Russia-Iran ties
The plane carrying Iran’s President Ebrahim Raeisi is now in the air and will shortly touch down in Moscow, at the start of a two-day visit that’s being conducted at the invitation of Russia's President Vladimir Putin. Just ahead of his departure, Raeisi pointed out to the potential impacts of a stronger cooperation between Iran and Russia. Speaking from Tehran’s Meharabad airport, Raeisi said a closer relationship between Iran and Russia can also serve as a deterrent to global unilateralism. He said the two sides have immense untapped potential that they can use in a variety of fields, including trade and energy. This is Raeisi’s third foreign visit since taking office in July. Iran's president is scheduled to sit down with Putin for talks. In addition to that, he will address a plenary session of Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament. Iran's oil, foreign and economy ministers are accompanying Raeisi on this visit.
Israeli demolitions
Israeli regime has demolished another home in the occupied al-Quds, displacing yet another Palestinian family, as part of its expansionist policy. In the early hours of morning today, Israeli army bulldozers moved in to destroy the building, located in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood. The demolition, as can be expected, outraged the local Palestinians. Israeli security forces were also present at the scene, and they arrested a total of eighteen people, including members of the family who lived in that building. The family has been facing an eviction threat since 2017. Israel says a school will have to be constructed on the parcel of land where the home was located. The fate of hundreds of Palestinians living in the controversial neighborhood has been hanging in the balance for years. The regime has been seeking to drive out dozens of families living there. Palestinians see the move as part of Israel's ethnic cleansing and Judaization attempts.
Far from over
The World Health Organization is warning that the Covid pandemic is far from over as many countries are facing a surge in Omicron infections. The WHO chief has cautioned against the assumption that Omicron is milder than the previous variants. Tedros Ghebreyesus says Omicron is causing hospitalizations and deaths like the other ones. It is now the dominant variant in the world. In recent weeks, European countries have broken new case records several times. France is reporting nearly half a million new cases a day. That’s the highest ever recorded tally since the start of the pandemic. Italy has also registered a record single-day caseload of 228,000.