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Turkish, Russian Officials to Meet in Ankara for Talks on Syria, Libya

A picture taken on April 1, 2017 shows a view of a field near the town of Qumhanah in the countryside of the central province of Hama through a hole in a concrete wall. (AFP)
A picture taken on April 1, 2017 shows a view of a field near the town of Qumhanah in the countryside of the central province of Hama through a hole in a concrete wall. (AFP)
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Turkish, Russian Officials to Meet in Ankara for Talks on Syria, Libya

A picture taken on April 1, 2017 shows a view of a field near the town of Qumhanah in the countryside of the central province of Hama through a hole in a concrete wall. (AFP)
A picture taken on April 1, 2017 shows a view of a field near the town of Qumhanah in the countryside of the central province of Hama through a hole in a concrete wall. (AFP)

Turkish and Russian officials will meet in Ankara this week for a new round of talks on developments in Syria and Libya, Turkey’s Foreign Ministry said on Monday.

“Consultations between Turkish and Russian interagency delegations on Libya and Syria will continue at a technical level on 15-16 September 2020 in Ankara,” the ministry said.

Turkey has helped the Government of National Accord (GNA) repel an offensive by the east-based Libyan National Army. Last month, the GNA declared a ceasefire in Libya and called for a lifting of a blockade on oil facilities. Aguila Saleh, the leader of the east-based parliament, also called for a halt to hostilities.

Ankara and Moscow back opposing sides in Syria. Russia, along with Iran, supports president Bashar Assad’s forces and Turkey backs opposition factions looking to oust him.

After an escalation of violence displaced nearly 1 million people and brought the two sides close to confrontation, Turkey and Russia agreed in March to halt hostilities. Both sides have said the ceasefire has held despite minor violations.

The last round of talks was held in Moscow on Aug. 31-Sept. 1.

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Arab World

Israeli Fire Kills at Least 4 Palestinians in Gaza

A displaced Palestinian woman stands on a balcony inside a building damaged during the war at Al-Aqsa University, now used as a shelter, in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, April 5, 2026. REUTERS/Haseeb Alwazeer
A displaced Palestinian woman stands on a balcony inside a building damaged during the war at Al-Aqsa University, now used as a shelter, in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, April 5, 2026. REUTERS/Haseeb Alwazeer
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Israeli Fire Kills at Least 4 Palestinians in Gaza

A displaced Palestinian woman stands on a balcony inside a building damaged during the war at Al-Aqsa University, now used as a shelter, in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, April 5, 2026. REUTERS/Haseeb Alwazeer
A displaced Palestinian woman stands on a balcony inside a building damaged during the war at Al-Aqsa University, now used as a shelter, in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, April 5, 2026. REUTERS/Haseeb Alwazeer

Israeli forces shot and killed a young female student on Thursday while she was attending a class held in a tent in the town of Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip, health and education officials said.

The education ministry said third-grade student Ritaj Rihan was hit by a bullet in front of her classmates, causing them "a strong psychological shock,” Reuters reported.

Later on Thursday, health officials said three other Palestinians were killed in two separate airstrikes in northern and southern Gaza Strip, bringing Thursday's death toll to at least four.

Medics ⁠said an Israeli ⁠airstrike near a hospital in Jabalia, in the north of the enclave, killed at least two people, while another strike killed one person in Khan Younis, in the south.

The Israeli military did not immediately comment on any of the incidents.

Under a ceasefire in place since last October, ⁠Israel still occupies more than half of the Gaza Strip. Nearly all buildings in the Israeli-controlled sector have been levelled and residents driven out.

That leaves virtually the entire population of more than two million people confined to about a third of Gaza's territory, mostly in makeshift tents and damaged buildings, where life has resumed under the control of an administration led by Hamas.

Displaced Gaza children are attending classes given by volunteer teachers in crowded tents in some areas, keen to continue their ⁠education despite ⁠the widespread destruction of schools.

These makeshift classrooms face severe challenges, including harsh weather, resource shortages, and security risks.

More than 700 Palestinians have been killed since the October deal took effect, while militants have killed three Israeli soldiers. Palestinians say Israeli forces have been moving some of the yellow concrete markers westward, encroaching into unoccupied territory. Israel denies this.

Israel's assault on Gaza has killed more than 71,000 people, according to the enclave's health ministry. The war was triggered by a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, which killed some 1,200 people, according to Israeli tallies.

Arab World

Nawaf Salam Asks Pakistani Counterpart to Ensure Lebanon Included in Ceasefire Deal

FILED - 16 February 2026, Lebanon, Beirut: Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam is pictured during a meeting at the Prime Minister's office. Photo: Markus Lenhardt/dpa
FILED - 16 February 2026, Lebanon, Beirut: Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam is pictured during a meeting at the Prime Minister's office. Photo: Markus Lenhardt/dpa
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Nawaf Salam Asks Pakistani Counterpart to Ensure Lebanon Included in Ceasefire Deal

FILED - 16 February 2026, Lebanon, Beirut: Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam is pictured during a meeting at the Prime Minister's office. Photo: Markus Lenhardt/dpa
FILED - 16 February 2026, Lebanon, Beirut: Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam is pictured during a meeting at the Prime Minister's office. Photo: Markus Lenhardt/dpa

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam on Thursday asked his Pakistani counterpart, Shehbaz Sharif, to affirm that the ceasefire should include Lebanon, according to the German news agency (dpa).

In a phone call with Sharif, Salam “requested confirmation that the ceasefire must cover Lebanon, to prevent a repeat of the Israeli attacks witnessed yesterday,” a statement said.

Salam also praised the “efforts undertaken by the Pakistani prime minister that led to the ceasefire.”

For his part, Pakistan’s prime minister condemned the “recent Israeli attacks on Lebanon,” stressing that his country is working to help secure peace and stability there.

Arab World

Israel Says Will Continue to Strike Hezbollah 'Wherever Necessary'

People inspect the aftermath of a building destroyed in an Israeili airstrike in the Corniche el-Mazraa neighborhood of Beirut, Lebanon, 09 April 2026. EPA/WAEL HAMZEH
People inspect the aftermath of a building destroyed in an Israeili airstrike in the Corniche el-Mazraa neighborhood of Beirut, Lebanon, 09 April 2026. EPA/WAEL HAMZEH
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Israel Says Will Continue to Strike Hezbollah 'Wherever Necessary'

People inspect the aftermath of a building destroyed in an Israeili airstrike in the Corniche el-Mazraa neighborhood of Beirut, Lebanon, 09 April 2026. EPA/WAEL HAMZEH
People inspect the aftermath of a building destroyed in an Israeili airstrike in the Corniche el-Mazraa neighborhood of Beirut, Lebanon, 09 April 2026. EPA/WAEL HAMZEH

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that Israel would keep hitting Hezbollah "wherever necessary,” the day after Israeli strikes pummeled Lebanon.

"We are continuing to strike Hezbollah with force, precision, and determination," Netanyahu said on his personal X account.

"Our message is clear: anyone who acts against Israeli civilians -- we will strike them. We will continue to hit Hezbollah wherever necessary, until we fully restore security to the residents of the north" of Israel, he added.

Israeli strikes hit busy commercial and residential areas in central Beirut without warning on Wednesday, hours after a ceasefire was announced in the US-Israeli war with Iran.

Lebanon said at least 203 people were killed and hundreds were wounded, making it the deadliest day in the latest Israel-Hezbollah war.

 

People walk among the debris of cars and a building destroyed in an Israeili airstrike in the Corniche el-Mazraa neighborhood of Beirut, Lebanon, 09 April 2026. EPA/WAEL HAMZEH

 

US President Donald Trump told PBS News Hour that Lebanon was not included in the deal because of Hezbollah. When asked about Israel’s latest strikes, he said, “That’s a separate skirmish.”

Israel had said the agreement does not extend to its war with the Iran-backed Hezbollah, although Iran and mediator Pakistan said it does.

There was no sign of Hezbollah launching strikes against Israel in the first couple of hours after the attacks.

In response to the attacks on Lebanon, Iran later Wednesday said it was again halting the movement of oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, the country's state-run media reported.

Lebanon's health minister said at least 1,000 people were wounded in Wednesday's strikes.

The death toll was the highest for a single day in Lebanon during more than five weeks of renewed war between Israel and Hezbollah.

Israel said Thursday it killed Ali Yusuf Harshi, an aide to Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem.