Morning Briefing: April 30, 2024

By Rabia Ali

ISTANBUL (AA) - Here is a rundown of all the news that you need to start your Tuesday, including the latest on Gaza cease-fire talks in Egypt, Turkish foreign minister's meeting with US counterpart in Riyadh, resignation of Scotland's first minister Humza Yousaf, and G7 deal to shut down coal plants.

TOP STORIES

• Cease-fire talks: Israeli delegation to fly to Cairo

An Israeli delegation is scheduled to travel to Egypt to meet with Egyptian security officials on efforts for a cease-fire in Gaza, Israeli media reported late Monday.

According to the Haaretz daily, the delegation will discuss a request by Hamas for a full cease-fire in Gaza as part of a prisoner swap deal.

An official quoted added that Israel is ready to postpone the military offensive against Rafah for some months under the first stage of the deal. Haaretz noted that Hamas agreed to release 33 hostages.

Israel agreed to allow Palestinians to return to northern Gaza, to redeploy its forces in Gaza and to release Palestinians from Israeli jails.

• Massacre in Gaza should end as soon as possible, says Turkish foreign minister

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Monday stressed the massacre in Gaza should end as soon as possible.

During a meeting with his US counterpart Antony Blinken in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, Fidan said pressure should be exerted on Israel for an end to the massacre, a permanent cease-fire, and delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza.

In the meeting, Fidan and Blinken discussed the latest situation in Gaza, according to diplomatic sources.

The current situation in Ukraine and bilateral relations between Ankara and Washington were also discussed.

• Humza Yousaf resigns as Scotland's first minister

Humza Yousaf resigned on Monday as Scotland's first minister, saying he was not willing to trade his principles to win a no-confidence vote.

The move came ahead of two forthcoming confidence votes, which were called by the opposition after Yousaf ended a power-sharing deal between his Scottish National Party (SNP) and the Scottish Greens last week. The Bute House agreement was brokered by Nicola Sturgeon in 2021.

The end of the cooperation agreement led opposition parties in the parliament to table two no-confidence votes - one targeting the first minister and another aimed at the SNP government.

• G7 reaches deal to shut down coal plants by 2035

The Group of Seven energy ministers on Monday pledged to close their coal plants by 2035 at the latest, potentially setting a global example for fighting the climate crisis, media outlets reported.

“We do have an agreement to phase out coal in the first half of the 2030s,” Andrew Bowie, a UK minister at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, told local media in Turin, Italy.

Bowie, referred to the agreement as “historic” they were not able to achieve at COP28 in Dubai last year.

NEWS IN BRIEF

• A 6-way Arab ministerial meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, on Monday discussed steps to implement a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, the Saudi state news agency SPA reported.
  
  
• Türkiye on Monday rejected as "null and void" a resolution passed by French lawmakers that it said made unfounded accusations related to the Assyrian and Chaldean communities under the Ottoman Empire.
  
  
• The US on Monday said it has found five Israeli units committed gross violations of human rights before the start of Israel's war on Gaza following Hamas' cross-border attack last Oct. 7.
  
  
• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday held talks with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg who arrived in the capital Kyiv on a surprise visit.
  
  
• The Spanish prime minister on Monday announced that he decided to continue to lead the government after several days of political uncertainty amid corruption allegations against his wife Begona Gomez.
  
  
• US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Monday that the US "has not seen" an Israeli plan for the invasion of Rafah that prioritizes the protection of civilians.
  
  
• Over 40 people have been killed after a dam burst in Nakuru County in Kenya, according to an official.
  
  
• At least 51 irregular migrants are missing after their boat sank off the Atlantic coast of West Africa while heading for the Canary Islands, Spanish media reported on Monday.
  
  
• Yemen’s Houthi group fired anti-ship ballistic missiles and launched unmanned aerial vehicles into the Red Sea, the US Central Command, said Monday.
  
  
• Four law enforcement officers were killed and four others were wounded Monday in a shooting while serving a warrant at a home in North Carolina, police said.
  
  
• A temporary pier being constructed off Gaza’s coast for delivering humanitarian aid will be operational in May, a Pentagon spokesperson said Monday.
  
  
• Thousands of Israelis, including families of hostages being held in Gaza, rallied in Tel Aviv on Monday to demand that the government reach a prisoner swap deal with the Hamas group.
  
  
• Türkiye's flag carrier Turkish Airlines will resume its flights to Afghanistan starting on May 21, the airline announced, after it had suspended its flights to the country following the US withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.

SPORTS

• Champions League semifinals to start with Bayern Munich vs. Real Madrid showdown

The UEFA Champions League semifinals will begin on Tuesday with the Bayern Munich vs. Real Madrid thriller.

Bayern Munich will host record-holders Real Madrid in the 1st leg of the semifinal at the Allianz Arena.

Bayern Munich won the Champions League six times with their last triumph in 2020. Real Madrid won Europe's top-tier title 14 times, the most recent in 2022.

• Chelsea defender Thiago Silva to leave club at end of season

Chelsea's Brazilian defender Thiago Silva announced on Monday that he would be leaving the English Premier League side at the end of the season.

In a video published on the London club's Instagram account, a teary-eyed Silva said he intended to return to the Blues "one day."

Silva, who joined Chelsea from French Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain in August 2020, won seven league titles with his former club.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

• Islamic Development Bank to provide Türkiye $6.3B worth of financing

The Islamic Development Bank Group will provide $6.3 billion worth of financing to Türkiye for development projects, the country's treasury and finance minister said Monday.

Mehmet Simsek, attending the bank's annual meeting in the Saudi capital Riyadh, underlined on X that international institutions trust Türkiye's economic program.

• African leaders push for record World Bank financing

African leaders led by Kenyan President William Ruto urged the World Bank on Monday to allocate $120 billion in financing to address developmental challenges and combat climate change across the continent.

Ruto spearheaded the call for a significant increase in concessional funding from the bank’s International Development Association to tackle pressing issues facing African nations.