Nairobi, July 11 (IANS) Kenyan President William Ruto on Thursday dismissed all cabinet secretaries except the deputy president and the prime cabinet secretary who is also the cabinet secretary for foreign and diaspora affairs.

“I have decided to dismiss with immediate effect all the cabinet secretaries and attorney general of the Cabinet of Kenya except the prime cabinet secretary and the cabinet secretary for foreign and diaspora affairs, and of course, the Office of the Deputy President is not affected in any way,” he said in an address to the nation on Thursday, reports Xinhua news agency.

He said the new Cabinet will be named after extensive consultations across all sectors.

–IANS

as/

Ankara, July 11 (IANS) Turkish police have detained 47 suspects in large-scale operations against an international artifact smuggling network, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said Thursday.

Following operations conducted in 24 provinces, the police seized 6,325 ancient coins and 997 other historical artifacts in the western Izmir province, Yerlikaya said on X.

The minister added that the suspects obtained historical artifacts belonging to Türkiye through unlawful excavations and illegally sold them to auction houses abroad to gain unfair profits, reports Xinhua news agency.

An examination of the suspects’ bank account movements revealed that five auction houses in Europe and the United States transferred approximately 72 million liras (2.19 million US dollars) in foreign currency to the ringleader of the organisation and his family members.

Some 1,057 historical artifacts of Turkish origin seized in Croatia in 2020 and returned to Turkey were also taken abroad as part of the organisation’s activities.

–IANS

as/

Damascus, July 11 (IANS) Syrian army units on Thursday repulsed multiple rebel drone attacks and conducted operations against rebel positions in the northwestern provinces of Idlib and Latakia, according to the Syrian Defence Ministry.

In Idlib, the army intercepted several suicide drones and engaged in combat with “terrorist” groups in the southern countryside. The combat resulted in significant losses in the groups’ equipment and casualties among the “terrorists,” with dozens reportedly killed or wounded, reports Xinhua news agency.

The army also thwarted attempts by “terrorists” to use suicide drones against military positions and nearby civilian areas.

Meanwhile, in the northern Latakia countryside, Syrian military units, supported by Russian air forces, targeted and destroyed “terrorist” strongholds and fortifications. The operation caused substantial casualties among the militants.

–IANS

as/

Mogadishu, July 11 (IANS) Piracy attacks off the coast of Somalia still pose a threat, with eight incidents reported in the first six months of 2024, including three hijackings, a global anti-piracy body said in a new report released Thursday.

The latest report by the International Chamber of Commerce’s International Maritime Bureau (IMB) called on shipping vessels to be vigilant when transiting the Somali coastline and the Gulf of Aden, as piracy remains a threat despite a decrease in attacks since 2017.

“From Jan. 1 to June 30, three vessels were hijacked, two vessels each boarded and fired upon and one reported an attempted approach in the waters off Somalia/Gulf of Aden,” the IMB said in the report, reports Xinhua news agency.

It said recent incidents demonstrate the continued capability and capacity of the Somali pirates to target vessels up to 1,000 nautical miles off the Somali coast.

The anti-piracy body called for sustained vigilance to protect seafarers amid increasing violence despite an overall drop in the number of incidents reported in the IMB’s mid-year report for 2024.

According to the report, incidents have dropped from 14 to 10 in the Gulf of Guinea, but threats to crew safety and wellbeing continue to be a cause of concern.

The IMB reiterated the need for a continued and robust regional and international naval presence to respond to these incidents and safeguard life at sea.

–IANS

as/

Kandahar, July 11 (IANS) Unidentified armed men killed three people in Kandahar province in south Afghanistan on Wednesday night, provincial police spokesman Mullah Asadullah Jamshid said Thursday.

The incident took place in Police District 7 of the provincial capital Kandahar city at 11:00 pm local time, leaving three members of a family including two women dead, Jamshid added, saying the perpetrators had escaped after the attack.

Without providing more details, the official asserted that efforts are underway to bring the culprits to justice, reports Xinhua news agency.

Afghan police have apprehended 23 people on the charge of involvement in criminal activities such as theft and murder in Helmand, Kunar, Samangan, Balkh, and Panjshir provinces recently, the Ministry of Interior Affairs said.

–IANS

as/