ANKARA
Anadolu Agency is here with a rundown of the latest developments on the coronavirus pandemic and other news in Turkey and around the world.
Turkey's head of the Defense Industries Presidency said the defense industry was proceeding on its way regardless of embargo decisions in response to the Canadian suspension of exporting technological materials.
Wednesday marked another day that Turkish security operations inflicted a heavy blow on terrorism as five PKK terrorists were neutralized in northern Iraq. In addition, Turkish authorities said 15 PKK ringleaders have been neutralized since September. Meanwhile, dozens of terror suspects affiliated with the FETO terrorist group were arrested.
In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US and EU -- has been responsible for the deaths of 40,000 people, including women, children and infants.
FETO and its US-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated a defeated coup on July 15, 2016 which left 251 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Armenia's attacks on civilian settlements in Azerbaijan were both a crime against humanity and sign of its desperation.
Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the leader of Turkey's main opposition party, said Turkish citizens fully support Azerbaijan in its conflict with Armenia, which has carried out attacks on both military posts and civilian settlements.
Relations between the two former Soviet republics have been tense since 1991, when the Armenian military occupied Upper Karabakh, or Nagorno-Karabakh, an internationally recognized territory of Azerbaijan.
Multiple UN resolutions as well as many international organizations demand the withdrawal of the invading forces.
The OSCE Minsk Group – co-chaired by France, Russia and the US – was formed in 1992 to find a peaceful solution to the conflict, but to no avail. A cease-fire, however, was reached in 1994.
Many world powers, including Russia, France, and the US, have called for an immediate cease-fire. Turkey, meanwhile, has supported Baku's right to self-defense.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and discussed bilateral relations, the Eastern Mediterranean and developments in the Azerbaijan-Armenia conflict.
COVID-19 news
COVID-19 has claimed more than a million lives in 188 countries and regions since it was first detected in Wuhan, China in December.
The US, India and Brazil are currently the worst-hit countries.
Over 35.6 million cases have been reported worldwide, with recoveries exceeding 24.8 million, according to figures compiled by US-based Johns Hopkins University.
The number of fatalities in South Africa due to the coronavirus topped 17,000. The country has the highest number of cases on the continent and is the 10th most-affected globally.
Spain confirmed 261 COVID-19 deaths, the highest figure since May. More than 3,300 people have lost their lives to the disease since Sept. 1.
Local health authorities recorded more coronavirus cases and deaths Tuesday in Libya, the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Kuwait.
Protests erupted in Kyrgyzstan over parliamentary polls, with demonstrators unhappy over election results occupying the presidential palace and parliament buildings. The country's premier stepped down amid the protests.
Azerbaijan’s chief prosecutor said Armenia has deliberately and non-discriminately targeted civilian settlements, adding civilian casualties since Sept. 27 have risen to 27 while 141 others have been wounded.
The European Union highlighted Turkey's "key role" in tackling the issue of migration, which was triggered following the start of the Syrian civil war. The EU and Turkey reached a migration deal in 2016.
