WATCH PRESS TV NEWS HEADLINES

Here is a brief look at Press TV newsroom's headlines from 18:00 GMT, January 18, 2017 to 08:00 GMT, January 19, 2017.

Russia slams US's JCPOA policy

Russia’s foreign minister has voiced strong concern over the possible collapse of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal saying it would send an alarming message to world. Sergei Lavrov made the remarks at the United Nations Security Council. He said the failure of the accord as a result of one of the parties’ non-compliance would deal a severe blow to future international negotiations and deals. Last week, US President Donald Trump demanded American lawmakers and European signatories fix what he described as disastrous flaws in the deal. The Russian top diplomat dismissed Trump’s concerns as politically-motivated. Lavrov says Washington’s agenda should not lead to the collapse of a genuine achievement of international diplomacy.

US warns Turkey about Syria operation

The US State Department has called on Turkey not to take any military action in Syria’s northwestern region of Afrin. Heather Nauert urged Ankara to remain focused on fighting Daesh terrorists in the region. The comments come after Ankara said Turkish forces will intervene in Afrin to counter Kurdish YPG forces. Turkey considers the Kurdish group a terror organization and the Syrian branch of the outlawed PKK group. Syria has warned Turkey that any combat operation inside the war-torn country would be considered an act of aggression by the Turkish army.

US Senate votes for NSA bill

The US Senate has voted to give final congressional approval to a bill that renews broad surveillance powers of the National Security Agency. The bill passed 65 to 34 and will now head to President Donald Trump's office. The controversial legislation was approved in the House of Representatives last week. The program allows the NSA to gather private communications of foreign nationals for a variety of reasons. It also authorizes incidental surveillance of communications belonging to American citizens. The Trump administration says the program is necessary to protect Americans. But rights groups say it gives unconstitutional spying powers to the government.

Palestinian aid cuts

The United States says it is withholding a further 45-million dollars for Palestinian refugees. According to the state department, the contribution will not be made to the West Bank-Gaza Emergency Appeal led by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees. Washington had pledged to provide the aid by early 2018. The State Department says it may reverse the decision at a later date. On Tuesday, the US administration said it would withhold a separate 65 million dollars it had planned to pay the UN agency serving Palestinian refugees. The state department denies the suspension of aid was a form of punishment. Palestinians have been very critical of US President Donald Trump for recognizing Jerusalem al-Quds as the capital of Israel.

Haitians protest against Trump

Haitians have demonstrated against crude remarks by US President Donald Trump against immigrants from the Caribbean country. The protesters expressed their anger with a rally outside the US embassy in the capital, Port-au-Prince. They gathered outside the gates of the embassy complex chanting slogans and waving signs denouncing Trump over reported disparaging remarks about Haiti. They also denounced a move to end a program that gave temporary legal status to thousands of Haitians in the US. Another demonstration was planned for next week. During a meeting last week Trump is said to have profanely labeled immigrants from Africa, Haiti and El Salvador.

UNSC backs JCPOA

The United Nation’s Security Council has once again proven to be largely in favor of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal amid concerns about the vamped up US rhetoric on withdrawing from the agreement. During a session dedicated to confidence-building and non-proliferation, several member-states, including Russia, Sweden and France underscored the importance of maintaining the agreement known as the JCPOA. UN Chief Antonio Guterres also warned against questioning the multi-lateral agreement. The US envoy to the UN, Nikki Haley, however, reiterated Washington’s hostile stance on the deal. President Donald Trump demanded last week that American lawmakers and European signatories fix what he described as disastrous flaws in the deal. During the UN meeting, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov dismissed the US stance against the deal as politically-motivated.

US facing shutdown

The US government is facing an imminent shutdown as the country’s lawmakers continue to stay firm on their stance on immigration policies. A stopgap funding bill for averting the shutdown was passed in Congress with a narrow margin and is now moving to the US Senate. Democrats have threatened to filibuster the bill there, in order to force President Donald Trump and his fellow Republicans to return to talks on immigration. The federal government is set to run out of money Friday midnight. That is the eve of the one-year anniversary of President Trump's inauguration. The Democrats are trying to prevent the deportation of some 700,000 young immigrants brought to the United States as children.

HRW criticizes Saudi war on Yemen

A leading human rights organization has accused the Saudi crown prince of violating international humanitarian law in Yemen and intensifying a heavy-handed crackdown on dissidents. The Human Rights Watch says political activists in Saudi Arabia were convicted on vague charges and are serving lengthy prison sentences. According to the HRW, Mohammad Bin Salman’s baby steps on women’s rights reforms cannot whitewash the Kingdom’s systemic abuses. The prominent human rights group has also revealed that since the beginning of 2018, Riyadh has carried out scores of airstrikes in Yemen, killing nearly one-thousand civilians.

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