Morning Briefing: April 3, 2024

By Rabia Ali

ISTANBUL (AA) - Here is a rundown of all the news that you need to start your Wednesday with, including a deadly earthquake in Taiwan, growing condemnation of Israel for killing foreign aid workers in Gaza, an Iranian warning to Israel, and Palestine pushing for a full UN membership.

TOP STORIES

• Taiwan's strongest earthquake in 25 years leaves 4 dead, dozens injured

At least four people were killed after a magnitude 7.4 earthquake off Taiwan’s eastern coast early Wednesday.

Around 56 people were injured as search and rescue operations take place amid recurring aftershocks.

The quake is the biggest to have hit the island nation in 25 years. Around 2,400 people were killed in 1999 when a 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck Taiwan in the middle of the night.

President Tsai Ing-wen has ordered the military to be deployed in the affected areas.

• Israel faces international condemnation, demands for investigation after killing foreign aid workers in Gaza

Several countries and organizations condemn Israel's targeted attack in Gaza that killed aid workers from US-based food charity World Central Kitchen.

The US urged Israel to conduct a swift and impartial investigation into the Monday airstrike. Poland on Tuesday demanded an explanation from Israel over the deadly attack on aid workers, including a Polish national.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Israel's killing of the aid workers was "unconscionable."

In Britain, the Foreign Office summoned Israeli Ambassador Tzipi Hotovely.

• Israel 'will be punished' for Syria consulate attack, Iran's Khamenei says

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed Tuesday that Israel "will be punished" for an attack on his country's consulate in the Syrian capital, Damascus, killing seven military officers, including a top commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

Khamenei said the "evil regime" would be "punished at the hands of our brave men," adding that the Iranian military would make Israel "regret the crime."

He also paid tribute to both IRGC commanders killed in the strike, saying the grief was "heavy for the Iranian nation, especially those who knew them."

• Palestine pushes for full-fledged UN membership

The State of Palestine sent a letter Tuesday to UN Secretary-General Guterres requesting renewed consideration of its membership application.

Palestine's UN envoy Riyad Mansour said in a letter that he would be "grateful" if Guterres would transmit the request to the Security Council "as soon as possible."

The State of Palestine was accepted as an observer state of the UN General Assembly in 2012, allowing its envoy to participate in debates and UN organizations but without voting rights.

NEWS IN BRIEF

• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday acknowledged the killing of seven aid workers in an Israeli military attack in the Gaza Strip.
  
  
• The UN said Tuesday that "at least 196 humanitarian workers have been killed since October" in the Gaza Strip following the recent killings of aid workers.
  
  
• The White House on Tuesday condemned a series of Israeli airstrikes that killed at least seven humanitarian aid workers in the Gaza Strip but said there is no proof that the attack was intentional.
  
  
• President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump each took another victory lap on Tuesday as both men made a clean sweep of primary elections taking place in four US states, according to media outlets.
  
  
• Israel's National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir criticized the country's internal security service, the Shin Bet, on Tuesday after dozens of protesters tried to break into Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's house.
  
  
• US President Biden said Tuesday that he is "outraged" and "heartbroken" over an Israeli airstrike in Gaza that killed foreign aid workers, highlighting that Israel "has not done enough to protect aid workers."
  
  
• Mayoral hopeful Gisela Gaytan was gunned down in Mexico this week in the latest candidate death in the 2023-2024 election period, marked by a killing spree that has left 22 of them dead.
  
  
• At least 12 people were killed while 15 children are missing following an attack in eastern South Sudan, an official said Tuesday.
  
  
• The death toll has risen to 29 at a nightclub in the Turkish metropolis Istanbul after a fire broke out during renovation work, local authorities confirmed on Tuesday.
  
  
• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a law Tuesday to lower the conscription age from 27 to 25.

SPORTS

• CAS rejects International Boxing Association's appeal after IOC withdraws recognition

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) announced Tuesday that they upheld a decision by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to remove the International Boxing Association (IBA) from the Olympic family.

"The IBA had not increased its financial transparency and sustainability including through diversification of revenues," CAS said in a statement.

• Rondo, 2-time NBA champion, announces retirement

After 16 seasons, two-time NBA winner Rajon Rondo has officially confirmed his retirement from the NBA.

"I'm done. I can't. I'd rather spend time with my kids," Rondo told the All the Smoke podcast hosted by former NBA players Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson.

Rondo, 38, previously played for such teams as the Boston Celtics, Dallas Mavericks, Atlanta Hawks, Chicago Bulls, New Orleans Pelicans, Los Angeles Clippers, and Cleveland Cavaliers.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

• EU approves about $1.08B to fund Greece's renewable initiatives

The European Union has approved €1 billion (about $1.08 billion) in support for two renewable energy production and storage projects in Greece, the EU Commission announced on Tuesday.

The Faethon project, one of the two approved, covers the construction of two photovoltaic units, each with a capacity of 252 megawatts (MW), along with integrated molten-salt thermal storage units and an extra-high voltage substation.

• Aramco announces major expansion at Fadhili gas plant

Saudi Arabia's national oil company, Aramco, announced on Tuesday a major expansion at the Fadhili gas plant in the eastern province of the country.

The oil giant awarded engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contracts worth $7.7 billion to develop its Fadhili gas plant, the company said in a statement.