Morning Briefing: June 17, 2023

By Firdevs Bulut Kartal

TORONTO (AA) - Here's a rundown of all the news you need to start your Saturday, including Sweden condemning terror group PKK, migrant boat disaster in Greece and US President Joe Biden vowing to take more drastic action on gun violence.

TOP STORIES

• Swedish foreign minister condemns PKK terror group amid debates about joining NATO

Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom said Friday that his country “condemns all terror organizations, including the PKK.”

Billstrom, speaking alongside French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna at a news conference in Paris, said Sweden has fulfilled the last part of its commitment under a June 2022 trilateral memorandum signed in Madrid to address Ankara's security concerns on terrorism with a new anti-terror law, which has been effective since June 1.

He noted Stockholm's goal is the same as Ankara’s: To fight terrorism.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made it clear that if Türkiye is expected to respond to Stockholm's expectations of accession to NATO, Sweden must also do its part on the PKK terror group ahead of the summit.

• Retired coast guard admiral blames Greek authorities for migrant boat disaster

A retired Greek admiral blamed the country's coast guard Friday for a deadly incident in which a migrant boat sank in the Mediterranean Sea, with hundreds still missing.

Nikos Spanos told the Greek Radio and Television Corporation ERT that before the boat sank, Greek authorities asked the overloaded vessel if it needed help despite receiving a distress signal.

• Biden says mass shootings occur 'every single day' in US

US President Joe Biden issued an impassioned plea for greater control Friday, saying mass shootings occur "every damn day in America."

Biden pointed to gun violence that occurs beyond the headlines. In "areas that are poor, mostly minority, there's a mass shooting that never reaches the crescendo that it reaches other places every single day," he said while addressing the National Safer Communities Summit in the state of Connecticut.

Biden told the gathering of gun control advocates that an uphill battle lies ahead, but vowed to impose an assault rifle ban, and end legal protections preventing gun makers from being held liable for crimes committed using their wares.

NEWS IN BRIEF

• US Treasury Department sanctions Mexican transnational criminal organization that it said Friday is responsible for smuggling thousands of migrants into the US since 2018.
• Police conducting exhumations in the Shakahola Forest in Kenya discovered 10 additional bodies, bringing the death toll from a cult to 336.
• There are dozens of obstacles to uncovering unmarked Indigenous residential school graves in Canada, including violent denialism, according to a report that was released Friday.
• Nine Kosovar journalists were attacked Friday in Leposavic in northern Kosovo, by masked assailants who were following the actions of Serbs around Town Hall.
• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met several African leaders Friday in Kyiv to discuss ways to end the war in his country.
• Türkiye's top defense official held separate talks Friday with his Dutch and US counterparts on the sidelines of a NATO meeting in Brussels, according to the Turkish National Defense Ministry.
• The UK decided to impose a hosepipe and sprinkler ban on residents of Kent and Sussex, officials announced Friday.
• Robert Bowers, the gunman who shot and killed 11 people at a synagogue in the US state of Pennsylvania in 2018, was found guilty Friday on all 63 federal charges against him, according to multiple news outlets.
• Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Friday that the US has not seen any indication that Russia is preparing to use nuclear weapons.
• Serbia declared a state of emergency in dozens of areas Friday due to floods caused by heavy rains.
• President Vladimir Putin announced Friday that Russia has put the first of its nuclear arms in neighboring Belarus following an agreement between the two nations last month.
• Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Friday that Germany will reform its citizenship law this year and enable multiple citizenships for immigrants.

SPORTS

• European Games set to begin in Poland

The third edition of the European Games will begin next week in the Polish city of Krakow and the Malopolska region.

The 12-day competition, starting June 21, will host 7,300 athletes from 48 countries in 26 branches and 29 disciplines.

A total of 193 Turkish athletes, including 93 women, will fight for 253 medals that will be distributed throughout the competition.

• Türkiye beat 10-man Latvia in 5-goal EURO 2024 qualifying thriller

Türkiye tasted a 3-2 away win against 10-man Latvia in Group D in a UEFA EURO 2024 qualifying match Friday.

Türkiye scored the first goal when Abdulkerim Bardakci hit in a header, assisted by Merih Demiral in the 23rd minute at Riga's Skonto Stadions.

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

• Fed watching US banking sector closely to gauge need for further rate hikes

The US Federal Reserve is keeping watch over troubles in the US banking sector to gauge the need for further rate hikes, said a top official of the US central bank on Friday.

European stock exchanges close higher

• The STOXX Europe 600, which includes around 90% of the market capitalization of the European markets in 17 countries, rose 2.47 points, or 0.53%, to finish at 466.80.

The UK's FTSE 100 added 14 points, or 0.19%, to end the session at 7,642. France's CAC 40, meanwhile, increased 97 points, or 1.34%, to close at 7,388.

Germany's DAX rose 67 points, or 0.41%, to 16,357, while Italy's FTSE MIB jumped 130 points, or 0.47%, to 27,861. Spain's IBEX 35 added 64 points, or 0.68%, to end the day at 9,495.