10:10,

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. Israeli tanks were trying to push further west in their battle against Hamas in and around Khan Younis on Monday, as they met resistance amid intense combat in a war that has now entered its third month, Reuters reports. 

The fighting in Khan Younis, the main city in the southern Gaza Strip with a population of around 626,000 including people displaced by Israeli bombing in the north, comes as Israel refocused its war effort to the south.

Al Jazeera reported that the city of Rafah is also under intense Israeli attacks. Multiple civilians, mostly children, were injured when a residential building was hit by Israeli fire in Rafah, according to Al Jazeera.

Amid reports of a "catastrophic" health situation in Gaza from the World Health Organization, Palestinian activists called for a global strike on Monday as part of a coordinated effort to pressure Israel into a cease-fire.

"It is time – WORLD WIDE TOTAL STRIKE," urged one call. 

The 193-member United Nations General Assembly was likely to vote on Tuesday on a draft resolution demanding a ceasefire, diplomats said on Sunday.

On Friday, the United States vetoed a UN Security Council proposal demanding an immediate cease-fire for humanitarian reasons.

The U.S. vote was criticized by Arab foreign ministers on Sunday at an international conference in Doha, the capital of Qatar, which played a key role in negotiating the cease-fire late last month.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he would "not give up" appealing for a ceasefire.

"I urged the Security Council to press to avert a humanitarian catastrophe and I reiterated my appeal for a humanitarian ceasefire to be declared," Guterres said. "Regrettably, the Security Council failed to do it, but that does not make it less necessary."

The fighting began on Oct. 7 when Hamas staged a surprise attack on Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking 240 hostages. In response, Israel has vowed to annihilate the militant Islamist group Hamas, which has ruled Gaza since 2007.

According to Gaza health authorities, around 18,000 people have been killed by Israeli attacks, with 49,500 injured. About 100 of the Israeli hostages were freed during a week-long truce that ended on Dec. 1.

 10:33,

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian authorities are introducing a new regulation aimed at reducing the caseload of judges by an estimated 90%.

Announcing the reform on social media on Monday, Supreme Judicial Council President Karen Andreasyan said that starting December 11, banks, credit organizations, as well as utility operators (power, water, telecommunication) will file forfeiture complaints not exceeding 2,000,000 drams to notary’s offices, instead of courts.

“As a result of this process the workload of judges will reduce by 90%,” Andreasyan said.

Civil Court Judges currently having a caseload of 2000-4000 cases will have somewhere from 200 to 300 cases from spring 2024, Andreasyan said. “Therefore, civil cases will last several months instead of years.”

It took one year to finalize the reforms because it required legislative changes, the developments of a new computer system, training of notary’s and combination of programs in notary’s offices and the bailiff’s service.

 12:07,

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian parliament has ratified a customs affairs cooperation agreement with India.

The treaty, titled the Agreement on Customs Affairs Cooperation and Mutual Aid between Armenia and India, was adopted by parliament on Monday with 95 votes in favor.

The agreement was signed on June 23, 2023 in Brussels. Under the agreement, Armenia and India will provide mutual administrative support to one another and exchange information regarding customs affairs.

The agreement will enable faster solutions and detection of possible violations during exports and imports.

 12:58,

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. Member of Parliament Gevorg Papoyan has dismissed as “unreasonable” the statements made by Azerbaijani authorities about the need for guarantees ruling out possible revanchism in order to sign a peace treaty.

Papoyan, the Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Financial-Credit and Budgetary Affairs, said that signing a peace treaty in itself would mean that no revanches would happen.

“Our perception of peace doesn’t have such things [revanchism],” Papoyan said.

“I think that a peace treaty itself is about no revanches happening…..We must understand, if we want Armenia to get stronger, for it to have lasting statehood, independence, then this path goes through dialogue with neighbors, and we need a peace treaty as much as they do,” Papoyan added.

MP Papoyan said that after the signing of a peace treaty he envisions regional integration at all levels, development of economic relations, prosperity and growth in living standards.

He warned that some “external forces” could try to incite revanchist sentiments. “But we must not become an instrument in the hands of third countries,” Papoyan said.

 14:19,

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greece, Giorgos Gerapetritis, has said that he plans to visit Armenia in the near future.

Speaking to reporters in Brussels within the framework of the EU Foreign Affairs Council, the Greek FM said he will meet with his Armenian counterpart Ararat Mirzoyan today.

“We’ve come today to the foreign affairs council with a difficult and important agenda. We’ll start with the issue of the relations between Armenia and the European Union. Greece welcomes the ongoing peace process in the South Caucasus. Thanks to the efforts of Greece, today Armenia is invited to the Foreign Affairs Council to present positions aimed at sustainable peace in the broader region. I have personally spoken at length with the Armenian Foreign Minister, and I intend to visit Armenia in the near future, and today I will also have the chance to see the foreign ministers of both Armenia and Azerbaijan,” the Greek FM said.

 15:00,

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. Former manager of the Armenian national football team Vardan Minasyan has endorsed Aras Ozbiliz for the presidency of the Football Federation of Armenia (FFA).

Ozbiliz, the former Armenia midfielder, is running for the FFA presidency against Armen Melikbekyan, the incumbent FFA chief seeking re-election. The election will take place on December 23.

Minasyan announced his support for Ozbiliz in a statement posted online.

“I know you as a person, and I know your ideas and plans in football. The fact that you went through the European football school and you know the modern trends in football also matters. Good luck, Aras,” Minasyan said.

 15:38,

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. Speaker of Parliament Alen Simonyan on Monday held a meeting with Member of the National Assembly of France, head of the French delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) Bertrand Bouyx.

Speaker Simonyan lauded the warm relations and productive cooperation between the Armenian and French delegations in PACE.

He thanked the 97-member France-Armenia parliamentary friendship group, which includes Bouyx, for supporting Armenia, the parliament’s press service said in a readout.

During the meeting the sides discussed the strengthening and deepening Armenia-EU ties, the Armenia-EU visa liberalization dialogue, opportunities for intensifying bilateral economic ties and the unwavering implementation of democratic reforms in Armenia.

Bertrand Bouyx said it’s inspiring to see that democracy in Armenia is strong and visible despite the difficulties. He said Armenia’s ratification of the Rome Statute was an important step.

Speaking about regional challenges, the sides exchanges views on the ongoing talks around a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the immediate release of Armenian captives held in Azerbaijan, as well as the normalization between Armenia and Turkiye.

Bouyx reiterated that France is committed to its friendship with Armenia and stands with Armenia at this difficult time.

Vice Speaker Ruben Rubinyan, the head of the Armenian delegation to PACE, also participated in the meeting.

 16:13,

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. The situation in Armenia requires the EU’s strong support, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the EU Commission Josep Borrell has said.

“[Now] I am going to have first a meeting with the Armenian Foreign Minister [Ararat Mirzoyan], because you know that after we have the Eastern Partnership meeting at the Ministerial level. So many things are happening in the whole region, it is important to continue to pay attention to them and, in particular, to Armenia, that has been in a very difficult situation and still is. So, I will start my day with the Armenian Foreign Minister,” Borrell told reporters ahead of the EU Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels.

During a Q&A with reporters, Borrell was asked on the Eastern Partnership meeting.

“On the Ministerial of the Eastern Partnership, I mentioned that so many things happened in this part of the world. The Belarusian seat will be empty. We continue to try to do our best to isolate Lukashenko’s regime and support the Belarusian opposition. I hear that they are going to hold elections in Belarus. I wonder what kind of elections they will do. But we have the whole Eastern Partnership in a difficult situation – Belarus, Ukraine, then the Caucasus. The good news is Georgia advancing towards [EU] membership, but the situation in Armenia requires our strong support. We will see how we can increase it and how we can continue having the Eastern Partnership on our agenda, because it is our Eastern border, and our Eastern border is the place in the world where more hotspots are growing,” he said.

 16:47,

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 11, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan has presented at the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting the current Armenia-EU partnership programs, steps aimed at further enhancing them, as well as Armenia’s vision for establishing lasting stability and peace in the region, the foreign ministry said in a press release.

Mirzoyan presented the course and achievements of the democratic reforms in Armenia and discussed several key issues of Armenia-EU political and security dialogue, including the EUMA. He emphasized the importance of a final decision regarding the launch of visa liberalization dialogue in the context of bringing Armenia closer to the EU and people-to-people contacts.

FM Mirzoyan also spoke about the Armenia-EU ambitious agenda in the economy and other areas, including the inclusiveness of regional initiatives and Armenia’s potential to join the Black Sea energy cable.

Foreign Minister Mirzoyan presented Armenia’s efforts aimed at establishing peace in the region, the process of normalization with Azerbaijan and main approaches around the peace treaty in line with the well-known principles.

FM Mirzoyan presented the Crossroads of Peace project developed by the Armenian government, discussing its individual components, emphasizing the importance of the project not only for the South Caucasus but also the broader region.