Stories under this heading cover Turkey as well as the Levant – a large area in the Eastern Mediterranean region of Western Asia, consisting of Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel and Palestine.
Saudi Arabia and Syria are in talks to resume consular services between the two countries, the Saudi outlet Al-Ekhbariya TV said on Thursday (23 March).
Citing a Saudi Foreign Ministry official, the TV channel said, "within the framework of the Kingdom’s keenness to facilitate the provision of necessary consular services between the two nations, discussions are underway with officials in Syria to resume consular services."
The statement from the Saudi Foreign Ministry followed reports in international media earlier on Thursday.
A magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck southern Turkey and Syria, killing and injuring thousands of people. The earthquake, which struck at 04.17 local time on Monday (6 February), was followed 11 minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock.
As of 08.00 CET on Thursday (9 February), the number of confirmed dead across both countries has reached over 15,000, according to the BBC.
Georgian Defence Minister Juansher Burchuladze and his Azerbaijani and Turkish colleagues, Colonel General Zakir Hasanov and General Hulusi Akar, met on Thursday (2 February) to discuss cooperation in regional development and defence at the closure of multinational military exercises in Kars, Turkiye.