Category: Azer News

At least 90 protesters were arrested at a London demonstration in support of the banned activist group, Palestine Action, police said Saturday, Azernews reports via Middle East Monitor.

The arrests as of 1800GMT are in relation to the protest organized by Defend Our Juries in support of the ‘proscribed terrorist organisation Palestine Action,’ Metropolitan Police said in a statement.

It added that the protest concluded and those involved have left the area.

Protesters gathered in Tavistock Square, where demonstrators carried Palestinian flags and signs while chanting pro-Palestine slogans.

Some of the banners read: ‘I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action.’

The Defend Our Juries group wrote on the US social media platform X that police instantly started arresting protestors for silently holding signs that it said opposed genocide and the Palestine Action ban.

European Council President Antonio Costa announced on Saturday that he had convened a “special meeting” on Ukraine, set to take place next Monday, Azernews reports.

“Work continues. I have invited all 27 EU leaders for a special meeting on Ukraine in the margins of the EU-AU Summit in Luanda on Monday,” Costa wrote on his X account, and reiterated a previous statement by the European leaders regarding the United States-backed peace proposal.

The world leaders are currently gathered at the G20 summit in Johannesburg, South Africa.

The UN climate conference COP30 wrapped up in Brazil on Saturday without securing a firm commitment to phase out fossil fuels, a failure that immediately sparked public protest from dozens of countries, who warned that the summit’s final draft undermines global efforts to keep warming to 1.5°C (2.7°F).

The draft outcome, put forward by Brazil as conference president, avoided any explicit reference to phasing out oil, gas or coal, following strong pushback from major fossil-fuel producers and several emerging economies, according to Anadolu Agency. Instead, it calls only for countries to step up climate action on a ‘voluntary’ basis.

The omission triggered a dispute on the floor during the final plenary. COP30 President Andre Correa do Lago briefly halted the session after delegates from the EU, Colombia, Panama and Switzerland protested openly and raised their flags to signal their objection to the text.

When proceedings resumed, he confirmed that the outcome documents had been approved despite the protests and concerns that delegations had not been given the chance to voice their positions publicly.

‘I’m sorry. I didn’t see the flags,’ do Lago said.

More than 80 countries – including Colombia, France and Spain – had spent the past two weeks pushing for a clear and explicit roadmap to end fossil-fuel use.

Colombia was among the strongest critics. Environment Minister Irene Vélez said the summit had failed its central purpose.

‘Colombia will not endorse a text that denies science, blocks the 1.5°C goal, and turns its back on people and life,’ she said.

President Gustavo Petro echoed that sentiment, writing on social media that he rejected the final document.

‘I cannot accept that the COP30 declaration does not clearly state – as science does – that fossil fuels used by capital are the cause of the climate crisis,’ he said.

European Commissioner for Climate Action Wopke Hoekstra also voiced disappointment, saying the EU had hoped for more ambition but would nevertheless “support” the agreed text.

Despite the backlash, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva declared the conference a success, insisting ‘science prevailed, multilateralism won.’ Brazil said it would continue working within the voluntary framework until COP31, when Trkiye assumes the presidency.

The summit was also marked by the absence of the world’s largest oil producer, the United States, which did not attend the gathering in Belém.

The United Nations on Friday issued a stark warning over the deteriorating situation in the occupied West Bank, citing an escalation of violence that has resulted in growing civilian casualties, forced displacement and deepening insecurity among Palestinians.

U.N. spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told reporters that humanitarian agencies were alarmed by the persistent rise in violence, noting ‘casualties, property destruction, displacement, loss of livelihoods and a profound sense of insecurity for Palestinian civilians.’

According to the U.N., the number of Palestinian children killed in 2025 reached 50 this week.

‘In total, more than 200 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since the beginning of the year,’ Dujarric added.

Israeli military operations in the West Bank have intensified since the outbreak of the Gaza war in October 2023. Since then, over 1,076 Palestinians have been killed and more than 10,700 injured in attacks by Israeli forces and armed settlers in the occupied territory. Arrests have also surged, with more than 20,500 Palestinians detained during this period.

In a significant legal development last July, the International Court of Justice ruled that Israel’s occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem is unlawful and called for the removal of all Israeli settlements from these areas.

The White House has accused South Africa of declining to ensure a smooth handover of the G20 presidency to the United States, Azernews reports via TRT World. The claim comes after South Africa’s Foreign Ministry said it would transfer the presidency to Washington ‘at an appropriate level’, shortly after the G20 adopted a climate-crisis declaration opposed by the US.

White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said on Saturday that President Cyril Ramaphosa had pushed for a G20 leaders’ statement addressing the climate emergency and other global issues ‘despite consistent and robust US objections.’

She added that President Donald Trump was looking forward to ‘restoring legitimacy to the G20 in the US’ 2026 host year.’

Earlier, South African Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola told reporters at the summit that the US had wanted the handover to be carried out through the chargé d’affaires at its embassy in Pretoria.

Lamola stressed that South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) sought to make a clear distinction between the formal handover process and the ongoing summit discussions attended by world leaders and their duly appointed representatives.

UEFA has confirmed the referee appointments for the upcoming UEFA Champions League Group Stage clash between Napoli and Qarabag, scheduled to take place in Italy.

Polish referee Szymon Marciniak will take charge of the match, assisted by Tomasz Listkiewicz and Adam Kupsik. Wojciech Mick will serve as the fourth official.

In the VAR booth, Dutch referee Paul van Boekel will oversee video review, with Croatian referee Ivan Bebek acting as AVAR.

The highly anticipated encounter will kick off on 25 November at 00:00 local time at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona in Naples.

Azerbaijan is pushing forward on multiple fronts of non-oil economic diversification, and its pharmaceutical sector is increasingly emerging as a key pillar. Specifically, starting from next year, the government aims for a strong, radical, and long-awaited shift from oil and gas dependence. The inauguration of a major production facility by Scandens Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. in the Absheron district signifies more than just a business expansion. It represents a strategic bet on the country’s future as a regional pharmaceutical hub.

On November 22, 2025, President Ilham Aliyev officially opened the Scandens plant in Hokmali, Absheron, accompanied by Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov and Scandens CEO Kamran Hasanov.

The facility, built to international standards with equipment from Germany, Switzerland, and Italy, is designed to manufacture approximately 800 million tablets and capsules per year across a wide range of therapeutic areas – including antibiotics, diabetology, hepatology, cardiology, allergology, gastroenterology, and more.

Backed by private investment worth 74 million manats, the project also benefited from government support: under an investment promotion document, Scandens received 6.5 million manats in concessions for imported equipment.

In USD terms, 74 million manats is roughly US$43.7 million, and 6.5 million manats is about US$3.6 million.

The plant currently employs 120 staff.

Scandens is not just another assembly-line factory. According to its own site, the company is the first in Azerbaijan to support a full production cycle of solid oral dosage forms (tablets, capsules, granules), backed by a full quality-control lab.

Beyond the initial 800 million-unit capacity, Scandens has projects to expand production of ointments, suppositories, and even sterile products (ampoules, infusions).

This means that all stages – from raw material processing to finished drug – will increasingly be done domestically, reducing dependency on imports and potentially improving access for local patients.

The new plant is also designed as a training hub. Under a four-party Memorandum, Scandens is partnering with Azerbaijan Medical University, Hungary’s University of Pécs, and Pannon Pharma to run internship and training programs for both pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical professions.

On the sustainability front, Scandens has installed 710 solar panels on its roof with a combined capacity of 450 kW, which allows the facility to satisfy about 40 percent of its energy needs from renewable sources. The company also emphasizes environmental responsibility, treating its industrial waste on-site and aiming for zero liquid discharge.

Scandens’ story comes at a pivotal moment for Azerbaijan’s pharmaceutical industry. Domestic output is growing quickly. In 2025, the sector reported 81.5 percent growth.

Historically, the country has relied heavily on imports. According to a World Bank report, imports made up about 60 percent of the domestic drug market, and informal/unregulated markets were sizable.

In 2025, pharmaceutical imports continued to rise. From January to February, Azerbaijan imported US $90.63 million worth of medicines, 14.3 percent more than in the same period of 2024. This underscores how critical it is for domestic production to scale, both for health security and economic resilience.

The Scandens plant is part of a broader push to embed pharmaceuticals within Azerbaijan’s non-oil industrial strategy. The Pirallahi Industrial Park, for example, is explicitly specialized in pharmaceuticals. This industrial park hosts companies that manufacture medicines jointly with foreign partners, helping to transfer technology and scale up local capabilities.

Over the decades, Azerbaijan has aimed to reduce its dependency on imported medicines. As early as 2015, officials noted that up to 97 percent of medicines were imported. Today’s advances suggest real progress on that front.

What this means for export potential and economic diversification?

Strengthening local pharmaceutical capacity isn’t just about health; it’s also about trade. By producing at scale with international-grade quality, Azerbaijan could begin to export medicines to neighboring markets and beyond.

Already, Scandens is talking about exports alongside domestic supply. Meanwhile, the government’s support for high-quality production and investment is aligned with broader diversification goals, including boosting non-oil exports.

The development of Scandens and the wider pharmaceutical sector fits neatly into Azerbaijan’s long-term economic vision. By investing in high-technology production, the country reduces its vulnerability to external shocks in medicine imports and taps into global demand for generic and specialty drugs.

Moreover, the facility’s environmental footprint (with solar power and waste recycling) aligns with global sustainability trends and helps build Azerbaijan’s reputation as a responsible industrial actor.

Azerbaijani athletes who performed successfully at the 6th Islamic Solidarity Games held in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, have returned home.

Azernews reports that a welcoming ceremony for the athletes took place at Heydar Aliyev International Airport. Representatives of the sports community, media, fans, and relatives of the athletes attended the event.

The Azerbaijani team finished the Games with a total of 59 medals – 9 gold, 19 silver, and 31 bronze. With this result, Azerbaijan placed 10th in the overall medal standings. Trkiye ranked first, Uzbekistan second, and Iran third.

Athletes from 57 countries competed in the event.

A youth conference was held at the Tashkent State University of Oriental Studies, jointly organised by the Uzbekistan Youth Union and Azerbaijan’s ‘Young Reformers’ Public Union, with support from Azerbaijan’s Agency for State Support to NGOs.

According to the Uzbekistan National News Agency, the event provided an important platform for strengthening bilateral ties and expanding cooperation between young people in both countries.

The conference brought together the university’s rector, Gulchehra Rikhsiyeva, leaders of youth organisations from Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan, and several academics.

Speakers noted that the countries’ strategic partnership – and the close relationship between Presidents Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Ilham Aliyev – has opened up significant opportunities for broader collaboration between youth bodies. They highlighted growing prospects for joint work in science, innovation, culture, volunteering, and start-up development.

It was also stressed that Azerbaijan’s victory in Karabakh has become a unifying factor for the country’s youth, giving new impetus to their civic engagement.

Participants agreed that joint programmes, student and expert exchanges, shared forums, and cooperation in innovation and start-ups will further deepen ties between the young people of both nations.

COP30, held in Belém, Brazil, concluded with Azerbaijan playing an active diplomatic role following its presidency of COP29. Azernews reports that a high-level Azerbaijani delegation, led by Parliamentary Speaker Sahiba Gafarova, attended the Leaders’ Summit, where she delivered the country’s statement and met with several international counterparts.

During the opening of the conference, Azerbaijan formally handed over the COP presidency to Brazil. Mukhtar Babayev, who chaired COP29, highlighted last year’s achievements in Baku and took part in numerous events throughout the summit.

Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry delegation was deeply involved in climate negotiations, including two major decisions entrusted directly to Baku. Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Yalchin Rafiyev, alongside his Brazilian counterpart, mediated complex talks between Trkiye and Australia over the right to host COP31. After nearly two weeks of intensive discussions, Trkiye was selected as the next host.

Azerbaijan was also appointed – jointly with Norway – to lead negotiations on the Paris Agreement’s Global Stocktake, a key component of global climate accountability. Both countries submitted final recommendations to Brazil, aiding progress on the adopted documents.

Beyond negotiations, Azerbaijan organised events on peace and migration, water, health, urban climate policy, and transparency, while also co-hosting sessions on renewable energy, hydrogen, and agriculture.

Azerbaijan and Brazil additionally unveiled the ‘Roadmap from Baku to Belém,’ outlining steps to increase global climate finance to USD 1.3 trillion, consistent with the Baku Financial Goal agreed at COP29.