WATCH PRESS TV NEWS HEADLINES

Here is a brief look at Press TV newsroom's headlines from 18:00 GMT, October 23, 2017 to 08:00 GMT, October 24, 2017.

Iran nuclear deal

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani says his US counterpart Donald Trump’s efforts to undermine the 2015 nuclear deal have hit the wall. 

Rouhani said only a few small countries and Israel have come out in support of Trump while the rest of the world has strongly supported the landmark agreement. Earlier this month, Trump refused to re-certify Iran’s compliance with the international accord and threatened to terminate it. The move sparked a massive outcry from the US allies in Europe. Elsewhere, in his remarks, Rouhani said Iran’s weapons are conventional and a means of deterrence against threats. He warned that the US is not allowed to speak out against Iran’s military power as it is based on the country’s defense doctrine. 

War on Syria

More death and destruction in Syria, as the US-led coalition carries out yet another airstrike in the city of Dayr al-Zawr.

According to Syrian media, the strike which happened in the government-held district of Qusur left at least 14 civilians dead and dozens more injured. A UK-based observatory group has also confirmed the attack but it put the number of casualties at 22. The US-led coalition carries out regular air raids in Syria under the pretext of targeting Daesh terrorists. However, there are many reports of large civilian casualties on the ground. The strikes lack authorization from both the Syrian government and the United Nations. 

Greece's bailout deal

Greece and its international lenders are holding new talks to reach an agreement on the debt-ridden country’s next loan payout.

The talks were held between Finance Ministry officials as well as visiting representatives from the EU’s financial bodies and the International Monetary Fund. The meeting is focused on a list of austerity reforms that creditors want Athens to implement. Greece is keen to get generous repayment terms on its huge national debt that is now worth some 180 percent of its GDP. The current bailout ends in August 2018 after an eight-year economic crisis that has forced the nation into implementing painful austerity measures. This is Greece’s worst financial crisis since World War Two. 

Slamming Trump's rhetoric

Iran’s foreign minister says that US president Donald Trump’s political mudslinging cannot impede the Iranian nation’s resistance, pride and defense.

Mohammad Javad Zarif, who is in the South African capital Pretoria as part of his Africa tour, made the comments while addressing Iranian expatriates. He said that Iran does not owe its security to anyone but its own people. The top Iranian diplomat added that all countries surrounding the Islamic republic lack Iran's security despite being backed by one or more super powers. Zarif emphasized that Iran is willing to have widespread interaction with the world. 

China politics

China’s Communist Party has held its closing session, adding President Xi Jinping’s name and ideology to the Constitution.

Xi presided over the closing session of the party’s twice-a-decade Congress as 2,300 delegates unanimously approved the constitutional amendment. He is now the nation’s most powerful leader in decades. Xi’s ideology is called socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era and is seen as marking a break with the past stage of economic reform in China. Communist Party founder, Mao Zedong, and the architect of market reforms, Deng Xiaoping, are the only other Chinese leaders to have their names in the document. 

UK police failure 

The British police face fierce criticism for failing to tackle modern slavery and human trafficking.

The criticism is being leveled by the official police oversight body. The Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services said in a report that police have been reluctant to identify victims. The report said even when the victims were identified, investigations were closed prematurely, with senior officers openly expressing their unwillingness to pursue the cases. The official estimate of the number of human trafficking victims in the UK is 13,000. But the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner says the true number is much higher and in the tens of thousands. The victims face lives of domestic servitude and sexual exploitation, among other abuses.

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