ANKARA: Turkish authorities have brought under control an agricultural fire that killed 12 people and wounded 78 others in a region near the Turkish border with Syria and Iraq, local media reported on Saturday.
The fire had started late on Thursday due to the burning of straw and spread because of strong winds, the local governor's office said. Authorities have launched an investigation into the cause of the fire, Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc said in a post on X on Friday.
Broadcaster NTV and others said the fire was now under control and authorities were working to cool the scorched areas. NTV said many animals trapped in the fire were also killed.
Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said late on Friday that the treatment of the wounded was still underway, with some in critical condition.
"We are continuing the treatment and monitoring of five of our wounded. Three of our five wounded receiving treatment in Diyarbakir are intubated," Koca said on X.
Burning straw is a common practice by farmers and villagers in central Anatolia following harvest periods.
Agricultural fire that killed 12 in southeast Turkey under control, media says
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Agricultural fire that killed 12 in southeast Turkey under control, media says
White House says Trump tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China will come Saturday
The tariffs carry both political and economic risks for Trump
WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump will put in place 25 percent tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico and 10 percent tariffs on goods from China effective on Saturday, the White House said, but it provided no word on whether there would be any exemptions to the measures that could result in swift price increases to US consumers.
Trump had been threatening the tariffs to ensure greater cooperation from the countries on stopping illegal immigration and the smuggling of chemicals used for fentanyl, but he has also pledged to use tariffs to boost domestic manufacturing and raise revenues for the federal government.
“Starting tomorrow, those tariffs will be in place,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Friday. “These are promises made and promises kept by the president.”
The tariffs carry both political and economic risks for Trump, who is just two weeks into his second term. Many voters backed the Republican on the promise that he could tamp down inflation, but the possibility of tariffs could trigger higher prices and potentially disrupt the energy, auto, lumber and agricultural sectors.
Trump had said he was weighing issuing an exemption for Canadian and Mexican oil imports, but Leavitt said she had no information to share on the president’s decision on any potential carveouts.
The United States imported almost 4.6 million barrels of oil daily from Canada in October and 563,000 barrels from Mexico, according to the Energy Information Administration. US daily production during that month averaged nearly 13.5 million barrels a day.
Trump has previously stated a 10 percent tariff on Chinese imports would be on top of other import taxes charged on products from the country.
Shortly after Leavitt spoke, the S&P 500 stock index sold off and largely erased its gains on the day.
“We should expect all three countries to retaliate,’’ said Wendy Cutler, a former US trade negotiator. China responded aggressively to tariffs Trump imposed on Chinese goods during his first term, targeting the president’s supporters in rural America with retaliatory taxes on US farm exports.
Both Canada and Mexico have said they’ve prepared the option of retaliatory tariffs to be used if necessary, which in turn could trigger a wider trade conflict that economic analyzes say could hurt growth and further accelerate inflation.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Friday that Canada is ready is a respond if Trump goes ahead with the tariffs, but he did not give details.
“We’re ready with a response, a purposeful, forceful but reasonable, immediate response,” he said. “It’s not what we want, but if he moves forward, we will also act.”
Trudeau said tariffs would have “disastrous consequences” for the U.S, putting American jobs at risk and causing prices to rise. Trudeau reiterated that less than 1 percent of the fentanyl and illegal crossings into the US come from Canada.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said Friday that Mexico has maintained a dialogue with Trump’s team since before he returned to the White House, but she emphasized that Mexico has a “Plan A, Plan B, Plan C for what the United States government decides.”
“Now it is very important that the Mexican people know that we are always going to defend the dignity of our people, we are always going to defend the respect of our sovereignty and a dialogue between equals, as we have always said, without subordination,” Sheinbaum said.
Liu Pengyu, spokesman for the Chinese embassy in Washington, said the two countries should resolve their differences through dialogue and consultation. “There is no winner in a trade war or tariff war, which serves the interests of neither side nor the world,” Liu said in a statement. “Despite the differences, our two countries share huge common interests and space for cooperation.”
A study this month by Warwick McKibbin and Marcus Noland of the Peterson Institute for International Economics concluded that the 25 percent tariffs on Canada and Mexico and 10 percent tariffs on China “would damage all the economies involved, including the US’’
“For Mexico,’’ the study said, “a 25 percent tariff would be catastrophic. Moreover, the economic decline caused by the tariff could increase the incentives for Mexican immigrants to cross the border illegally into the US — directly contradicting another Trump administration priority.’’
Cutler, now vice president at the Asia Society Policy Institute, said the extent of the economic damage will depend on how long the tariffs are in effect.
If it’s just a few days, “that’s one thing. If they are in place for weeks onto months, we’re going to see supply chain disruptions, higher costs for US manufacturers, leading to higher prices for US consumers,’’ she said. “It could have macroeconomic impacts. It could affect the stock market. Then internationally it could lead to more tension with our trading partners and make it harder for us to work with them.”
Chad president welcomes ‘complete’ departure of French forces
- Soldiers and fighter aircraft from France have been stationed in Chad almost continuously since the country’s independence in 1960, helping to train the Chadian military
N’DJAMENA: President Mahamat Idriss Deby on Friday welcomed the “definitive and complete departure” of French forces from Chad, which marks the end of France’s last foothold in the wider terrorist-hit Sahel region.
After a closed-door military ceremony a day earlier, Deby addressed Chadian forces and diplomats at an event in the capital, N’Djamena.
The handover of the Kossei base, the French army’s last such facility in the central African country, follows Chad’s surprise breaking off military cooperation with its former colonial ruler in late November.
“We are not breaking off our relationship with France, but we are ending the military dimension of this cooperation,” Deby said at the base where only the Chadian flag was flying.
Chad must build an “even stronger, better-equipped army” and “forge new alliances based on mutual respect and without losing sight of the demands of independence and sovereignty,” he added.
Soldiers and fighter aircraft from France have been stationed in Chad almost continuously since the country’s independence in 1960, helping to train the Chadian military.
The country had been a key link in France’s military presence in Africa.
Legal battle intensifies over Gaza as ICJ rulings face defiance
- The two nations are spearheading the newly formed Hague Group, a coalition of nine countries
LONDON: The international legal battle over Gaza has deepened as South Africa and Malaysia announced a campaign to uphold rulings from the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court, responding to what they described as widespread defiance of international legal orders.
The two nations are spearheading the newly formed Hague Group, a coalition of nine countries — also including Belize, Honduras, Colombia, Bolivia, Chile, Senegal and Namibia — committed to defending the global legal framework, The Guardian newspaper reported on Friday.
Their initiative follows mounting frustration in the Global South over perceived Western double standards in the application of international law, particularly in the cases of Gaza, Ukraine and Mediterranean human smuggling.
South Africa’s Minister of International Relations Ronald Lamola, said: “The Hague Group’s formation sends a clear message: No nation is above the law and no crime will go unanswered.”
South Africa has taken a leading role in pursuing legal accountability for the war in Gaza, having filed a case at the ICJ accusing Israel of genocide.
Israel has fiercely rejected the claim but interim rulings from the ICJ in January last year mandated it to take immediate measures to prevent genocidal acts and allow humanitarian aid into the besieged enclave.
However, a recent Oxfam survey of nongovernmental agencies operating in Gaza found that 89 percent of agencies reported deteriorating access to aid since the ICJ’s orders were issued. The ongoing humanitarian crisis and Israel’s apparent noncompliance have intensified calls for international enforcement mechanisms.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said the campaign was not about punishing Israel but about defending the integrity of global legal institutions.
“These rulings strike at the very foundations of international law, which the global community has a duty to defend,” he said.
The growing resistance to ICJ rulings has drawn attention to broader concerns over the erosion of international law. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has issued a report outlining steps that member states could take to ensure Israel’s compliance, including reaffirming the ICJ’s finding that its continued occupation of Palestinian territories is illegal and should end within a year.
Switzerland has been tasked with convening a conference in March for the 196 signatories of the Geneva Conventions to reaffirm the legal obligations regarding occupied Palestinian territory. A conference in June in New York is set to discuss the feasibility of a two-state solution.
But enforcing ICJ rulings remains a challenge. Newly appointed US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has endorsed a congressional bill proposing sanctions against any individuals or entities cooperating with ICC investigations targeting the US or its allies. The bill could extend to family members, further complicating efforts to hold Israel accountable.
Divers returning to the Potomac River for DC plane crash recovery, investigation
- Investigators have already recovered the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder
ARLINGTON: Divers are expected to return to the Potomac River on Friday as part of the recovery and investigation after a midair collision killed
67 people in the US’ deadliest aviation disaster in almost a quarter century.
Investigators have already recovered the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder of the American Airlines plane that collided with an Army helicopter as the plane was landing Wednesday night at Ronald Reagan National Airport next to Washington, DC. Officials are scrutinizing a range of factors in what National Transportation Safety Board Chairwoman Jennifer Hommendy has called an “all-hands-on-deck event.”
All aboard the two aircraft were killed, with officials examining the actions of the military pilot as well as air traffic control after the helicopter apparently flew into the path of the American Airlines jet.
Air crash investigations can take months, and federal investigators told reporters Thursday they would not speculate on the cause.
Authorities were still looking for the helicopter’s black box recorder, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Friday on Fox News Channel. Other factors in the crash, including the helicopter’s altitude and whether the crew was using its night vision goggles, are still under investigation, Hegseth said.
At least 28 bodies have been pulled from the Potomac River. The plane carried 60 passengers and four crew members, and three soldiers were aboard the helicopter.
One air traffic controller was responsible for coordinating helicopter traffic and arriving and departing planes when the collision happened, according to a report by the Federal Aviation Administration that was obtained by The Associated Press. Those duties are often divided between two people, but the airport typically combines the roles at 9:30 p.m., once traffic begins to slow down. On Wednesday the tower supervisor directed that they be combined earlier.
“The position configuration was not normal for the time of day and volume of traffic,” the report said.
A person familiar with the matter, however, said the tower staffing that night was at a normal level. The positions are regularly combined when controllers need to step away from the console for breaks, during shift changes or when air traffic is slow, the person said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal procedures. The FAA has long struggled with a shortage of air traffic controllers.
Officials said flight conditions were clear as the jet arrived from Wichita, Kansas, carrying, among others, a group of elite young figure skaters, their parents and coaches, and four union steamfitters from the Washington area.
A top Army aviation official said the crew of the helicopter, a Black Hawk, was “very experienced” and familiar with the congested flying that occurs daily around the city.
“Both pilots had flown this specific route before, at night. This wasn’t something new to either one of them,” said Jonathan Koziol, chief of staff for Army aviation.
The helicopter’s maximum allowed altitude at the time was 200 feet (about 60 meters), Koziol said. It was not immediately clear whether it exceeded that limit, but Hegseth said altitude seemed to be a factor in the collision.
Koziol said investigators need to analyze the flight data before making conclusions about altitude.
Flights at Reagan National resumed around midday Thursday.
Wednesday’s crash was the deadliest in the US since Nov. 12, 2001, when an American Airlines flight slammed into a residential area of Belle Harbor, New York, just after takeoff from Kennedy Airport, killing all 260 people aboard and five people on the ground.
The last major fatal crash involving a US commercial airline occurred in 2009 near Buffalo, New York. Everyone aboard the Bombardier DHC-8 propeller plane was killed, along with one person on the ground, bringing the total death toll to 50.
Medicine shortage sparks worry in Central Asian Kyrgyzstan
- Landlocked Kyrgyzstan is one of the poorest of former Soviet republics and brings in most of medicines from Russia, India and Pakistan
- Many Kyrgyz have to build up considerable savings in order to receive treatment abroad, a practice that authorities have promised to end
BISHKEK: Kyrgyzstan announced on Friday it was facing a shortage of medicines, particularly for treating serious illnesses in the Central Asian country, that imports almost all pharmaceutical products.
Landlocked Kyrgyzstan is one of the poorest of the former Soviet republics and brings in most of its medicines from Russia, India and Pakistan.
Many Kyrgyz have to build up considerable savings in order to receive treatment abroad — a practice authorities have promised to end.
In 2023, the Kyrgyz government set up a state-owned company — Kyrgyzpharmacy — to centralize the distribution to hospitals of medicines needed to treat cancer, blood diseases and epilepsy.
The measure — which involved buying medicines directly from manufacturers — was designed to combat corruption.
“The company needs 3.5 billion Som — more than 38.5 million euros ($40 million) — to guarantee the purchase of medicine and increase volumes,” said Health Minister Alymkadyr Beishenaliev.
The government has also launched a network of state-run pharmacies designed to bring down the price of medicines — which is higher than in most other ex-Soviet states.
The health minister acknowledged on Friday that most of them were not profitable and announced he had sacked the head of Kyrgyzphamarcy, at the request of President Sadyr Japarov.
Members of parliament have warned about the shortage of medicines, criticized the state of the medical infrastructure and suggested raising funds for children with cancer.
On Thursday, parliamentary speaker Nurlan Shakiyev said: “Supply of medicines to the population is a thorny issue.”
He noted the public was “concerned about a significant increase in the price of essential and sought-after medicines.”
