Iran Thanks Türkiye for Assistance in Opening an Interests Section in Albania

An Albanian policeman in front of the Iranian embassy in Tirana last September. (AFP)
An Albanian policeman in front of the Iranian embassy in Tirana last September. (AFP)
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Iran Thanks Türkiye for Assistance in Opening an Interests Section in Albania

An Albanian policeman in front of the Iranian embassy in Tirana last September. (AFP)
An Albanian policeman in front of the Iranian embassy in Tirana last September. (AFP)

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian announced that Tehran has agreed to open an interests section through Türkiye in Albania, six months after severing diplomatic relations with Tirana.

During a phone call with his Turkish counterpart, Mevlut Cavusoglu, Amirabdollahian said the Foreign Ministry would open a section of Iranian interests in Albania, thanking Ankara for its assistance regard.

Last September, the Albanian government expelled the Iranian embassy staff from the country over a major cyberattack that the government blamed on Iran. It is the first known case of a country cutting diplomatic relations over a cyberattack.

Relations between Tehran and Tirana had been strained in recent years after the Balkan country agreed to receive 3,000 members of the People's Mojahedin Organization, the Iranian opposition group in exile, at the request of the US and the UN in 2013.

In July, the Mojahedin postponed the "Free Iran World Summit" global conference in Albania that was dedicated to advocating regime change, due to security threats, upon recommendations by the Albanian government.

Before canceling the conference, the US embassy in Tirana separately warned of a "potential threat" targeting the summit and warned its citizens in Albania to avoid the event and keep a low profile.



Kyiv Says Russian Attacks on Medical Center in Ukraine's Sumy Kill 8

This handout photograph taken and released by the Ukrainian National Police on September 19, 2024 shows police officers carrying a victim of an airstrike on a geriatric center in the city of Sumy, amid the Russian invasion in Ukraine. (Photo by Handout / UKRAINIAN NATIONAL POLICE / AFP)
This handout photograph taken and released by the Ukrainian National Police on September 19, 2024 shows police officers carrying a victim of an airstrike on a geriatric center in the city of Sumy, amid the Russian invasion in Ukraine. (Photo by Handout / UKRAINIAN NATIONAL POLICE / AFP)
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Kyiv Says Russian Attacks on Medical Center in Ukraine's Sumy Kill 8

This handout photograph taken and released by the Ukrainian National Police on September 19, 2024 shows police officers carrying a victim of an airstrike on a geriatric center in the city of Sumy, amid the Russian invasion in Ukraine. (Photo by Handout / UKRAINIAN NATIONAL POLICE / AFP)
This handout photograph taken and released by the Ukrainian National Police on September 19, 2024 shows police officers carrying a victim of an airstrike on a geriatric center in the city of Sumy, amid the Russian invasion in Ukraine. (Photo by Handout / UKRAINIAN NATIONAL POLICE / AFP)

Russian forces hit a medical center in Sumy in northeastern Ukraine on Saturday morning then struck again as the building was being evacuated, killing a total of eight people, Ukrainian officials said.
Ukrainian prosecutors said that at the time of the attacks, 86 patients and 38 staff members were in the hospital.
"The first attack killed one person and damaged the ceilings of several floors of the hospital," Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said on Telegram.
As people were being evacuated, the Russians struck again, killing a further five people, he said.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy later said eight people were killed and 11 injured, Reuters reported.
"Everyone in the world who talks about this war should pay attention to where Russia is hitting. They are fighting hospitals, civilian objects, and people's lives," Zelenskiy said on Telegram.
"Only force can force Russia to peace. Peace through force is the only right way."
Klymenko did not specify what weapons were used in Saturday's attacks but the regional administration and air forces said the strike was carried out by drones.
Attacks on Sumy city and the Sumy region have become much more frequent since Ukrainian forces launched an operation in Russia's Kursk region in August and captured dozens of settlements.
Sumy city is located just 32 km (20 miles) from the Russian border and Russian forces have been attacking the region and the city with drones and guided bombs.
Ukrainian air forces earlier on Saturday said they had shot down 69 of 73 drones during an overnight Russian attack that included two ballistic and two cruise missiles.
About 15 Russian attack drones were destroyed by air defenses in the capital Kyiv and on its outskirts, the military administration there said.