WATCH PRESS TV NEWS HEADLINES

Here is a brief look at Press TV newsroom's headlines from 09:00 GMT to 17:00 GMT, October 17, 2017.

Turkish troops fatalities

Suspected Kurdish bomb attacks in northern Iraq have left at least four Turkish soldiers dead and several others injured. Turkish armed forces say the blasts were caused by improvised explosive devices planted by militants of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, the PKK. Officials say the explosions occurred in Zap region where the Turkish air force is pounding the positions of Kurdish militants. Ankara recognizes the PKK as a terrorist organization. The militant group has been fighting for an autonomous Kurdish region since 1984. A ceasefire between the Turkish government and the PKK collapsed in July 2015 and led to surging violence in Turkey’s southeast.

Afghanistan attacks

The death toll from the Taliban attacks in Afghanistan has risen to 54, with over 200 people wounded across the war-torn country. The Interior Ministry has issued a statement saying a bomber detonated his car near a police training center, trying to enter the attached headquarters in southeastern Paktia province. Officials confirmed the death of 32 people, including policemen, women and children. Earlier Taliban terrorists targeted a police station, killing at least 19 police officers in Ghazni province in the south. Police said Taliban militants also killed three policemen in the country’s western Farah province.

Rohingya crisis

Human Rights Watch has released new satellite images that show some 300 villages in Myanmar’s Rakhine state have been partially or totally burned down. The destruction since August 2017 includes tens of thousands of structures, primarily homes inhabited by Rohingya Muslims. The HRW says images reveal that Myanmar’s army intensified efforts to destroy the villages after officials claimed clearance operations had ceased. Myanmar government forces have been attacking Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine state since October 2016. New drone footage shows thousands of Rohingya refugees attempting to flee the Buddhist-majority country. The United Nations has condemned Myanmar’s crackdown as ethnic cleansing, putting the latest number of the refugees who have fled to Bangladesh at 582,000.

Catalan independence fallout

The standoff between the Spanish government and the regional government of Catalonia shows no sign of ending. Now the Spanish constitutional court nullifies the Catalan referendum law. The law that was ratified by the Catalan parliament paved the way for holding the October first referendum on independence from Madrid. But according to Spain’s constitutional court, the referendum is also void due to the illegal law. Catalonia says it will not back down from its secession plans ahead of a deadline set by Madrid. The Spanish government has demanded Barcelona clarify its stance on secession from the country by Thursday. But Catalan officials say their response to Madrid is the same as before. Last week, Catalan President Carles Puj-de-mont made a symbolic declaration of independence but said the region is open to negotiations with Madrid.

Kirkuk Celebration

Residents of Kirkuk have gathered in the streets to celebrate for the second day the army’s victory and the return of the city to the central government’s rule. Our correspondent Altaf Ahmad gives us more details.

Baghdad’s call for dialogue

The Iraqi prime minister says the Kurdish secession referendum is now over and it is “a thing of the past”. Haider al-Abadi was speaking at a press conference in Baghdad. He called for dialogue under the Iraqi constitution to resolve the row over the Kurdish vote. Iraqi President Fuad Masum has also invited Erbil and Baghdad to the negotiating table. He said the secession referendum is to blame for the central government’s intervention and the retaking of Kirkuk. Meanwhile, the president of Iraq’s Kurdistan region has said the vote won’t be in vain. Masoud Barzani pledged to preserve what he described as the achievements of the Kurds despite his forces’ defeat in Kirkuk. He blamed the setback on unilateral decisions by Kurdish politicians.

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