Day: June 1, 2026

During the meeting, the sides hailed the successful cooperation between SOCAR, TotalEnergies and XRG in the energy sector, News.Az reports, citing AZERTAC.
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The parties reviewed the progress achieved under the full-scale development project of the Absheron gas-condensate field. In this context, the importance of the agreement signed between SOCAR, TotalEnergies, XRG and BOTAŞ on the long-term supply of natural gas from the Absheron gas-condensate field to Türkiye was highlighted.

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Trump said on social media that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had promised not to send troops to Beirut’s southern suburbs as threatened, while Hezbollah had agreed that “all shooting will stop,” News.Az reports, citing Daily Mail.
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His comments came after Iran’s news agency Tasnim reported Tehran had suspended dialogue with mediators in protest at Israel’s expanding offensive in Lebanon against Iran’s ally Hezbollah.
“I had a very productive call with Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu, of Israel, and there will be no Troops going to Beirut, and any Troops that are on their way, have already been turned back,” Trump wrote.
“Likewise, through highly placed Representatives, I had a very good call with Hezbollah, and they agreed that all shooting will stop — That Israel will not attack them, and they will not attack Israel.”
In a separate post a few minutes later, Trump said that “talks are continuing, at a rapid pace, with the Islamic Republic of Iran. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
But earlier on Monday, the US leader had given decidedly mixed signals about his enthusiasm for the talks to end the Iran war, which the United States and Israel launched on February 28.
Trump told US broadcaster CNBC in a telephone interview shortly before his Truth Social posts that “I don’t care” if the Iran talks collapsed.
“If they´re over, they´re over,” Trump told CNBC. “Frankly, I thought they started to get very boring.”
Trump separately told NBC News on Monday that he had not been informed that Iran was suspending negotiations but that, “I think we’ve been talking too much if you want to know the truth.”
“I think going silent would be very good, and that could be that could be for a long time,” he told NBC.

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This statement was voiced by President Volodymyr Zelensky in an evening video address, News.Az reports, citing Mezha.net.
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“The plan of our far-reaching sanctions is being carried out step by step. From January through May this year, our soldiers were able to strike 15 Russian refineries. This is significant. There are already Russian bans on exporting aviation fuel from their territory, as well as gasoline; a ban on diesel exports is being considered. For a country that was only recently called a gas station, losing even this would be a significant story, a major loss. Almost 40% of Russia’s primary oil refining capacity as of May has been taken offline.” said Volodymyr Zelensky.

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The warning was prompted by remarks al-Sheikh made Sunday evening on “Ma’a Mulla Talal,” a program aired on satellite channel UTV, in which he said: “Iran is the crown of every Iraqi’s head,” News.Az reports, citing Shafaq news.
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The Commission ruled that the statement fell under the category of incitement to violence and hatred and issued the formal warning on that basis.
Last March, the CMC also issued a warning to the UTV channel over content aired in the same program.
According to the Iraqi Association for Defending Press Freedom, the Commission suspended five political television programs, fined three media outlets, warned two Arab broadcasters, and restricted 18 media figures between Dec. 1 and May 31. It described the measures as “unconstitutional,” criticizing CMC’s head for “granting himself powers to issue suspension, blocking, and financial penalty decisions.”

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Fourth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime defeated Alejandro Tabilo 6-3, 7-5, 6-1 on Monday to reach the French Open quarter-finals for the first time in his career, News.Az reports, citing France 24.
After spending more than 11 hours on court across nine sets in his first three matches during the opening week’s heatwave, the Canadian needed just two hours and eight minutes to secure victory in his fourth-round encounter, played in temperatures in the mid-20s Celsius.
“Today was the ideal scenario,” Auger-Aliassime said.
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“It was the best tennis I’ve played here. It’s great that in the fourth match I’ve found my best tennis.”
The 25-year-old will next face unseeded Italian Flavio Cobolli. Speaking on court after the French Open match, the Montreal-born player appealed for the support of the Paris crowd.
“This has always been a dream for me,” he said. “I’m not French, but I’m very Francophone, and I’m sure I can count on your support all the way to the end.
“I feel as if I’m at home.”
Auger-Aliassime earned the decisive break in the fourth game of the opening set. He then saved two break points in the following game as Tabilo attempted to respond, before comfortably taking the set, with the next four service games all held to love.
In the second set, the Canadian secured the only break he needed in the 11th game. As Tabilo’s resistance faded, Auger-Aliassime dominated the third set, wrapping it up in just 26 minutes to complete a commanding straight-sets victory.

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The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said clashes between rival community groups in Central and South Darfur states claimed casualties and triggered displacement, forcing some families to flee across the border into neighboring Chad, News.az reports, citing Xinhua.

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“The escalating insecurity is also disrupting humanitarian operations,” said OCHA in a press release. “In Central Darfur, humanitarian activities serving approximately 21,000 people were suspended following clashes.”

In West Kordofan, a suspected cholera outbreak continues to spread, with more than 300 suspected cases and 77 reported deaths recorded as of Sunday.

“Partners are responding but are hamstrung by shortages of critical supplies and resources,” OCHA said. “In March, authorities declared an end to a country-wide cholera outbreak involving more than 124,000 cases and more than 3,500 deaths.”

The office said the risk of cholera and other waterborne diseases increases during the rainy season, which begins this month. Attacks on essential infrastructure make it more difficult to access clean water.

Over the Eid Al Adha holiday last week, OCHA said that dozens of civilians were killed as fighting further escalates across parts of the Kordofan and Darfur regions.

The office said that in North Kordofan, clashes in the Bara area reportedly killed at least a dozen civilians, forced families to flee their homes, and heightened humanitarian needs.

The International Organization for Migration reported that more than 2,200 people were reportedly displaced in recent days.

OCHA said that in West Kordofan, local sources reported that a drone strike in the Kadam area killed at least eight civilians and injured many others. In Central Darfur, at least 10 people, including three children, were reportedly killed in a drone strike on the town of Um Dukhun on Saturday.

The office repeated calls on all parties to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure, and to facilitate humanitarian access.

It said more funding is urgently needed as the appeal of 2.9 billion U.S. dollars is only 22 percent funded nearly halfway through the year.

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The aircraft, a Cessna 206 registered as HK 2521 and operated by Colombian carrier Aerolineas Llaneras Arall Ltda., was en route from Villavicencio, the capital of the central Meta department, to the town of La Macarena when the crash occurred, News.az reports, citing Xinhua.

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Following the accident, the directorate activated its emergency protocol and sent an investigation team to the site. The team will collect technical evidence and witness statements to determine the cause of the crash.

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The text is part of sweeping reforms the EU is rolling out to increase control over who crosses its external borders and to support countries that receive the most external migrants, with Monday’s agreement landing just days before other migration and asylum reforms start applying on June 12, News.Az reports, citing Politico.

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Monday’s agreement will help the EU regain control over “who comes to to the European Union, but also who has to leave the European Union,” Migration Commissioner Magnus Brunner said.

He pointed to the rate of failed asylum seekers who leave the bloc, which recent Eurostat figures put around 27 percent. “We must give the people the feeling back that we have control over what’s happening,” he said.

Under the deal, countries will be allowed to send people who’ve been ordered to leave EU territory to so-called “return hubs” outside the bloc — an option several EU countries are already exploring, but which civil society groups warn could open the door to more abuse and human rights violations.

The text also introduces stricter rules for dealing with people who are considered a security threat; the possibility of home searches; long detentions; entry bans; and penalties for those who don’t cooperate.

“For years, Europe sent the worst possible message: even if you had no right to stay, chances were high that nothing would happen. That era is ending. If you have no right to stay in Europe, you will have to leave,” French MEP François-Xavier Bellamy, who represented the center-right European People’s Party in the negotiations, said in a comment.

Parliament entered the negotiations with a position supported by the EPP, the right-wing European Conservatives and Reformists and the far-right Patriots and Europe of Sovereign Nations groups, despite opposition from lawmakers in liberal and left-wing groups.

Monday’s deal introduces a “legal arsenal serving a xenophobic ideology,” Greens negotiator Mélissa Camara said in a comment. The French MEP slammed the text for permitting hubs outside the European Union, the detention of minors, and “home visits inspired by ICE practices,” referring to the controversial U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.

Talks last month collapsed over disagreements on when the new measures should be implemented. Under Monday’s deal, parts of the text will only come in after a year, but some provisions, including measures allowing countries to establish return hubs, will start applying immediately — a key point for countries that are forging ahead with deals to establish them, including The Netherlands and Germany.
Marta Welander, EU advocacy director of the International Refugee Committee, said the plans mark an “alarming new chapter in the EU’s approach to asylum and migration.”

“This deal will give governments much broader powers to detain and deport people. It looks set to normalise immigration raids, expand the use of detention in prison-like facilities outside EU territory that are essentially legal black holes, and increase the risk of people being deported to countries where they could face persecution, torture or worse,” she said.

Both the Council and the Parliament still need to approve the deal.

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