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26 Jan 2021; MEMO: Flag carrier Turkish Airlines has temporarily suspended all flights to Israel, the airline announced on Monday, Anadolu reports.

Under the suspension, there are no Turkish Airlines flights to or from Israel for the period Jan. 26 to Jan. 31, said the company on Twitter.

By way of explanation, the airline said the move was in line with a decision by "related authorities," but gave no further details.

26 Jan 2021; MEMO: Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh has condemned increasing escalation by Israeli Jewish settlers against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, reiterating his government's decision to prosecute firms trading with settlers, Al-Quds Al-Arabi reported yesterday.

Washington, Jan 26 (PTI) US President Joe Biden on Monday spoke over the phone with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, expressing his intention to revitalise the transatlantic alliance, the White House said.

The leaders agreed to work together on common foreign policy priorities, including Afghanistan, China, Iran, Russia, Ukraine, and the western Balkans, a statement issued by the White House said.

New Delhi, Jan 26 (PTI) The Connaught Place in the heart of the national capital will remain closed Tuesday in view of the ongoing tractor parade by farmers which turned violent at some places in the city, the New Delhi Traders Association said.

Atul Bhargava, the President of the Association, said the Delhi Police has advised the commercial hub to remain closed in view of the agitation.

Patiala, Jan 26 (PTI) Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday to accept the farmers' demands, saying the new farm laws were "completely wrong".

Singh said the elderly farmers were sitting at the borders of Delhi not for themselves, but for their children and the future generations.

New Delhi, Jan 26 (PTI) Protesting farmers clashed with police at several places in the national capital and entered the iconic Red Fort and ITO in the heart of national capital, with hundreds of them deviating from pre-decided routes, prompting security personnel to resort to lathicharge and tear gas.

Chaotic scenes were witnessed at ITO, where hundreds of protesters could be seen chasing police personnel with sticks and ramming their tractors into the buses parked by police.

BEIJING (AP) — The U.S.-Chinese trade war isn’t going away under President Joe Biden.

Biden won’t confront Beijing right away, economists say, because he wants to focus on the coronavirus and the economy. However, Biden looks set to renew pressure over trade and technology grievances that prompted President Donald Trump to hike tariffs on Chinese imports in 2017.

25 Jan 2021; MEMO: Tehran yesterday welcomed Saudi Arabia's foreign minister's remarks about the kingdom's readiness to peacefully resolve differences between the two countries, spokesman of Iran's Foreign Ministry Saeed Khatibzadeh said.

25 Jan 2021; MEMO: The United Arab Emirates confirmed that it signed agreements with the United States on former President Donald Trump's last full day in office to purchase up to 50 F-35 jets, 18 armed drones and other defense equipment in a deal worth $23 billion, Reuters reports.

25 Jan 2021; MEMO: Israel will ban passenger flights in and out of the country from Monday evening for a week as it seeks to stop the spread of new coronavirus variants, Reuters reports.

"Other than rare exceptions, we are closing the sky hermetically to prevent the entry of the virus variants and also to ensure that we progress quickly with our vaccination campaign," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in public remarks at the start of a cabinet meeting.