WATCH PRESS TV NEWS HEADLINES

Here is a brief look at Press TV newsroom's headlines from 1800 GMT, March 22, 2019 to 0800 GMT, March 23, 2019.

Slamming US Golan move

The Syrian ambassador to the United Nations Security Council says the US government has no right to determine the fate of the OCCUPIED Golan Heights. Bashar al-Ja'afari insisted that the Golan is an international issue and no one could decide about the region unilaterally. He noted that the Golan belongs to Syria and UN resolutions have clarified the status of the occupied territory. He slammed Trump’s move as illegal, warning that the remarks could produce tension. Ja'afari said Syria will exploit every means to regain control of the Golan Heights. Quoting the Syrian defense minister’s comments, Ja'afari said he did not reject using force to ensure the return of the Golan. Meanwhile, Trump's decision has drawn reactions from other countries around the world.

Mueller Russia probe

In the US, Special Counsel Robert Mueller has submitted a report on his two-year investigation into President Donald Trump’s alleged campaign links to Russia. According to the Department of Justice, Mueller handed in the report to the US Attorney General, who will decide how much of the report can be made public. Trump has repeatedly dismissed the probe as a witch-hunt. He has denied collusion with Moscow or any attempts to obstruct the federal investigation. Mueller has reportedly determined that Russian agents tried to influence the 2016 election in favor of Trump. It has also emerged that Trump was looking into a massive real estate deal in Moscow the same year. Both Trump and Moscow have denied the allegations.

Safety of religious sites

The UN secretary general has called for a plan to help maintain the sanctity of religious sites in the wake of the New Zealand mosque attacks that left 50 people dead. Antonio Guterres insisted that mosques and all places of prayer and contemplation should be “safe havens”, not sites of terror. He said the Christchurch massacre was not utterly surprising given the increasing hate speech and bigotry around the world. The UN chief said hate speech is spreading like wildfire through exploited social media as a platform for bigotry. Guterres noted that many political movements are either openly admitting their Neo-Nazi affiliation or lip-syncing the rhetoric. He censured the racist tendency as a fast spreading cancer, stressing the global duty to find the cure for it.

US Venezuela sanctions

The United States has imposed a new round of sanctions on Venezuela. The US Department of Treasury announced sanctions on Venezuela’s national development bank and four financial institutions it controls. Meanwhile, the State Department warned Caracas over the detention of American employees of the US refiner Citgo Petroleum Corporation. It said that the employees included five individuals with dual US citizenship and one American legal permanent resident. As the US steps up its sanctions against Venezuela, India’s Reliance Industries said that its sales of fuel products to Venezuela didn’t breach Washington’s sanctions. Reliance argued that the fuel exports deals with Caracas were inked before the US sanctions.

Southeast Africa cyclone

The UN food agency boosts aid deliveries among tens of thousands of Mozambicans recently affected by one of the most powerful storms. Rescue workers are racing against time to save those still trapped, deliver food to those who have been brought to safety and work against potential outbreaks of water-borne diseases. The United Nations and other aid agencies say the gravity of tropical Cyclone Idai and scale of the flooding it unleashed had been extremely shocking. The World Food Program also declared the Mozambique crisis a level three emergency, putting it on a par with Yemen, Syria and South Sudan.

Defeating Daesh

A US-backed alliance of Kurdish and Arab fighters, known as the Syrian Democratic Forces, claims the Daesh terror group has been eliminated completely. The alliance’s spokesperson tweeted Saturday that the terrorists have been fully driven out of their last bastion in eastern Syria. He said, however, SDF forces will continue the battle and pursue Daesh remnants until the last one of them is neutralized. Some of the terrorists are expected to hold out in Syria's remote central desert and in some Iraqi cities. The United States believes the group's leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, is in Iraq. US President Donald Trump had earlier declared the group's defeat in a Twitter post.

Saudi war on Yemen

Saudi Arabia's warplanes have reportedly carried out fresh raids on the Yemeni capital, Sana’a. Saudi media say the camps of the Ansarullah movement were targeted in the air attacks. An air base was also struck. The attacks came despite international condemnations of the recent Saudi killing of dozens of civilians, including women and children in the province of Hajjah. Saudi Arabia launched a war on Yemen in March 2015. The war has killed over 15,000 Yemenis and pushed 10 million others to the verge of famine.

French army on streets  

Police in the French capital have banned "yellow vest" protests on the Champs-Elysees on Saturday, a week after anti-government demonstrators vandalized shops on the avenue. Authorities say protesters will also be stopped from entering several other areas, including the presidential palace and the National Assembly. They say soldiers will be deployed in Paris for what they call the next edition of "yellow vest" protests on Saturday. Military authorities say the presence of soldiers will ensure the protection of sensitive sites. They said the military will not be close to the demonstrations. However, military governor Bruno Leray has said soldiers could, IN THEORY, be led to firing live ammunition IF necessary.

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