  Turkey warns against Shiite militias' involvement in Mosul offensive October 7, 2016 - 16:30 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkey's foreign minister has warned against the inclusion of Shiite militias in a possible operation to retake the Iraqi city of Mosul from the Islamic State group, saying it could fan sectarian divisions, the Associated Press reports. Speaking in Ankara Friday, October 7, Mevlut Cavusoglu said their remaining after the offensive would only compound the region's problems in the long term. "The greatest danger for the Sunni population there is being forced to choose between Shiite militias and Daesh," he said referring to the Arabic acronym for IS. Tensions rose between Ankara and Baghdad earlier this week, with both summoning each other's ambassadors after Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim made a similar warning of sectarian tensions if the majority Sunni region around Mosul were placed under Shiite militia control.   Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads.   Partner news |  Latest news Cyprus parliament honors Armenian genocide victims  Acting House President Zacharias Koulias noted that April 24 marks the “black anniversary” of the Armenian genocide.Armenia PM, France envoy discuss regional matters Issues related to the consistent development of Armenia-France cooperation were discussed.Azerbaijan razes historic Armenian church to ground Azerbaijan has demolished the historic Armenian Church of St. John the Baptist (known as Kanach Zham).Russia to begin assessing migrant workers' speaking skills Rosobrnadzor is planning to change the Russian language exam for migrant workers and include an assessment of speaking skills |
