Libya

Plumes of dust carried by strong southerly winds from North Africa have shrouded the western part of Türkiye, decreasing air quality and visibility. 

Hot winds from Libya have engulfed cities including Istanbul, İzmir, Antalya, Bolu, Tekirdağ, and Muğla.

A common strand of failure runs through our disasters - at the crucial moment, we were either unprepared or indifferent to what might happen.

Turkish contractors undertook 40 projects worth a total of $4.27 billion in foreign countries in the first three months of 2024, data from the Trade Ministry have shown. 

The average contract size of those projects was $107 million, up from $64.9 million in 2023.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has accused a "global alliance" of complicity in oppression in various parts of the world, alleging they also had Türkiye in their sights.

"Whatever step we took in Syria, Libya and Karabakh, we found a global alliance against us," Erdoğan said during a rally speech in northwestern province of Bursa on March 28 ahead of this weekend's elections.

Dressed in tracksuits with their sleeves rolled up, about 30 residents in Tajura, a suburb east of Libya's capital Tripoli, volunteer every day to cook and give away some 300 meals during Ramadan.

Last September, just 30 asylum seekers made the 190-nautical-mile journey from Tobruk in Libya to the Greek island of Gavdos and Crete's southern coast just above it; that number swelled to 397 in December and has passed 1,100 in the first couple of months of 2024. The spike in migrant arrivals from the war-torn North African country is posing a fresh challenge for the Greek authorities.

The European Union and Egypt on Sunday signed a 7.4-billion-euro financial package to support the indebted north African country, boost energy sales to Europe and stem irregular migrant flows.

Around 1,500 migrant arrivals were recorded in Crete in the last quarter - Information about a 7.4 billion euro aid package to Egypt - Aim to fortify the border with Libya

A boat carrying 91 migrants has reached a small island south of Crete that is seeing a spike in the arrival of people attempting the long and dangerous crossing from Africa, Greek authorities said Wednesday.

A coast guard statement said the migrants, who were found on a beach on Gavdos island Tuesday, were being taken to reception areas on Crete.

Describing Egypt as a "reliable partner" in the management of migration, EU Commission Vice President Margaritis Schinas appeared adamant on Tuesday that the upcoming visit of Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to Cairo, accompanied by the prime ministers of Greece, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Italy, Giorgia Meloni, and Belgium, Alexander De Croo, will bring "substantial results."