US shooting down China balloon draws threat from Beijing

*) Putin warns West over arms deliveries to Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin has vowed a decisive response to any country threatening Russia and lashed out against Germany for promising tanks for Kiev.

He was speaking at a ceremony commemorating the Red Army's victory against Nazi troops 80 years ago in Stalingrad, as the city was then known.
His statement came after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned that the Kremlin was consolidating its forces for a fresh offensive.

*) Norway withdraws permission for Quran burning after Türkiye's warning

Norway has cancelled its permission to burn the Quran after Ankara warned against it.

On Thursday, Türkiye summoned Norwegian Ambassador in Ankara, Erling Skjonsberg, over plans to desecrate the holy Quran in the Scandinavian country on Friday.

Skjonsberg was told that Ankara "strongly condemns Norway's approach not to prevent the planned provocative act, which is clearly a hate crime.

*) Sudan to move forward with Israel 'normalisation'

Sudan says it has agreed to "move forward" towards normalising relations with Israel during talks with Israeli foreign minister Eli Cohen in Khartoum.

Thursday’s statement from Sudan’s foreign ministry came following a meeting between Cohen and his Sudanese counterpart Ali al-Sadiq.

The pair discussed "ways to establish fruitful relations" between the two countries and "prospects of cooperation" in areas including security and energy.

*) House Republicans vote to remove 1st Muslim woman from committee

US House of Representatives Republicans have ousted Democrat Ilhan Omar from a high-profile committee over remarks widely condemned as antisemitic.

"I am a Muslim, I'm an immigrant and, interestingly, I'm from Africa," the 40-year-old Minnesota progressive said in a defiant floor speech ahead of her removal from the Foreign Affairs Committee.

The deeply divided House voted 218 to 211 along party lines to remove Omar from the Foreign Affairs Committee with Republicans citing the 2019 remarks for which she later apologised.

And finally…

*) Nick Kyrgios pleads guilty to assaulting ex-girlfriend

Tennis star Nick Kyrgios has pleaded guilty to assaulting a former girlfriend, but avoided a conviction for what the magistrate called a "single act of stupidity".

The Canberra magistrate dismissed the assault charge against the 27-year-old Australian player.

Appearing in a Canberra court, the Wimbledon finalist admitted assaulting then-girlfriend Chiara Passari on January 10, 2021, by pushing her to the ground after a heated argument.

*) Erdogan vows to advance Türkiye, relays concern over anti-Muslim rhetoric

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says his administration is preparing Türkiye to become a global power with massive investments in infrastructure.

President Erdogan says the “Turkish Century” will see Türkiye becoming one of the most prominent countries in the world with the power and experience it has gained in the last period.

Commenting on the hateful act of Quran burning in Sweden, the Turkish president says Stockholm should not expect Türkiye’s support for its NATO membership bid after the incident.

*) Beirut blast investigation takes tumultuous turn as systemic cracks surface

It’s been two and a half years of fighting and disappointment for the families of those who were killed in 2020’s August 4 blast in Beirut’s port.

The investigation has yielded little in the way of answers or accountability.

Instead, there has been a change in judges, 18 lawsuits against investigators, four suspensions, and a gunfight on the streets.

*) Israel’s military says ‘currently striking’ besieged Gaza

Israel says it conducted air strikes on the central areas of besieged Gaza hours after intercepting a rocket fired from Palestine's territory.

So far, there hasn’t been any immediate reports of casualties on either side.

Since the start of 2023, the Israel-Palestine conflict has claimed the lives of at least 35 Palestinians, whereas at least six Israelis have reportedly been killed.

*) Zelenskyy says eastern Ukraine situation getting tougher

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says the situation on the front lines in eastern Ukraine is becoming tougher as Russian forces step up its offensive.

Russia is gaining momentum on the battlefield, announcing advances north and south of the city of Bakhmut, its main target for months.

Zelenskyy says the Russians are trying to make gains that they could show on the first anniversary of the conflict on February 24.

And finally…

*) Australia to replace Queen Elizabeth's image from banknotes

Australia’s central bank announces it will erase the late British monarch from its banknotes.

The late Queen Elizabeth the second’s image on the $5 note will be replaced with a design honouring Indigenous culture.

The $5 bill is Australia's only bank note to feature the monarch.

*) US to lose neutrality if OKs Greece's F35s, rejects Türkiye's F16s: Kalin

The US will lose its "neutrality" in NATO if the Congress approves the sale of F-35 fighter jets to Greece and opposes Türkiye's F-16 purchase.

This is what Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin has said.

Kalin also said Türkiye will not accept any preconditions, such as ratification of Sweden and Finland's NATO bid, for the F-16 programme.

Ankara has maintained the jets would strengthen not only Türkiye, but also NATO.


*) Netanyahu says Israel is considering weapons aid to Ukraine

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he is considering military aid to Ukraine and even willing to serve as a mediator, after the US called for Tel Aviv’s more active role.

For now, Netanyahu made no firm commitments to Ukraine.

Israel has preserved a relationship with Russia, which controls the skies in neighbouring Syria and has turned a blind eye to Tel Aviv's strikes on targets of Iran.

*) US-India alliance look to challenge China

The US has formally launched a partnership with India that President Joe Biden hopes will help the two countries compete against China.

The White House is looking to engage with New Delhi for cooperation in areas of military equipment, semiconductors and artificial intelligence.

The US and India have emerged as natural allies to counter China’s rising influence, not only in the region but also globally.

*) The case of fake medicines in Africa's Sahel region

Up to 50 percent of medicines in West Africa are substandard or fake, the UN has warned in a report on the illicit trade in medical products.

The global body said it can lead to antimicrobial resistance or toxic contaminants while undermining trust in healthcare systems.

Across sub-Saharan Africa, up to $44.7 million per year is spent on treating people who have used counterfeit or substandard malaria treatments.

And finally…

*) Palestinians protest Israeli plans to demolish Bedouin homes

Dozens of Palestinians and foreign activists are staging a sit-in to protest Israeli plans to demolish the Khan al Ahmar Bedouin community in occupied East Jerusalem.

A representative of the Khan al Ahmar residents tells Anadolu Agency their protest is aimed at confronting Israeli plans to forcibly displace the residents of the community.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right government had a Wednesday deadline to present its demolition plan to the Supreme Court.

*) Finland would not allow burning of Quran: police

As per local media, police in Finland have said the public burning copies of Islam's holy book, the Quran, would not be allowed in the country.

The National Police Board said burning a copy of the Quran would likely violate religious peace, which is a punishable offence in Finland.

The public burning or other desecration of a book held sacred by a religious community would be met with police intervention, the police further said.

*) Scores killed, dozens injured in Pakistan mosque suicide attack

A suicide bomber struck a crowded mosque inside a police compound in the Pakistani city of Peshawar, killing at least 80 people and wounding dozens others.

Overnight, at least nine more bodies were recovered as rescuers sifted through the rubble of the mosque's collapsed wall and roof.

Many of the injured were taken to the Lady Reading Hospital after a bomber detonated his suicide vest as worshipers, including many policemen, were praying inside the mosque.

*) Biden says 'no' to US sending F-16 jets to Ukraine

US President Joe Biden said he will not be sending F-16 fighter jets to help Ukraine against Russia.

"No," he said when asked by reporters at the White House if he was in favour of sending the jets, which Ukraine's leaders have said are at the top of their latest weapons wish list.

Biden said he will be visiting Poland, the key hub in the nearly year-long, massive Western effort to support Ukraine against Russian attack.

*) Top NATO negotiator says Sweden's share of PKK terror funding larger than Finland's

Sweden has a larger share of PKK terror group financing as compared to Finland, Stockholm's chief NATO negotiator said.

Speaking to the state-owned radio, Oscar Stenstrom said: "Unlike Finland, we have a larger share of funding for the PKK from Sweden."

Both countries are bidding to join the NATO alliance, but are faced with opposition from Türkiye due to their ties and tolerance toward the PKK terrorist organisation and its offshoots.

And finally…

*) Israeli-Palestinian rising violence a test for US as Blinken visits region

An alarming spike in Israeli military violence, and response from the Palestinian side, is testing the Biden administration. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken sets off to Israel and the occupied West Bank this week.

Blinken’s high-wire diplomatic act begins after he completes a brief visit to Egypt that has been almost entirely overshadowed by the security situation in Israel and the occupied West Bank.

US officials say the main theme of Blinken’s conversations with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas will be “de-escalation.”

*) Deadly Russian shelling hit Ukraine's Kherson, Kharkiv cities

Russian shelling of Ukraine's southern city of Kherson has left at least three people dead, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

Zelenskyy said in his evening address that the Russian army has been shelling Kherson “all day" and that "there are reports of six wounded and three dead."

Meanwhile, in eastern Kharkiv, the second-largest city in Ukraine, the governor of the regional military administration said a Russian strike hit "a four-storey residential building".

He said an elderly woman died from the attack and the building was partially destroyed.

*) Dozens killed as militant launches attack in eastern DRC

A wave of attacks on villages in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo attributed to Daesh-affiliated ADF militants have killed at least 15 people.

This is according to a local official who said there were seven fatalities in Manyala and "at least eight" in Ofay following “simultaneous attacks”. He said the final toll might be higher.

Sunday's killings come a week after a similar attack left at least 23 people dead.

*) Israeli-Palestinian cauldron tests US as Blinken visits

An alarming spike in Israeli-Palestinian tensions is testing the Biden administration as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken sets out to visit Israel and the occupied West Bank.

Blinken’s trip begins on Monday after he completes a brief visit to Egypt.

US officials say the main theme of Blinken’s conversations with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas will be “de-escalation.”

Yet Blinken will arrive in Israel just a day after Netanyahu’s Security Cabinet announced a series of punitive measures against Palestinians following deadly raids in the occupied West Bank.

*) Low turnout hobbles Tunisia’s second round of parliamentary polls

Provisional figures showed the turnout in the second round of Tunisia's parliamentary election on Sunday was 11.3 percent.

This is according to the head of the electoral commission who announced the figure at a news conference.

A turnout of 11.2 percent had been registered in the first round of the election in December.

A total of 262 candidates are competing for 131 seats from Tunisia's 161-member legislature, which was largely stripped of its powers following a series of measures by President Kais Saied in 2021.

And finally…

*) Djokovic wins 10th Australian Open title, ties Nadal’s 22nd grand slam title

Novak Djokovic has resumed his reign over Melbourne Park by winning a record-extending 10th Australian Open title.

Djokovic swept to victory at Rod Laver Arena to reclaim the world number one ranking on Sunday.

In a rematch of the 2021 French Open decider, he again denied Greece's trailblazer Stefanos Tsitsipas a maiden major title.

Djokovic's triumph was the ultimate redemption a year after his deportation from Australia on the eve of the Grand Slam due to his lack of Covid-19 vaccination. With the win, he also ties Rafael Nadal’s 22 grand slam titles.

*) Blinken to visit Mideast as Palestine mourns killings by Israel

Top American diplomat Antony Blinken will travel to Egypt, Israel and Palestine this weekend, the State Department has announced, as the US expressed alarm about escalating violence after Israel's single deadliest operation in the occupied West Bank in 20 years.

Blinken's visit to Israel has been planned for weeks, but the Israeli raid on a West Bank refugee camp earlier on Thursday — that killed nine people, including a 61-year-old woman — will likely dominate his talks in Jerusalem and Ramallah.

The Israeli military also fatally shot a 22-year-old Palestinian later in the day.

*) Peru army, police to unblock roads controlled by protesters

The Peruvian government has said that police and soldiers would soon move to dismantle roadblocks on the nation's highways erected by protesters who have demanded for weeks the resignation of President Dina Boluarte.

The move announced by the defence and interior ministries on Thursday comes as shortages of basic goods including food and fuel have escalated in the South American country, with freight deliveries to the south compromised.

*) Biden calls Republicans' economic plans dangerous for US economy

US President Joe Biden has said he will veto any Republican legislation that threatens to sow "chaos" in the country's economy.

"I will not let it happen. Not on my watch. I will veto everything," he said in a speech laying out his economic vision at a Virginia pipe fitters union hall.

Biden said congressional Republicans' push to block expansion of the nation's borrowing limit, threatening a US debt default, would spark "chaos" and "pain" for the world's number one economy.

*) Ukraine calls for banning Djokovic's father for flanking pro-Russia fans

Ukraine's ambassador to Australia has urged tennis officials to ban Novak Djokovic's father from the Australian Open after he was filmed posing with fans brandishing Russian flags.

Myroshnychenko also called on Djokovic, who is preparing to face Tommy Paul in the semi-finals of the tournament, to personally apologise and to clarify his stance on the Russian invasion.

And finally…

*) New excavation unearths tombs and sarcophagus in Egypt

Egypt has unveiled dozens of new archaeological discoveries, including two ancient tombs at a Pharaonic necropolis just outside of the capital Cairo.

The artefacts, unearthed during a year-long excavation, were found beneath an ancient stone enclosure near the Saqqara pyramids, the excavation team said.

One of the uncovered tombs belonged to a priest from the fifth dynasty known as Khnumdjedef, while the other belonged to an official named Meri, who held the title of “the keeper of the secrets,” the team said.

*) Ukraine seeks long-range missiles as fighting rages in Bakhmut

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said he wanted the West to send long-range missiles and jets to his war-torn country to help repel Russian troops.

"I've spoken with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg today," Zelenskyy said after the United States and Germany announced they would send heavy tanks to Ukraine.

"We must also open deliveries of long-range missiles to Ukraine, it is important — we must expand our cooperation in artillery," Zelenskyy said, also adding that Ukraine needed jets. "This is a dream. And this is a task."

*) Thousands join 'Invasion Day' protests on Australia Day holiday

Thousands of Australians have marked the country's national holiday with rallies in support of the nation's Indigenous people, many of whom describe the anniversary of the day a British fleet sailed into Sydney Harbour as "Invasion Day".

In Sydney, the capital of New South Wales — Australia's most populous state — social media showed a large crowd gathered at an "Invasion Day" rally on Thursday in the central business district, where some people carried Aboriginal flags and an Indigenous smoking ceremony took place.

*) More potential unmarked graves discovered at Canada school


An investigative team has found 66 more potential unmarked graves at a former residential school in British Columbia, the Williams Lake First Nation [WLFN] said at a press conference.

The announcement of the discovery on Wednesday brings the number to 159 found at the former St Joseph's Mission Residential School — 93 were uncovered in May 2021.

Run by the Catholic Oblates order, thousands of Indigenous children were forced to attend the Mission operated between 1886 and 1981

*) India's Gautam Adani accused of pulling 'largest con in corporate history'


Asia's richest man Gautam Adani has seen his net worth drop by nearly $11 billion after a US investment firm accused him of "brazen stock manipulation and accounting fraud".

Adani, 60, is the world's third-richest person, with an estimated fortune of around $120 billion and interests ranging from Australian coal mines to India's busiest ports.

But the magnate lost billions after allegations by short-selling firm Hindenburg Research that caused shares in its companies to plunge as investors rushed to sell shares in his group of companies.



And finally…

*) Bollywood star 'King Khan' returns to big screen amid Hindu far-right ire

Bollywood megastar Shah Rukh Khan has returned to the silver screen for the first time in four years with a big-budget action movie that has sparked ire from Hindu far-right groups.

"Pathaan", which hit cinemas on Wednesday, a day ahead of India's Republic Day celebrations, also features Bollywood heartthrob Deepika Padukone and action hero John Abraham — as well as songs and special effects galore.

The success of "Pathaan", where Khan plays a spy fighting a militant outfit, is crucial for the Indian film industry that has seen a spate of high-profile flops since the Covid-19 pandemic began, as Netflix and Amazon have provided varied and much cheaper content at home.