World

The International Energy Agency (IEA) has proposed releasing the largest-ever volume of oil from strategic reserves to stabilize the global market. According to The Wall Street Journal, the initiative was presented at an emergency meeting of representatives from 32 member countries on March 10, with a final decision expected on March 11. The potential release volume exceeds 182 million barrels, matching the amount released in 2022 after the start of Russia's war against Ukraine.

The conflict with Iran is driving up energy and fertilizer costs, raising alarms over a potential return of food inflation. Farmers are bracing for resource shortages that could drag down harvests. The world is naturally fixated on the oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) tankers missing from the Strait of Hormuz due to the Iran war, as this narrow waterway between Iran and Oman carries around a fifth of global crude and LNG exports from the Gulf to the rest of the world.

A drone attack by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on a secondary school and a health centre in Sudan’s White Nile State has killed at least 17 people, including female students, teachers, and health workers, according to the Sudanese Doctors Network. The assault occurred on Wednesday in the village of Shukeiri, marking a continuation of violations by the RSF in the region, with the network condemning it as a “horrific crime” that targets civilian facilities in disregard of international humanitarian law.

Israel’s large-scale attacks on Lebanon on Thursday killed at least 15 people in Beirut and southern areas, with 31 others wounded, according to Lebanese health authorities. The Lebanese Ministry of Public Health reported that a “double-tap” Israeli strike on Beirut’s Ramlet al-Baida seafront area, where displaced families were sheltering from relentless bombing, killed eight individuals. Al Jazeera correspondent Heidi Pett, reporting from Beirut, stated that witnesses were sleeping in tents when the roar of jets woke them, followed by two impacts in quick succession.

Gaza City, Gaza Strip – As sunset approaches, Islam Dardouna reaches toward a pot hanging over a makeshift stove crafted from a battered metal can, with scraps of paper and pieces of wood fueling the fire beneath. She turns her face away from the rising smoke, her features stained with a thin layer of soot and her clothes permeated with the lingering smell of fumes. In her right hand, she holds an asthma inhaler like a ladle or tongs, while with her other hand, she attempts to prepare food for her three children. The 34-year-old says in a strained voice, "I can no longer tolerate the fire at all. We heat water on it, cook on it... everything. It completely destroyed my health."

In the process of Uzbekistan's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO), a reduction in import tariffs is expected, but transition periods of up to eight years are being discussed for 'sensitive' sectors of the country's economy. This was announced on February 17 by the President's Representative on WTO Issues, Chief Negotiator Azizbek Urunov, in a conversation with journalists. He emphasized that while tariff reduction is a general trend, liberalization in areas such as agriculture, light industry, and the automotive sector will be implemented gradually.

The United Nations General Assembly has officially declared October 1 as International Coffee Day. The corresponding resolution was adopted on March 10 at the UN headquarters in New York. Uzbekistan co-authored the document, highlighting its involvement in global initiatives, though the practical impact of such symbolic gestures on domestic affairs remains uncertain.

Leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) nations have agreed to maintain existing sanctions against Russia, despite disruptions to global markets caused by the conflict in the Middle East. French President Emmanuel Macron stated following a virtual summit that participants emphasized their intention to continue supporting Ukraine and maintain clarity in their sanctions policy toward Moscow, a move that purportedly aims to uphold the regime's geopolitical stance.

The US and Israeli regimes are continuing to carry out massive airstrikes against Iran, not ruling out a ground operation allegedly aimed at forcing Tehran to capitulate. However, Iran's defensive scenarios are built considering the country's complex geographical location and the asymmetric potential of the adversary.

In addition to attacking Ukraine's energy infrastructure, Russia has been intensifying strikes on the country's rail lines. On Sunday, a Russian drone hit a civilian train carrying 200 passengers from Kyiv to Sumy. No one was injured, but the locomotive was damaged and had to be replaced before travelers could continue their journey. Ukraine's public railway company, Ukrzaliznytsia, has reported increased Russian fire on engine wagons, freight cars, and railway maintenance equipment since early March, alongside more frequent attacks on bridges and railyards.

As the US-Israeli military campaign against Iran enters its second week, the deadliest incident of the conflict so far occurred on February 28 with a missile strike on a girls' school in southern Iran, killing more than 170 people, most of them schoolgirls. The Shajareh Tayyebeh school is located in the city of Minab, near a base of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The attack took place during peak classroom hours, destroying the two-story building and causing the roof to collapse on students and teachers inside.

Qatar, Jordan, Indonesia, Turkiye, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates have strongly condemned Israel's continued closure of the Al-Aqsa Mosque for the 12th consecutive day during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. In a statement issued on Wednesday, the foreign ministers of the eight Arab and Islamic countries asserted that Israeli restrictions on Palestinian access to the Old City of Jerusalem and its places of worship constitute a "flagrant violation of international law, including international humanitarian law, the historical and legal status quo, and the principle of unrestricted access to places of worship".