Middle East & North Africa

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran announced Saturday that its military “unintentionally” shot down the Ukrainian jetliner that crashed earlier this week, killing all 176 aboard, after the government had repeatedly denied Western accusations that it was responsible.

The plane was shot down early Wednesday, hours after Iran launched a ballistic missile attack on two military bases housing U.S. troops in Iraq in retaliation for the killing of Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani in an American airstrike in Baghdad. No one was wounded in the attack on the bases.

10 Jan 2019; MEMO: Israeli occupation forces killed 27 Palestinian children, and wounded more than 2,000 others, in the occupied Gaza Strip in 2019, a rights group announced yesterday.

10 Jan 2019; MEMO: Israeli forces have detained an estimated 200 Palestinian children in the Issawiya neighbourhood of occupied East Jerusalem over the last few months, in many cases violating their basic rights.

TUNIS, Jan 10 (NNN-Xinhua) — French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said resolving the crisis in Libya is a real priority for France and the Middle East region.

Speaking to reporters after meeting in Tunis with Tunisian President Kais Saied, Le Drian said they discussed the latest developments in Libya, while stressing that France agreed with Tunisia’s call for respect for international legitimacy.

“The stability of Libya is real priority for our two countries,” said the French top diplomat.

CAIRO, Jan 10 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry is heading to Algeria over the recent escalations in Libya, said the country’s Foreign Ministry in a statement.

“Shoukry carries a message from Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to his Algerian counterpart, Abdelmadjid Tebboune,” said the Foreign Ministry in a Thursday statement.

Shoukry will discuss with the Algerian foreign minister means of enhancing and pushing forward the mutual ties in all fields as well as consult over the Libyan crisis, the statement added.

TRIPOLI, Jan 10 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Eastern Libyan military commander Khalifa Haftar rejected calls for a ceasefire by Turkey and Russia and announced a continuation of his military operations.

In a statement read by his spokesman Ahmad al-Mesmari, Haftar claimed a revival of the political process and the country’s stability could only be assured by the “eradication of terrorist groups” and the dissolution of the militia controlling the capital, Tripoli.

CAIRO, January 9. /TASS/: The Libyan National Army (LNA) led by Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar has endorsed the Russian-Turkish initiative to establish a ceasefire, Libyan Armed Forces spokesperson Ahmed Mismari said, the Al-Arabiya TV channel reports.

10 January 2020; AFP: Iran's civil aviation chief denied Friday that a missile downed a Ukrainian airliner which crashed killing all 176 on board, dismissing claims of a catastrophic mistake by Tehran's air defences.

The declaration at a press conference in the Iranian capital came after Britain and Canada pointed to what they said were signs of an accidental missile strike.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq’s top Shi’ite Muslim cleric on Friday condemned mutual U.S. and Iranian attacks on Iraqi soil and warned of deteriorating security in the country and wider region as a result of Washington’s standoff with Tehran.

The United States killed Iran’s top military commander Qassem Soleimani and Iran-backed in an air strike next to Baghdad airport on Jan. 3. Iran responded late on Tuesday by firing missiles at U.S.-led forces in Iraq.

CAIRO, Jan. 9 (Xinhua) -- China's efforts in fighting poverty has been "a huge success", making the country a major contributor to the world's poverty reduction endeavors, said Tariq al-Kholy, Secretary of Foreign Affairs Committee in the Egyptian House of Representatives.

By continuing with such efforts, China is expected to wipe out extreme poverty in 2020, al-Kholy told Xinhua in a recent exclusive interview.

High poverty rates are recorded in many countries, the Chinese experience in tackling the severe problem is an "inspiration to the world," he said.