From the 'Caesar Act' to India-China border tensions: the non-coronavirus news you might have missed

A Syrian boy carrying textiles is picture in the bazaar in old Damascus, on June 16, 2020. The Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act of 2019, a US law that aims to sanction any person who assists the Syrian government or contributes to the country's reconstruction, is to come into force on June 17. / AFP / LOUAI BESHARAShow less

Syria devalues currency as new US sanctions hit

Syria's central bank devalued the Syrian pound on Wednesday giving in to weeks of depreciation on the black market as new US sanctions took effect.

The central bank raised the official exchange rate from 704 to 1,256 Syrian pounds to the dollar, in a statement published on its social media pages.

The previous rate had been in force since March.

Earlier this month, the war-torn country's currency hit a record low on the black market of around 3,000 pounds to the dollar, sparking rare protests, before appreciating slightly after an apparent injection of dollars.

Read the full story here.

US wants to discuss prisoner swaps with Iran face-to-face

The United States would like a face-to-face meeting with Iran to discuss prisoner releases and it wants the UN Security Council to impose an indefinite arms embargo on the Islamic Republic, a senior US diplomat said on Tuesday.

The two adversaries disagree on many issues, including US President Donald Trump’s decision two years ago to abandon the 2015 Iran nuclear deal under which Tehran limited its nuclear program in return for economic sanctions relief.

Mr Trump has since restored US sanctions that have choked Iran’s oil exports, the country’s main source of revenue, while Iran has accelerated its nuclear program. Washington believes Iran may seek a nuclear weapon, something Tehran denies.

Despite the tensions, the two sides struck a deal under which Iran on June 4 freed a US Navy veteran it had detained since 2018 and the United States allowed an Iranian-American physician to visit Iran.

Read the full story here.

Israel's annexation plans condemned by Arab leaders and UN experts

Israel’s plan to annex nearly a third of the West Bank amounts to a "vision of a 21st Century apartheid" and will only intensify human rights violations against Palestinians, UN experts said on Tuesday.

The group of almost 50 UN human rights specialists warned that the move would be a “serious violation” of international law and reinforce an "already unjust reality".

"What would be left of the West Bank would be a Palestinian Bantustan, islands of disconnected land completely surrounded by Israel and with no territorial connection to the outside world,” the experts said.

Israeli Prime Minister Bejamin Netanyahu aims to begin a process of applying Israeli sovereignty to Jewish settlements in the Jordan Valley and West Bank from July 1.

The US effectively gave its blessing for the move last year in President Trump's Middle East peace plan, which proposes to leave Palestine with the remaining 70 per cent of the West Bank, along with Gaza and part of East Jerusalem as its capital.

Read the full story here.

Israel intends to annex West Bank settlements and the Jordan Valley, as proposed by US President Donald Trump, with initial steps slated to begin from July 1. AFP

Turkey flies commandos into Iraq in cross-border raid against Kurdish PKK

Turkey has flown special forces into the Iraqi Kurdish regional governorate for a ground operation against militants, the Defence Ministry said on Wednesday.

The operation in Iraq’s Haftanin region, about 15 kilometres from the border, was launched following intense artillery fire into the area, the Turkish Defence Ministry said.

A Turkish military official said the operation began with artillery units targeting some 150 suspected PKK positions and was followed by an aerial attack involving F-16s, drones and attack helicopters.

"Operation Claw-Tiger has begun," it said on Twitter. "Our commandos, who are supported by combat helicopters and drones, have been transported by our air force," it said.

Some of the commandos crossed the border by land while other units were transported by helicopters. The troops had begun to enter PKK hideouts in Haftanin, the official said.

Read the full story here.