Seda Sevencan
25 February 2024•Update: 25 February 2024
ISTANBUL
Here is a rundown of all the news that you need to start your Sunday, including G7 leaders' statement on Ukraine, tension in the Red Sea and the Israeli War Cabinet’s “operational plans” for Rafah.
TOP STORIES
The leaders of the G7 reaffirmed their unfluctuating backing of Ukraine on Saturday.
“We the Leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) met today with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to reaffirm our unwavering support for Ukraine and salute once more the bravery and resilience of the Ukrainian people who have been fighting tirelessly for Ukraine’s freedom and democratic future,” according to a statement after a video conference to mark the second anniversary of the Russia-Ukraine war.
The statement highlighted Russia's “unprovoked full-scale invasion which constitutes a blatant violation of the UN Charter.”
It said that Ukrainians “have proven their will to defeat President Putin’s war machine, restore their nation’s territorial integrity, and defend Ukraine’s sovereignty and independence.
The Houthis said Sunday that they targeted an American oil tanker in the Gulf of Aden and American warships in the Red Sea.
Spokesman of Yemen's Houthi armed forces, Yahya Saree, made the announcement on Telegram but did not provide information on the results of the attacks.
Saree said that the attacks were carried out in response to aggression against the Palestinian people and strikes by the Americans and the British against Yemen.
The US said Saturday it shot down an anti-ship ballistic missile launched by the Houthis in the Red Sea.
“On Feb. 24 at 5 p.m. (Sanaa time), USS Mason (DDG 87) shot down one Anti-Ship Ballistic Missile (ASBM) launched into the Gulf of Aden from Iranian-backed Houthi controlled areas of Yemen,” CENTCOM wrote on X.
The missile was likely targeting MV Torm Thor, a US-flagged, owned and operated chemical and oil tanker, it said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he is set early next week to approve "operational plans" related to Rafah, a city in the southern Gaza Strip hosting more than 1 million uprooted Palestinians.
"At the beginning of the week, I will meet with the War Cabinet to approve operational plans in Rafah, including the evacuation of civilian residents," Netanyahu said at a news conference.
For weeks, Israeli threats to launch a ground operation in Rafah, adjacent to the border with Egypt, have been escalating despite mounting regional and international warnings of potential catastrophic consequences.
Flouting the International Court of Justice’s provisional ruling, Israel continues its onslaught on the Gaza Strip where at least 29,606 Palestinians have been killed, mostly women and children, and 69,737 injured since Oct. 7, according to Palestinian health authorities.
NEWS IN BRIEF
- The Israeli army announced that another officer within its ranks was killed in clashes in the northern Gaza Strip, bringing its death toll since Oct. 7 to 577.
- The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) lifted economic and travel sanctions on Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso with immediate effect.
- Donald Trump notched another victory against Nikki Haley, this time in the former governor’s home state of South Carolina.
- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan criticized the UN and Western countries for “just watching the humanitarian crimes” committed by Israel in Gaza for the last 140 days.
- Australia imposed further sanctions on 37 entities and travel bans on 55 Russians on the second anniversary of the Ukraine-Russia war.
- NATO’s chief urged Ukraine and its allies not to “lose heart” as the war between Moscow and Kyiv entered its third year.
- The Russian Defense Ministry claimed that two MiG-29 fighter jets of Ukraine were shot down in the Donetsk region using air defense systems.
- Türkiye has played a major role in helping Palestinians achieve victory against Israel, said Venezuela's foreign minister.
- Hundreds of supporters of Senegalese President Macky Sall took to the streets in the capital, Dakar, to show support for the outgoing president who is facing criticism for postponing the Feb. 25 presidential election.
- Pope Francis accepted the resignation of a Polish archbishop accused of covering up the sexual abuse of minors in the Catholic Church, according to a Vatican statement.
- French farmers stormed a major Paris farm fair, unleashing a cacophony of anger and frustration aimed at President Emmanuel Macron.
- British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has been accused of “being complicit” in a shocking wave of Islamophobic racism in the wake of a blatant attack on the London mayor from former Conservative Party’s deputy chairman Lee Anderson.
SPORTS
Two Premier League clubs will meet on Sunday as Chelsea to face Liverpool in the 2024 English League Cup (Carabao Cup) final.
The Reds look to clinch their 10th League Cup title while the Blues aim for their first domestic trophy for eight seasons since 2015.
Liverpool hold the record for the most Carabao Cup titles, lifting the trophy a record nine times, ahead of Manchester City (8) and Manchester United (6).
Five-time winners Chelsea's last taste of the English League Cup was in 2015 when they beat 2-0 Tottenham Hotspur.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
Chocolate lovers around the world may have to brace themselves for a sweet treat shortage as cocoa prices reach unprecedented heights, with economists projecting no downward trend through 2024.
Cocoa prices have more than doubled since the beginning of last year, reaching an all-time high of $9,010.59 per ton on the New York commodities market in the second week of February.
Unfavorable weather conditions, smuggling, and swollen shoot disease are said to have contributed to the price increase, resulting in lower crop yields in Ivory Coast, which produces nearly 40% of the world's cocoa bean, and Ghana, which produces 20%.
