WATCH PRESS TV NEWS HEADLINES

Here is a brief look at Press TV newsroom's headlines from 09:00 GMT to 17:00 GMT, September 2, 2017.

Myanmar crackdown

The crackdown against Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar has taken on catastrophic proportions. In the latest bout of violence, hundreds of Rohingya Muslims have been killed and thousands more forced to flee the western Rakhine state. According to the Myanmarese government, over 2,600 Rohingya houses have also been burned down since August last year. Myanmar officials blame the militant group Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army for the burning of the homes. But Rohingya fleeing to Bangladesh say the Myanmar army has launched a campaign of arson and killings to force the Muslims out. The UN refugee agency says nearly 59,000 Rohingya have fled the violence into Bangladesh. In the meantime, the World Food Program has suspended food aid to Myanmar's violence-plagued Rakhine State as the humanitarian situation deteriorates. Around 120,000 people, most of them Rohingya Muslims, have relied on the UN aid handouts in camps since 2012.

US police brutality

US Police have launched a probe into an incident where an officer forcibly arrests a nurse, after she declines to draw blood from an unconscious patient. A US official said prosecutors in the state of Utah will consider criminal charges against the officer. A newly-released footage, captured by police body cameras, shows Alex Wubbels screaming for help as she is man-handled out of a medical center and handcuffed in Salt Lake City back in July. Local officials say the officer had neither a warrant nor the patient's consent to get a blood sample. The nurse was briefly detained before being released after administrative staff intervened. Salt Lake City police Chief Mike Brown said he was alarmed by the footage.

Australia probes war crimes in Afghanistan

Australia has launched a probe into possible war crimes committed by the country’s military forces in Afghanistan. The Inspector-General of the Australian Defense Force released a statement saying it was investigating the incidents between 2005 and 2016. The probe comes after the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported in July, hundreds of pages of leaked defense documents relating to covert operations in Afghanistan. One of the documents included an alleged cover-up of the killing of a six-year-old Afghan boy during a raid on a house in 2013. Australia has been part of the US-led military mission in Afghanistan since 2002.

US-China row

The US is planning to conduct more regular patrols in the South China Sea amid growing tensions with China over its control of the disputed waterway. The Pentagon says it wants to stage the so-called Freedom of Navigation Operations as many as two to three times a month. US officials have failed to disclose the exact timing or location of the new patrols. Reports say the future patrols may include US military aircraft as well as warships. The South China Sea is the subject of territorial disputes between China, Vietnam, Taiwan, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Brunei. China says the US is meddling in regional disputes and is deliberately escalating the situation in the waters.

Anti- Daesh operations in Syria

The Russian air force has pounded Daesh positions in central Syria in support of the Syrian army’s ground operations. According to the Russian Defense Ministry jets destroyed Daesh military vehicles and ammunition depots near the village of Uqairabat. On Friday a war monitoring group reported government forces had recaptured the village. The Syrian army is fighting to retake Daesh positions in central Syria, a desert enclave that lies close to the main road connecting the cities of Homs and Aleppo. The army has secured major victories against Daesh this year. Along with allied forces it is advancing eastwards into the Takfiri group's last major stronghold of Dayr al-Zawr province.

Kenya politics

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta says the country’s judicial system has a problem that needs to be fixed. This comes after the Supreme Court nullified his last month’s election victory and ordered a new vote. This is Kenyatta’s second criticism of the judiciary system since Friday when the legislative body ruled that the August 8 vote was marred by irregularities and illegalities. Kenyatta, however, maintained that he would respect the court's ruling in a surprise move in Africa where governments often hold sway over judges. The court has ordered a new election to be held within sixty days. The ruling came after opposition candidate Raila Odinga claimed the electronic voting system was hacked in favor of Kenyatta.

Attack on Iraqi power plant

Seven people have been killed and a dozen others injured in an attack in northern Iraq. Three gunmen armed with grenades and explosive vests attacked a power plant near the northern city of Samarra, about 100 kilometers north of the capital Baghdad. They were wearing military uniforms. One of the terrorists blew his vest up. Security forces gunned down the other two. All of the victims were the plant’s workers. The wounded included security forces as well. The incident forced the state-run facility to shut down. Daesh terrorist group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

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