WATCH PRESS TV NEWS HEADLINES

Here is a brief look at Press TV Newsroom's headlines from 09:00 GMT to 17:00 GMT, April 20, 2017.

UN Israel call

Thousands of Palestinians are expected to rally along the buffer zone dividing the Gaza Strip and Israeli-occupied territories, as part of the so-called Great March of Return. The protesters seek recognition of Palestinians’ right to self-determination. The rally is being held for the fourth Friday in a row amid deadly Israeli crackdown. Over the past weeks, Israeli forces have killed 35 Palestinians and injured thousands of others during the protests in Gaza. On Friday, Israel dropped leaflets in the Gaza Strip, warning Palestinians not to approach the area. Meanwhile, UN Humanitarian Coordinator, Jamie McGoldrick, has called for restraint in Israeli use of force. McGoldrick said international law requires protection of demonstrators. He also called for urgent funding to meet critical humanitarian needs in Gaza.

Yemen retaliatory attacks

Yemen’s Ansarullah fighters have launched a ballistic missile attack against Saudi Arabia. The Yemenis say the missile targeted an airport in Saudi Arabia’s southern Jizan province. Saudi media say the country’s air defense shot down the missile. On Wednesday, another missile attack targeted the same airport as well as the region’s power facility. The Yemeni missile attacks are in response to Saudi Arabia’s aggression against Yemen. More than 14,000 Yemenis have been killed and millions of others displaced since the start of the aggression in March 2015.

Inter-Korean relations

A hotline between the leaders of Pyongyang and Seoul has reportedly been opened as the two neighbors prepare for next week’s inter-Korean talks. South Korean media say the hotline is used to allow North Korean Leader Kim Jong-un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in to talk over the phone before they meet next Friday. The summit is scheduled to take place on the southern side of the Demilitarized Zone that divides the peninsula. Moon and Kim are expected to discuss a formal end to hostilities between their countries, 65 years after the Korean War ended with an armistice.

Trump slams OPEC

US President Donald Trump has criticized the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, saying “oil prices are artificially very high”. Trump says tankers are fully loaded at sea and the market is flooded with oil. He also says the rising prices would not be accepted. Trump’s comments come after the international benchmark, Brent crude, traded above 73 dollars per barrel on Friday after hitting its highest point since November 2014. OPEC’s members and some non-OPEC oil producing countries have been reducing production since the start of 2017. The output cuts will expire at the end of this year.

Anti-Israel protests

Israeli forces have once again used live fire as people in the besieged Gaza Strip are holding anti-occupation protests for the fourth Friday in a row. Four Palestinians have been killed and over 80 others injured in the latest Israeli crackdown. According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, the four Gazans died of bullet wounds. The deaths bring to 39 the number of Palestinians killed during weeks-long protests in Gaza. The rally is being held along the so-called buffer zone dividing Gaza and Israeli-occupied territories.

Militants surrender

Terrorists have agreed to evacuate an enclave south of the Syrian capital under a deal with the government. According to Syrian media, terrorist groups in the Yarmouk refugee camp and the Hajar al-Aswad district will lay down their arms. Officials say some of the terrorists would be taken to eastern Syria where Daesh controls some territory and others will leave to militant-held parts of Syria’s northwest. The enclave is controlled mostly by Daesh but other terror groups like Nusra Front also hold territory. The agreement came after Syrian forces heavily bombed the Yarmouk camp and its surroundings overnight. Syrian troops have stepped up their push to retake areas still under terrorists’ control and strengthen their position around the capital. This comes after the defeat of militants in Eastern Ghouta, a strategic region near Damascus, earlier this month.

Russian missiles for Syria

Russia says the recent US-led strikes on Syria removed any moral obligation Moscow had to withhold the S-300 anti-aircraft missile system from the Arab nation. Sergey Lavrov said before the attacks, the Kremlin had told US officials which areas of Syria represented “red lines” for Moscow. The top diplomat said the US military action did not cross those lines. Nearly two weeks ago, in joint military strikes, the US, Britain, and France fired over 100 missiles at Syria under the pretext of an alleged chemical attack in Eastern Ghouta. Russia strongly condemned the Western military aggression.

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