Middle East & North Africa

ANKARA, January 11. /TASS/: Head of Turkey's Presidency of Defense Industries Ismail Demir said on Monday that Russian S-400 missile defense systems are ready to be commissioned in Turkey, the 24TV channel informs.

"The S-400 are ready for use, the armed forces will decide when such a need arises," the TV channel quotes Demir as saying.

The Presidency of Defense Industries confirmed this report to TASS. "Yes, [Ismail Demir] did state this in Ankara today," the presidency said.

11 Jan 2021; MEMO: Undersecretary of Egypt's Ministry of Health in Qalyubia Governorate has died from coronavirus two weeks after he contracted the virus.

Hamdy El-Tabbakh died on Saturday evening at Agouza Hospital.

Egypt's Health Minister Hala Zayed praised El-Tabbakh as a loyal leader who served the country with sincerity and dedication.

11 Jan 2021; MEMO: The United Arab Emirates' Foreign Minister Anwar Gargash has expressed his country's desire to normalise and re-establish relations with Turkey, following tensions between the two.

Gargash made the remarks in an interview with the Emirates-based Sky News Arabia yesterday, saying: "What we want to tell Turkey is, we want to normalise our relations within the framework of mutual respect for sovereignty."

11 Jan 2021; MEMO: Iraq's Water Resources Minister Mehdi Rashid Al-Hamdani yesterday warned that his country would face a water crisis if it does not reach a deal with Turkey, the New Khaleej reported.

Al-Hamdani stressed on the importance of finalising the issue of water with Turkey, the news site reported Al-Arabiya TV saying, "but Turkey wants two months to study this issue."

11 Jan 2021; MEMO: Former Israeli Justice Minister Avi Nissenkorn said on Friday that democracy in Israel is "more fragile" than in the US, despite the chaos in Washington last week, local media have reported. Nissenkorn resigned from his post in December.

11 Jan 2021; MEMO: The first shipment from illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank were exported to the UAE yesterday, local media reported.

The Jerusalem Post reported that the shipment included olive oil and honey from the Tura Winery in the Rehelim settlement and Paradise Honey in the Hermesh settlement.

11 Jan 2021; MEMO: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is planning chaos in Israel more dangerous than what happened in Capitol Hill, the Shehab News Agency reported former Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman saying.

"What we have seen on the Capitol is nothing compared to what is being prepared by Netanyahu if he felt he would lose the elections," Lieberman was quoted saying by Israeli news sources quoted by Shehab.

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered on Monday that plans be advanced to construct some 800 homes for Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank, an official statement said.

The announcement was widely expected ahead of the Jan. 20 inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden, who unlike outgoing President Donald Trump, has been critical of Israeli settlement policies in the past.

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - The Turkish Competition Board said on Monday it launched an investigation into WhatsApp and its owner Facebook after the messaging app asked users to agree to let Facebook collect user data including phone numbers and locations.

In a written statement, the Competition Board said it ruled that the requirement to allow the collection of that data should be suspended until the probe is complete.

RAMALLAH, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) -- The Palestinian Central Elections Commission (PCEC) on Sunday started technical meetings over preparations for the first Palestinian general elections after a 15-year hiatus.

Hana Nasser, chairman of PCEC, convened an online meeting with the Comission's members in the Gaza Strip to discuss the latest developments of the planned legislative and presidential elections, according to a statement issued by PCEC.