MOGADISHU, Aug. 21– A senior African Union (AU) envoy in Somalia on Thursday reaffirmed the pan-African body’s commitment to enhancing peace, security, and stabilization efforts in the country amid threats from al-Shabab.

El Hadji Ibrahima Diene, special representative of the Chairperson of the AU Commission for Somalia and head of the AU Support and Stabilization Mission (AUSSOM), also lauded the ongoing joint military operations by AU troops and the Somali Security Forces in some parts of Somalia to counter threats posed by the militants.

“We are supporting our Somali brothers and sisters. Our mandate is to support a Somali-led peace process.

The ongoing operations are a priority defined by the government of Somalia, and we are collaborating closely with them to defeat al-Shabab,” Diene said in a statement issued in Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia.

The AU envoy, who made an inaugural visit to Baidoa, the capital of South West State, this week, highlighted the forces’ liberation of the strategic town of Barire as well as the villages of Sabid and Anole as significant milestones in Somalia’s efforts to defeat al-Shabab.

Diene reiterated AUSSOM’s support for sustained operations against the al-Shabab, which has proven its resilience against numerous counterinsurgency campaigns, posing a threat to the stability of Somalia.

He also praised the strong collaboration among key regional and international partners in the country’s stabilization efforts. (Xinhua)

CAIRO, Aug. 21  — Israel’s “arrogance of power” and persistent violation of international law in pursuit of narrow political interests or “baseless beliefs” is a grave miscalculation, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said Thursday.

Israel’s “escalatory policies,” including expanding occupation in Gaza and the West Bank, continuing “systematic crimes” against innocent civilians, and planning for displacing Palestinians from their land, will “inflame the already tense situation” in Gaza and the West Bank, and damage regional peace and security for years to come, it said in a statement.

Regarding the start of a new Israeli offensive on Gaza City on Wednesday, the ministry called the move a new attempt to solidify Israel’s “illegal occupation” of Palestinian territories and a complete disregard for ceasefire mediation efforts.

It is a “blatant violation of international law and international humanitarian law,” it said. On Wednesday, Israel’s military spokesman Effie Defrin said the Israeli army had begun the next stage of its operation, in line with “the directive of the political echelon.”

He said ground assaults were already under way in Gaza City’s Zaytun neighborhood and the nearby town of Jabalia, with more forces set to join the fighting.

The push, which has drawn fierce international criticism, was described by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as an attempt to “defeat Hamas and conquer Gaza City.”

The Israeli army said it now holds “operational control” over about 75 percent of Gaza, after repeated offensives have left much of its largest urban center in ruins.

Gaza-based health authorities said in an update on Thursday that since Oct. 7, 2023, Israel’s ongoing military campaign in Gaza has killed 62,192 people and injured 157,114 others. They added that starvation and malnutrition in Gaza have caused 271 deaths, including 112 children. (Xinhua)

KIEV, Aug. 21  — Russia launched another airstrike on Ukraine in the night between Wednesday and Thursday, striking a U.S. electronics producer, said Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha.

“One of the missiles struck a major American electronics manufacturer in our westernmost region, leading to serious damage and casualties,” Sybiha said on X.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on Telegram that several cruise missiles had been fired at an American enterprise producing coffee machines and other household items in the western Zakarpattya region.

A total of 15 people were wounded in the missile attack, which caused a fire on an area of 7,000 square meters, according to the State Service for Emergencies.

The Ukrainian Air Force reported that the attack involved 574 drones and 40 missiles, adding that it intercepted 546 drones, 18 Kh-101 cruise missiles, 12 Kalibr cruise missiles, and one Kinzhal hypersonic missile. (Xinhua)

UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 21– UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday condemned the decision of Israel’s Higher Planning Committee to approve more than 3,400 housing units in the E1 area of the occupied West Bank, said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for the UN chief, in a statement.

“Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, are a violation of international law and run directly counter to UN resolutions,” the statement said.

“The advancement of this project is an existential threat to the two-State solution. It would sever the northern and southern West Bank and have severe consequences for the territorial contiguity of the Occupied Palestinian Territory,” it added.

The secretary-general reiterated his call for the Israeli government to immediately halt all settlement activity and to comply fully with its obligations under international law and to act in accordance with relevant UN resolutions and in line with the International Court of Justice in its Advisory Opinion of July 19, 2024, it added.

Israel’s Higher Planning Council on Wednesday authorized 3,753 housing units, including 3,401 for final approval in the E1 neighborhood of Ma’ale Adumim.

The project would link settlements to create a continuum separating the West Bank from East Jerusalem. (Xinhua)

MOSCOW, Aug. 20 — Discussing security guarantees for Ukraine without Russian involvement is a “road to nowhere,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Wednesday.

“We cannot agree that now it is proposed to resolve questions of security, collective security, without the Russian Federation.

This will not work,” Lavrov told reporters in Moscow, stressing that the West, primarily the United States, understands that “seriously discussing Ukraine’s security guarantees without Russia is a road to nowhere.”

The minister noted that Russia is in favor of the security guarantees from Europe being “truly reliable.” As to the prospect of a possible trilateral meeting on Ukraine, Lavrov said Russia is ready to conduct talks in any format, but any high-level meeting should be carefully prepared so that it would not worsen the current situation.

U.S. President Donald Trump hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders at the White House on Monday, with focuses on security guarantees for Ukraine and a possible trilateral meeting between Russia, Ukraine and the United States. Later Zelensky said that security guarantees for Kiev could be finalized within the next 10 days and would “probably be ‘unpacked’ by our partners.” (Xinhua)