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Turkey Bans Syrians From Spending Adha Eid at Home

Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu speaks at the Migration Board Meeting held in the Golbasi Provinces House in the capital Ankara, Turkey, June 9, 2022. (AA)
Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu speaks at the Migration Board Meeting held in the Golbasi Provinces House in the capital Ankara, Turkey, June 9, 2022. (AA)
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Turkey Bans Syrians From Spending Adha Eid at Home

Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu speaks at the Migration Board Meeting held in the Golbasi Provinces House in the capital Ankara, Turkey, June 9, 2022. (AA)
Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu speaks at the Migration Board Meeting held in the Golbasi Provinces House in the capital Ankara, Turkey, June 9, 2022. (AA)

Turkey on Sunday said it would ban Syrian refugees living in Turkey from visiting their families back home during Eid al-Adha, similar to the restrictions imposed on their visits to Syria during Eid al-Fitr holiday last April, said Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu.

Each year, thousands of Syrian refugees cross the border into Syria to celebrate the holidays and then return to Turkey.

“This is currently not acceptable. Those wishing to return to Syria will receive a one-way transit permit,” Soylo said at a press conference Saturday in Ankara.

The Adha festival is set for mid-July this year.

The Interior Minister also spoke about the new quotas that his country will begin imposing on the number of residence permits for foreigners.

He said that as of July 1, Turkey will limit residence permits for foreigners to 20 percent of the population of certain neighborhoods, adding that the rule will effectively shut 1,200 neighborhoods to more foreign residents.

Soylu addressed the new procedures and controls that will be applied in the next stage, saying that the percentage of foreigners allowed to reside in each neighborhood will be reduced from 25 percent to 20 percent, starting from the first of July.

Accordingly, 1,200 neighborhoods will be closed to requests for residence in Turkey.

The Turkish authorities had announced in the past months a number of measures to enforce stricter restrictions on the areas where Syrians can reside.

The new rules came as anti-immigrant sentiment piles pressure on President Recep Tayyip Erdogan before next year’s elections.

On Wednesday, the Turkish Interior Minister said taxi drivers are allowed to check the travel permit documents of foreign passengers, in a move to limit the transportation of illegal immigrants.

He said a camera system will be installed in truck stops to prevent stowaways from cutting holes and hiding in the tarpaulins of trucks.

In the framework of combating illegal immigration, the Turkish Interior Ministry said that 34,112 immigrants who entered the country illegally early this year have been deported.

There are about 3.7 million Syrian refugees in Turkey.

In February, the Turkish authorities said 16 provinces, including Istanbul, Bursa, Ankara, Antalya, Izmir and Hatay, where the Syrian population is particularly high, have already stopped issuing residencies for newly arrived foreigners.

Soylu also announced on Saturday that some Syrians will not receive the temporary protection cards, or Kimlik, after they enter Turkish territory in certain ways.

He said Syrians coming from their country will be transferred to camps in Hatay and will be questioned about their places of residence in Syria. The Minister said that if those Syrians reside in Damascus, they will be returned home immediately.

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World

Denmark: Train Collision Leaves 17 Injured, 5 Are in Critical Condition

Damages at the accident scene after two trains collided between Hillerod and Kagerup at Isteroedvejen, Denmark, 23 April 2026. EPA/STEVEN KNAP
Damages at the accident scene after two trains collided between Hillerod and Kagerup at Isteroedvejen, Denmark, 23 April 2026. EPA/STEVEN KNAP
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Denmark: Train Collision Leaves 17 Injured, 5 Are in Critical Condition

Damages at the accident scene after two trains collided between Hillerod and Kagerup at Isteroedvejen, Denmark, 23 April 2026. EPA/STEVEN KNAP
Damages at the accident scene after two trains collided between Hillerod and Kagerup at Isteroedvejen, Denmark, 23 April 2026. EPA/STEVEN KNAP

Two commuter trains collided head-on near the Danish capital on Thursday injuring 17, of whom five were in critical condition, emergency services said.

"We can't provide any details for now about the cause of the accident," police official Morten Kaare Pedersen told reporters.

He said police were alerted to the accident at 6:29 am (0429 GMT), which occurred about 40 kilometers (25 miles) north of Copenhagen between the towns of Hillerod and Kagerup.

Officials originally said four people were critically injured but revised that figure hours after the crash. It was not immediately clear whether the train's drivers were among the victims.

Investigators are looking into what caused the collision. Photos from the scene show the front ends of the trains smashed, though both remained upright on the tracks.

The mayor of the nearby town of Gribskov, Trine Egetved, in a post on Facebook, said some of the injured were flown to the hospital.

She said the crash occurred on a local rail line that's used by many Gribskov residents, employees and schoolchildren.

World

Report: Clearing Hormuz Strait Mines Could Take 6 Months

Ships and boats in the Strait of Hormuz, Musandam, Oman, April 22, 2026. REUTERS/Stringer
Ships and boats in the Strait of Hormuz, Musandam, Oman, April 22, 2026. REUTERS/Stringer
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Report: Clearing Hormuz Strait Mines Could Take 6 Months

Ships and boats in the Strait of Hormuz, Musandam, Oman, April 22, 2026. REUTERS/Stringer
Ships and boats in the Strait of Hormuz, Musandam, Oman, April 22, 2026. REUTERS/Stringer

A Pentagon assessment said it could take six months to completely clear the Strait of Hormuz of Iranian-laid mines, which could keep oil prices high, the Washington Post reported on Wednesday.

Iran has all but blocked the vital waterway since the start of a war with the United States and Israel, sharply driving up oil and gas prices and disrupting the global economy.

The strait -- through which one-fifth of the world's oil and gas passes in peacetime -- has remained largely closed during a shaky ceasefire, with the US imposing its own blockade.

Even if hostilities end and the blockade lifts, it could take months to clear the waterway of mines, according to a Pentagon assessment, the Washington Post reported citing officials close to the discussion.

The assessment added that it was unlikely such an operation would begin before the end of the war.

The six-month estimate was shared with members of the House Armed Services Committee during a classified briefing, the Post reported.

Lawmakers were told that Iran may have placed 20 or more mines in and around the strait, some floated remotely using GPS technology which makes them harder to detect, according to the report.

AFP has contacted the Department of Defense for comment.

Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell told the Washington Post that its information was "inaccurate."

Iran's Revolutionary Guards have warned of a "danger zone" covering 1,400 square kilometers -- 14 times the size of Paris -- where mines may be present.

Iran's parliament speaker said his country would not reopen the strait as long as the US naval blockade remained.

A spokesman for German transportation giant Hapag-Lloyd cautioned last week that shippers needed details on viable routes as they remain fearful of mines.

When the Hormuz strait briefly reopened at the start of the ceasefire this month, only a few ships trickled through amid fears of attacks or mines.

Earlier in April, the US Navy said its ships transited the waterway to begin removing the mines, but that claim was denied by Iran's Revolutionary Guard, which threatened any military vessels attempting to cross the channel.

London hosted talks with military planners from over 30 countries starting Wednesday on a UK and France-led multinational mission to protect navigation in the Strait of Hormuz once hostilities end.

The "defensive" coalition is set to discuss plans to reopen the strait and conduct mine clearance operations.

World

North Korea, Russia Reportedly Aim to Open New Road Bridge Soon

Officials attend the groundbreaking ceremony for the bridge connecting North Korea and Russia in Rason Municipality, North Korea, April 30, 2025 (Reuters file photo)
Officials attend the groundbreaking ceremony for the bridge connecting North Korea and Russia in Rason Municipality, North Korea, April 30, 2025 (Reuters file photo)
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North Korea, Russia Reportedly Aim to Open New Road Bridge Soon

Officials attend the groundbreaking ceremony for the bridge connecting North Korea and Russia in Rason Municipality, North Korea, April 30, 2025 (Reuters file photo)
Officials attend the groundbreaking ceremony for the bridge connecting North Korea and Russia in Rason Municipality, North Korea, April 30, 2025 (Reuters file photo)

North Korea and Russia aim to open a road bridge connecting the countries across the Tumen River as soon as possible, North Korean state media KCNA said on Thursday, as the neighboring countries forge closer ties.

The project, which began about a year ago, is "an important business" to boost bilateral cooperation including tourism, trade and the movement of people, KCNA said, according to Reuters.

Construction of the 850-meter (2,789-ft) bridge, which will connect to Russia's highway system, was agreed during a ⁠2024 visit to North Korea ⁠by President Vladimir Putin.

Russia and North Korea held a ceremony on Tuesday to mark the joining of the bridge, the Moscow Times reported.

It is being built near the existing "Friendship Bridge,” a rail bridge which was commissioned in 1959 after the Korean War.

KCNA said an opening ceremony would be held soon, without specifying a date. The Russian embassy in ⁠Pyongyang wrote on Telegram that the bridge would be completed on June 19.

Oleg Kozhemyako, governor of the Primorsky region in Russia's Far East, wrote on Telegram that the bridge would increase trade and expand cultural and tourism ties. He said it would cut the distance between Vladivostok and the border city of Rason to 320 kilometers and the crossing would have the capacity to accommodate up to 300 cars per day.

The update came as several Russian delegations visited North Korea this week.

Russian Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev met Jo Yong Won, chairman of the Standing Committee of North ⁠Korea's Supreme People's ⁠Assembly, on Wednesday in what KCNA described as a "favorable atmosphere."

On Tuesday, Russian Health Minister Mikhail Murashko visited the North Korean city of Wonsan to attend a ceremony celebrating the construction of a hospital symbolizing the "friendship" between the countries, KCNA said.

Russia and North Korea in 2024 signed a "comprehensive strategic partnership treaty" during Putin's visit to Pyongyang.

The pact includes a mutual defense provision, and North Korea has sent thousands of soldiers to fight alongside Russian forces in western Russia's Kursk region after a large Ukrainian incursion.

China has also been seeking to strengthen cross-border infrastructure and rebuild ties with North Korea and last month saw the first passenger train service between the countries resume after a six-year gap.