Israel hit the sites with airstrikes.
Türkiye and Israel - which have traded diplomatic barbs since Israel's attacks began on Gaza in 2023 - each said last week they did not seek confrontation in Syria, which both border.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan confirmed on Wednesday that technical talks were taking place, emphasizing that such mechanisms were necessary to prevent misunderstandings between the two regional powers' forces.
AnewZ has learned that India has once again blocked Azerbaijan’s application for full membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, while Pakistan’s recent decision to consider diplomatic relations with Armenia has been coordinated with Baku as part of Azerbaijan’s peace agenda.
A powerful eruption at Japan’s Shinmoedake volcano sent an ash plume more than 3,000 metres high on Sunday morning, prompting safety warnings from authorities.
A day of mourning has been declared in Portugal to pay respect to victims who lost their lives in the Lisbon Funicular crash which happened on Wednesday evening.
The UK is gearing up for Exercise Pegasus 2025, its largest pandemic readiness test since COVID-19. Running from September to November, this full-scale simulation will challenge the country's response to a fast-moving respiratory outbreak.
A Polish Air Force pilot was killed on Thursday when an F-16 fighter jet crashed during a training flight ahead of the 2025 Radom International Air Show.
At the Prague Defence Summit, Defence Industries Secretary Haluk Görgün met with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, highlighting the sector’s rapid growth.
Azerbaijan has rejected Russia’s recent statement on insurance payments related to the downing of an AZAL plane, calling it misleading and an attempt to distort facts.
Türkiye’s Ministry of National Defence has warned that the terrorist group Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)’s inability to integrate into the Syrian army poses a serious threat to the country’s political and territorial integrity.
A magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck southeastern Afghanistan on Thursday at a depth of 10 kilometres, the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) said.
The third Uzbekistan–Belarus Women Entrepreneurs’ Business Forum has opened in Vitebsk as part of an official visit by a delegation led by Chairperson of the Senate of Uzbekistan, Tanzila Narbayeva.
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