Middle East & North Africa

KHARTOUM, Sudan (AP) — Tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets in Sudan’s capital and elsewhere in the country Sunday calling for civilian rule nearly three months after the army forced out long-ruling autocrat Omar al-Bashir.

A government official said at least seven people had been killed and nearly 200 injured during the demonstrations.

RAMALLAH, June 30 (Xinhua) -- The Palestinian Authority on Sunday confirmed that the Israeli authorities had released Palestinian Minister for Jerusalem Affairs Fadi al-Hadmi hours after he was detained from his home in East Jerusalem.

According to al-Hadmi's lawyer Muhannad Jabara, the arrest was a result of pressures from the Israeli right wing on the government after al-Hadmi accompanied Chilean President Sebastian Pinera and his visiting delegation on a tour in the Al-Aqsa Mosque in the city.

30 June 2019; MEMO: The threats by forces aligned with East Libya-based commander Khalifa Haftar toward Turkey is a “declaration of war” on Ankara, Libya’s High Council of State said yesterday, as reported on Anadolu Agency. 

The council in a statement described the threats as “a blow to relations with a country that cooperates with Libya in many areas and constitutes a large part of the country’s total imports”.

30 June 2019; MEMO: Israeli police forces detained Palestinian Authority minister for Jerusalem Affairs, Fadi Al-Hadami today, as reported by Anadolu Agency.

According to WAFA, Israeli policemen raided Al-Hadami’s house early this morning, then detained him.

It was reported that Palestinian minister’s mobile phones were seized and his house was searched by the Israeli police.

Israel is yet to make a statement on the incident.

30 June 2019; MEMO: The Arab League renewed its rejection of any change in the historical and legal status of Jerusalem, including the relocation or opening of any embassy or representation office in the Holy City.

This came in a speech delivered by the Permanent Arab League Observer at the UN, Ali Al-Sammak, to the sixth meeting of the conference held by the UN Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, which was held in Geneva on Thursday.

Doha, Jun 29 (AFP/PTI) The United States and the Taliban opened fresh negotiations in Doha on Saturday, a Taliban spokesman said, as Washington eyes a breakthrough before Afghanistan's September presidential election.

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid tweeted that the "seventh round of talks between US representatives and the negotiation team of the Islamic Emirate have begun in Doha".

The talks mark the seventh round of negotiations aimed at ending America's longest war.

KHARTOUM, June 29 (Xinhua) -- Sudan's Transitional Military Council (TMC) on Saturday warned of the "presence of saboteurs and infiltrators with agenda of protests that the opposition forces intend to organize on Sunday."

"Now these brothers (the opposition) are calling for million-people processions. We, as forces, are not against the people or peaceful protests, but there are saboteurs with hidden agenda," said Mohamed Hamdan Daqlu, the TMC deputy chairman, when addressing a popular rally in the capital Khartoum.

"We do not want sedition," he said.

TASS, June 30: The Ansar Allah (Houthi movement) backers have attacked the airport of the cities of Jizan and Abha in Saudi Arabia using drones, Al Masirah TV channel reported on Saturday.

The Houthis said that military facilities and hangars located at the airports had been targeted by the strikes. According to the rebels, the air traffic was suspended at the airports.

29 June 2019; MEMO: Progress was made at talks on Friday aimed at saving the Iran nuclear deal but probably not enough to convince the Islamic Republic to change its decision to go over the deal’s core atomic restrictions one by one, Iran’s envoy to the talks said, Reuters reported.

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi was speaking after almost four hours of talks with senior diplomats from Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia.

29 June 2019; MEMO: Israel has resumed allowing fuel entries into the blockaded Gaza Strip following a three-day hiatus, according to a Palestinian official, Anadolu Agency reports.

“The resumption of fuel supplies to [Gaza’s only] power plant enabled us to run another generator,” Mohammad Thabet, spokesman for Gaza’s electricity company, told Anadolu Agency.”This will add another 25 megawatts to the plant’s daily production,” he added.