January 3, 2023

*) Israeli security minister visits Al Aqsa Mosque, draws Palestinian flak Israel's far-right national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has visited the compound that houses the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, a flashpoint holy site sacred to both Jews and Muslims, Israeli media reported. Israel's opposition leader and former prime minister Yair Lapid had warned that such a visit by Ben-Gvir would spark violence. Palestine's Foreign Ministry condemned the visit, calling it an "unprecedented provocation." Earlier Palestinian group Hamas, for its part, said it would hold Israel responsible for any consequences of Ben-Gvir’s visit. *) Türkiye's exports hit all-time high of $254.2B in 2022: Erdogan Türkiye's exports hit an all-time high of $254.2 billion in 2022, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced, citing preliminary data. Despite global challenges, the figure increased by 12.9 percent from a year earlier, Erdogan told a news conference in Istanbul. "Our goal is to ensure that Türkiye takes its place among the top 10 exporting countries in the world," he said. *) Sweden’s largest wolf cull in modern times ‘disastrous’ for species Sweden has launched the biggest wolf slaughter in modern times as nature agencies warned that it could severely harm the population. The government has given permission to hunters to kill 75 out of the 460 wolves currently roaming the country in an attempt to reduce their numbers. But wildlife organisations argue that Sweden’s wolf population is relatively low compared to Italy, for instance, where there are more than 3,000. *) Russia plans protracted drone campaign to 'exhaust' Ukraine Russia is planning a protracted campaign of attacks with drones to "exhaust" Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says. In a video address, Zelenskyy say they have information that Russia is planning a protracted attack using Iranian Shahed drones. He said Moscow wants to exhaust people of Ukraine, its anti-aircraft defences and energy. Ukraine, he says, has to "act and do everything