The Global Counter-Jihadist Coalition reported Monday a decline in Islamic State attacks in Iraq and neighboring Syria during the first months of 2023, as the jihadists continue to operate despite their defeat.

After its rise in 2014 in Iraq and neighboring Syria, the Islamic State was defeated after a series of military operations against it in the two countries, with the support of an international coalition led by Washington.

Iraq declared "victory" over the jihadists in 2017, while the Islamic State lost its last stronghold in 2019 in Syria, but its elements are still active in rural and remote areas and launch sporadic attacks.

"Since the beginning of the year in Iraq, until the first week of April, we recorded a 68% decrease in the number of attacks, compared to the same period in the previous year," said General Matthew MacFarlane, commander of the international coalition.

"In Syria...we recorded a decrease of 55% during the same period," he added during an online press conference, pointing out that these attacks were "relatively limited", launched by "one or a few individuals".

"The Islamic State organization has not succeeded in organizing or coordinating anything on a broader level this year," he said.

He stated that the month of Ramadan "was one of the quietest in years," pointing to an "80 percent" drop in attacks in Iraq compared to last year, and a "37 percent" drop in Syria.

He also pointed out that the Kurdish forces that run al-Hol camp in Syria, which houses about 50,000 people from jihadist families, have deported "more than 1,300 nationals of other countries" since the beginning of 2023.

In March, an Iraqi military official said that the Islamic State had between 400 and 500 fighters active in Iraq.

According to estimates published in a report to the UN Security Council in February, the organization has "between 5,000 and 7,000 members and supporters spread between Iraq" and Syria, "about half of them fighters."

In Iraq, "the organization is still active despite Iraqi counter-terrorism efforts that succeeded in killing approximately 150 ISIS members in 2022," according to the Security Council report.
The report added that the organization is active in Iraq in "rural mountainous areas," taking advantage of "the porous Iraqi-Syrian border."

Despite the decline in its financial reserves, which are currently estimated at between 25 and 50 million dollars, according to the Security Council report, the organization "began to launder money through investments in legitimate businesses such as hotels and real estate" in Syria and Iraq.

The organization also resorted to "stealing cattle to collect money."

The Captive Club: Today, the military court of the occupation in ( Ofer ) extended the detention of Maher Shloun (47 years) from Aqabat Jabr camp / Jericho , until next Monday.

The Prisoner's Club stated that the detainee, Shloun, has been subjected to a long interrogation at the Ofer interrogation center since his arrest on the first of last March. He was also denied access to a lawyer for about a month.

The occupation authorities arrested him and a group of his brothers after storming their house, and later released them, while maintaining his detention.

It is noteworthy that the detainee, Shloun, is a former prisoner who spent three years previously. He is married and the father of three children. He is also the brother of the martyr Jamal Shloun. His family's home was previously demolished, and most of his siblings were arrested for years.

After months of anticipation, US President Joe Biden is expected to officially announce his candidacy for a second term on Tuesday, dispelling concerns expressed about his age.

Neither the White House nor the Democratic Party has officially confirmed this, but the 80-year-old president's candidacy is no longer a secret. If re-elected, Biden will end his second term at the age of 86.
Several reliable media outlets expected this announcement to take place on Tuesday via video.

However, these rumors, which are circulating in all of Washington , must be dealt with with caution, because the Biden camp has hinted several times that an announcement in this regard is imminent, but without this matter being realized.

However, Tuesday's date will not be a coincidence, as April 25 will be exactly the fourth anniversary of Joe Biden's entry into the campaign, at the end of which Democrat Donald Trump was denied a second term.

Announcing the candidacy again on this date, at a time when Americans may witness the same competition that took place in 2020, will carry strong symbolism.

There is no campaign event currently on Biden's agenda for the day. But the president is supposed to speak before a union to present his vision of what will surely be one of the main tenets of his election campaign: his desire to restore the "forgotten" people's "dignity" that Donald Trump knew how to court.

Biden believes that the statistics are on his side, as American presidents generally run and are often re-elected.

But the 80-year-old president defies historical precedent.
In November 2021 and February 2023, the President underwent medical examinations, which concluded that he was in “good health.”
Of course, he shows extraordinary resilience, from international crises to major reforms.

But a Democrat, who is prone to lapses and whose age is evident on his face, should expect mounting Republican attacks on his mental capacity.

Joe Biden took note, according to the polls, that the candidacy of his predecessor Donald Trump (76 years), who was charged by a court in New York, no longer aroused enthusiasm either.

The Democrat thus considers that if he once defeated his Republican predecessor, the divisive figure, he can do so again by projecting his character as a good man and his unifying platform.

There remains an unknown factor: What will Joe Biden's chances be if he faces a younger opponent or competition in November 2024?

Florida Governor Ron DeStantis, the 44-year-old far-right figure, is being circulated heavily. He has not announced his candidacy yet.

This will be the fourth presidential race for Joe Biden, if he officially announces his candidacy. Before he was elected in 2020, he ran for the 1998 and 2008 elections, and each time I suffered a severe defeat. And in 2015, Biden, who was vice president at the time, and was deeply affected by the death of his eldest son, declined to run to succeed Barack Obama.

A 13-year-old child was killed on Monday evening, in mysterious circumstances, in the village of Al-Azazmeh in the Negev , in the occupied interior.

According to the Hebrew website, Ynet, the Israeli police are investigating the circumstances of his death, especially since traces of suffocation were found on his neck.

Today, Monday, a number of citizens were injured as a result of clashes with the occupation forces in Salfit .

According to local sources, 3 citizens were wounded by rubber bullets, one of them in the head, and dozens suffocated by tear gas, in the town of Qarawat Bani Hassan, west of Salfit.

The sources pointed out that the occupation forces stormed the town and confiscated a car.

On Monday, the evacuations of nationals and foreign diplomats from Sudan continued, as the battles between the army and the Rapid Support Forces approached their tenth day, in the absence of any prospect of ending the clashes.

However, the United Nations announced in a statement on Monday the retention of a number of its employees in Sudan, headed by the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General, Volker Berthes, while 700 of its employees, embassies and non-governmental organizations arrived at Port Sudan to evacuate them.

With the continued whistling of bullets and the sound of explosions in Khartoum and other cities, Western and regional capitals were able to open safe paths for the expulsion of foreign nationals with the guarantee of the two conflicting parties, that is, the army commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the commander of the Rapid Support Forces Muhammad Hamdan Dagalo.

The fighting, which began on April 15th, has killed more than 420 people, injured nearly 4,000, and put the health care system under enormous pressure to deal with the growing death toll.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned Monday that the ongoing violence in Sudan between the two warring parties could "spread to the entire region and beyond."

He said during a Security Council debate on pluralism that the situation in Sudan "continues to deteriorate."

"The violence must stop. It threatens a catastrophic conflagration inside Sudan that could spread to the entire region and beyond," he added.

And the European Union's foreign policy official, Josep Borrell, announced that the bloc was able to evacuate a thousand of its nationals from Sudan.

"It was a complex and successful operation," he told reporters on Monday, stressing that 21 diplomats from the United Nations mission in Khartoum were expelled, while the European Union ambassador left Khartoum and moved to another part of Sudan.

Borrell thanked France, which since Sunday has led air evacuations to Djibouti using military aircraft.

For his part, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, on Monday, expressed his concern about the presence of the Russian Wagner Group in Sudan, and said in a joint press conference with his Kenyan counterpart in Washington, "We are very concerned about the presence of the Prigozhin Group, the Wagner Group, in Sudan."
And the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Monday that it had so far evacuated about 400 of its nationals and holders of other nationalities.

And she explained in a statement that "these flights allowed the evacuation of 388 people, including French citizens who expressed their desire to do so, in addition to a large number of nationals of other countries, Europeans in particular, as well as Africans and from the American continent and Asia."

The evacuees held the nationalities of Germany, Austria, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Hungary, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Switzerland, South Africa, Burundi, Ethiopia, Lesotho, Morocco, Namibia, Niger, Uganda and Rwanda, as well as Sudan, the United States, Canada, India, Japan and the Philippines.

The weekend witnessed an acceleration in evacuations, which were carried out by several countries such as the United States, Britain, Germany and China.

A statement by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Monday, stated that it had "peacefully evacuated" the first batch of its nationals, stressing that it would "make every effort to protect the lives, property and safety of more than 1,500 Chinese citizens in Sudan."

For its part, London confirmed, through a government spokesman, that its armed forces "took advantage of a narrow window of opportunity" to complete the evacuation.

The spokesman pointed out that "in light of the continuing violent clashes in Khartoum and the closure of its main airport" because of this since the first day of the outbreak of the fighting, "it is impossible to organize a larger evacuation" at the present time.
Egypt and Saudi Arabia were the most prominent Arabs in terms of evacuations.

And the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Sunday night, "the evacuation of 436 citizens from Sudan" through the land border between the two countries, while Riyadh announced on Saturday the evacuation of more than 100 Saudis and nationals of other countries by sea to Jeddah, after they moved by land to the city of Port Sudan in eastern Sudan.

On Saturday, Jordan announced the start of the evacuation of about 300 Jordanians, and Baghdad confirmed the evacuation of 14 Iraqis "to a safe location in the Port Sudan area," and efforts are continuing to evacuate others.

On Monday, the Lebanese Foreign Ministry announced the evacuation of 52 people from Port Sudan to Jeddah on board a Saudi navy ship. Also, 105 Libyans left Sudan in the same way, according to what their country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed on Monday.

The Algerian authorities announced the start of the operation on Monday to evacuate diplomats and citizens, while Iraq confirmed the arrival of 14 citizens to the port of Port Sudan.

Indonesia announced the transfer of a group of 538 of its citizens in Sudan from Khartoum to Port Sudan and from there to Jeddah, while another group of 289 is waiting to travel in a second stage.

The government of Chad also reported that it would send planes to the port overlooking the Red Sea to collect 438 of its nationals leaving Khartoum by bus to Port Sudan.

Most of the foreigners who were evacuated are diplomatic personnel, while many civilians are waiting for their turn to be evacuated by air, in convoys of buses and four-wheel drive cars that move with security escorts from Khartoum towards military bases outside it, or to the city of Port Sudan.

Djibouti is an essential station for air evacuations, as military planes transporting civilians from Sudan land there.

And now this country overlooking the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab Strait hosts many foreign military forces, whose members organize the arrivals of dozens of exhausted families.

Since the evacuations accelerated over the weekend, officials and analysts have raised growing fears about the fate of the Sudanese, amid fears that the battles will intensify again once the expulsion of the nationals who wish to do so ends.

"I fear for their future," wrote the Norwegian ambassador, Andre Stiansen.
"Now, weapons and personal interests are more important than values and words... All scenarios are bad," he added.

Leaving Khartoum has become an obsession for its five million residents, in light of the power outages and shortages of supplies and water.

However, leaving is not easy, especially in light of the need for large quantities of fuel to travel the distance towards the Egyptian border to the north (about a thousand kilometers), or to reach Port Sudan (850 kilometers to the east) in the hope of moving from it by sea to another country.

Fuel has become a scarce and expensive currency in Khartoum, which was already suffering from high inflation affecting most basic materials.

And the United Nations warned that "while foreigners who can afford to flee, the impact of violence on the already critical humanitarian situation in Sudan is increasing."

Likewise, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees estimated that 800,000 South Sudanese refugees living in Sudan will depend on themselves to return to their homeland, from which they fled to escape the war.

And forced many agencies of the international organization to suspend their activities in Sudan.

Daglo and Al-Burhan were allies when they carried out a coup in 2021, during which they removed the civilians who were sharing power with them from power, two years after the overthrow of the Omar al-Bashir regime.
But the differences and the struggle for power soon began between them.

The support forces were formed in Darfur to support Bashir's forces in the conflict that the western region witnessed at the beginning of the third millennium.

In light of the difficulty of access to the region, which is one of the poorest regions of Sudan, the United Nations World Food Program reported that "10 vehicles and six food trucks were stolen" in the region.

The program estimated the volume of looted food aid at about "four thousand cubic meters."

On Monday, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken expressed his concern about the presence of the Russian Wagner Group in Sudan , where battles have been going on for ten days between the army and the Rapid Support Forces, leaving hundreds dead.

"We are very concerned about the presence of Prigozhin's group, the Wagner Group, in Sudan," Blinken said in a joint press conference with his Kenyan counterpart.

He added that the Wagner Group, which is active in Mali and the Central African Republic and participates in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, "brings with it wherever it moves more death and destruction."

For his part, Kenyan Foreign Minister Alfred Mutua pointed the finger at countries in the Middle East whose names he did not mention, noting that reports indicated that Egypt and the UAE supported the two parties to the Sudanese conflict.

"We are very concerned about some of our friends in the Middle East as well as Russia and other countries that have for a long time been close to one side," Mutua said.

"This particular time is not appropriate to take sides in the war," the Kenyan minister added.
And he considered that foreign actors "are trying to use Sudan as an arena for any reason."
"We call on the external powers to leave Sudan alone," he added.

On Monday evening, the Israeli Public Prosecutor filed an indictment against a young man , Laith Nassar , a resident of Nablus , claiming that he carried out a shooting attack against a settler's vehicle near Hawara about a month ago.

According to the Hebrew website, Ynet, the settler was seriously wounded before recovering.

Investigations revealed that Nassar fired about 18 bullets at the settler's vehicle, before the settler was able to shoot and injure him as well, and he was arrested shortly after.

The Israeli Public Prosecution requested an extension of his detention to complete the investigations.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry is trying to sponsor a reconciliation agreement between the two parties to the conflict in Sudan, after a week of continuous fighting in the country.

According to the reliable Israeli political correspondent, Barak Ravid, the Israeli Foreign Minister, with the help of the Mossad, sent invitations to Abdel Fattah al-Burhan , the commander of the armed forces, and Muhammad Daglo , "Hemedti", for a reconciliation summit in Tel Aviv .

He pointed out that the Sudanese parties look positively at this step, which is supported by the US administration and other countries in the region.

Today, Monday, the Palestinian police arrested the suspect in the robbery of Al-Shini Mall in Jericho .

Police spokesman, Colonel Louay Azreqat, said: After a follow-up and investigation operation, the General Investigation Police in Jericho governorate, with the support of police departments, arrested the second and main suspect in the robbery of Al-Shani Mall in Al-Nuwaima, which took place last week.

The Russian authorities announced on Monday that a "Ukrainian" march crashed about fifty kilometers from Moscow without causing injuries or damage, amid fears of attacks in Russia after days of major national holidays.

This is the second reported incident in the Moscow region since the offensive began in Ukraine in February 2022. The marches have targeted other Russian regions, sometimes far from the Ukrainian border .

"A Ukrainian-made march crashed in the Bogorodsk region," about 50 kilometers east of Moscow, and was found by a resident Sunday in a forest, Igor Sukhin, in charge of the Bogorodsk region, wrote on Telegram.

A source in the emergency services told RIA Novosti that the march, according to preliminary information, "was not carrying ammunition."

Interfax news agency quoted another local source as saying that it could have carried about 18 kilograms of explosives.

In the aftermath of this incident, Sukhin announced that for "security" reasons, the show and concert scheduled for May 9 in the Bogorodsk region to commemorate the victory over Nazi Germany in 1945 had been canceled.

"It is a difficult decision for us, but it must be taken. Security is the most important thing today. Victory is always in our hearts," Sokhin said.

Other Russian regions, including the regions of Kursk and Belgorod, which border Ukraine, as well as the annexed Crimea, decided to cancel performances on this date for the same reasons.

For his part, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the country's main military parade, in Red Square in Moscow, has not been canceled yet. "Preparations are underway for the show and it will take place. It will be an important traditional event," he told reporters on Monday.

Australia Monday launched the biggest reorganization of its military in decades, against the backdrop of China's buildup of its military capabilities and tensions in the Asia-Pacific region, where Beijing's influence is growing.

Defense Secretary Richard Marlis revealed a strategic review calling for a sharp shift toward long-range deterrence, using missiles, submarines and electronic tools to keep adversaries at bay.

"Today, for the first time in 35 years, we are reformulating the Australian Defense Force's mission," Marless said.

The strategic review carried out by the Australian Ministry of Defense indicated that Beijing's military build-up is now the largest and most ambitious of any country since World War II.

The Australian Defense Minister said that the decades-old strategy to protect the territory "no longer satisfies what is required."

He added that in the face of China, which has become more powerful, Australia will focus on deterring enemies before they reach its borders, whether in the sea, air or cyberspace.

The review included that Australia "seeks to change the calculus so that no potential aggressor can ever say that the benefits of conflict outweigh the risks."

Speaking of the review and its Australian justification, Beijing said it hoped that "some countries will refrain from using China as an excuse to expand its military power or raise the baseless 'Chinese threat' theory."

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said at a regular briefing that China's military policy was "defensive in nature" and "posed no threat to any country."
Australia announced a major goal in its new strategy focused on developing nuclear-powered long-range stealth submarines.

This year will also see a short independent review of the Navy's fleet to ensure that warships can integrate with the capabilities offered by the new nuclear submarines.
Also, the Australian army will focus more on its capabilities to defend the country's coasts, especially in the vast northern regions.

In World War II, the northern Australian city of Darwin was bombed by the Japanese, but military strategists believed that they would receive ten years' warning of any imminent new attack.

Therefore, the review concluded, "The emergence of the 'missile age' in modern warfare, crystallized by the proliferation of long-range precision strike weapons, has drastically diminished Australia's geographic advantages."

As a result, the army will also be tasked with providing a "long-range offensive capability," while projects focusing on ground defense will be underway.

The plan to purchase 450 infantry fighting vehicles will be reduced to just 129.
A multibillion-dollar program to develop short-range artillery systems is likely to be canceled in order to obtain the Himars systems that Ukraine is currently coveting to fend off a Russian invasion.

While the review mentions "China" only nine times and never describes it as an adversary, there is no doubt that Beijing's massive military investment and military threats are a driving force behind the changes Canberra seeks to implement.

"This growth is occurring without transparency or reassurance to the Indo-Pacific region about China's strategic intentions," the review said, using another term for the Asia-Pacific region.

"China's assertion of sovereignty over the South China Sea threatens the international rules-based order in the Indo-Pacific in a way that adversely affects Australia's national interests," she added.

According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), China's military spending hit a record $292 billion last year, the 28th consecutive year of spending increases.

This led to an arms race across the region, with South Korea, Japan and Australia increasing their defense investments.

The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute notes that military spending in Asia and Oceania has increased by 45 percent since 2013.

France announced Monday the closure of its embassy in Sudan, as the ongoing battles between the army and the Rapid Support Forces prompted many countries to intensify their efforts to evacuate their nationals.
And a spokeswoman for the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced in a statement that "the French embassy in Sudan is closed until further notice. It no longer constitutes a gathering point for people wishing to leave Khartoum ," explaining that the embassy continues "its activities from Paris under the responsibility of the ambassador."

With the continued whistling of bullets and the sound of explosions in Khartoum and other cities, Western and regional capitals were able to open safe paths for the expulsion of foreign nationals with the guarantee of the two conflicting parties, that is, the army commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the commander of the Rapid Support Forces Muhammad Hamdan Dagalo.

France, like other countries, has carried out the evacuation of hundreds of French nationals and other nationalities since Sunday, and has organized several air bridges between Khartoum and Djibouti.

The French Foreign Ministry said that Paris is "mobilizing its energies to facilitate the ceasefire and the resumption of the political transition process in Sudan," noting that it "fully supports the coordination mechanism under the supervision of the African Union , the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the Arab League , the European Union and the United Nations ."

The statement called on "all parties to stop the fighting, allow humanitarian aid to arrive, spare the civilian population, and return to the path of political dialogue."

The continuous battles between the army and the Rapid Support Forces in Sudan prompted many countries to intensify their efforts to evacuate their nationals or members of diplomatic missions by land, sea and air.

While the main airport in Khartoum is the scene of fierce fighting, with the Rapid Support Forces controlling it, several evacuations are taking place through Port Sudan on the Red Sea , 850 km from the capital.

What follows is a summary of the most prominent efforts led by several countries to transfer their citizens and employees to safety.

On Sunday, the United States evacuated about a hundred people, among its embassy staff and "some foreign diplomats from Khartoum, in three "Sh-47 Chinook" helicopters that it sent from Djibouti to Ethiopia and then to Sudan, where it remained on the ground for less than an hour. He participated in the operation. More than 100 US Special Operations personnel.

There are still thousands of American citizens in Sudan, some of whom hold another nationality.

Canada has evacuated, according to its Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, its embassy staff from Khartoum.

The European Union's foreign affairs chief, Josep Borrell, announced on Monday that more than a thousand EU nationals left Sudan in evacuations that took place over the weekend. "It was a complex and successful operation," he told reporters.

The European Union has a diplomatic mission in Khartoum, similar to France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Greece and the Czech Republic.

On Monday, the French Foreign Ministry announced the evacuation of "388 people, including French citizens who expressed their desire to do so, as well as a large number of nationals of other countries, Europeans in particular, as well as Africans and from the American continent and Asia" from Sudan, after several flights operated since Sunday between Khartoum and Djibouti.

On Sunday, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni reported the evacuation of all her citizens who asked to leave Sudan, hours after Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani announced that the Italian army had evacuated "about 200 people, including Swiss citizens and members of the Apostolic Nunciature" via Djibouti.

Dutch Foreign Minister Wupke Hoekstra said that a "handful" of Dutch nationals had been evacuated on a French plane, hoping to evacuate another group on a Dutch plane at a later time, speaking of a "very complex operation".

Germany announced the evacuation of 300 people, including citizens and individuals of other nationalities, in three planes, after a failed attempt last Wednesday.

A Spanish plane evacuated 100 people, thirty Spaniards and seventy from Europe and Latin America, from Sudan to Djibouti on Sunday, according to what Madrid announced.

And Greece announced that it had evacuated on Sunday the first group of its citizens, including two wounded, to Djibouti, "with the help of France," and that 10 citizens and their families left in the Italian evacuation process.

Ireland, for its part, said it had begun an "evacuation process" of its 150 nationals from Sudan.

Sweden sent 150 soldiers to evacuate its diplomats and nationals from Sudan, according to the Ministry of Defense.

On Sunday evening, the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported the evacuation of 436 citizens from Sudan by land, "in coordination with the Sudanese authorities," after evacuating 177 military personnel last week.

Saudi Arabia, which led the first successful evacuations on Saturday, reported evacuating 91 of its citizens, as well as about 66 nationals from 12 other countries, by sea.

On Saturday, Jordan announced that it had begun evacuating about 300 Jordanians.

And Baghdad announced on Sunday, "the evacuation of 14 Iraqis from Khartoum to a safe location in the Port Sudan region," stressing that efforts are continuing to evacuate others, after it indicated on Saturday that the Iraqi embassy employees had left Khartoum.

And the Lebanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the evacuation of 52 people at dawn on Monday from Port Sudan on board a Saudi navy ship to the city of Jeddah.

The Libyan embassy in Khartoum said on Friday that it had evacuated 83 Libyans from Khartoum and transferred them to Port Sudan.

++ Tunisia sent a plane on Monday morning, while a number of its citizens have already left on Saudi ships.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees announced that a number of 800,000 refugees from South Sudan, who fled to Sudan to escape the war in their country, are about to return on their own.

Chad is sending planes to return 438 of its nationals leaving Khartoum on buses to Port Sudan, according to the government.

The United Kingdom has confirmed that it is doing "everything we can" to evacuate its citizens from Sudan, at a time when a number of them said they felt "left to their fate".

The British Foreign Secretary had defended the decision to prioritize an overnight military operation to evacuate embassy staff and their families, citing a "very specific threat to the diplomatic community".

Norway announced the evacuation of its diplomats from Khartoum.

Switzerland reported the evacuation of seven of its embassy staff and family members, with the help of France.

Ankara began its operations at dawn on Sunday, transporting about 600 of its nationals by land from two neighborhoods of Khartoum and the southern city of Wad Medani.

However, the Turkish embassy in Khartoum announced in a tweet that the date for the evacuation of the Turks in the Kafouri neighborhood, north of Khartoum, had been postponed "until further notice" due to an explosion that occurred on Sunday morning near a mosque designated as a gathering site.

Other foreign countries are preparing evacuations, including South Korea and Japan, after deploying troops to neighboring countries.
India's foreign ministry said it had two military aircraft "on standby" in Saudi Arabia and a navy ship had arrived in Port Sudan, but any evacuation "would depend on the security situation".

Indonesia stated that 43 of its nationals had taken refuge in the embassy compound in Khartoum, stressing that the government "is taking all necessary measures to evacuate Indonesian nationals from Sudan," according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Agence France-Presse.

China announced the evacuation of the first batch of its citizens, who number more than 1,500 in Sudan.

Today, Monday, 8 Israelis were injured in a run-over attack near the Mahane Yehuda market in occupied Jerusalem .

According to the Israeli Red Star of David, among the injuries was a serious condition, and 7 were between medium and minor.

According to the Kan radio reporter, the perpetrator was dressed as a Haredi, and it turned out that he was a Palestinian who disguised himself and was liquidated by a settler who was in the place.

He indicated that the executor is a resident of the town ofBeit Safafa , and he is Hatem Najma (39 years old), married and has 5 children.

Political advisor to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, Ahmed Al-Deek , said, "There was a delay in the departure of the bus convoy carrying students and a number of families towards the border crossing between Sudan and Egypt, due to force majeure circumstances and reasons beyond our control."

Al-Deek confirmed in a statement that the crisis cell formed at the Embassy of the State of Palestine in Khartoum is conducting an intensive series of contacts with bus companies, and work is underway to secure the buses required to transport 123 Palestinian students to the border crossing and a number of other Palestinian families.

Al-Deek added, "The embassy has secured the students in a safe place, awaiting the arrival of the buses, which are expected to depart in the next few hours."

Al-Deek called on all parties to exercise accuracy and caution in circulating some rumors and false information that detract from the effort of the embassy and its staff who work around the clock, in very dangerous conditions and with limited capabilities, to secure the evacuation of our people and students from Khartoum.

He said, "Despite these difficult circumstances, the Embassy of the State of Palestine in Khartoum is still open around the clock, working and receiving communications, and providing assistance to all those who request it from among the members of our community and other communities as well, including communication with everyone who expresses his desire to leave Khartoum."

Al-Deek confirmed that the ministry will publish all the details related to the evacuation and the problems it encountered and was able to overcome after the evacuation process is completed successfully, God willing.

Today, Monday, the Israeli occupation forces arrested a young man from the town of Tammun, south of Tubas .

According to local sources, these forces arrested the young man, Amin Yassin Abdel Fattah Bisharat (22 years old), while he was passing through the iron gate of Al-Baqi’a.

Tens of billions of dollars were withdrawn from Credit Suisse in the first three months of 2023, according to the latest quarterly results announced by the bank on Monday, likely before its rival UBS acquired it.

The second largest bank in Switzerland recorded withdrawals of 61.2 billion Swiss francs ($68.6 billion) in the first quarter alone.

At the same time, the bank's net profit rose to 12.4 billion francs, after a significant loss last year, thanks to the takeover of high-risk Credit Suisse debt, as part of the deal with UBS.

Investors were awaiting the results to see indications of the scale of the challenges that UBS faces.

Credit Suisse said the "significant drawdowns of net assets" were particularly large in the second half of March, when panic set in ahead of the hastily made takeover.

"Withdrawals have calmed down, but the movement until April 24, 2023 had not returned to what it was," he added in his return report.
At the same time, the bank said its net profit rose to 12.4 billion francs.

As part of the massive merger between the two Swiss banks last month, the Swiss authorities demanded that 16 billion Swiss francs ($17.9 billion) of "Additional Tier 1 Capital" (AT1) be deemed worthless.

The decision by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) angered bondholders, who launched legal action against the regulator.
Credit Suisse said that its quarterly results were also strengthened by selling part of its securitized financial assets (the securitization is based on converting debts into sukuk and bonds and putting them on the market to obtain liquidity), to Apollo Global Management.

However, the bank said it incurred pre-tax losses of a quarter of the CHF1.3 billion.

The bank, which last October launched a broad restructuring plan including the creation of its investment arm, said the branch suffered an adjusted pre-tax loss of 337 million in the first quarter.

And he warned that "in light of the merger announcement and the negative impact on revenues (...) and restructuring fees and financing costs," it is expected to record "tangible" losses in the second quarter and in general at the level of all of 2023.

Monday's quarterly report could be Credit Suisse's last, depending on how long it takes to finalize the merger with UBS.

Credit Suisse has been exposed to a number of scandals in the past years, and after the collapse of three local US banks sparked panic in the financial markets, the bank seemed the weakest link in the chain.

During a frantic weekend, Swiss authorities orchestrated an emergency bailout and pressured UPS to agree to a major merger worth $3.25 billion on the night of March 19.

In justifying the decision to Parliament earlier this month, Swiss President Alain Berset said, "Without the intervention, Credit Suisse would probably have found itself in default on the 20th or 21st of March."

In 2022, Credit Suisse suffered a loss of CHF7.3 billion, with CHF110.5 billion in withdrawals recorded in the last quarter alone.

This is in stark contrast to the $7.6 billion in profits reported by UPS last year.

UBS is expected to publish its first-quarter results on Tuesday.

Analysts at Zurich Cantonal Bank acknowledge that UBS' results will be a "sideshow", as attention is drawn to "doubts surrounding the planned merger with Credit Suisse".

Vontobel analyst Andreas Vendetti agrees, warning in a research note that the Credit Suisse report "reveals the poor state of the institution".

"UPS undoubtedly faces the big (and urgent) task of carrying out a deep restructuring of its former rival," he said.

On Monday , the British government announced the imposition of additional sanctions against the Iranian Revolutionary Guards , as part of new restrictions on Tehran linked to human rights violations.

"The Iranian regime is responsible for the brutal suppression of the Iranian people and for exporting bloodshed around the world. That is why we have over 300 sanctions imposed on Iran, including the entire Revolutionary Guard," Secretary of State James Cleverly said in a statement.

He pointed out that the procedure comes in coordination with the United States and the European Union, without providing additional details.

During the past months, several Western parties, led by Washington, London and Brussels, imposed a series of sanctions on Tehran in response to the Iranian authorities' "suppression" of protest movements that followed the death of Mahsa Amini in September after she was arrested by the morality police in Tehran on the grounds of not adhering to the strict rules of dress. in the Islamic Republic.

The British Foreign Office statement, on Monday, indicated that more than 70 Iranian officials and entities are subject to an asset freeze and travel ban by the United Kingdom, as of October.

He pointed out that the latest batch of sanctions includes four military commanders in the Revolutionary Guards responsible for the "violent suppression" of protest movements in four provinces: the central province, Kermanshah, West Azerbaijan and Khuzestan.

The statement indicated that the IRGC, at the direction of these commanders, "fired at unarmed demonstrators," which led to deaths, "including children."

Iran has previously responded to such measures by including persons and entities on its sanctions list, including preventing them from visiting the Islamic Republic and freezing any assets they may have on its soil.

Several Western parties, led by Washington, London and the European Union, expressed their support for these moves, which Iran considered "interference" in its internal affairs.

Today, Monday, the Israeli occupation forces arrested two young men from the town of Sur Baher in occupied Jerusalem .

According to local sources, those forces arrested Suhaib Al-Ramouni and Imad Al-Ramouni from the town.

In the context, the occupation authorities sentenced the Jerusalemite young man, Ahmed Zahra, to 5 years in prison, and released the Jerusalemites, Ahmed Rukn, Hussam al-Din al-Abbasi, and the young man, Obeida Qadan, from within the territories of the year 48, on conditions.

A young man (30 years old) was killed, on Monday afternoon, as a result of being shot by unknown assailants in Tel al-Saba in the Negev , in the occupied interior .

According to the Hebrew website, Ynet, ambulance crews arrived at the scene and announced his death.

The Israeli police opened an investigation into the circumstances of the incident.

On Monday, the Israeli Public Prosecution filed an indictment against the young man, Muhammad Awawdeh (22 years), from Hebron , claiming that he carried out a stabbing attack in Jacob’s Well near Tel Aviv more than two weeks ago, which resulted in the injury of two Israeli soldiers with varying degrees of injury.

According to the Hebrew website, Ynet, Awadeh entered Israel through a security gap in the separation wall, reached the area and attacked two soldiers with several stab wounds until the knife in his possession broke, before he was arrested.

He was charged with "attempted murder" and attempted serious injury in aggravated circumstances.

The Israeli prosecution requested an extension of his detention until the completion of the procedures against him.

Tomorrow, Tuesday, the UN Security Council will hold a special session to discuss the situation in Palestine .

The session is chaired by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov , who heads the Council for the current month.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates , Riyad Al-Maliki, will participate in the session and deliver a speech on the State of Palestine. He will also meet on the sidelines with the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, the President of the United Nations General Assembly, Kasaba Korosi, and the Russian Foreign Minister.

Military spending in Europe in 2022 recorded an unprecedented rapid increase, as it reached, after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, levels not seen on the continent since the Cold War, according to researchers in the field of global security.

A study by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute stated that the increase in European spending on armies contributed to global military spending setting a record for the eighth time in a row, reaching $2.24 trillion, or 2.2 percent of global GDP.

Europe boosted its spending on its armies in 2022 by 13 percent more compared to the previous 12 months, in a year overshadowed by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

This increase is the largest in more than 30 years, and at constant dollar prices it represents a return to the level of spending in 1989 with the fall of the Berlin Wall.

The study indicated that Ukraine alone has doubled its spending seven times to reach $44 billion, or a third of its gross domestic product, benefiting from billions of dollars in arms donations.

At the same time, estimates showed that Russian spending on arms increased by 9.2 percent last year.

Military spending in Europe, which totaled $480 billion in 2022, had actually increased by about a third over the past decade, and is expected to accelerate further during the next decade.

Global military spending has also been on the rise since the first decade of the twenty-first century, after a sharp decline in the 1990s.

This upward trend came initially as a result of the huge Chinese investments in its military forces, and the subsequent developments following Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014.

The spending of the United States on its military force reached 39 percent of global spending, and China ranked second with 13 percent, and together they constitute more than half of global military spending.

As for the countries that follow them and lag far behind them in this field, they are Russia with 3.9 percent, India with 3.6 percent and Saudi Arabia with 3.3 percent.

Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam and Australia follow the same trend.

Britain is the largest spender on arms in Europe, as it ranks sixth with 3.1 percent of global military spending, ahead of Germany, which recorded 2.5 percent, and France, which recorded 2.4 percent. These figures include donations to Ukraine.
European countries such as Poland, the Netherlands and Sweden have boosted their military investments over the past decade.

What also explains the high military spending is the high cost of technologically advanced weapons, as in the case of Finland, which last year bought 64 American F-35 fighter jets.

Today, Monday, the Ministry of Education confirmed the resumption of the school year in all governorates, tomorrow, Tuesday.

In a brief statement, the ministry called on everyone to adhere to full-time work.

And government agencies had confirmed that the ministry would take punitive measures against those who objected to working hours, which would enter into force immediately after the Eid holiday.

For his part, the teachers' movement affirmed its continuation of the strike as it was previously, without changing all stages, especially the Tawjihi.

In a statement today, Monday, the movement reaffirmed the boycott of the Tawjihi exams and all their procedures of monitoring and correction.

He said: "The percentage of the polls on the strike was as follows: 70% in favor of the total strike - 18% in favor of the partial strike - 12% in favor of full time, including those who have never struck."

The movement also stressed the boycott of all training courses and office and administrative work issued by the Ministry of Education, including penalties and signing books issued by the directorates and the ministry.

He called for the strike from the morning assembly with proof of presence (fingerprint/signature) and leaving at any time the teacher wants.

The movement also called for documenting a stand in front of schools entitled (We will continue and we will not be underestimated) in support of the steadfastness of the movement and the teachers, and filming and broadcasting it, tomorrow, Tuesday, at 9 am.

Today, Monday, the police managed to seize weapons, ammunition and drugs that were in the possession of a drug dealer in the outskirts of occupied Jerusalem .

The Public Relations and Information Department of the Police stated that, after a follow-up that lasted for more than two weeks to a person known to the Drug Enforcement Department for trading and possessing narcotic substances and firearms, and the arrival of confirmed information that he possesses weapons and narcotic substances, a search warrant was immediately issued for his house and he was arrested.

She added that, by duly searching the house, narcotic hashish, an M16 weapon and its ammunition, two M16 handles, a laser scope, two magazines, a Brita pistol and two magazines were seized.

The police confirmed that the person is wanted by the judiciary, and has been seized to refer him to the competent authorities to take legal measures against him.

The Israeli occupation forces continue to close all main and secondary entrances to the city of Jericho , for the third day in a row.

According to local sources, these forces are chasing citizens' vehicles on secondary roads near the "Jericho Gate", on the southern side of the city, and preventing them from leaving the city.

The forces also seized a Palestinian vehicle, detained its driver and subjected him to field investigation.

She pointed out that Israeli military vehicles were present in the agricultural lands of the citizens, north of Jericho, to chase vehicles that had to take alternative roads.

Kimisha Williams, sister of American basketball star Kawhi Leonard , has been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the murder of an elderly woman in 2019 after robbing her.

This is a new drama in the family of the Los Angeles Clippers star, who won the NBA title twice in 2014 with the San Antonio Spurs and 2019 with the Toronto Raptors, after his father was killed in 2008 at his workplace. The 31-year-old has now signed a $176 million contract with the Clippers in 2022.

US local newspapers reported that Kimisha was convicted of killing an 84-year-old woman in 2019.

The crime took place in a casino in Southern California, where the victim and her 92-year-old husband were present. As she was on her way to the toilet, Williams, 39, and her partner, Candice Tanosil, 42, followed her to steal her bag, which contained about $1,000.

The victim was found lying on the ground with her skull fractured, before being taken to hospital, where she died four days later of her injuries.

Leonard's sister, who was banned in 2015 from entering a casino for allegedly stealing a wallet, denied the facts.

The American company " Bed Bath and Beyond " for retailing household goods declared bankruptcy after years of losses exceeding one billion dollars annually, while the group had difficulty adapting to unstable economic conditions and the dominance of the online shopping sector.

The company has filed for Chapter 11 protection in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey, in which it has headquarters, court documents show.

This group, which sells all household items, from shower curtains, soaps, vacuum cleaners and bed sheets, has for years been one of the most important American companies.

Bed Bath & Beyond said in a statement that it filed its application "to carry out the process of winding up its business in an orderly manner while conducting a limited marketing exercise to generate interest in one or more sales of some or all of its assets."

The US group's share price fell in January when it said there was "significant doubt about the company's ability to continue," a statement widely interpreted as meaning it might file for bankruptcy.

The company said at the time that it expected a loss of $386 million in the fourth quarter.

Despite the many efforts to restructure, including closing 150 stores in 2022, the company was unable to improve its financial position.

It noted that it had obtained a commitment of $240 million from a lender to support its operations during the bankruptcy period.

"Thank you to all of our loyal customers. We have made the difficult decision to begin winding down our operations," the company wrote on its website Sunday.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on Monday praised Japan's work to bolster its military defenses, at the start of an international visit from Tokyo, ahead of announcing his potential candidacy for the US presidential elections.

It is widely believed that the Republican governor will present his candidacy for the presidential elections in 2024. His tour, which includes Japan, South Korea, Israel and Britain, is seen as an attempt to strengthen his diplomatic and security cards before such a step.
"We very much welcome your efforts to strengthen your defences," de Santis told Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, referring to broad changes that Tokyo intends to introduce in its defense strategy and boost its military spending.

"We realize that you (are) in a difficult environment, with North Korea and the rise of the Chinese Communist Party," he added, expressing his belief that "a strong Japan is in the interest of the United States, and a strong United States is in the interest of Japan. We hope that our country will be with you in every step."

De Santis and his wife, Casey, are making this tour under the official title of promoting Florida's commercial opportunities, which the governor tried to build on by talking about the attractiveness of his state in the economic aspect.

The state governor told the prime minister that Florida is "the largest market in the United States that does not have direct flights to Japan," expressing his hope to meet airline officials to "try to do something about it."

It is expected that the US presidential elections will receive interest in Japan, which relies heavily on Washington on defense issues, and hopes to maintain these ties, regardless of who assumes power in the White House after the end of the term of the current Democratic President, Joe Biden, next year.

During his meeting with De Santis, Kishida said he hoped his visit would enhance "understanding of politics, economics and culture" in Japan.
Florida's governor is scheduled to meet Japan's Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi on Monday evening, before moving to Seoul, which is also an ally of Washington.