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German Defense Minister Cancels Iraq Trip over Protests

Protesters wave national flags during a protest outside the to the fortified Green Zone where the Danish embassy is, located in Baghdad, Iraq, Saturday, July 22, 2023, following reports of the burning of a holy Quran carried out by a ultranationalist group in front of the Iraqi Embassy in Copenhagen. (AP)
Protesters wave national flags during a protest outside the to the fortified Green Zone where the Danish embassy is, located in Baghdad, Iraq, Saturday, July 22, 2023, following reports of the burning of a holy Quran carried out by a ultranationalist group in front of the Iraqi Embassy in Copenhagen. (AP)
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German Defense Minister Cancels Iraq Trip over Protests

Protesters wave national flags during a protest outside the to the fortified Green Zone where the Danish embassy is, located in Baghdad, Iraq, Saturday, July 22, 2023, following reports of the burning of a holy Quran carried out by a ultranationalist group in front of the Iraqi Embassy in Copenhagen. (AP)
Protesters wave national flags during a protest outside the to the fortified Green Zone where the Danish embassy is, located in Baghdad, Iraq, Saturday, July 22, 2023, following reports of the burning of a holy Quran carried out by a ultranationalist group in front of the Iraqi Embassy in Copenhagen. (AP)

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has cancelled a planned trip to Iraq and Jordan, a ministry spokesperson said on Sunday, citing security concerns after the Swedish Embassy in Baghdad was set alight last week in a protest over burnings of the holy Quran.

On Saturday, several thousand Iraqis demonstrated in Baghdad over the recent burning or damaging of the Quran during anti-Islam protests in Sweden and Denmark.

The cancellation of Pistorius' trip, which was supposed to last for several days, was also in response to violent protests against a Danish non-governmental organization in Iraq, the spokesperson said.

This, along with the risk of further protests in coming days, prompted German security forces to advise on cancelling the trip, the spokesperson said, adding it would take place at a later date, possibly during the fourth quarter of the year.

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Series of Israeli Airstrikes Hit Central Beirut, At Least 1 Building Destroyed

Rescue workers and people search for victims at the site of an Israeli airstrike that hit central Beirut, Lebanon, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
Rescue workers and people search for victims at the site of an Israeli airstrike that hit central Beirut, Lebanon, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
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Series of Israeli Airstrikes Hit Central Beirut, At Least 1 Building Destroyed

Rescue workers and people search for victims at the site of an Israeli airstrike that hit central Beirut, Lebanon, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
Rescue workers and people search for victims at the site of an Israeli airstrike that hit central Beirut, Lebanon, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Powerful Israeli airstrikes targeted central Beirut on Saturday, resulting in a large number of fatalities and injuries and destroying an eight-story building, Lebanon's National News Agency reported.

Footage broadcast by TV stations showed at least one destroyed building and several others badly damaged around it in the Basta neighborhood.

Israel used bunker buster bombs in the strike, leaving a deep crater, said NNA. Beirut smelled strongly of explosives hours after the attack.
The blasts shook the capital around 4 a.m.

NNA said at least five bombs were dropped in the attack.
It marked the fourth Israeli airstrike this week targeting a central area of Beirut, where the bulk of Israel's attacks have targeted the Hezbollah-controlled southern suburbs.

On Sunday an Israeli airstrike killed Hezbollah's media relations chief Mohammad Afif in the Ras al-Nabaa district of central Beirut.

The Israeli military did not issue a warning for Basta's residents to evacuate prior to the strike and did not immediately issue a statement on it.

Israel has killed several Hezbollah leaders in airstrikes on Beirut's southern suburbs.

Meanwhile, heavy ground fighting between Israeli forces and Hezbollah militants was ongoing in southern Lebanon as Israeli troops have pushed farther from the border.