Arab League welcomes Armenia’s recognition of Palestinian state

A youth carries water in Khan Yunis on the southern Gaza Strip on June 23, 2024. (AFP)
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Updated 23 June 2024
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Arab League welcomes Armenia’s recognition of Palestinian state

  • ‘Influential international parties’ urged to meet their moral and historical responsibilities to the Palestinian people

CAIRO: The Arab League has welcomed Armenia’s recognition of the State of Palestine.

On Friday, Armenia’s announcement made it the latest country to recognize Palestine as a state.

While Israel continued its assault on Gaza, several countries recognized the state of Palestine, drawing strong rebukes from Israeli officials.

Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit welcomed Armenia’s announcement.

It is a courageous decision that reflects the standing of this friendly country on the right side of history, he said.

Gamal Roshdy, spokesperson for the secretary-general, said that the increasing recognition of the Palestinian state reflected a growing conviction among the international community that the continued occupation is not feasible and the need to implement a two-state solution.

Roshdy said that recognition represented an essential step toward the establishment of the Palestinian state on the borders of June 4, 1967.

Roshdy quoted the secretary-general, urging all countries to recognize the state of Palestine as soon as possible. The call also represents the embodiment of the two-state solution and a real contribution to achieving peace and ending the occupation,

On Friday, Egypt welcomed Armenia’s announcement.

In a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Egypt welcomed the decision by Armenia as a supportive step toward realizing the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people to end the Israeli occupation and establish their independent state based on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as the capital.

Egypt valued Armenia’s support for the Palestinian cause, calling for the continuation of efforts by all parties of the international community in pursuit of creating a political horizon that allows for the revival of a genuine peace process that addresses the roots and causes of the Palestinian issue and restores the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, foremost among them their right to establish an independent state.

It called on influential international parties to assume their moral and historical responsibilities to the Palestinian people, to intervene to preserve their rights during this time of humanitarian hardship, to work to put an end to Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip, and to recognize the state of Palestine as an essential step toward a just resolution of the Palestinian issue.


Ankara city hall says water cuts due to ‘record drought’

Updated 13 sec ago
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Ankara city hall says water cuts due to ‘record drought’

ANKARA: Water cuts for the past several weeks in Turkiye’s capital were due to the worst drought in 50 years and an exploding population, a municipal official told AFP, rejecting accusations of mismanagement.
Dam reservoir levels have dropped to 1.12 percent and taps are being shut off for several hours a day in certain districts on a rotating schedule in Ankara, forcing many residents to line up at public fountains to fill pitchers.
“2025 was a record year in terms of drought. The amount of water feeding the dams fell to historically low levels, to 182 million cubic meters in 2025, compared with 400 to 600 million cubic meters in previous years. This is the driest period in the last 50 years,” said Memduh Akcay, director general of the Ankara municipal water authority.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called the Ankara municipal authorities, led by the main opposition party, “incompetent.”
Rejecting this criticism, the city hall says Ankara is suffering from the effects of climate change and a growing population, which has doubled since the 1990s to nearly six million inhabitants.
“In addition to reduced precipitation, the irregularity of rainfall patterns, the decline in snowfall, and the rapid conversion of precipitation into runoff (due to urbanization) prevent the dams from refilling effectively,” Akcay said.
A new pumping system drawing water from below the required level in dams will ensure no water cuts this weekend, Ankara’s city hall said, but added that the problem would persist in the absence of sufficient rainfall.
Much of Turkiye experienced a historic drought in 2025. The municipality of Izmir, the country’s third-largest city on the Aegean coast, has imposed daily water cuts since last summer.