Handan Kazanci
02 September 2023•Update: 02 September 2023
ISTANBUL
Here’s a rundown of all the news you need to start your Saturday, including Türkiye being hopeful for reviving the Black Sea grain deal, French President Emmanuel Macron saying France will be uncompromising about its abaya ban in schools and the director general-elect of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) calling for urgent solutions to climate change and human mobility challenges as the world has entered "the era of climate migration.”
TOP STORIES
Ankara is hopeful that upcoming talks between the leaders of Türkiye and Russia on restoring the Black Sea grain deal will prove fruitful, according to the chief aide to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
“The latest situation will be discussed at the summit to be held on Monday. We're cautious, but we hope we'll achieve success because this is necessary for the whole world,” Akif Cagatay Kilic told Turkish news broadcaster A Haber.
The remarks came ahead of Erdogan's visit to the Russian coastal city of Sochi to meet his counterpart, Vladimir Putin, and discuss the key deal that allowed Ukrainian grain exports to flow until Moscow pulled out of it in July.
The French president vowed the government will be uncompromising on the overgarment ban in schools.
Emmanuel Macron visited a high school in Orange in southern France where he made comments on the ban on wearing the abaya, or qamis, overgarments in school.
"Schools in our country are secular, free and compulsory, but foremost, secular … and religious signs, whatever they are, do not have a place (there)," Macron said, according to broadcaster BFMTV.
The director general-elect of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) called for urgent solutions to address climate change and human mobility challenges because the world has entered "the era of climate migration.”
“Solutions to address the nexus of climate change and human mobility at a continental scale are urgent,” Amy Pope said in a statement.
The call for action came ahead of the Africa Climate Summit in Nairobi from Sept. 4 - 6.
NEWS IN BRIEF
- US jets carried out airstrikes against Iran-backed groups in Syria's eastern Deir ez-Zor province, which is the scene of clashes between Arab tribes and the PKK/YPG terror group, according to local sources.
- Ecuadorian authorities announced that 50 prison guards and seven police officers who were held hostage in six Ecuadorian prisons have been released.
- Moroccan authorities opened an investigation into the killing of two of its nationals in Algerian territorial waters, said media reports.
- Egyptian-born businessman Mohamed Al-Fayed has died, according to the British football club, Fulham. He was 94.
- Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Sijjarto appealed to Austria to abandon opposition to Bulgaria and Romania joining the Schengen area.
- The Bongo family, which ruled Gabon since 1967, was at the core of a scandal that took an international turn after a probe in France in 2010.
- Zimbabwe’s opposition Citizens Coalition for Change demanded nationwide anti-government protests following the recent disputed elections in the southern African nation.
- Russia’s Justice Ministry branded the editor-in-chief of the independent Russian newspaper, Novaya Gazeta, and the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, a “foreign agent.”
- Nine people were injured in an intervention by Israeli forces against Palestinians protesting in the occupied West Bank and the besieged Gaza Strip, according to a statement from the Kfar Qaddum Popular Resistance Committee.
- China’s ambassador to Türkiye Liu Shaobin welcomed Ankara’s diplomatic efforts for the restoration of the Black Sea grain deal.
- Albania's UN envoy Ferit Hoxha said the process of the reform of the Security Council is not making headway although it has been more than 30 years.
- Azerbaijan said Armenia’s failure to adhere to the tripartite agreement reached with the EU in July concerning the delivery of goods to the Karabakh region hinders its implementation.
- Türkiye said it is closely following with “concern” recent clashes between branches of the PKK/YPG terror group and Arab tribal elements in the countryside of Syria's eastern Deir ez-Zor province.
SPORTS
Türkiye reached the 2023 CEV Women's European Volleyball Championship (EuroVolley) final by beating Italy 3-2 in the semifinals.
The Crescent Stars reached the finals for the third time by eliminating the reigning champions 18-25, 25-23, 15-25, 25-22 and 15-6 in the semifinal match.
Melissa Teresa Vargas rallied Türkiye, especially when she sparked the flame for Türkiye's comeback from behind with effective spikes in the fourth set.
Altay Bayindir joined Manchester United on a contract that runs until June 2027, with the option of another year, subject to international clearance.
"It is a huge honor to join Manchester United and become the first Turkish player to represent this incredible club," Bayindir said in a statement. "I have a passion for success, and I will give everything to help this special group of players to achieve our ambitions."
Manchester United football director John Murtough heaped raises on Bayindir.
"Altay is an excellent addition to our squad and adds further quality to our already strong group of experienced goalkeepers," he said.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
The second quarter saw soaring defense industry exports for Türkiye, a senior government official told Anadolu at a regular event that, by generating thousands of enthusiasts, has come to illustrate the country's meteoric rise in the sector.
Haluk Gorgun, the head of Türkiye's Defense Industry Agency, said the country achieved record defense industry exports from April - June and is optimistic that another all-time high would follow in the third quarter.
Gorgun told Anadolu at Türkiye's premiere technology and aerospace event, TEKNOFEST, in the national capital of Ankara, that the country would fulfill its year-end defense exports target of $6 billion.
Russia and China were behind the majority of cyberattacks that targeted German businesses last year, according to Bitkom, a digital advocacy group.
“There are other countries too, but Russia and China are the leading countries behind these cyberattacks,” Bitkom’s President Ralf Wintergerst told a news conference in Berlin.
“At the same time, organized criminal groups engaging in cybercrime have significantly increased, these are the perceptions and findings of the German companies,” he said.
