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Iran: Missile program not negotiable at all

Saturday, 19 December 2015 2:02 PM [ Last Update: Saturday, 19 December 2015 2:02 PM ]

News in Brief

1. Air pollution has reached an alarming level in the Iranian capital Tehran. Officials have ordered polluting industries around the metropolis to shut down for a whole week. Schools will also be closed on Sunday as the mega-city is shrouded in a thick grey blanket of smog.

2. Iran’s foreign minister says Tehran will never negotiate its missile program. Mohammad Javad Zarif says Iran test-launches the missiles which are not capable of carrying nuclear warheads and are therefore legitimate. He said the US allies spend tens of billions of dollars on weapons that they don’t need in the region.

3. Saudi Arabia has staged fresh airstrikes on Yemen killing at least three people in Dhamar province. The deadly attack is the latest violation of a UN-brokered ceasefire. Saudi fighter jets also bombarded Hajjah and Tai’zz provinces. More than 7,300 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in Saudi Arabia’s onslaught against Yemen since March.

4. Iraq has asked the United Nations Security Council to adopt a resolution demanding an immediate withdrawal of Turkish troops from its soil. Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Ja’afari stressed that Baghdad has exhausted all diplomatic channels and will use all means to defend its sovereignty.

5. The UN has dismissed as unacceptable any harassment of human rights experts by Israeli officials and settlers. The office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights expressed concern about reports that Palestinian and international human rights defenders have been subjected to physical attacks and death threats by Israeli authorities and settlers.

6. Hundreds of people have marched through the US city of Chicago to protest police brutality and demand justice for an African-American teenager who was fatally shot by police last year. The demonstrators chanted slogans to show anger at the US police use of deadly force particularly against black people.

7. People in the Spanish capital Madrid stage a demonstration in solidarity with refugees. The protesters marched in the streets and waved pro-refugee banners while chanting anti-NATO slogans and slamming military intervention. They asked the government and the EU to open the borders and welcome the asylum seekers.

8. Partial results of a referendum to change the constitution in Rwanda suggest the president will have the chance to stay in office until 2034. According to the new constitution, President Paul Kagame can bid for a third seven-year term in 2017 and after that run for a further two five-year terms.

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News in Brief