Egyptian court gives prison terms over Red Sea islands protests

Here is a round-up of global news developments:

• An Egyptian court gives prison terms to more than 150 people for protesting a government decision to transfer two Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia. President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has given Tiran and Sanafir Islands to Saudi Arabia in return for the kingdom’s investment and financial help.
• Syria’s Army retakes a hospital in the eastern city of Dayr al-Zawr from Daesh terrorists. Government forces have reportedly killed all the terrorists in the subsequent clashes. Earlier in the day, the Takfiri terrorists attacked the hospital, killing dozens of people including medical staff.
• Iraq’s prime minister has warned that political tensions in his country are hampering the battle against Daesh terrorists. Haider al-Abadi dismissed allegations that rival political parties were behind the recent bombings across Iraq. Abadi’s government has been under pressure for weeks since the parties resisted a cabinet reshuffle.
• An Iranian deputy foreign minister says Takfiri terrorism and the Zionist regime are two sides of the same coin. Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said Takfiri terrorist groups serve the interests of the Zionists and seek to create division in the Muslim world. He noted that Iran will strongly pursue the fight against terrorism.
• Iran’s foreign minister says some American opponents of Tehran’s nuclear deal with the P5+1 group are trying to prevent the agreement from being fully implemented. Mohammad Javad Zarif stressed that Iran needs to remain vigilant to create new opportunities to improve the country’s economic situation despite such attempts.
• The UN says 25 Palestinian children were killed by Israeli forces in the occupied territories in the last three months of 2015. The world body expressed concern over the rising number of Palestinian children detained by Israel, saying it’s been the highest in the past seven years.
• In Bosnia-Herzegovina, supporters and opponents of the government have staged mass protests. The opposition was protesting against what it sees as corruption and the poor state of the economy while the rival rally was a show of support for the government.
• Germany says there’s been an increase in the number of arson attacks against refugee shelters. Authorities reported 92 attacks last year compared with only six in 2014. Over one million refugees mostly from war-torn Syria flooded Germany last year, setting off a wave of xenophobia.

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