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Two tankers were struck and caught fire in the Black Sea, Turkish authorities reported, prompting rescue operations. Crew members on board both vessels were reported to be safe. The OpenSanctions database, which tracks people or organisations involved in sanctions evasion, described the vessels as shadow fleet or vessels used to evade sanctions imposed on Russia following its 2022 invasion of Russia. Turkey's Directorate General of Maritime Affairs said the first tanker, the Gambian-flagged Kairos, caught fire in the Black Sea, approximately 45 km off the coast of Turkey's Kocaeli province. It blamed on the fire on an external impact, without providing details. The Kairos was sailing empty toward Russia's Novorossiysk port, it said. Within the hour, the maritime authority reported that a second tanker, Virat, was struck while sailing in the Black Sea about 35 nautical miles off the Turkish coast. It did not provide further details. Rescue teams were dispatched to the scene to pro
All 20 personnel on board a military cargo plane that crashed in Georgia were killed, Turkiye's defence minister announced on Wednesday. The C-130 plane had taken off from Ganja, Azerbaijan and was on its way back to Turkiye when it crashed on Tuesday in Georgia's Sighnaghi municipality, close to the Azerbaijani border. The cause of the crash is being investigated. A Turkish accident investigation team reached the crash site early on Wednesday and was inspecting the wreckage of the plane, in coordination with the Georgian authorities, the National Defence Ministry said. The wreckage was spread across a plain that includes farmland and is surrounded by hills, Turkish private broadcaster NTV reported from the site. Debris from the aircraft was scattered across multiple locations, the report said. Our heroic comrades-in-arms were martyred on November 11, 2025, when our C-130 military cargo plane, which had taken off from Azerbaijan en route to our country, crashed near the ...
A strong earthquake shook western Turkey on Monday, causing at least three buildings that were damaged in a previous tremor to collapse, officials said. There were no immediate reports of casualties. The magnitude 6.1 quake was centred in the town of Sindirgi in Balikesir province, according to the Disaster and Emergency Management agency, AFAD. It struck at 10.48 pm local time at a depth of 5.99 km. The quake, which was followed by several aftershocks, was felt in Istanbul, and the nearby provinces of Bursa, Manisa and Izmir. At least three unoccupied buildings and a two-story shop collapsed in Sindirgi, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said. The structures had already been damaged in a previous earthquake. Two people were admitted to hospitals due to panic-related falls, the minister added. So far, we have not identified any loss of life, but we are continuing our assessment, Sindirgi's district administrator Dogukan Koyuncu told the state-run Anadolu Agency. Many people remaine
Prosecutors filed new espionage charges against Istanbul's jailed mayor on Monday, intensifying the judicial pressure on the opposition politician seen as a top rival to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The new charges against Ekrem Imamoglu stem from an investigation launched last week into alleged links between his political campaign and a businessman arrested in July for reportedly carrying out intelligence activities on behalf of foreign governments. Imamoglu's former campaign manager, Necati Ozkan, and journalist Merdan Yanardag were also charged. The state-run Anadolu Agency said Imamoglu who his already in pretrial detention on corruption charges is suspected, among other things, of transferring personal data of Istanbul residents as part of an effort to secure international funding for his campaign. Imamoglu rejected the accusations as nonsense in a statement posted on social media. Even the claim that I burned down Rome would have been more credible than this nonsense, .
Pakistan and Afghanistan held the second round of talks in Istanbul to establish a joint monitoring and oversight mechanism to curb terrorist movements across the border even as Islamabad warned that war was still an option if talks failed to address its chief concern about terrorism. Dozens of soldiers, civilians and terrorists were killed in clashes earlier this month, creating a war like situation but peace was restored temporarily on October 19 after the two sides held talks -- facilitated by Qatar and Turkey -- in Doha. As agreed in Doha, the second round of talks between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban was held on Saturday in Istanbul, Turkiye. Radio Pakistan quoted official sources saying that the discussions were focused on establishing a joint monitoring and oversight mechanism to curb cross-border terrorist movements and addressing trade barriers. The two sides also explored the possibility of reaching a long-term political understanding. Geo News reported that Pakistan
Afghanistan and Pakistan are heading to Turkey for a second round of crisis talks, officials said Friday, after recent fighting between them killed dozens of people and injured hundreds more. The neighbours are embroiled in a bitter security row that has become increasingly violent, with each side saying they were responding to aggression from the other. Pakistan accuses Afghanistan of turning a blind eye to armed groups that cross the border for attacks, a charge the country's Taliban rulers reject. Last weekend, Qatar and Turkey mediated a ceasefire to pause the hostilities. The truce has largely held, although the countries' border remains closed except for Afghan refugees leaving Pakistan. Afghanistan's Chamber of Commerce and Industry said traders are losing millions of dollars a day because border transit and trade have ground to a halt. Southern Kandahar Province was the worst-hit by the recent fighting, especially Spin Boldak on the border, where Pakistani airstrikes kille
Talks on bringing an end to the war in Gaza are on the verge of reaching a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Wednesday. Turkish, Qatari, Egyptian and US mediators are working to realise an American plan that calls for an immediate ceasefire and the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners. If an agreement is reached today, a ceasefire will be declared, Fidan told a news conference in Ankara with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani. Fidan earlier said that a lot of progress has been achieved so far in the negotiations. What is good news is that the parties have showed great will for the release of the prisoners and the hostages, he added. All sides have expressed optimism for a deal to end the two-year war that has left tens of thousands of Palestinians dead and most of Gaza destroyed. But key parts of the peace plan still haven't been agreed, including a requirement that Hamas disarm, the timing and extent of an Israeli
An Israeli strike on a meeting of Hamas officials in Qatar has cast a cloud of growing concern across Turkiye that it could be the next target. Turkish Defence Ministry spokesman Rear Adm. Zeki Akturk warned in Ankara on Thursday that Israel would further expand its reckless attacks, as it did in Qatar, and drag the entire region, including its own country, into disaster. Israel and Turkiye were once strong regional partners, but ties between the countries ran into difficulties from the late 2000s and have reached an all-time low over the war in Gaza sparked by the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack in southern Israel. Tensions also have risen as the two countries have competed for influence in neighbouring Syria since the fall of Bashar Assad's government last year. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been a long-standing supporter of the Palestinian cause and of the Palestinian militant group Hamas. The Turkish president has criticised Israel, and particularly Prime Minist
Turkiye has closed its airspace to Israeli planes in protest at the war in Gaza, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Friday. We have completely cut off our trade with Israel. We do not allow Turkish ships to go to Israeli ports. We do not allow their planes to enter our airspace, he told a special parliamentary debate on Gaza in Ankara. Turkiye severed direct trade ties with Israel in May last year, demanding a permanent ceasefire and the immediate entry of humanitarian aid to Gaza. In 2023, the two countries carried out USD 7 billion in trade. Turkish media reported last week that a ban on maritime traffic linked to Israel had been imposed, although there was no official statement. According to reports, Israeli vessels were banned from docking in Turkiye, and Turkish-flagged ships were not allowed to enter Israeli ports. Ankara has been a harsh critic of Israeli attacks on Gaza, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan repeatedly referring to Israel's actions as genocide and likening Pri
Russian oil giant Rosneft-backed Nayara Energy has appointed Teymur Abasguliyev as the new CEO of the company, replacing a European national who had to resign following EU sanctions on the company. The appointment of Abasguliyev, an Azerbaijan national who currently as the chief financial officer at SOCAR Turkiye Enerji A.S, was confirmed by the Nayara board at its meeting on Tuesday, two sources aware of the matter said. Nayara spokesperson did not immediately respond to an email sent for comments. Educated at Azerbaijan's Baku State University, Abasguliyev previously worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers from 1996 to 2013. He has been the CFO of Group Companies at SOCAR Trkiye Enerji A.S. since 2013. Nayara Chief Executive Alessandro Des Dorides had to quit shortly after the European Union imposed sanctions on the refiner as part of a new raft of measures against Russia over its war with Ukraine. Sergey Denisov, who was Nayara's Chief Development Officer, was named the interim CEO ..
A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck Turkey's northwestern province of Balikesir on Sunday, killing at least one person and causing more than a dozen buildings to collapse, officials said. At least 29 people were injured. The earthquake, with an epicentre in the town of Sindirgi, sent shocks that were felt some 200 kilometres to the north in Istanbul, a city of more than 16 million people. An elderly woman died shortly after being pulled out alive from the debris of a collapsed building in Sindirgi, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya told reporters. Four other people were rescued from the building. Yerlikaya said a total of 16 buildings collapsed in the region -- most of them derelict and unused. Two mosque minarets also tumbled down, he said. None of the injured were in serious condition, the minister said. Television footage showed rescue teams asking for silence so they can listen for signs of life beneath the rubble. Turkey's Disaster and Emergency Management Agency said the earthq
The leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan are expected to sign a peace deal Friday at the White House that could potentially put an end to decades of conflict, President Donald Trump said. Trump said Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev would also be signing agreements with the US to pursue Economic opportunities together, so we can fully unlock the potential of the South Caucasus Region. Many Leaders have tried to end the War, with no success, until now, thanks to TRUMP, Trump wrote on Thursday night on his Truth Social site. The prospective agreement could potentially put an end to decades of conflict and set the stage for a reopening of key transportation corridors across the South Caucasus that have been shut since the early 1990s. Three US officials, who were not authorised to speak publicly ahead of the announcement and spoke on condition of anonymity, said the agreements included a major breakthrough establishing a key transit corridor .