Category: General

Hundreds of climate activists joined marches in London as part of a global wave of action demanding the rapid phase-out of fossil fuels.

This weekend’s demonstrations are part of a broader global movement, with over 400 anti-fossil fuel protests scheduled to occur from Cape Town to Tokyo, Karachi to New York.

Coinciding with these protests, the United Nations Climate Ambition Summit, set for Sept. 20, will see UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres call on nations to cease approving new oil and gas production.

The Fight Fossil Fuels website, which is dedicated to these protests, has issued a statement calling this mobilization “historic,” emphasizing its role in renewing and strengthening globally coordinated efforts aimed at ending the fossil fuel era.

“Across the globe, we are coming together to fight back against the fossil fuel industry and its enablers,” the statement reads, echoing the sentiment of countless protesters worldwide.

The UK government has recently granted hundreds of new North Sea licenses and expressed support for the development of the massive Rosebank oil field off the Scottish coast.

Over 40 demonstrations are scheduled to take place this weekend in major cities, including London, Edinburgh, Manchester, and Plymouth.

These protests follow a stark warning from the UN last week, stating that the world will fall short of addressing the climate crisis unless there is a swift reduction in fossil fuel use.

“We are now watching the climate crisis unfold, whether its rising temperatures and wildfires or the heating up of our seas, and yet our government is choosing to throw more fuel on the fire,” Stop Rosebank campaigner, Lauren MacDonald, said.

“We know – and they know – there can be no new drilling if we want a habitable world and yet they are issuing new licenses and considering approving the massive Rosebank oil field, which would create more CO2 emissions than 28 of the poorest countries produce in a year combined,” she underlined.

“How we respond will determine how the world is shaped for generations. We’re taking to the streets across the UK with one simple message: We demand an end to new fossil fuels licenses. We demand a fast and fair transition. We demand climate justice,” Tyrone Scott, a senior campaigner of Movement Building and Activism, as well as War on Want and the Climate Justice Coalition, also said.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Cyprus’ Foreign Minister, Dr. Constantinos Kombos, is travelling to New York, where he will accompany President, Nikos Christodoulides, during the High-Level week of the 78th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, while he is to participate in several high-level meetings and have bilateral contacts, the Ministry announced on Saturday.

During his stay in New York, Kombos will hold a series of bilateral meetings with counterparts, and will participate in several high-level meetings, the press release adds.

‘Within this context, he will participate in meetings of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the European Union and of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Commonwealth’, it said, adding that he will join round-table discussions on the Middle East Peace Process and the International Criminal Court.

Kombos will also attend a dinner hosted by US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken on transatlantic relations.

The Minister will sign on behalf of the Republic of Cyprus the Agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ), the press release concludes.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

The Turkish Coast Guard rescued 112 irregular migrants in the Aegean Sea after Greek authorities illegally pushed them back into Turkish territorial waters, said an official statement issued on Saturday.

Coast guard units rescued 11 migrants from a rubber boat off the coast of Mugla’s Bodrum district, and 101 others were saved in two separate operations off the coast of Kusadasi district in Aydin province, the Turkish Coast Guard said in the statement.

The irregular migrants were later taken to the provincial migration authorities.

Trkiye and global rights groups have repeatedly condemned Greece’s illegal practice of pushing back asylum seekers, saying it violates humanitarian values and international law by endangering the lives of vulnerable migrants, including women and children.

*Writing by Merve Berker

Source: Anadolu Agency

Somalia on Saturday launched a ‘historic’ national identification card and registration process in an effort to foster digital transformation in the Horn of Africa country.

Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre are the first to receive national identification cards.

Mohamud described the rollout as a key milestone in a statement posted on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, stating that “this crucial document shall enhance security, public service provision and provide our citizens (with) a means to establish their identity.”

Premier Barre said at the launch ceremony in the capital Mogadishu that the new biometric identity card system will provide more opportunities for citizens while also creating a conducive environment for national cohesion in the country.

“With the launch of the biometric identification system, our citizens will enjoy their full constitutional rights as of today,” he said.

He said the inception of the national identification will help the Somali people overcome ‘myriad socioeconomic challenges that hinder their development potential while advancing democracy and the rule of law.’

The historic national identification card rollout comes as the country is in the middle of a war against an al-Qaeda-affiliated terrorist group that has been fighting the government and African Union Peacekeepers in the country since 2007.

Source: Anadolu Agency

The Somali army killed at least 30 al-Shabaab terrorists during a military operation on Saturday and liberated two villages from the al-Qaeda-affiliated terror group with the help of locals in the central state of Galgadud, the Information Ministry said.

‘The National Army and the brave local people have liberated the areas of Sargo and Qodqod in Galgaduud region,’ the ministry said in a statement.

During the operation, the Somali National Army (SNA) destroyed four al-Shabaab vehicles and seized weapons, the statement said, adding that the government is determined to “punish the terrorist conspirators who dare to harm our people.”

‘We are grateful to the brave citizens who chose to stand against the enemy. We’re united in our mission to eradicate al-Shabaab,’ the Somali Defense Ministry said in a separate statement.

The operation comes a day after al-Shabaab terrorists carried out a suicide bombing on the Galmudug state president. However, two soldiers were killed, and two members of Somalia’s Federal Parliament were injured.

Last Monday, Mohamed Mohamud, a member of the Galmudug state parliament, was killed in a bomb attack in the region.

The Horn of Africa country has been plagued by insecurity for years, with the main threats emanating from al-Shabaab and the Daesh/ISIS terror groups.

Since 2007, the al-Shabaab terror group has been fighting the Somali government and the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS), a multidimensional mission authorized by the African Union and mandated by the United Nations Security Council.

The terror group has increased attacks since Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, who was elected for a second term last year, declared an “all-out war” on al-Shabaab.

Source: Anadolu Agency

At least 10 police officers were injured when they attempted to stop riots during a meeting of Eritreans in the southern German city of Stuttgart on Saturday, as supporters and opponents of the Eritrean government clashed, according to a police spokesman.

Timo Brenner said in a video message posted on the website of the daily Stuttgarter Zeitung that up to 200 Eritrean participants in the event first attacked each other, and when police tried to stop them, they attacked law enforcement with stones, bottles, and wooden slats.

Ten officers were injured, and four people have been arrested so far, he added.

Around 200 people gathered for an event organized by the Federation of Eritrean Clubs in Stuttgart and the surrounding area, the spokesman said, adding that the clubs sympathize with the government in Eritrea.

He pointed out police used batons and pepper spray on the attackers.

“There are still skirmishes,” Brenner said of the riots.

Additional police forces were dispatched from surrounding police stations and flown in by helicopter, he added.

In July, the western German city of Giessen became the scene of violent clashes between rival Eritrean political groups.

At least 22 police officers were injured and dozens of people were detained during the unrest at an Eritrean cultural event.

Police said bottles were thrown and smoke bombs were set off as groups of Eritreans opposed to the African nation’s autocratic ruler tried to force their way into the venue.

The German government condemned the clashes with police at that time, saying ‘Eritrean conflicts must not play out on German soil.’

Source: Anadolu Agency

Ferrari’s Spanish driver Carlos Sainz on Saturday took the pole position for Sunday’s Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix.

Sainz, 29, beat Mercedes’ British racer George Russell by 0.072 seconds for pole position after the Ferrari driver finished the Q3 in a minute and 30.984 seconds at Marina Bay Street Circuit.

Charles Leclerc, a Ferrari driver from Monaco, was third in Saturday’s qualifying session.

Back-to-back champion Max Verstappen from the Netherlands has qualified 11th at the Singapore Grand Prix on Sunday.

The 62-lap Singapore GP on the 4.94-kilometer (3.06-mile) Marina Bay Street Circuit will start at 1200GMT.

Source: Anadolu Agency

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni are set to visit Lampedusa on Sunday after the latter invited the former come and see scale of the migrant emergency for herself.

EC spokesman Eric Mamer confirmed via X on Saturday that von der Leyen would be in Lampedusa, Italy’s southernmost tip, the following day.

Meloni said in a video message on Friday that Italy is under “unsustainable pressure” due to the large number of migrant boats arriving at Lampedusa from North Africa.

Around 127,000 migrants have entered Italy so far this year, approximately twice as many as in the same period in 2022.

The premier said her government will pass extraordinary measures to deal with the emergency at a cabinet meeting on Monday, She added that she had written to European Council President Charles Michel asking for the issue of migrants to be on the agenda of the October EU summit, saying that she would request a European mission to stop migrant boats departing.

She said the length of time people can be kept at CRP centres for those who entered Italy illegally and are awaiting repatriation will be extended to up to 18 months as part of the new measures.

She said the maximum time that asylum seekers can be kept at reception centres will remain at 12 months.

Meloni also announced that the defence ministry would set up new reception centres for migrants.

French President Emmanuel Macron will speak to Meloni about the issue of migrants, French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne told Bfm TV on Saturday.

“The time has come for solidarity with Italy, but also for the EU to mobilize,’ Borne said.

A three-way videoconference on the migrant crisis in Lampedusa took place on Saturday afternoon involving the interior ministers of Italy, France and Germany, Matteo Piantedosi, Gérald Darmanin and Nancy Faeser, along with Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson, sources in Darmanin’s entourage said.

DPA, meanwhile, reported that Faeser has announced that Germany is reactivating the voluntary solidarity mechanism established at the EU level in 2022 under which it receives asylum seekers from Italy.

This week Berlin suspended the mechanism and said it would only resume when Germany can once again transfer asylum seekers arriving on its territory back to Italy on the basis of the Dublin Regulation mandating that asylum applications be processed in the country of first entry.

On Friday Faeser said the mechanism had been suspended because “Italy has shown no willingness to take people back through the Dublin procedure”, but she immediately added that: “now, of course, it is clear that we also fulfill our obligation of solidarity”, DPA reported.

Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani on Saturday called for the United Nations and NATO to be involved in efforts to halt the flow of migrants from North Africa to Italy.

“Maybe even Europe is not sufficient to address the migrant question, given what is happening in Africa,” Tajani said in a telephone link to a regional meeting of his Forza Italia (FI) party in Naples.

“Strong action on the international level is needed.

“NATO, the United States and the UN must be more present and they must be part of the solution”.

Around 100 residents of Lampedusa, including Deputy Mayor Attilio Lucia of the League party, on Saturday halted traffic towards the town hall in protest over a rumour that a tent camp for migrants was being set up at the former Loran military base on the island.

Agrigento Police Chief Emanuele Ricifari said there was no truth in the rumour.

There was also tension at the island’s migrant hotspot as people there protested at long waits to be transferred off the island.

A baby died on a migrant boat overnight close to Lampedusa, sources said on Saturday.

The baby died shortly after his mother gave birth to him on the boat, the sources said.

The boat was rescued by a port authority vessel and the baby’s body was put in a while coffin and taken to the island’s cemetery.

Another baby, a five-month-old boy, died on a migrant boat headed to Lampedusa earlier this week.

“Tragically, I’m not surprised,” said Matteo Maria Zuppi, the president of Italian bishops conference CEI.

“It’s a tragedy. Little ones and grown-ups are losing their lives.

“There’s a debate about how to address waves of arrivals like this.

“But we must remember that people’s lives are scared and we must save them”.

Source: Ansa News Agency (ANA)

A five-year-old girl is dead and her brother and parents are injured after a jet from the Italian Air Force’s Frecce Tricolori display team crashed in the area of Turin’s Caselle airport on Saturday, sources said.

The jet crashed at the bottom of a runway and the resulting blast involved a car, according to initial reports.

The girl’s nine-year-old brother was taken to Turin’s Regina Margherita children’s hospital with burns.

Her mother and father were admitted to two other hospitals, also with burns.

The pilot is alive after ejecting, sources said.

He too was taken to hospital to be treated for burns, according to the sources. The Frecce Tricolori were due to take part in a display on Sunday to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Italian Air Force.

The event has been cancelled.

Military sources said the jet may be been hit by a bird strike during takeoff.

Source: Ansa News Agency (ANA)

Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz registered his second consecutive pole position on Saturday when he notched the fastest time in qualifying for Sunday’s Singapore Grand Prix at the Marina Bay circuit.

His Ferrari team mate Charles Leclerc will start in third place on the grid, with Mercedes’ George Russell joining Sainz on the front row.

World champion and runaway standings leader Max Verstappen, who clinched his 10th consecutive Formula One win at the Italian Grand Prix two weeks ago, failed to make Q3 and qualified 11th.

His Red Bull team mate Sergio Perez qualified two places further back.

Source: Ansa News Agency (ANA)