Morning Briefing: March 13, 2024

TOP STORIES

• US Army ships depart for mission to build temporary Gaza pier

Four US Army vessels departed from a military base in the state of Virginia on Tuesday with soldiers and equipment to build a temporary port on Gaza’s coast for humanitarian aid deliveries, said a Pentagon spokesman.

"Today, the Department of Defense deployed four US Army vessels from Joint Base Langley-Eustis to the Eastern Mediterranean in support of humanitarian assistance operations in Gaza and the mission to build a temporary pier," Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said at a news conference.

The pier is expected to be fully operational in approximately 60 days.

• Independent Palestine only way to pay debt to slain Palestinian children: Turkish President Erdogan

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday reiterated his call for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, saying it is the only way to pay debt to slain Palestinian children.

"We all owe a debt to the murdered Palestinian children, and this debt can only be paid through the establishment of an independent Palestinian state," President Erdogan told ambassadors in Ankara.

The president said Türkiye will protect its Palestinian brothers, as it has done thus far, and will not back down.

• US rolls out new $300 million 'emergency' military aid package for Ukraine

The US on Tuesday announced a new $300 million "emergency" military aid package to assist Ukraine in its ongoing war with Russia.

The Biden administration has long run out of funding from Congress to supply Kyiv's forces with armaments and has urged lawmakers for months to provide additional funding amid Russian battlefield advances.

Amid the deadlock, the administration is funding the "modest" new package with "unanticipated cost savings" from past contracts, with arms suppliers to replace weapons in US stocks that had been sent to Ukraine, said National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.​​​​​​​

NEWS IN BRIEF

• The US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced early Wednesday that Yemen’s Houthi group fired a close-range ballistic missile from areas it controls in Yemen toward the destroyer USS Laboon in the Red Sea.

• Romanian President Klaus Iohannis announced his candidacy for the position of NATO secretary general in a video Tuesday on X.

• One person was killed and eight others injured in Israeli airstrikes on the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon on Tuesday, according to the state-run National News Agency.

• Armenia on Tuesday threatened to leave the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) if the six-nation military alliance, which includes Russia, failed to define the country's area of responsibility.

• Ireland’s president said Tuesday that the international community must not be distracted or avert its gaze from the situation in the Gaza Strip as he called for an immediate halt to the blocking of food and aid deliveries.

• The number of children who died before their fifth birthday reached an historic low in 2022, dropping to 4.9 million, estimates by the United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UN IGME) show.

• A group of NGOs announced Tuesday that they will sue Denmark to end the country's arms exports to Israel, citing concerns that its weapons are being used to commit serious crimes against Palestinians.

• The US State Department approved the potential sale of 821 AGM-158B-2 air-to-surface missiles worth $1.77 billion to Poland on Tuesday.

• Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and his Qatari counterpart Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani held a phone call Tuesday in which they discussed the situation in the Gaza Strip, according to Turkish diplomatic sources.

• Russia said Tuesday that one person was killed when Ukrainian sabotage groups attempted to attack the border regions of Belgorod and Kursk.

• The US expects members of Haiti's Presidential Transition Council to be appointed in the next 24 to 48 hours, said the State Department.

SPORTS

• Barcelona, Arsenal advance to Champions League quarterfinals

Barcelona and Arsenal both advanced to the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals after beating their opponents on Tuesday.

Leandro Trossard scored a goal for Arsenal in the 41st minute and its match against Porto went to extra time after the tie finished 1-1 on aggregate after 90 minutes of the second leg.

The match concluded with a penalty shootout.

Marko Grujic and Pepe scored for Porto in the shootout. Arsenal's Martin Odegaard, Kai Havertz, Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice scored their penalties.

• Al-Hilal breaks world record for most consecutive wins in football history

Al-Hilal broke the world record for the most consecutive wins in football history after beating rivals Al-Ittihad in the Asian Champions League on Tuesday.

Playing at King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Jorge Jesus' side defeated Al-Ittihad 2-0 to surpass Wales club The New Saints in the 2016-17 season with 28 wins.

The former Fenerbahce coach returned to Saudi Arabia's Al-Hilal last year.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

• US consumer inflation annually rises 3.2% in February

Consumer inflation in the US annually rose 3.2% in February and monthly gained 0.4%, both coming in above market expectations, according to figures released Tuesday.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI), which measures changes in the prices of goods and services from a consumer's perspective, was expected to show an annual gain of 3.1% after rising 3.1% in January year-on-year.

• European Parliament adopts rules to harmonize EU sanctions

The European Parliament adopted new rules Tuesday to harmonize EU sanctions across member states.

“With 543 votes in favor, 45 against and 27 abstentions, the European Parliament has adopted a directive, agreed with member states, on criminalizing the violation and circumvention of EU sanctions. It will introduce a common definition of, and minimum penalties for, violations,” it said in a statement.​​​​​​​