‘Yellow vest’ protests march for 16th straight week
AFP, Paris:
“Yellow vest” protesters marched in cities across France for a 16th straight week on Saturday in a bid to keep up pressure on French President Emmanuel Macron in demonstrations again marred by vandalism and violence.
In Paris, a man was reportedly hit in the face by a rubber bullet fired by a controversial riot control weapon, while in the southwestern city of Bordeaux an MP accused police of assaulting him.
Turkey to buy Patriot missile from US
Reuters, Ankara
Turkey and the United States are in talks over Washington’s offer to sell a Patriot missile defense system to Ankara, Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Friday.
“The United States said they could sell Patriots, and the delegations are negotiating”, Cavusoglu was quoted as saying by news agency Anadolu.
Estonians vote in poll with populists seen making gains
AP, Tallinn
Estonians are voting in a parliamentary election Sunday in the small Baltic nation in a ballot where Prime Minister Juri Ratas and his Center Party are pitted against the center-right opposition Reform Party and where populists are seen making inroads.
Sunday’s vote in the NATO and the European Union member of 1.3 million comes as the far-right, nationalist Estonian Conservative People’s Party, or EKRE, has substantially increased its popularity since the 2015 election.
Five children killed in Yemen attack
AFP, Dubai
Five Yemeni children were killed in an attack on their home in flashpoint Hodeida province, the UN and medics said, months into a ceasefire agreed by the government and rebels.
The UN children’s agency (UNICEF) said that the five children were “playing at home” when they were killed on Thursday. It did not give details on the nature of the attack or the perpetrators.
Heavy rains, floods kill 20 in Afghanistan
AP, Kabul
A U.N. humanitarian agency says at least 20 people died as heavy rains and flooding over the past few days swept away their homes and cars in Afghanistan’s southern Kandahar province.
The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said on Saturday night that at least 10 people, including children, remain missing. OCHA’s statement says up to 2,000 homes are believed to have been damaged.
Israel aircraft attack Hamas sites
AFP, Gaza City
Israeli aircraft have struck two Hamas observation points in the Gaza Strip, a security source said Sunday, after the army reported balloons carrying an “explosive device” were sent toward Israel.
No injuries occurred from the strikes late Saturday east of Al-Bureij in the central Gaza Strip and east of Rafah in the south of the blockaded enclave run by Islamist movement Hamas, according to a Hamas security source.
