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Voice of America
Turkey’s rapprochement with Israel stops as Ankara restricts trade
Turkey has announced restrictions on trade with Israel and Turkish Airlines has suspended flights to the country as a consequence of the war in Gaza. As Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul, the moves come as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan reverses his rapprochement efforts, which proved unpopular among voters in last month’s elections
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Gunmen kill 6 policemen in southeast Iran, media reports say
tehran, iran — Gunmen ambushed a police convoy in Iran's restive southeast on Tuesday, killing six police officers, media reports said.
The attack on a road in Sistan and Baluchistan province also wounded two more police officers, according to Young Journalists Club, a website affiliated with the state broadcasting company. The report said the Jaish al-Adl militant group has claimed responsibility for the attack.
The report could not be independently verified. The militants have...
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US defense chief denies genocide committed in Gaza
Washington — The Pentagon is not backing off on its support for Israel, despite growing frustration by some U.S. lawmakers that Israel is crossing ethical lines as it goes after Hamas in Gaza.
During a U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee hearing Tuesday interrupted multiple times by protesters accusing Israel — and the United States — of having innocent blood on its hands, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin pushed back.
Senator Tom Cotton, a Republican, asked Austin: "Is Israel...
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Iran frees 4 conservationists convicted of espionage
Tehran, Iran — Iran released four conservationists who had worked to save the endangered Asiatic cheetah before they were convicted on espionage charges and spent five years in prison, local media reported on Tuesday.
The Tehran newspaper Etemad said authorities released on Monday night Niloufar Bayani and Houman Jowkar, who were part of a group of five activists convicted in 2019 on espionage charges that were internationally criticized.
On Tuesday, several Iranian media outlets,...
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Officials, observers warn Muslim Brotherhood is inciting pro-Hamas demonstrations
Amman — Jordanian officials and observers say the Muslim Brotherhood and its offshoot, Hamas, are inciting pro-Hamas demonstrations with the aim of destabilizing Jordan, a key U.S. Arab ally.
Jordan has been the scene of largely peaceful but growing protests since the start of the Gaza war. Many of the demonstrations have been near the Israeli Embassy in the capital, Amman.
Some demonstrators demand Jordan ends its 1994 peace treaty with Israel, while others voice anger against Israel as...
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US top military leaders face Congress over Pentagon budget and questions on Israel, Ukraine support
Washington — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Charles Brown Jr. testified on Capitol Hill on Tuesday about the Pentagon's $850 billion budget for 2025 as questions remained as to whether lawmakers will support current spending needs for Israel or Ukraine.
The Senate hearing was the first time lawmakers on both sides were able to question the Pentagon's top civilian and military leadership on the administration's Israel strategy following the...
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US forces hit Houthi missile system in Yemen
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Palestinians renew bid for full UN membership
UNITED NATIONS — The U.N. Security Council began reviewing the Palestinians’ renewed bid for full United Nations membership on Monday, despite long-standing U.S. policy that would likely lead to a veto in the council.
“Our position is a position that is known; it hasn’t changed,” U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield told reporters following a meeting of the Security Council committee that is considering the Palestinian application.
For decades, Washington has said Palestinian statehood...
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Bahrain pardons more than 1,500 in largest amnesty in years
Manama, Bahrain — Bahrain's king has pardoned 1,584 people facing criminal and "riot" charges, state media said Monday, in the largest such mass release in the Gulf nation in years.
The announcement of the royal decree carried by the official Bahrain News Agency (BNA) did not specify whether political prisoners are among those to be released, though a rights group said it was likely.
BNA said that "this royal decree reflects his majesty's keenness to maintain the...
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Saudi Arabia says Eid al-Fitr holiday to start Wednesday
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia — Saudi Arabia, home to Islam's holiest shrines, announced Monday that the holiday of Eid al-Fitr marking the end of the Ramadan fast will begin on Wednesday.
"Supreme Court declares tomorrow the last day of #Ramadan and Wednesday the first day of #Eid Al-Fitr," the official Saudi Press Agency said on its X account.
The timing of Eid al-Fitr is determined by the sighting of the crescent moon, in accordance with the Muslim lunar calendar.
Saudi media...
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Iran FM opens new Syria consulate after deadly strike
Damascus — Iran's foreign minister inaugurated the country's new consulate in Damascus on Monday, a week after a deadly strike blamed on Israel destroyed the former premises, sending regional tensions skyrocketing.
Tehran, a key Damascus ally, has vowed to avenge last Monday's airstrike on the Iranian embassy's consular section that killed seven Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) members, including two generals.
The strike came against the backdrop of the...
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Top UN court opening hearings in case accusing Germany of facilitating Israel's Gaza conflict
THE HAGUE, Netherlands — Preliminary hearings are opening Monday at the United Nations’ top court in a case that seeks an end to German military and other aid to Israel, based on claims that Berlin is enabling acts of genocide and breaches of international humanitarian law in the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
Nicaragua argues that by giving Israel political, financial and military support and by defunding the United Nations aid agency for Palestinians, UNRWA, “Germany is facilitating the...
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Yemen's Houthis say they targeted Western ships
CAIRO — Houthi forces in Yemen said on Sunday they had launched rockets and drones at British, U.S. and Israeli ships, the latest in a campaign of attacks on shipping in support of Palestinians in the Gaza war.
The Iran-aligned group said it had targeted a British ship and a number of U.S. frigates in the Red Sea, while in the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean it had attacked two Israeli vessels heading to Israeli ports.
The operations took place during the last 72 hours, Houthi military...
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Report: 20 killed in clashes in Syria's restive Daraa province
Beirut, Lebanon — At least 20 people were killed in clashes Sunday in Syria's Daraa governate a day after an explosion killed a group of children, a rights monitor said.
Daraa was the cradle of the 2011 uprising against President Bashar Assad but it returned to government control in 2018 under a cease-fire deal backed by Russia.
The southern province has since been plagued by unrest.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor said Ahmed al-Labbad, who "leads an armed...
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Iran to free 4 environmentalists convicted as spies
Tehran, Iran — Four environmentalists who spent more than five years in prison after being convicted of spying will be freed following a pardon from Iran's supreme leader, state media reported Sunday.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has pardoned more than 2,000 inmates to mark celebrations for the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
Their release date was not immediately clear, but their lawyer Hojat Kermani said it will be "in the coming days."
"My clients were informed...
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Israel marks 6 months since deadly Hamas attack
Israel’s prime minister says there will be no cease-fire in Gaza at the six-month mark of Hamas’ deadly October 7 attacks. This, as international pressure builds against Israel concerning the humanitarian toll of its war against the militant group in Palestinian territories. VOA’s Arash Arabasadi has more.
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