ISTANBUL (AA) - Here are the main topics Anadolu's English Desk plans to cover on Sunday, Feb. 9, 2025 (coverage may change depending on developing/breaking stories):
2nd-phase negotiations for Gaza ceasefire
Developments in the negotiations of the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal. The first phase, which includes a prisoner exchange, started on Jan. 19 and is set to last for 42 days.
Israel’s negotiating team, set to travel to Qatar on Sunday, is not authorized to discuss the second phase of a Gaza ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement with the Palestinian group Hamas, according to Israeli media.
The Israeli army decided to completely withdraw Saturday evening from its last positions in the Netzarim Corridor, which separates the northern Gaza Strip from its southern part, claimed Israeli media.
Displaced Palestinians in Gaza are expected to return to the northern part of the enclave from Salahuddin Street without inspection under the ceasefire agreement with Israel.
Humanitarian and security situation in Gaza
The humanitarian and security situation in the Gaza Strip during ceasefire.
Palestinian medics and rescue teams recovered 22 more bodies from the rubble in the Gaza Strip, pushing the overall death toll from Israel’s genocidal war since October 2023 to 48,181, the Health Ministry said on Saturday.
Reactions on Israeli premier's calls to establish Palestinian state in Saudi Arabia.
Arab countries, including Palestine, Egypt, the UAE, and Sudan, strongly denounced on Saturday Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's proposal to establish a Palestinian state in Saudi Arabia, calling his scheme a violation of the kingdom's sovereignty and international law.
Israeli violations of Lebanon ceasefire
Israeli army violations of a ceasefire deal after Lebanon and Israel agreed to extend a deadline for Israeli troop withdrawal from southern Lebanon until Feb. 18.
The Israeli army continues its violations of the agreement since it came into effect on Nov. 27, 2024. On Saturday, it committed new violations, killing six people and injuring two in an airstrike, bringing the total number of violations to 872, according to statistics compiled by Anadolu, based on Lebanese reports.
Israeli raids in West Bank, particularly in its northern area
Nearly daily Israeli military raids on Palestinian cities and towns in the occupied West Bank, especially in Jenin, accompanied by illegal settler violence against Palestinians and their property.
A Palestinian official confirmed on Saturday that around 400 Palestinians had been displaced from the Al-Fara'a refugee camp south of Tubas city in the northern West Bank, on the seventh day of the Israeli assault on the camp.
Since Jan. 21, Israeli attacks on Jenin and its refugee camp have killed 25 Palestinians, including two children, injured over 50, and displaced around 3,000 people. More than 100 homes have been demolished or burned, according to Palestinian sources.
Israel has killed at least 900 people in the occupied West Bank since October 2023 and injured over 6,700 others, with more than 14,300 taken into custody.
Developments in Syria under new administration
Latest developments and updates in Syria under the new post-Bashar Assad administration.
On Saturday, Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa met in Damascus with a delegation from the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons headed by Fernando Gonzalez.
Al-Sharaa also met on Saturday with Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf, who arrived in Damascus for an official working visit, the first of its kind by an Algerian official since the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime on Dec. 8.
The Israeli army also announced airstrikes on a weapons storage facility it claimed belonged to Hamas in the Deir Ali area, southern Syria.
Kosovo to hold parliamentary elections
Some 28 electoral lists and 1,280 candidates, including six representing the Serbian community, will compete for four-year term in the 120-seat assembly. This will be the first regular election since 2010, as political instability led to several early elections in recent years.
German chancellor candidates set for prime-time TV debate
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and opposition leader Friedrich Merz will face off in a televised debate before the Feb. 23 parliamentary elections. The latest Emnid poll shows Merz's Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU) leading with 30% support, while Chancellor Scholz's Social Democrats (SPD) stand at 15%. However, even with this lead, Merz will still need a coalition partner to form a government.
South Korean political crisis
South Korea's ongoing political crisis as imprisoned president Yoon Suk Yeol has already been indicted over Dec. 3 martial law decree, and his trial in the criminal case is expected to begin next week. Yoon is facing a case of insurrection and abuse of power over short-lived martial law of Dec. 3. Massive protests against, and in favor of, Yoon have been consistently held in Seoul since the martial law decree.
Chinese president's special envoy to visit France
Chinese President Xi Jinping’s special representative and Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing to visit France to attend the artificial intelligence action summit.
Situation in Goma after African leaders meet to discuss conflict in the eastern DR Congo
The security and humanitarian situation in Goma, the capital of the North Kivu province in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, a day after leaders of the Eastern and Southern African regional blocs met to discuss the conflict in eastern Congo.
The leaders tasked their defense chiefs to provide technical direction to enforce a ceasefire
The M23 rebels increased clashes with Congolese armed forces over the control of Goma since late January leading to the deaths of more than 3,000 people, injuring 2,880. Over half a million people have been displaced in less than a month.
M23 rebels currently claim control of Goma, a city of some 3 million people.
Bodies of South African peacekeepers killed in DR Congo to be repatriated
The South African government is expected to receive 14 bodies of its soldiers killed in clashes with M23 rebels in Goma, eastern Congo.
South Africa contributes peacekeepers to Congo as part of the Southern African community peacekeeping force. Two peacekeepers from Tanzania and two from Malawi were also killed during the attack. South African military officials expected to make statements.