ISTANBUL

Here is a rundown of all the news that you need to start your Tuesday with, including Pentagon’s remarks about Israel-Iran tensions, Israeli army chief speaking about Israel’s response to Iran’s attack, and stabbing at a church in Sydney.

TOP STORIES

• Decision to retaliate against Iran attacks rests with Israel, says Pentagon

Retaliating against Iran's attack will be a decision made by Israel, a Pentagon spokesman said Monday.

"I don't want to get into hypotheticals. At this point, whether or not Israel responds to Iran's attack, of course, is something for Israel to discuss and to decide," Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters.

The US does not want to see escalation, he stressed., adding Washington will take necessary measures to protect its forces in the region and to defend Israel.

• Israel to respond to Iran’s attack, army chief says

Israel will respond to the weekend’s Iranian attack, Army Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi said on Monday.

"The Iranian attack will be met with response," Halevi said during his visit to the Nevatim airbase in southern Israel that was targeted in Saturday’s Iranian attack.

“Iran wanted to harm the strategic capabilities of the State of Israel — that is something that had not happened before. We were prepared for the ‘Iron Shield’ operation — preparation that brought Iran to also meet air superiority,” he added.

• 4 people stabbed in livestreamed church service in Sydney

Four people were stabbed in a livestreamed church service in Sydney on Monday, the police and local media reported.

The incident occurred at Christ The Good Shepherd Church in Wakeley, western Sydney, at around 7.15 p.m. local time (0915GMT).

The details of the attack are yet to be confirmed but the offender, who is believed to have acted alone, is reportedly in custody.

The incident was also livestreamed on the church's Facebook account, showing a priest being attacked by a young man, who stabbed him multiple times.

NEWS IN BRIEF

• Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on Monday discussed bilateral relations and the humanitarian situation in Gaza.

• Several Palestinians were killed and injured early Tuesday by Israeli airstrikes that targeted a mosque in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.

• US President Joe Biden met with Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala at the White House on Monday, highlighting Washington’s unwavering support for Ukraine.

• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refused to receive phone calls from Western leaders because he feared he would be pressurized into preventing him from responding to Iran’s attack on Israel, local media reported Monday.

• China expressed concern Monday over the escalation of tensions in the Middle East following attacks by Israel and Iran and called on Tel Aviv to achieve an immediate cease-fire in Gaza.

• Police in the Canadian city of Halifax arrested 21 people during a pro-Palestinian protest Monday morning.

• Malak Haniyeh, the granddaughter of Hamas's political bureau chairman Ismail Haniyeh, succumbed on Monday to injuries sustained in an Israeli strike that killed other family members on the first day of Eid-al-Fitr.

SPORTS

• Palmer-led Chelsea hammer Everton 6-0 in Premier League

A Cole Palmer-led Chelsea hammered Everton 6-0 on Monday in an English Premier League week 33 match.

The young English midfielder netted four goals for the Blues in the 13th, 18th, 29th and 64th minutes.

Senegalese forward Nicolas Jackson and English defender Alfie Gilchrist scored Chelsea’s other goals in the 44th and 90th minutes.

• Mykolas Alekna breaks men's discus world record

Mykolas Alekna from Lithuania broke the men's 38-year discus world record, setting a new mark of 74.35 meters at the Oklahoma Throws Series competition in Ramona in the US state of Oklahoma.

The “stunning throw” from the 21-year-old Lithuanian broke the world record of 74.08m set by Germany’s Jurgen Schult in 1986, the Olympics said in a statement.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

• Middle Eastern, North African economies estimated to grow 2.7% in 2024

Middle Eastern and North African economies are expected to grow 2.7% in 2024, up from 1.9% in 2023, according to the World Bank on Monday.

"As in 2023, oil importing and oil exporting countries are likely to grow at less disparate rates than 2022, when higher oil prices boosted growth in oil exporters," the financial institution said in a statement.

Gross domestic product (GDP) growth in almost all oil importing countries is expected to decelerate, it added.

• Türkiye hosts 4.3M tourists from neighboring countries this Jan-Feb

Türkiye hosted over 4.3 million tourists in the first two months of 2024, with the most foreign visitors arriving from neighboring Iran, Bulgaria, and Russia.

Türkiye received 56.6 million visitors from other countries last year, including 49.2 million foreign nationals and 7.4 million Turkish citizens living abroad, according to data from the Culture and Tourism Ministry compiled by Anadolu.