Middle East & North Africa

New Delhi, Jul 25 (PTI) Iran has released nine out of 12 Indians who were on board the ship MT Riah that was detained in early July, official sources said Thursday.

However, 21 Indians are still in detention in Iran -- three from MT Riah and 18 from British oil tanker Stena Impero which was seized last week by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard in the Strait of Hormuz for alleged violation of international maritime rules.

Indian Embassy on Thursday got consular access to the 18 Indians who were on board Impero.

CAIRO (AP) — Up to 150 Europe-bound migrants, including women and children, were missing and feared drowned on Thursday after the boats they were traveling in capsized in the Mediterranean Sea off Libya, the country’s coast guard and the U.N. refugee agency said.

A top U.N. official described the shipwreck as “the worst Mediterranean tragedy” so far this year.

The International Rescue Committee said the tragedy was a stark reminder of the humanitarian crisis emerging out of Libya and of the urgent need for search and rescue missions to be resumed in the Mediterranean.

25 July 2019; AA: The Central Bank of Turkey (CBRT) on Thursday lowered its one-week repo rate 425 basis points.

The bank's policy rate -- also known as one-week repo rate -- fell to 19.75%, a steep down from 24%.

"Recently released data indicate a moderate recovery in the economic activity," the CBRT said.

The decision came in a statement from the bank's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting -- the fifth of eight meetings scheduled for 2019.

25 July 2019; MEMO: Former Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak, Meretz and Labor party defector Stav Shaffir today announced a united list in September’s elections, reported the Times of Israel.

25 July 2019; MEMO: Former Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert cancelled a planned trip to Switzerland after being told he could be arrested over war crimes charges, Israeli media reported yesterday.

25 July 2019; MEMO: The Presidency of the Republic of Tunisia today announced the death of President Beji Caid Essebsi.

In a statement on Facebook the office said that Essebsi died at 10.25 this morning at the military hospital in Tunisia where he was admitted after his health deteriorated.

Details of the burial would be announced later, it continued.

Essebsi was taken to the military hospital late last night “after an emergency health issue”, local media reported.

BAGHDAD, July 24 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi forces on Wednesday concluded the second phase of a major offensive to hunt down remnants of Islamic State (IS) militants in north of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, the Iraqi military said.

A statement by the media office of the Joint Operations Command (JOC) said the second phase of the offensive, started on July 20, was carried out with the participation of paramilitary Hashd Shaabi units, Counter-Terrorism Service force and air support by the Iraqi and U.S.-led coalition aircraft.

ANKARA, July 24 (Xinhua) -- Turkey was not satisfied with a new proposal submitted by the United States on the issue of establishing a safe zone in northern Syria, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Wednesday.

"New U.S. proposals are not satisfactory for us. We got the impression that they want to stall just like what happened with Manbij (deal)," Cavusoglu told reporters at a press conference, after talks between the American and Turkish delegations in capital Ankara.

ANKARA, July 24 (NNN-Bernama) — International relations, defence, trade and investment are among issues which Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad will discuss with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during his visit to Turkey starting Wednesday.

Malaysian Ambassador to Turkey, Datuk Abd Razak Abdul Wahab, said the one-on-one meeting between Dr Mahathir and Erdogan will be followed by a meeting of delegates from both countries, which would take place at the Presidential Palace here on the second day of the Prime Minister’s four-day visit.

24 July 2019; AA: Turkey slammed Israel on Tuesday for demolishing Palestinian houses in East Jerusalem, calling the action part of “aggressive” policies to forcefully change the holy city’s demographic makeup.

In a written statement, Turkey’s Foreign Ministry said the demolition was yet another example of Israel’s “aggressive occupation” policies.