Diary

ISTANBUL (AA) – Here are the main topics Anadolu's English Desk plans to cover on Wednesday, March 20, 2024 (coverage may change depending on developing/breaking stories):

QATAR

Doha – Indirect negotiations between Hamas and Israel for a Gaza truce agreement and hostage-prisoner swap amid mediation efforts by Qatar, Egypt, and the US to reach a deal to end Israel’s ongoing war on the Gaza Strip. Hamas, believed to be holding nearly 130 Israeli hostages, demands an end to Israel’s ongoing offensive on the Gaza Strip in return for any hostage deal with Israel. A previous deal in November 2023 saw the release of 81 Israelis and 24 foreigners in exchange for 240 Palestinians, including 71 women and 169 children.

PALESTINE

Gaza Strip – The developments of the humanitarian and military situations in the Gaza Strip as Israel continues its relentless offensive on the besieged enclave on its 166th day, which resulted in killing more than 31,800 people and injuring nearly 74,000 others amid a crippling blockade that has left most of the population on the verge of starvation.

Ramallah – Continuous security tension in the West Bank due to escalating Israeli army actions since the outbreak of the Gaza war. Israeli military raids in the West Bank resulted in the death of over 435 Palestinians and the injury of around 4,700 others. The number of arrests has also risen to 7,630, setting record figures over nearly five months compared to previous years.

LEBANON

Beirut – Cross-border attacks between Lebanese group Hezbollah and Israel that broke out last October, in the deadliest clashes between the two sides since their full-scale war in 2006. At least 300 people are estimated to have been killed in Lebanon, including 240 Hezbollah fighters, since the clashes first erupted, while nearly 20 Israelis have been killed, according to Israeli figures.

YEMEN

Sanaa – Escalating tension in the Red Sea amid Houthi attacks on commercial ships suspected of having links with Israel and US retaliatory airstrikes against Houthi targets inside Yemen amid concerns about a deadly impact on shipping traffic in one of the world's most frequently used sea routes for oil and fuel shipments.

US

Washington - President Joe Biden to deliver remarks on his Investing in America agenda in Arizona. Later, he will head to Texas to attend two campaign receptions.

Washington - House Speaker Mike Johnson to lead news conference alongside Republican leaders at Congress.

Washington - Statements from Biden administration regarding situation in Gaza and potential protests in solidarity with Gaza.

New York - UN Security Council to hold meeting on protection of civilians in armed conflict.

BELGIUM

Brussels - European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to host UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

GERMANY

Berlin - Chancellor Olaf Scholz to address lawmakers ahead of Thursday's EU summit where European leaders are set to discuss Middle East, military support for Ukraine, enlargement, and external relations.

UK

London – Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to respond to questions from lawmakers in the House of Commons, with questions expected on the situation in Gaza.

London - High Court to hear Prince Harry’s unlawful information gathering claims against The Sun newspaper. The prince seeks at least £200,000 ($254,000) in damages and claims to have evidence of payments made by the daily to private investigators for information on him and his relationships. The High Court previously ruled Harry's allegations of phone hacking against The Sun would not go ahead due to a "lack of credibility." A trial is due to be heard at a later date.

SLOVENIA

Ljubljana - Polish President Andrzej Duda to visit Slovenia to meet President Natasa Pirc Musar and other high officials to strengthen bilateral cooperation. Duda will attend a Slovenian-Polish business forum on Thursday.

TÜRKİYE

Ankara – Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan to meet with his Spanish counterpart Jose Manuel Albares Bueno to discuss bilateral relations, as well as Türkiye-EU relations and current regional and international developments. The ministers are expected to hold joint news conference.

Istanbul - Türkiye's Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz, Turkish Cypriot President Ersin Tatar and Prime Minister Unal Ustel set to participate in a fast-breaking dinner in Istanbul

RUSSIA

Moscow - Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova to hold weekly news conference on current issues of foreign policy.

Moscow - President Vladimir Putin will meet with the leaders of the State Duma factions to exchange views.

INDONESIA

Jakarta - Indonesia's General Elections Commission is expected to announce official results of presidential as well as general polls 35 days after ballots were cast on Feb. 14. Former military general and incumbent Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto is leading the race to succeed President Joko Widodo.

AUSTRALIA

Canberra - China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi makes his first trip in seven years to Australia. During the visit, he met his counterpart Penny Wong for Australia-China Foreign and Strategic Dialogue and will also meet Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

CHINA

Beijing - China likely to respond to statement of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who accused Beijing of violating international law in disputed South China Sea during his trip to the Philippines.

JAPAN

Tokyo - Prime Minister Fumio Kishida vowed to punish those involved in political funds scandal before going for general elections.

Tokyo - Two-day high-level meeting of Japan and Pacific Island nations continues in Tokyo.

KOREAN PENINSULA

Pyongyang/Seoul - Monitoring ongoing heightened tensions on Korean Peninsula as divided Koreas continue rival military drills and related activities.

PAKISTAN

Islamabad - Court is hearing proceedings against conviction of former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his party colleague Shah Mahmood Qureshi in state secrets case.

ISLAMABAD/KABUL - Developments along the unstable border between neighboring Pakistan and Afghanistan after the two sides launched counter-operations following air strikes by Islamabad inside the war-torn nation.

SOUTH AFRICA

Pretoria - Director-General of the Foreign Ministry Zane Dangor and President Cyril Ramaphosa’s legal adviser Advocate Nokukhanya Jele will visit Ukrainian capital Kyiv as part of South Africa’s ongoing diplomatic efforts aimed at contributing to the resolution of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Cape Town - Covering ongoing corruption investigations against Parliament Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula.

KENYA

Nairobi - Switzerland Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis to travel to Kenya on his last East Africa tour scheduled for March 20-22. This visit will also mark 60 years of bilateral relations. Cassis also visited Ethiopia and Djibouti on Monday.

SENEGAL

Dakar – Ongoing election campaigns ahead of the March 24 presidential elections.

SPORTS

Istanbul - Fenerbahce Beko to host Barcelona in Round 30 of Turkish Airlines EuroLeague. Barcelona placed 2nd with 20 wins, 9 losses. Fenerbahce Beko at 6th spot with 18 wins, 11 losses in standings.

BUSINESS ECONOMY

Ankara – Turkish Statistical Institute to reveal consumer confidence index for March.

London – The UK to share inflation figures for February.

Berlin – Germany’s Destatis to reveal producer inflation figures for February.

SPECIAL REPORTS

UK’s weapons sales to Israel are totally indefensible: Ex-Green Party leader

By Burak Bir

London – Interview with Natalie Bennett, a British parliamentarian and former leader of the Green Party, focusing on both the UK government’s domestic and foreign policies.

Bennett strongly condemns continued British arms sales to Israel, calling for an immediate halt to the weapons transfers, as well as a permanent cease-fire in Gaza.

She also speaks about how recent measures taken by the government are impacting civil liberties within the UK, particularly in the context of the massive pro-Palestine protests and burgeoning solidarity movement.

AI humanity’s only hope against deepfake threat: Expert

By Emre Basaran

Istanbul – Report about the growing dangers of deepfakes being generated with artificial intelligence technologies, focusing particularly on possible ways to counter the threat.

The story is based on an interview with Sadi Evren Seker, the dean of Istanbul University’s Faculty of Computer and Information Technologies, who speaks about the various methods to combat the dissemination of deepfake content.

He offers insights about counter-deepfake technologies, the regulations required, the importance of AI in the process, and the emerging field of citizen data scientists.

PROFILE – Vaughan Gething: New Welsh first minister and Europe’s first Black leader

By Burak Bir

London – A profile story about Vaughan Gething, who is taking over as the first minister of Wales after being elected the head of the Welsh Labour party.

The report gives details of the personal and political life of Gething, who is making history as the first Black leader of any European country.

It also lays out an assessment of the 50-year-old’s priorities in office and the potential challenges he could face over the course of his tenure.

ANALYSIS – US Fed to remain data dependent before starting rate cuts

By Ovunc Kutlu

Istanbul – Report about the future course of action for the US Federal Reserve, focusing on the likelihood of the central bank remaining dependent on incoming macroeconomic data before starting to cut interest rates.

It lays out an analysis of recent comments made by top officials such as Fed Chair Jerome Powell and Vice Chair of Supervision Michael Barr, as well as other members of the Federal Open Market Committee who have recently been vocal about the difficulties in lowering inflation.

The report also has an assessment of possible decisions at the Fed’s monetary meeting concluding on Wednesday, including projections for the federal funds rate.

NEW MEDIA

VIDEO - Interview with Natalie Bennett, a British parliamentarian and former leader of the Green Party, who condemns the UK’s continuing arms sales to Israel, calling for an immediate halt to the weapons transfers and a permanent cease-fire in Gaza. She also speaks about how the government’s domestic policies are impacting civil liberties within the country.