WATCH PRESS TV NEWS HEADLINES

Here is a brief look at Press TV newsroom's headlines from 18:00 GMT, March 17, 2018 to 08:00 GMT, March 18, 2018:

Israel attack Gaza

Israeli warplanes have carried out new airstrikes in the eastern and southern parts of the besieged Gaza Strip.

The regime’s fighter jets hit targets belonging to the Hamas resistance movement. Some of the houses in Gaza City suffered serious damage. There have been no reports of casualties so far. Israel said the attacks were in response to an explosive device that went off in the buffer zone earlier in the day. The Gaza Strip has been under an Israeli siege since June 2007. The blockade has caused a decline in living standards as well as unprecedented unemployment and poverty.

Russia presidential vote

In Russia, people are heading to the polling stations to choose their next president.

Incumbent President Vladimir Putin is expected to take office for a fourth term, setting a historic record. Polling stations opened in the extreme east at 8 AM and will close in Kaliningrad. Official pollsters predict a turnout of around 65 percent. Putin’s most vocal opponent, Alexei Navalny, was disqualified from the race. Russia is grappling with soaring inflation and Western sanctions many of which are imposed on the Kremlin for its alleged role in the conflict in eastern Ukraine. 

No to racism

The International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has seen mobilizations in more than eighty cities in at least fifteen countries worldwide. In the Greek capital Athens, thousands took to the streets to protest against the EU’s refugee policy, the rise of the extreme right and imperialist intervention in the Middle East.

China warns US over ties with Taiwan

China's Defense Ministry has protested a new US law that encourages expanded contacts between officials from Washington and Taiwan.

The spokesman urged the US to correct the mistake and not to put the law into effect. He also reiterated Beijing’s call for Washington to stop official exchanges with Taiwan, sever military relations with the self-rule island and stop selling arms to it. On Friday, US President Donald Trump signed the Taiwan Travel Act passed unanimously by both the House and the Senate. The law would allow unrestricted travel by American officials to meet with members of Taiwan's government. China regards Taiwan as part of its territory, and says any issue pertaining to the self-rule island is a matter of China’s internal affairs. 

Chemical attack warning 

Russia’s Defense Ministry has warned that the US is training groups of militants to stage false flag chemical attacks in southern Syria.

Speaking at a news briefing on Saturday, the Russian General Staff spokesman added that there were signs of preparations for possible US airstrikes on Syria. General Sergey Rudskoy said the components to produce chemical weapons had already been delivered to the southern de-escalation zone under the guise of humanitarian convoys.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk