Palestinian officials denounce Israel’s storming of West Bank

Here is a round-up of global news developments:

• Palestinian officials have denounced Israel’s storming of the West Bank headquarters of Palestine Today TV channel in Ramallah. They called the raid in line with Israel’s clampdown on journalists who report on the Palestinian cause. Israelis arrested several of the Palestine Today staff during the raid.
• Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Ja’afari has harshly criticized some Arab states for branding the resistance groups that are fighting terror groups in the region as terrorists. His swipe came during an Arab League meeting in Cairo where the majority of participants declared Lebanon's resistance movement Hezbollah a terrorist organization.
• Thousands of Iraqis rally in Baghdad calling on the government to implement promised reforms to curb corruption. The demonstrators gathered in Tahrir square to hear a speech by Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr. He has called for weekly protests to voice support for Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's campaign against corruption.
• The Turkish police have fired teargas to disperse protesters marking the second death anniversary of a teenager who fell victim to the government's crackdown on dissent. Security forces arrested a number of demonstrators. His death in 2014 led to days of demonstrations across Turkey.
• UN Special envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura has called for elections in the country in 18 months ahead of peace talks between Syria's warring sides. He said the negotiations which kick off on Monday start the countdown to both presidential and parliamentary elections under UN observation.
• Yemen’s Ansarullah fighters and allied army units have killed at least 27 Saudi-backed militants during the clashes in the southern city of Tai’zz . Loyalists of fugitive former president Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi have been trying to seize Ta’izz for months.
• A protester disrupts US Presidential candidate Donald Trump’s speech in the state of Missouri, just days after his controversial remarks regarding Islam. Demonstrators also gathered outside the venue where the Republican front-runner was speaking at his campaign rally. Earlier this week, Trump claimed Islam hates the West.
• Russia’s Foreign Ministry says the US has not yet provided Moscow with information about a probe into the death of President Vladimir Putin’s ex-aide Mikhail Lesin. On Thursday, US authorities announced Lesin died of head injuries and not a heart attack. He was found dead in a hotel in Washington last year.

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