Anadolu Agency’s Morning Briefing - Jan. 24, 2023

NEW YORK (AA) - Anadolu Agency is here with a rundown of the latest developments around the world.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammad Shia al-Sudani sacked Central Bank Governor Mustafa Ghaleb Mukheef on Monday, according to state news agency INA.

Japan said Monday that it wants Russia to resume negotiations on the 1998 bilateral fishing agreement that was suspended by Moscow last June.

Thousands of British ambulance workers are embarking on industrial action Monday due to an ongoing dispute over pay.

Hate crimes against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) in the US continue to plague communities across the country, prompting the Biden administration to take action.

Israeli army forces rounded up 27 Palestinians in the last 24 hours in the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian Prisoner Society said Monday.

Ukraine’s military leadership has been ordered to recruit more reserves to relieve soldiers on the frontlines, according to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Russia announced Monday that it has downgraded its relations with Estonia to the level of charge d’affaires in response to Tallinn’s decision to reduce the size of the Russian Embassy in the Estonian capital.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg is set to visit South Korea and Japan next week, Seoul and the 30-member military alliance confirmed Monday.

Sweden’s foreign minister reiterated Monday that his government does not support the burning of holy scriptures but also claimed that freedom of expression "makes it legal from a Swedish point of view."

Türkiye's top religious body, the Diyanet, announced plans Monday to take legal action abroad against a recent burning of the Muslim holy book, the Quran, in Sweden.

Sweden should not expect any good news from Türkiye on its NATO bid if it does not show respect to Islam, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Monday.

The Kuwaiti government submitted its resignation Monday amid a dispute with the parliament, according to local media.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Monday that pre-accession negotiations with the EU should start this year.

Saudi Arabia has appointed 34 women to leadership positions in the two holy mosques in Mecca and Medina.

EU foreign ministers have passed a new sanctions package on Iran, the Swedish Presidency of the Council of the EU said Monday.

The Swedish-based music streaming service Spotify is cutting its workforce by about 6%, CEO Daniel Ek said Monday.

Five billion people globally remain unprotected from harmful trans fats, increasing their risk of heart disease and death, said a new report by the World Health Organization (WHO) released Monday.

A former top FBI counterintelligence official has been arrested and charged with helping a Russian oligarch evade US sanctions, the Justice Department announced Monday.

President Joe Biden will veto legislation that would limit his ability to draw from the US' Strategic Petroleum Reserve should it reach his desk, the White House said Monday.

The trial of a former top Mexican law enforcement official who is accused of taking millions of dollars in bribes in return for helping the notorious drug lord known as El Chapo kicked off Monday.

Seven people were fatally shot Monday in San Mateo County, California, marking the second mass shooting in three days in the state, authorities said.