WATCH PRESS TV NEWS HEADLINES

Here is a brief look at Press TV newsroom's headlines from 18:00 GMT, September 9, 2017 to 08:00 GMT, September 10, 2017.

Catalonia independence

The president of Spain’s Catalonia region says the region will press ahead with a planned referendum on independence. Carles Puigdemont said the Catalan government is determined more than ever before to hold the vote amid pressures by the central government in Madrid. Puigdemont then called on supporters of independence to take to the streets on Monday to garner legitimacy for the October 1 vote. On Wednesday, Catalonia’s Parliament passed a bill to set the stage for a plebiscite on independence from Spain. The move has angered the central government with Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy calling the vote illegal. The Constitutional Court also suspended the bills passed by Catalan lawmakers to organize the vote. Catalonia has long been aspiring for independence.

Anti-Brexit march in London

Thousands of pro-EU activists have taken to the streets of London to protest the United Kingdom’s planned exit from the bloc. The activists are hoping to sway lawmakers’ vote on controversial legislation known as the EU Withdrawal Bill. Meanwhile, a group of pro-leave lawmakers have called for a hard Brexit ahead of the debate set for Monday, a timeline that protestors find very tight for such a crucial bill. The demonstrators also demanded a second referendum, arguing that many have changed their mind since their vote last July after witnessing some of Brexit’s real effects. Divorce talks between the UK and the EU are due to finalize by March 2019.

Standing with Rohingya

The Iranian president says putting an immediate end to violence against Myanmar Muslims must be the top priority for Muslim nations. Hassan Rouhani stressed that the issue of Rohingya refugees and their situation must be addressed immediately. He was speaking at a meeting with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Kazakhstan ahead of a summit of Organization of Islamic Cooperation. Rouhani expressed hope that the OIC session could send a clear message to Myanmar to stop its atrocities against the minority group. For his part, Erdogan called for cooperation among Muslim nations, especially Iran and Turkey on the issue.

US protests against DACA

People have once again taken to the streets of the US cities of Washington DC and New York to protest a recent anti-immigration move by President Donald Trump. The demonstrators held up signs in support of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program which was rescinded by the Trump administration earlier this week. DACA protected from deportation nearly one million immigrants who were illegally brought to the US as children. The decision has faced strong opposition from leading Democratic and Republican figures. It has also sparked widespread protests across the United States.

Anti-war march in Germany

Demonstrators have staged an anti-NATO march in Germany to protest militarism and war. The senior German politician attending the protest denounced Berlin’s involvement in conflicts, Chancellor Angela Merkel's role in the Iraq war and the expansion of nuclear armaments. He made the comments as the protesters marched on the American airbase of Ramstein near the city of Kaiserslautern, where 45,000 NATO personnel are deployed.

Greece's bailout promise

The Greek prime minister says his country will successfully exit its bailout program in 2018, thanks to strong economic growth. Alexis Tsipras pledged to concentrate all efforts on ending the lenders’ supervision next year. He also vowed to support workers, young Greeks and small businesses as the economy recovers. The remarks came as thousands of workers staged a peaceful rally against the government’s austerity measures outside the venue, where Tsipras was speaking. The Greek public is skeptical as years of reform efforts have failed to fix the country's economic woes. Greece's current international bailout, worth 86 billion Euros, expires next year.

UK arms sales

Official figures show Britain’s arms exports to Saudi Arabia have surged 23-fold to nearly four billion pounds since 2015. That’s immediately after Saudis began their deadly aggression, which has killed over 12,600 people, mostly civilians. Britain’s arms exports to other regimes, listed by the Foreign Office as repressive, have also doubled over the same period, raising the total figure to five billion pounds. The new figures have sparked fears that arms sales to countries with questionable human rights records could further increase after Brexit. Leading anti-arms group, Campaign against Arms Trade, said the surge in weapons sales shows the government’s political and military support for the target regimes. The group says Britain “consistently” puts arms exports to despots and dictators ahead of human rights.

Hurricane Irma

The US State of Florida feels Hurricane Irma’s effects, as officials warn that it will be a storm wider than the entire state. Violent winds and rains from the Category 3 storm have already battered the tropical Islands of Florida Keys, the city of Miami Beach and a number of other coastal areas. Over 70,000 residents have settled in shelters, with officials saying there’s no more time to evacuate the area. Meanwhile, power shortages and blackouts are nearly taking over the entire state. The US National Hurricane Center says Irma’s strength will surge as the hurricane’s eye bears down on Florida. They, however, say that it will upgrade by no more than 1 category. Irma turned away from Cuba on Saturday after killing at least 25 people and leaving a trail of destruction.

Mexico earthquake death toll

The death toll from Mexico’s massive earthquake has risen to at least 90 as rescue operations are underway in affected regions. The death toll is expected to climb, as an unknown number of people remain missing in the states of Oaxaca, Chiapas and Tabasco. Rescue crews are present in the affected areas to remove debris of the subsided buildings. Meanwhile, families of the victims have held a funeral ceremony for their loved ones.

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