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 20, 2017.

Crackdown on Catalonia

Spanish police have arrested Catalonia's junior economy minister, as part of a raid on several regional government offices in Barcelona. Josep Maria Jove was arrested during a coordinated raid on the offices of economic affairs, foreign relations and the presidency. Thirteen more people were also arrested. Following the raid, people gathered outside Catalonia’s economy ministry to protest the arrests. Tensions have been mounting between Catalonia and the central government in Madrid over the region’s independence push. Madrid has blocked Catalonia’s finances, limiting its autonomy and causing problems for the payment of public workers' salaries. Catalonia wants to hold an independence referendum on October first. Madrid has already banned the vote and the Supreme Court has ruled that it’s illegal.

Mexico disastrous quake

Search and rescue operations are underway to retrieve the possible survivors of a deadly quake that struck central Mexico. Mexico's civil protection unit says the earthquake has claimed at least 216 lives. Earlier, it put the death toll at 248. Dozens of schoolchildren are among the dead. An unaccounted number of people are also speculated to have been trapped under the rubble. Nearly four million people have lost power and several major gas leaks have been reported in the disaster zones, where a state of emergency has been declared. The quake happened on the anniversary of another tremor, which killed tens of thousands of people in Mexico City 32 years ago. This year’s quake came hours after the country practiced drills to mark the anniversary of the 1985 disaster. Less than two weeks ago, another powerful quake left nearly one hundred people dead in the country’s south.

Trump’s ‘unhelpful’ rhetoric

Russia says it will defend the Iranian nuclear deal at a ministerial meeting of P5+1 group of countries with Tehran, scheduled for later today. The meeting will take place on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said the meeting will focus on the implementation of the nuclear deal. He added that the UN nuclear body has repeatedly confirmed Iran’s fulfillment of its obligations under the deal. Lavrov also expressed concern about Washington’s unbending stance on the agreement. The US administration is pushing to change the accord.

Iran nuclear deal

A top Iranian official has slammed the US president and Israeli prime minister for the remarks they made on the Iran nuclear deal at the UN General Assembly. Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani said the comments reflect the warmongering and aggressive attitudes of Washington and Tel Aviv. He said Donald Trump’s criticism of the Iran nuclear deal and his threats to scrap the accord show his lack of understanding of international agreements. The top Iranian official stressed that none of the signatories to the nuclear deal have the right to refuse to stand by their commitments under false pretexts. Shamkhani noted that the International Atomic Energy Agency has so far confirmed Iran’s compliance with the 2015 accord seven times. He said Washington’s actions will only result in its discredit in international arena.

Bahrain crackdown

The Bahrain Center for Human Rights has called on Manama to immediately release its president and prominent activist Nabeel Rajab. The human rights organization urged the country’s ruling regime to drop all charges against Rajab and stop using its terrorism law to punish peaceful protesters. It also urged the al-Khalifah regime to release four of its members, who have been charged with illegal gathering. The reaction comes just a day after Bahrain brought new charges against Nabeel Rajab. He was sentenced to two years in prison in May for tweets deemed insulting to the regime and faces an additional 15-year sentence over a separate set of charges. Bahrain has been the scene of anti-regime protests since 2011.

UN nuclear ban treaty

The United Nations secretary general has called for the elimination of nuclear arsenals in the world by political means. Antonio Guterres also urged global commitment to what he called the cause of nuclear disarmament, and peace and security in the world. He was speaking at the signing ceremony for the Treaty on Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in the UN. The legally-binding treaty, which aims to completely ban nuclear weapons, was adopted by the UN General Assembly in July. The treaty prohibits the signatories from developing, acquiring and possessing nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices. Several nuclear weapon possessors, including the United States, Britain, France and the Israeli regime have refused to sign the treaty.

Israeli ‘war crimes’

Four Palestinian human rights organizations have handed a 700-page dossier on Israel to the international Criminal Court. The human rights lawyers have accused Israeli authorities of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the occupied West Bank including Jerusalem al-Quds. One of the Palestinian rights groups says the dossier includes evidence that Israel forcibly removes Palestinians from the territories and replaces them with Israeli settlers. The documents attempt to provide evidence for an ongoing preliminary probe opened in 2015 by prosecutors at the global court into crimes committed on Palestinian territories. The preliminary examination aims to establish if there are sufficient grounds for opening a full-scale investigation.

Attack on Iranian aid convoy in Syria

An Iranian aid convoy has come under attack by Daesh terrorists in eastern Syria. The terrorists shelled the convoy as it entered the city of Dayr al-Zawr. Mortar shells injured one person; but the convoy, carrying over one-thousand tons of aid, was not damaged. The consignment includes basic commodities and foodstuff. The Syrian army and its allies recaptured parts of the city after breaking Daesh’s years-long siege. Government forces are tightening their grip on the remaining pockets of terrorists in Dayr al-Zawr. The Takfiri terrorists have suffered heavy losses in eastern Syria in recent weeks.

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