WATCH PRESS TV NEWS HEADLINES

Here is a brief look at Press TV newsroom's headlines from 18:00 GMT, March 20, 2018 to 08:00 GMT, March 21, 2018.

Kabul bloody Nowruz

The Afghan Interior Ministry says at least 26 people have been killed in a massive explosion that hit the capital Kabul. A ministry spokesman said at least 18 others were also injured in the bombing. The casualties are feared to rise. The blast was caused by an assailant who blew himself up less than 200 meters away from a Shia shrine. The site is a gathering place for Nowruz celebrations that mark the beginning of the Persian New Year. The attack is the fifth to hit the Afghan capital in recent weeks. The Daesh terror group has claimed responsibility.

Eastern Ghouta evacuation

People continue to stream out of Eastern Ghouta, where the Syrian army is pressing ahead with an operation against terrorists there. Government sources say more than three hundred people including 15 militants have left the flashpoint enclave on the outskirts of the capital Damascus. Some 80,000 people, mostly civilians, have evacuated the area through safe passages opened by the Syrian army and its allied forces. The government has so far managed to recapture more than 80 percent of the militant-held territory since it launched a major offensive last month.

Brazil demonstration

Thousands rally in Brazil to demand answers over the killing of a female politician who was extremely vocal against police brutality in the country. Rio councilwoman Marielle Franco was shot dead a week ago. Her assassination has outraged Brazilians who want an independent probe into the killing. Franco was a vocal activist who criticized police brutality, particularly against the nation’s blacks in poor communities. She was also against the military’s takeover of Rio’s security. Her killing is particularly upsetting for a nation which is one of the most unequal in the world when it comes to racial issues. No arrests have been made so far and the killing still remains a mystery.

Iran Leader speech

The Leader of Iran’s Islamic Revolution says Iran foiled the US plot of creating and using Daesh terrorist group to divert attention from Israeli atrocities. Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei made the remarks while addressing a large gathering of pilgrims in the holy city of Mashhad on the occasion of Nowruz. The Leader noted that the Americans were not only lying about fighting terrorism but they were nurturing terrorists to use them for their regional agenda. Ayatollah Khamenei said Washington’s 14-year-long involvement in Afghanistan is a proof that the US is not able to bring about security in the region. He slammed some countries for criticizing Iran’s presence in the region including Iraq and Syria, saying the involvement has always followed an official invitation from those countries. Ayatollah Khamenei said Iran has no intentions to meddle in the internal affairs of other countries. He also made it clear that the US will not achieve its goals in the region.

Russia-UK row

A diplomatic row between Russia and the UK over the poisoning of a former double agent and his daughter takes a new twist. Moscow now says Britain may have orchestrated the chemical attack. Yermakov who was briefing foreign envoys in Moscow, added that London is hiding facts and could destroy key evidence in the nerve agent attack. The British and the US ambassadors refused to attend the meeting and sent lower-level diplomats, instead. The former Russian double agent, Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, were poisoned in the English city of Salisbury on March 4. They still remain in critical condition. London and Moscow have been blaming each other for the attack, turning it into their worst diplomatic crisis since the end of the Cold War.

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