Somalia

The Somali National Army (SNA) received military vehicles, including trucks and ambulances, donated by Turkey on Nov. 16 as part of Ankara's support for the nation's military.

Senior military officials received the donation after a ceremony at the Turkish Embassy in the capital of Mogadishu.

Tunisia's prestigious Carthage Film Festival has opened with a screening of "Lingui" -a movie from Chad about a teenage girl who seeks an abortion.

The festival showcases 57 diverse films from 45 Arab and African countries, with screenings not only in cinemas, but in prisons and military barracks too.

Somali film-maker Khadar Ahmed won the top prize at the Fespaco film festival in Burkina Faso on Oct. 23 for "The Gravedigger's Wife", which he wrote and directed.

The 40-year-old was not at the ceremony to receive the Golden Stallion award, but his work beat 16 other African films to the top prize. The films in competition were made by directors from 15 different African countries.

Turkish personnel and all Turkish citizens who wish to leave the country have been evacuated from Afghanistan's capital Kabul in a span of less than 48 hours, Turkey's national defense minister announced on Aug. 28.

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Miroslav Lazanski, the Serbian ambassador to Russia, has suddenly died, Serbia's Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday.

Lazanski was appointed ambassador to Moscow in June 2019. He had been an MP in parliament since June 2016, elected on the ruling Serbian Progressive Party's list as a non-party person.

Romania's National Committee for Emergency Situations (CNSU) updated on Friday its list of countries or areas with high COVID-19 epidemiological risk. "The classification of the countries/areas by the cumulative rate of COVID-19 cases in order to sort the persons arriving in Romania accordingly and subject them to quarantine is hereby approved," reads CNSU Decision 39.

A report issued on June 10 warned that over 350,000 people in Ethiopia's Tigray province are facing famine and over 2 million are just a step away, blaming the dire situation on the ongoing conflict that has forced hundreds of thousands of people to flee, limited humanitarian access and the loss of harvests and income.

Turkey is a safe country for most asylum seekers now housed on Greek islands, Greece's migration ministry has said, as Athens seeks to speed up repatriations to its eastern neighbour.

According to a 2016 agreement between the European Union and Turkey, the latter should take back Syrian refugees from Greece if they do not face serious risks in Turkey.

Greece on June 7 announced that applications for asylum filed by individuals in Turkey will no longer be accepted. 

"Turkey is designated a safe country for asylum seekers from Syria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Somalia," said a joint decision by the Greek Foreign Ministry as well as the Migration and Asylum Ministry.

Turkish ambassador to the United Arab Emirates Tugay Tunçer has taken office as of May 1 amid Turkey's recent outreach to the Gulf country, with which Ankara had been at odds due to regional disagreements.