THE EARLY PHOENIX – July 27, 2023

TOP HEADLINES:

China’s Newly Appointed FM: Ready to Enhance Mutual Cooperation with Turkiye (Daily Sabah). Yi noted that Beijing was ready to enhance mutual strategic trust and deepen cooperation with Türkiye, as he called on the two sides to utilize bilateral cooperation. On the issue of stepping up efforts to align China’s Belt and Road Initiative and Türkiye’s Middle Corridor Initiative, Erdoğan conveyed his desire for more vital collaboration between the two countries.

Herzog: Those in Power are Chiefly Responsible for Mending Rift Caused by Overhaul (Times of Israel). President says he’s ‘deeply disappointed’ by failure to reach a compromise but will press efforts to bridge gaps; coalition whip calls his comments ‘unfortunate.’
Palestinian President and Hamas Leader in Ankara (Daily Sabah). Erdoğan facilitated a meeting between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh behind closed doors. The meeting comes amid regional tensions and efforts to find a fair and permanent solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict through a two-state solution.

An Internal European Investigation Into The Role of “Frontex” in The Tragedy of The Drowning of Hundreds of Migrants Leaving Libya (Al Wasat). The Secretary of the European Ombudsman, Emily O’Reilly, begins an investigation within the European Union regarding the role played by the European Union Border Control Agency (Frontex) in the tragedy of the drowning of hundreds of migrants in Greece, who were on a fishing boat that departed from Libya, last June.
Sisi Meets Putin on the Sidelines of the Russian-African Summit (Al Mustaqila). President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi is heading to Russia to participate in the activities of the second edition of the Russian-African summit, which is scheduled to be held in St. Petersburg from the 26th to the 29th of July.

Saudi F-15 Crashed, Killing Its Crew (Zaman Al Wasel). The Fighter jet crashed during a training exercise near the King Khaled Air Base in Khamis Mushait, 815 Km southwest of Riyadh.
United Arab Emirates Opens ‘Aid Coordination’ Office in Damascus (New Arab). The UAE opened an “aid coordination office” in Damascus, Syria, to boost its humanitarian efforts. The office’s inauguration was attended by the UAE Assistant Foreign Minister for Development and International Organisations and representatives from the Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Local Administration and Environment.

Millions of Iranians Sinking into Poverty as Social Risks Loom (Iran International). Experts predict that an expected hike in inflation will sink millions of Iranians deeper into poverty, with food prices being the most acutely affected. The official annual inflation rate is 47.5 percent – the highest rate in Iran for more than 30 years.
Iran Produces Yellow Cake from Phosphate (Mehr News). Head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Mohammad Eslami, speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a cabinet meeting, said a “supplementary achievement” of the Iranian scientists at the AEOI is the production of yellow cake from phosphate.
Olympic Committee Threatens Action Against Iran for Persecuting Athletes (Iran International). The International Olympic Committee observes a dramatic increase in persecution of Iranian athletes and may act before the 2024 Olympic games in Paris…Just weeks ago, Iran’s regime imposed the death penalty on school boxing champion Mohammad Javad Vafaei-Sani for allegedly setting government property, including a prison, on fire.

Assad Received Putin’s Envoy in Damascus (Syria TV). Alexander Lavrentiev discussed the file of the mechanism for introducing cross-border assistance to the northwest of the country and the issue of the withdrawal of Turkish troops from Syrian territory.

Iraq’s June Oil Sales $7 Billion (Al Iraq News). The Ministry of Oil announced the final statistics of oil revenues during June, which amounted to (7) billion and (179) million dollars.

Iran’s Proxies See Opportunity in Israel’s Crisis (Iran International). Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) met with Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Palestinian Hamas to explore opportunities to exploit Israel’s internal political turmoil…While Iran encourages intensified attacks on Israel, Hamas, and Hezbollah are monitoring the situation and hoping for tensions to worsen while remaining cautious about potential diversionary tactics by Netanyahu.