Berlin urges Israel, Turkey not to jeopardise Syria’s transition Posted on 12/12/2024 An Israeli army tank patrols near the Alpha Line, which separates the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights from Syria, in the town of Majdal Shams. (AP pic) BERLIN: Germany’s foreign minister on Wednesday urged Israel and Turkey not to jeopardise a peaceful transition in Syria after the ousting of president Bashar al-Assad in an Islamist-led rebel offensive. “We must not allow the internal Syrian dialogue process to be torpedoed from the outside,” Annalena Baerbock told a Berlin press conference. “Neighbours such as the Turkish and Israeli governments, which are asserting their security interests, must not jeopardise the process.” Since Assad’s downfall, Israel has launched strikes on military sites in Syria ranging from weapons depots to naval vessels, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor. Israel has also sent troops into a UN-patrolled buffer zone east of the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights. Turkey meanwhile is worried Kurdish separatists could take advantage of Assad’s ouster to extend their influence in Syria, where they have dominated a large northeastern area since 2012. Ankara sees the Kurdish forces, notably the militant group YPG, as an extension of the banned Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which has fought an insurgency against the Turkish state since the 1980s. Since Assad fled, Turkish-backed groups have launched offensives in northern Syria, though the Kurdish-led force there said Wednesday fighting had stopped under a US-brokered ceasefire. Baerbock said Syria’s “new chapter” was still being written, adding that “the outcome of the revolution is not certain, nor have the people won the transition to a free and peaceful Syria”. “Syria must not be allowed to become a pawn in the hands of foreign powers or forces again,” she added. During Assad’s rule, Syria was backed by Iran and Russia, whose intervention in 2015 turned the tide of the civil war. Speaking on a trip to Jordan, German defence minister Boris Pistorius said Israel’s strikes “can be understood as a measure for security”. “Nobody really knows who will ultimately have control of the country,” Pistorius said. “The idea that gas weapons from Syrian factories could fall into the wrong hands and play a role in Islamist-motivated attacks somewhere in the world is an idea that would be unbearable.” By the same token, he said, it was incumbent upon Israel not to “contribute to escalation”. News
Feedback crucial to let Madani govt know if it is on right track, observers say Posted on 21/11/2024 KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 21 — The Two Years of MADANI Government programme and the 2024 National Convention on Public Service Reform, taking place from tomorrow until Sunday at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre, serve as a vital platform to strengthen connections between the people, the government, and the civil service…. Read More
No renegotiation of raw water rates with S’pore for now, says ministry Posted on 02/12/2024 Singapore currently buys raw water from Johor at 3 sen per 1,000 gallons and sells treated water back to Johor at 50 sen per 1,000 gallons. (Bernama pic) KUALA LUMPUR: Johor and Putrajaya have decided against renegotiating the rates for raw water supplied to Singapore for the time being, says… Read More
Natural Resources Ministry: Malaysia moves closer to single-use plastic bag ban by 2026, engages states on roadmap Posted on 08/11/2024 KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 7 — The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability (NRES) is considering a nationwide ban on single-use plastic bags by 2026. In a written reply posted on the Parliament’s website, NRES stated that this policy is already in force in Negeri Sembilan, Penang, and Kota Kinabalu,… Read More