[ad_1]
Below is a summary of the current world news briefing.
‘Here is dead’: China’s slow exit from zero COVID
Persistent concerns about the coronavirus could hinder a quick return to health in the world’s second-largest economy, judging by the quiet streets of the Chinese capital Beijing on Friday and the reluctance of some businesses to abandon COVID-19 restrictions. While the government on Wednesday eased key parts of its strict “zero COVID” policy, which has largely staved off the pandemic for the past three years, many appeared wary of getting out of shackles too quickly.
Israel’s Netanyahu gets extension to Dec. 21 to form government
Israel’s prime minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu will have until Dec. 21 to form a new government, Herzog’s office said on Friday, after President Isaac Herzog granted him a 10-day extension. Netanyahu was appointed to form a new government following the right-wing victory in the Nov. 1 election. While he has a majority in parliament, he has yet to hammer out a coalition deal.
Russian opposition figure jailed for 8-1/2 years for ‘disinformation’
Russian opposition politician Ilya Yashin was sentenced in court on Friday to eight and a half years in prison for spreading “false information” about the military. Yassin, 39, was on trial over a YouTube video released in April in which he discussed evidence of Russian atrocities uncovered by Western journalists loofahnear Kyivand questioned Moscow’s official version, arguing that such reports were fabricated as “provocations” against Russia.
Russian state media hails Putin ‘winning’ in Viktor Bout deal
Russian state media on Friday praised President Vladimir Putin for “winning” a prisoner swap with the United States through the exchange us Basketball player Brittney Griner of notorious arms dealer Viktor Bout. “Tomorrow everyone will forget about Griner,” Yevgeny Popov, a host on Russian state television, wrote on Telegram on Thursday. “Bout’s life is just beginning.”
Protesters fear reprisals as China eases COVID restrictions
Shanghai resident Pei was one of many to support historic protests against China’s COVID-19 restrictions late last month, including several seconds of footage of a man being arrested on a street corner. Around the same time, Pei said, five or six plainclothes policemen caught him. He told Reuters he was taken to a police station and held for 20 hours, sometimes with his arms and legs tied to a chair.
Saudi Arabia meets China’s Xi Jinping Arab Leaders in “New Age” Relationships
Chinese President Xi Jinping Meets with the Gulf Arab Riyadh’s leaders hit first of two ‘milestones’ on Friday Arab The summit showcased Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as an aspiring Middle Eastern leader and a key partner of global powers. Xi was welcomed with pomp and ceremony in Saudi Arabia, a day before Friday’s meeting with the energy-rich six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, which signed a strategic partnership agreement with the world’s largest oil exporter.
German Security Forces Loyal to the Constitution – Ministry of the Interior
Germany is confident in the loyalty of its own security forces, Germany’s interior ministry said on Friday, responding to claims that far-right groups suspected of planning to overthrow the country were trying to recruit soldiers and police. “We firmly believe that the employees of the security agencies strongly support the constitution,” a spokesman for the ministry told reporters in Berlin.
UN human rights chief ‘decided’ to follow up on China concerns over Xinjiang
U.N. human rights chief Volker Turk said on Friday he wanted to engage Beijing over the findings of a report published by his predecessor that said China’s treatment of Uighurs and other Muslims in the Xinjiang region could constitute a danger to humanity crime. Tackling China’s human rights record as a permanent member of the UN Security Council is one of the thorniest of dozens of human rights challenges the new high commissioner has faced since taking office in October.
Russia shells eastern front, Ukraine says, as war objectives appear to have shifted
Ukrainian officials said Russian troops shelled the entire front line in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region, in what appeared to be a scaled-back of the Kremlin’s ambition to defend only most of the territory it claims. The region’s governor, Pavlo Kyrylenko, said in a television interview that the fiercest fighting took place near the towns of Bakhmut and Avdiivka. He said earlier on Friday that five civilians had been killed and two wounded the previous day in the Ukrainian-held Donetsk region.
Griner landing us Russia’s Bout welcomes family in Moscow
Basketball star Brittney Griner arrived in the United States on Friday after 10 months in Russian detention after a prisoner swap with arms dealer Viktor Bout. After months of grueling negotiations, Thursday’s swap deal was a rare example of U.S.-Russian cooperation after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, although the Kremlin was quick to say it did not show an improvement in relations between the two countries.
(According to agency opinion.)
[ad_2]
Source link