Anadolu Agency's Morning Briefing - Oct. 13, 2021

Anadolu Agency is here with a rundown of the latest developments in Turkey, around the world, and the coronavirus pandemic.

Developments in Turkey, coronavirus pandemic and other news

Turkey has administered over 112.94 million doses of coronavirus vaccines since the country launched an immunization drive in January, according to official figures released Tuesday. The Health Ministry also recorded 33,860 new cases, 237 coronavirus-related deaths and 30,110 recoveries over the past 24 hours.

At least 22 people believed to be linked to the Daesh/ISIS terrorist group were arrested in Turkey, security sources said Tuesday.

Turkish security forces rounded up 11 terrorists affiliated with the PKK, FETO and DHKP-C while they were attempting to flee to Greece, the National Defense Ministry said Tuesday.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday proposed the creation of a working group on Afghanistan under the G20, noting that Turkey is ready to lead it.

Other developments across the world

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un again criticized the US and said his country would boost its military capabilities to counter "hostile forces," South Korean media reported Tuesday.

At least 15 people have been killed and three others remain missing after incessant rains triggered flooding in China's northern Shanxi province, state media reported Tuesday.

A coalition of Shia political forces and armed factions in Iraq has rejected the preliminary results of this week's early parliamentary elections.

Russia on Tuesday hit another all-time high in its daily COVID-19 death toll, with the virus claiming 973 lives over the past day, pushing the overall count to 218,345, said the country's authorities.

China said Tuesday that it will establish the Kunming Biodiversity Fund to support biodiversity protection in developing countries.

The European Commission on Tuesday pledged €1 billion (over $1.15 billion) in aid for Afghanistan.

Russia-US relations may worsen further, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov warned Tuesday after meeting US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland in Moscow.

Women have won 97 seats in Iraq's 329-member parliament in this week's early parliamentary elections, according to the Iraqi Cabinet on Tuesday.

A UN human rights office spokeswoman said Tuesday that her office is receiving "mounting evidence" of pushbacks of asylum seekers from Greece to Turkey in recent times.

The UK's high court ruled Tuesday that trafficking victims should be allowed to stay in the country after having been left in limbo in the immigration system for a number of years.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has defended dialogue with Turkey despite current differences, stressing Ankara's strategic importance for the Western world.

The leaders of the G20 major economic powers reaffirmed their "collective commitment" to ensuring the continued flow of humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan's people, the White House announced Tuesday.

German coalition talks are approaching the "moment of truth" as the Social Democrats (SPD), the Greens and the liberal Free Democrats (FDP) are trying to overcome their main differences, party leaders announced in Berlin.

The winter season is approaching in Afghanistan and there is an urgent need for humanitarian assistance, the UN Refugee Agency said Tuesday.

Authorities on the Spanish island of La Palma ordered around 750 residents to evacuate their homes Tuesday as a river of lava threatens to engulf more neighborhoods.

At least three people were killed and several wounded Tuesday evening when a suicide bomber blew himself up at a busy restaurant in Mogadishu's Yaqshid district, according to a police official.

Somalia will now own a chunk of what used to be Kenya's territory in the Indian Ocean following a judgment Tuesday by the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Tuesday urged the international community to help prevent a looming economic collapse in Afghanistan.

At least 134 Houthi rebels were killed in Saudi-led airstrikes in Yemen's central Marib province in the past 24 hours, the Saudi-led coalition said Tuesday.

Ukraine is grateful to the EU for the continued restrictive measures against Russia, but it is high time for tighter sanctions, said the Ukrainian president Tuesday following the 23rd EU-Ukraine Summit in the capital Kiev. -