ANKARA (AA) - Here are the main topics Anadolu’s English Desk plans to cover on Wednesday, Dec. 6, 2023 (coverage may change depending on developing/breaking stories):
MIDDLE EAST
PALESTINE
GAZA CITY - Israel continues its air and ground attacks on Gaza Strip after end of weeklong humanitarian pause with Palestinian group Hamas. Over 16,000 Palestinians have been killed and more than 42,000 injured in attacks. Humanitarian conditions and lack of sufficient aid take a toll on hundreds of thousands of Gazans.
LEBANON
BEIRUT - Escalation continues to mount in border area between Lebanese group Hezbollah and Israel. One Lebanese soldier was killed in Israeli shelling in southern Lebanon. Israeli army announced injuries among its ranks due to shelling from Lebanon.
WEST BANK
RAMALLAH - Israel continues its almost daily military raids into Palestinian towns in West Bank amid rising tensions over its ongoing offensive in Gaza Strip. At least 470 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire in occupied territory since start of this year, including 262 since escalation of Gaza conflict on Oct. 7.
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
DUBAI - Urban expansion, urban environment and transport to be discussed on day 7 of UN climate change conference COP28, which continues in Dubai until Dec. 12.
EUROPE
SWITZERLAND
GENEVA - UN human rights chief Volker Turk to hold his annual end-of-year press conference.
GERMANY
BERLIN - Local court in Germany expected to announce its verdict in trial against BioNTech over alleged side effects of its COVID-19 vaccine. A 58-year-old man claims that he lost sight in one eye after receiving second dose in 2021.
UK
LONDON - Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to respond to lawmakers’ questions at House of Commons.
THE NETHERLANDS
AMSTERDAM - Newly-elected lawmakers to get sworn in following Nov. 22 elections that saw Geert Wilders’ VDD win most seats.
EURASIA
AZERBAIJAN
BAKU - US Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs James O’Brien to travel to Azerbaijan, Romania on Dec. 6-8. In Baku, O’Brien will meet with local officials to strengthen bilateral relations, supporting peace process between Azerbaijan and Armenia.
SAUDI ARABIA
RIYADH - Russian President Vladimir Putin to pay official visit to Saudi Arabia, where he will hold talks with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
UAE
ABU DHABI - Putin to pay working visit to United Arab Emirates, where he will meet with his counterpart Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
US
WASHINGTON - 2-day conference on cooperation between US, Ukraine in field of military industry to begin.
TÜRKİYE
ANKARA - President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to chair Cabinet meeting, later to address nation on domestic, international issues, including Gaza.
ASIA - PACIFIC
INDIA
NEW DELHI - Dec. 6 marks 31st anniversary of Babri Mosque demolition by Hindu extremists in 1992.
BANGLADESH
DHAKA - 48-hour nationwide blockade by opposition parties to begin. Opposition parties have been on streets for cancellations of election scheduled for Jan. 7, demanding interim set-up to hold national elections. They have announced boycott of elections if interim setup is not announced.
PAKISTAN
ISLAMABAD - Pakistani anti-corruption court has summoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi in alleged Al-Qadir Trust corruption case on Dec. 6. Court already issued her non-bailable arrest warrant.
JAPAN
TOKYO - As rotating chair, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to host virtual summit of G-7 nations. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected to join summit.
CHINA
BEIJING - Foreign Ministry to hold news conference.
SANYA - Meeting of Council of Heads of Financial Intelligence Units of Commonwealth of Independent States to be held.
THE ECONOMY
BERLIN - Germany’s Destatis to release factory orders for October. After strong drop in July by around 14%, orders rose by 3.9% and 0.2% in August and September, respectively, but expected to be at same level in October.
LUXEMBOURG - Eurostat to release retail sales data for October. Retail sales have been decreasing for a while, downward trend is expected to continue in October.
SPORTS
MANCHESTER, UK - Manchester United to play against Chelsea in English Premier League match at Old Trafford. Desk also following Sheffield United vs. Liverpool, Aston Villa vs. Manchester City matches.
BOLOGNA, Italy - Barcelona to visit Italy’s Virtus Segafredo Bologna in Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Round 12. Türkiye’s Fenerbahce Beko will face Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz in Spain.
SPECIAL REPORTS
Military realities, political future after 2 months of Israel’s war on Gaza
By Rabia Ali
ISTANBUL - Report about the current situation and possible outcomes of Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza as it enters the third month.
The story includes interviews with geopolitical and security analyst Zoran Kusovac, Ryan Bohl, senior Middle East and North Africa analyst at think tank RANE, and Abdaljawad Omar, an analyst and lecturer at Birzeit University in Palestine.
The experts share their assessment of the military situation on the ground in Gaza, particularly Israel’s objectives as it resumes attacks after the humanitarian pause.
They also speak about the possible political outcomes, including efforts to stop the Israeli assault and the future governance model for the besieged Palestinian territory.
2 months of Gaza war: West Bank faces onslaught of Israeli aggression, arrests
By Esra Tekin
ISTANBUL - Report about how Israel has ramped up its oppression of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank since the start of its war on the Gaza Strip.
The story includes an interview with Raed Amer, head of the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society, who speaks about the rising number of arrests and administrative detentions of Palestinians since Oct. 7, including of women and children.
He shares figures about the arrests and detentions, while also giving critical insights into the conditions that Palestinians face in Israeli prisons and in the occupied West Bank in general.
Tripling renewables, doubling energy efficiency requires $2.5T investment per year: IEA chief
By Nuran Erkul
DUBAI - Interview with Fatih Birol, executive president of the International Energy Agency, on the sidelines of the UN climate change conference COP28 in Dubai.
Birol speaks about the decisions that are a “must” for COP28 to deliver a successful outcome, particularly to accelerate the much-needed energy transition and limiting global warming.
He shares his assessment of one of the major COP28 pledges of 118 countries committing to triple global renewable capacity and doubling energy efficiency by 2030, saying that achieving that objective would require about $2.5 trillion investment per year, 50% more than the current amount.
NEW MEDIA
VIDEO - Interviews with geopolitical and security analyst Zoran Kusovac and Ryan Bohl, senior Middle East and North Africa analyst at think tank RANE, about the current military situation and possible outcomes of Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza as it enters the third month.
VIDEO - Interview with Fatih Birol, executive president of the International Energy Agency, about the ongoing COP28 conference in Dubai and the key steps required for a successful outcome.