Rally in Tel Aviv calls for return of deceased hostage Ran Gvili
Hundreds of people gathered for a second consecutive week at Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square, on Friday (12 December), to support the family of Master Sg...
Talks aimed at ending the war between Ukraine and Russia are set to continue in Berlin this weekend, with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff due to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and senior European leaders, a U.S. official said.
Witkoff, who has led White House efforts to mediate between Kyiv and Moscow, is expected to discuss the latest version of a proposed peace agreement.
He is also due to hold talks on Sunday and Monday with counterparts from France, Britain and Germany.
The Wall Street Journal reported that UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz are expected to take part.
Washington’s decision to send Witkoff underlines growing urgency to narrow remaining differences with Kyiv over the plan’s terms.
On Thursday (11 December), the White House said President Donald Trump would only dispatch a representative if he believed sufficient progress could be made.
Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner is also expected to take part in the meetings.
Confirmation of the Witkoff–Zelenskyy meeting comes days after Ukraine submitted a revised version of a 20-point peace plan to the United States. The proposals, first floated in late November, have since prompted intensified diplomatic activity.
Territory in eastern Ukraine remains the most contentious issue. Kyiv has refused to cede land it says has been illegally occupied, while Moscow insists it will take full control of the Donbas region by force unless Ukraine withdraws.
Zelenskyy has expressed scepticism about the White House’s latest proposal on the territorial question, which would see Ukrainian forces pull back and the area designated a “special economic zone”.
Japan has lifted a tsunami advisory issued after an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.9 hit the country's northeastern region on Friday (12 December), the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said. The JMA had earlier put the earthquake's preliminary magnitude at 6.7.
Iran is preparing to host a multilateral regional meeting next week in a bid to mediate between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
The United States issued new sanctions targeting Venezuela on Thursday, imposing curbs on three nephews of President Nicolas Maduro's wife, as well as six crude oil tankers and shipping companies linked to them, as Washington ramps up pressure on Caracas.
The resignation of Bulgaria's government on Thursday (11 December) puts an end to an increasingly unpopular coalition but is likely to usher in a period of prolonged political instability on the eve of the Black Sea nation's entry into the euro zone.
An extratropical cyclone has caused widespread disruption across Brazil’s São Paulo state, with powerful winds toppling trees and power lines, blocking streets and leaving large parts of the region without electricity.
Britain’s King Charles III said on Friday, 12 December, that his cancer treatment is expected to be reduced in the coming year, using a televised address to urge people across the country to take part in cancer screening programmes, officials confirmed.
Türkiye’s Trade Minister Omer Bolat said Friday that discussions in Washington with U.S. officials have strengthened efforts to expand bilateral trade, moving closer to a $100 billion target.
Lebanon is prepared to demarcate its border with Syria, President Joseph Aoun said on Friday, while noting that the dispute over the Shebaa Farms could be addressed at a later stage.
Greek farmers blocked the Port of Thessaloniki on Friday (12 December) as part of nationwide protests demanding delayed European Union subsidies and compensation for rising production costs and livestock losses.
Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif held talks on Friday during the International Peace and Trust Forum in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, focusing on bilateral relations as well as regional and global issues
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