https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/nato-to-sign-protocol-accepting-finland-sweden-accession

NATO to sign protocol accepting Finland, Sweden accession

The formal procedure to join the Western military alliance is currently being discussed by Sweden and Finland with NATO authorities in Brussels. This would be a significant change from the Nordic nations' long-standing military nonalignment policies.

The July 4 negotiations, which come after an accord with NATO member Turkey last week that saw Ankara give up its opposition to their membership, are being led by Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde and her Finnish counterpart Pekka Haavisto.

The accession protocols for Sweden and Finland are anticipated to be signed by ambassadors from the 30 NATO members on July 5. The approval of their memberships by all alliance members is thus likely to take a few months.

Ankara initially declared that it would block their membership due to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's accusations that they support what he dubbed "terrorism and provide safe havens for Kurdish militants operating in Turkey."

However, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has lately dropped weeks of opposition to Sweden and Finland joining NATO.

Last week, Erdogan declared victory after securing a 10-point agreement in which the two countries agreed to join Turkey's "fight against banned Kurdish militants and to quickly extradite suspects."

Turkey put the agreement to the test right away when it announced that it would seek the extradition of 12 suspects from Finland and 21 from Sweden. "We ask them to fulfill their promises," Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag said in a statement.

In response, Sweden insisted that any decision to extradite "Kurdish militants and coup plot suspects" to Turkey would be made by "independent courts".

Justice Minister Morgan Johansson said in a written statement as quoted by AFP that "in Sweden, Swedish law is applied by independent courts. Swedish citizens are not extradited. Non-Swedish citizens can be extradited at the request of other countries, but only if it is compatible with Swedish law and the European Convention."

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/polish-president:-baltic-sea-will-be-controlled-by-nato

Polish President: Baltic Sea will be controlled by NATO

On Monday, Polish President Andrzej Duda said that once Finland and Sweden join NATO, the Baltic Sea will be under their full control.

"The Baltic Sea is essentially poised to become NATO's internal basin. Two very powerful nations with a long and strong military tradition will become part of NATO soon, extending the Russia-NATO border by 1,400 kilometers [870 miles]," Duda said during a national security council meeting.

Recently, both NATO and Russia have been keeping a close eye on the Baltic Sea, where Moscow has recently been conducting naval drills and exercises.

In May, Russia withdrew from the Council of Baltic Sea States, stressing that the withdrawal will not affect Russia's presence in the area.

In April, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the alliance may increase its presence around Sweden and the Baltic Sea to "protect the country from Russian meddling during a potential membership application."

"We must remember that from the moment Sweden potentially applies, and NATO says that it wants Sweden to join, there is a very strong NATO obligation to guarantee Sweden's security", Stoltenberg told Swedish public television SVT.

While NATO, in June, conducted military drills coinciding with the decision to increase troop presence in Europe to 300,000, Russia has also been conducting military drills in the sea.

>>16597598

Confirmed. Tunnels destroyed.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/burhan:-army-to-withdraw-from-political-talks-technocrat-gov

Burhan: Army to withdraw from political talks, technocrat gov't onset

The Head of the Sudanese Sovereign Council, General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, said the army will be withdrawing from ongoing political talks and allow political and revolutionary groups to form a government of technocrats to lead the transition.

His sovereign council will be dissolved after the new government is formed, said Burhan.

The decision was taken "to make room for political and revolutionary forces and other national factions" to form a civilian government, he said, months after the October coup ousted civilians from a transitional administration.

"The armed forces will not stand in the way" of democratic transition, Burhan said in his address, affirming the military's commitment to working towards "elections in which the Sudanese people choose who will govern them."

Sudan has been grappling with political turmoil since October 25, 2021. Toward the end of June, four Sudanese demonstrators were killed after being shot in the chest with a live round in the city of Omdurman as per the Central Committee of Sudan Doctors (CCSD).

On October 25 last year, Al-Burhan spearheaded a military coup that halted a collaboration between the army and civilian parties that was supposed to lead to democratic elections, igniting months of protests and international condemnation.

Anti-coup protests have been mounting in the capital, Khartoum, for the fifth day in a row. Protesters took to the streets to demand civil rule and an end to the military coup executed by the army last year.

>> Doesn't look at all in Sudan. It's going to get really ugly there.

>>16597663

>>16597701

More like they know what's coming, so they are trying to built public sympathy before it happens. Same old tricks.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/israeli-media:-iof-air-force-faced-difficulty-downing-hezbol

Israeli media: IOF air force faced difficulty downing Hezbollah drones

A preliminary Israeli occupation forces investigation revealed that the IOF air force pilots faced difficulty in downing one of Hezbollah's unmanned drones that were launched towards the Karish platform on Saturday, Israeli news website Walla reported.

The IOF investigation report also revealed that the Israeli pilots failed to track the second Hezbollah drone that was launched at the Karish platform before the drone was downed using a Barak missile from the Saar 5 Class Corvette.

The preliminary investigation indicated that the IOF missile launched missed the target, while Israeli pilots also faced difficulties in identifying the third drone because it was flying at a low altitude.

It is noteworthy that since the Islamic Resistance in Lebanon - Hezbollah - announced the launch of three unarmed drones toward the disputed region of the Karish gas field on a reconnaissance mission on Saturday, Israeli media has repeatedly touched on "Israel's" response problems.

Israeli media: Fear is prevalent in the security establishment

In the same context, Israeli media reported that the three drones operated by Hezbollah as they headed for the Karish natural gas field were not carrying weapons, but rather a message of "you have to submit to our demands," stressing that “Israel” is not after escalation with Hezbollah, yet it holds its ground.

Walla said fear is prevalent in the security establishment of further attacks by Hezbollah, indicating that Hezbollah’s actions appear to be more of a declaration of intent.

The website said that Hezbollah's operation entails "important repercussions on the ongoing negotiations of the demarcation of maritime borders and the size of the Israeli forces deployed to protect the Karish gas-drilling platform and handle other threats,” not to mention stripping the workers at the Karish gas platform of any sense of security, having gotten a taste of what Hezbollah is capable of once the Lebanese Resistance party decides to alter the goal of the drones from surveillance to attack and even to launching missiles against the platform.

Hezbollah has much more capabilities than those demonstrated

Israeli media further indicated that “Hezbollah has much more capabilities than those demonstrated yesterday [Saturday], especially that the main goal was to deliver a message and not necessarily to inflict harm,” adding that “the last word in the battle over the economic waters has not yet been said, and indirect negotiations are expected to continue.”

"Protecting the Karish platform, a platform located about 100 kilometers off of the shore, is far more complicated than protecting the Leviathan platform, for example, which is ten kilometers off of the shore," Israeli media considered.

Hezbollah is able to attack strategic targets inside "Israel"

On his part, security official Amir Avivi said that Hezbollah is able to attack strategic targets inside "Israel" with hundreds of drones at the same time, adding that in the last decade, the Lebanese Resistance has increased its armament from 50 drones to more than 2,000.

Avivi stressed that it is important to know that the Iranians and Hezbollah are not afraid of confrontation and failure from time to time, pointing out that the two are studying and planning for a battle that is tens of times bigger than expected.

Similarly, Yossi Langotsky, a former IOF official, said that if Karish had been targeted, the repercussions of the event would have been very dangerous, especially since it is a very special platform that was built in the far east over a very long period of time, and hitting it can paralyze the gas extraction process.

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/18-dead-in-uzbekistan-unrest-last-week:-prosecutor

18 dead in Uzbekistan unrest last week: Prosecutor

The state prosecutor of Uzbekistan reported on Monday that 18 people were killed amid unrest in the Karakalpakstan region last week, following protests over planned constitutional amendments impacting the territory's status.

"In (the administrative center) Nukus, 18 people died as a result of serious injuries received during massive disorders," Russian news agency Ria Novosti quoted Abror Mamatov, an official from the state prosecutor's office, as saying.

Mamatov was addressing a briefing when a National Guard representative stated that 243 individuals were hurt during the unrest, with 94 of them hospitalized.

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev of Uzbekistan has since withdrawn draft constitutional amendments that would have erased the republic's constitutionally enshrined right to self-determination.

The fights are the most serious challenge to the 64-year-old's reign since he ascended to power from the role of prime minister in 2016, following the death of his long-serving mentor Islam Karimov.

Mirziyoyev returned to Karakalpakstan for the second time in two days on Sunday. He accused protest organizers of "hiding behind false slogans" and attempting to "seize local government buildings."

Uzbekistan's parliament decided on Monday to extend the term of public debate on the proposed constitutional law for another ten days, until July 15, according to MP Bobur Bekmurodov on Twitter.

The autonomous republic's constitutional right to secede from Uzbekistan is a relic of a post-Soviet Union deal reached between Karakalpakstan and the central authority in Tashkent.

The regime has never shown inclined to consider the possibility. One provision that will stay in the draft text allows presidents to run for seven-year periods, which will directly benefit Mirziyoyev, who defeated token opponents to gain a second five-year term in October 2021.

>>16597775

Confirmed. The Beast needs 5 Billion $ per day to stay afloat.

>>16597886

https://english.almayadeen.net/news/environment/italy-declares-emergency-in-5-regions-as-drought-hits

Italy declares emergency in 5 regions as drought hits

On Monday, Italy designated emergency funds and a state of emergency in five northern areas due to a drought that has been ravaging the Po Valley for several weeks and is only getting worse. The Cabinet has given the go-ahead for a state of emergency to last until December 31 in five regions: Friuli-Romagna, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Lombardy, Piedmont, and Veneto.

The government also announced a $39.5 million fund to aid people in need as Italy experienced an early heatwave and a drought that is the worst in 70 years. The state of emergency provides "extraordinary means and powers" to help guarantee public safety and compensation for losses while also looking to guarantee normal living conditions for those in the region.

In accordance with Italy’s major agricultural union, Coldiretti, the drought threatens not only 30% of the national agricultural production but also half of the farms in the Po Valley.

Furthermore, the levels of water have dropped, relative to the given time of year, at the two lakes Maggiore and Garda. In addition, even the southern Tiber River, which runs through Rome, has also witnessed a drop in water levels.

The Po is the biggest water reservoir on the peninsula, and farmers utilize a lot of it to sustain themselves. As a result of the climate crisis, several towns have announced limitations on water consumption. For example, Milan has declared the closing of its ornamental fountains, while Verona, a city of 25,000, has restricted the usage of drinking water.

The drought has also resulted in a dramatic decline in hydroelectric power generation. Nearly 20% of the nation's energy production is generated by hydroelectric facilities, the majority of which are located in the mountainous north of the country.

The revelation comes a day after a glacier fell in the Italian Alps claimed at least seven lives and was "without doubt" related to global warming, according to Prime Minister Mario Draghi.

>>16597940

>>16597994

April showers bring May flowers.

>>16598081

>>16598120

even better

>>16598156