Briefly

SWEDEN

Tanzanian novelist wins Nobel literature prize

Tanzanian writer Abdulrazak Gurnah has been awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. The Swedish Academy said the award was in recognition of his "uncompromising and compassionate penetration of the effects of colonialism". Born in Zanzibar and based in England, Gurnah is a professor at the University of Kent. His novel Paradise, set in colonial East Africa during World War I, which was shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 1994. The theme of the refugee's disruption runs throughout his work. Born in 1948, Gurnah fled Zanzibar in 1968. He began writing as a 21-year-old in England. Although Swahili was his first language, English became his literary tool.

GERMANY

8 women, 23 children with IS ties repatriated

Germany has repatriated eight women who joined the Islamic State and 23 children from northern Syria, said the foreign ministry, adding that it is the biggest such transfer since 2019. Denmark also brought three women and 14 children into its territory as part of the same operation, and carried it out with military support from the United States. Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said he was "happy" to have brought them back to Germany. The group was repatriated from the Roj camp in Kurdish-controlled northeastern Syria. The newspaper Bild reported that foreign ministry and police officials landed in the region early on Wednesday on a US military plane.

TURKEY

Ankara finally ratifies Paris Agreement

Turkey's parliament ratified the Paris climate agreement on Wednesday, making it the last G20 country to do so, after holding off for years due to what it saw as injustice in its responsibilities as part of the agreement. Turkey has been a signatory to the Paris Agreement since April 2016. But Ankara had not ratified the deal, arguing that it should not be considered a developed country as part of the agreement, which gives it more responsibility. Announcing that Turkey would ratify the deal at the United Nations General Assembly last month, President Tayyip Erdogan said countries that have a "historical responsibility" should make the most effort.

Agencies - Xinhua