Western Asia

Following the completion of meticulous restoration works conducted by the Culture and Tourism Ministry, the 174-year-old Virgin Mary Church in the Central Anatolian province of Nevşehir has been opened to visitors.

The historic Orthodox church, built in 1849, was used as a house of worship for Orthodox Greeks in the region until 1924 and served as a prison between 1950 and 1983.

Around 6.2 million foreign tourists visited Türkiye in the January-March period, up from 4.9 million foreign arrivals in the first quarter of 2022, the Culture and Tourism Ministry has announced.

In March alone, Türkiye welcomed 2.34 million foreign visitors, which marked a 12.3 percent increase from a year ago.

Türkiye will remain in the grip of a bad weather spell as temperatures are expected to decrease on the weekend and go below seasonal norms throughout the country, according to the latest weather report.

Türkiye has realized its 60-year-old dream by delivering nuclear fuel to the country's first Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant in the southern province of Mersin on April 27, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said, explaining to the youth the long and difficult journey of becoming a country enjoying the world's leading nuclear energy technology.

2023 Türkiye: Most Important Elections on the 100th anniversary of Establishment of the Republic of Türkiye - country at a turning point Türkiye is preparing to hold presidential and parliamentary elections on 14 May 2023, after Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, President of the Republic of Türkiye, had announced that the date of the elections will be move

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was criticized by Palestine after she praised Israeli democracy in remarks marking the 75th anniversary of Israel's founding, Politico reported.

In a video message released by the EU embassy in Israel, von der Leyen paid tribute to Israel as a "vibrant democracy in the heart of the Middle East".

"Unfortunately, due to this attitude, we have come to the stage of a strike in both companies," Durmus said.

However, the strike has raised concerns about access to reliable information ahead of critical general and presidential elections on May 14.

The first British civilians evacuated from Sudan arrived on the island of Cyprus on Tuesday, airlifted out by Britain after warring factions agreed to a 72-hour ceasefire.

A passenger plane with about 40 civilians on board landed at Cyprus's Larnaca airport, a spokesperson for Cyprus's foreign ministry said. [Reuters]

The return to provocative statements by Turkish officials after the lull in tensions since the February earthquakes is being attributed in Athens to the election campaign in the neighboring country.

At a special ceremony in the presidential palace in Ankara, Turkish President Recep Erdogan awarded representatives of the foreign teams that joined the rescue operations after the severe earthquakes in February.