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Here is a rundown of all the news that you need to start your Thursday with, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu using an address before a joint session of US Congress to urge the creation of a regional anti-Iranian security pact that he dubbed the "Abraham Alliance." Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan saying that Ankara can be a part of guarantee mechanism, if there is an agreement on two-state solution and Israel killing 589 Palestinians in West Bank since Oct. 7.
TOP STORIES
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu used an address before a joint session of Congress to urge the creation of a regional anti-Iranian security pact that he dubbed the "Abraham Alliance."
Netanyahu told lawmakers that the world saw "a glimpse" of his proposed pact on April 14 when Arab states and the US intercepted a slew of Iranian missiles and drones bound for Israel that were launched by Tehran in retaliation for an earlier Israeli attack on Iran's Consulate in Damascus that killed senior military officials.
The alliance would be a "natural extension" of normalization agreements known as the "Abraham Accords" that Israel brokered with Arab states during the former Trump administration, said Netanyahu.
Türkiye’s Foreign Minister Fidan said his country can be part of the guarantor mechanism that Ankara proposed, if an agreement on a two-state solution is reached.
Fidan warned that without the immediate implementation of the two-state solution, a fourth Gaza war is inevitable. “We will be perpetually entangled in conflicts,” he said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has another agenda, Fidan said, adding: “Cease-fire in Palestine doesn’t align” with his political objectives.
The Israeli army has killed at least 589 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank since Oct. 7, the Health Ministry said.
In its statement, the ministry noted that some 142 children were among the slain.
Earlier in the day, the Health Ministry announced that three Palestinians were killed by the Israeli forces during raids across the West Bank.
NEWS IN BRIEF
SPORTS
With only two days left to the start of the 2024 Summer Olympics, the 36 athletes from 11 countries will compete in 12 sports as part of the Refugee Olympic Team in Paris.
"The IOC Refugee Olympic Team sends a great signal about what an enrichment refugees are for our Olympic community and for society at large. Watching them compete is a great moment for all of us, and we hope everyone will join," Thomas Bach, the International Olympic Committee president, said in a statement.
"The athletes are welcome in our Olympic community, among their fellow athletes – competing with them, but also living with them together under one roof," he added.
Anadolu will cover in 13 languages the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, which will begin on Friday.
In the world’s most important sports organization, Anadolu will also deliver to its subscribers news, photos and images of 102 Turkish athletes who will compete in 18 branches.
Apart from games, press conferences and interviews will also be covered.
Spain defeated Uzbekistan 2-1 in the opening game of competition in Men's Group C, which began at 1300GMT.
Marc Pubill drew first blood for Spain in the 29th minute, then Eldor Shomurodov leveled the score from a penalty kick in the 48th minute.
Sergio Gomez tallied the winning goal for Spain in the 62nd minute.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
Moody's said it upgraded the local and foreign-currency long-term deposit, issuer and senior unsecured ratings of 17 Turkish banks, while their outlooks remain positive.
The move is a result of the improvement of their operating environment, and a track record of resilient performance by the Turkish banks, the rating agency said late Tuesday in a statement.
"The revised Macro Profile score for Türkiye is underpinned by the Turkish government's improvements in governance, more specifically the decisive and increasingly well-established return to orthodox monetary policy," it said. "In turn, these factors have eased the pressure on the banks' financial performance and improved the banking sector's access to foreign funding."
Ukraine's sanctions on Russian energy corporation Lukoil poses a significant risk for Hungarian and Slovakian refineries, Fitch Ratings said.
Refineries in Slovakia and Hungary face significant credit risk after crude oil from Lukoil to be shipped across Ukraine through the Druzhba pipeline has been put on hold since last month, it said in a statement.
"These volumes primarily serve the Hungarian and Slovakian markets and, while immaterial to the overall European supply balance, could significantly impact energy supply in Hungary and Slovakia over the medium-term," it added.
The US has committed up to $667 million to global Pandemic Fund, or one third of the $2 billion resource mobilization goal, to support the Fund through 2026, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen announced.
The global Pandemic Fund has set a goal of raising at least $2 billion in new direct funding, in order to continue its crucial work and respond to clear demand, while it is working to develop a sustainable resource mobilization plan that brings in new donors and new financing, the Treasury Department said in a statement.
The US, in addition, has called on all existing donors to double their initial pledges to the Pandemic Fund, and called for support from new partners including governments, the private sector, philanthropies, and civil society, noting they all have roles to play to advance the Fund’s mission to make sure we are better prepared for the next pandemic.
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