WATCH PRESS TV NEWS HEADLINES

Here is a brief look at Press TV newsroom's headlines from 18:00 GMT, May 9, 2017 to 08:00 GMT, May 10, 2018.

Syria repels Israeli aggression

Syria says its air defense system has shot down tens of missiles fired by Israeli warplanes over the capital Damascus. According to Syrian media, some of the missiles have hit their targets and that one projectile destroyed a radar site. The Syrian army earlier said it intercepted Israeli missiles west of Damascus. The missiles had been fired from the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Meanwhile, reports say two Israeli aircraft were downed near Homs. This came after the Israeli army accused "Iranian forces" of firing some 20 projectiles from Syrian soil at the Golan Heights. According to Syrian media, Israeli troops had earlier shelled the city of Ba’ath in the southern province of Quneitra. There are no reports of casualties from the multiple attacks yet. Israel has regularly bombed Syria over the past years.

Trump made a mistake on Iran deal: Macron

France, a signatory to the Iran nuclear deal which President Donald Trump has scrapped, says the US decision was a mistake. Macron says it is now Europe that is the guarantor of the world’s multilateral order which is being shaken; a clear dig at his US counterpart’s policies. Macron says he proposed working on a wider framework with Trump during talks with the US president. But Trump decided to create tensions instead.

Catalonia’s Puigdemont bid blocked

Spain has blocked Catalonia’s former leader Carles Puigdemont from being re-appointed as the region’s president after months of political deadlock. Spain’s Constitutional Court said it accepted the appeal of the Spanish government a week after a reform bill was approved at Catalonia’s parliament. The bill called for the reinstatement of Puigdemont without having to be present in the region. Madrid says the Catalan parliament cannot call a session to reinstate him. This would amount to disobedience. Puigdemont’s allies, however, say they will try to reappoint him as Catalonia’s president by May 14.

Israeli suppression  

Israel has ordered Human Rights Watch’s envoy to Tel Aviv to leave within 14 days, accusing him of supporting a pro-Palestinian campaign. Omar Shakir said on Twitter he was ordered out of Israel after Israeli authorities compiled a seven-page intelligence dossier against him. Shakir rejected the allegation that he supported the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement. Shakir said Israel is seeking to silence dissent. Earlier this year, Israel published a list of 20 organizations whose activists would be barred from entering the occupied Palestinian territories due to their support for pro-Palestinian campaigns.

China-US trade talks

China says its stance in the ongoing trade talks with the United States will not change as the two sides are still locked in a dispute. Beijing says the two countries are in communication to prepare for the next round of discussions as a top Chinese official is expected to visit Washington soon. A US trade delegation visited Beijing last week, but failed to resolve the escalating trade dispute between the world's two largest economies. The standoff came after US president Donald Trump announced 100 billion dollars of tariffs on Chinese imports. That would be in addition to the $50 billion worth of US tariffs already proposed on China. Beijing has retaliated by imposing tariffs on over 100 key US goods.

Malaysia’s Mahathir returns to power

Malaysia's newly elected Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad will take the oath of office on Friday. Mahathir made the comments after the opposition scored a stunning victory by winning 115 seats at parliament. This is just over the threshold of 112 ones needed to win a majority. Mahathir’s victory is seen as a highly important political development that has toppled the country's scandal-plagued premier. Najib Razak’s party has ruled Malaysia for over six decades. Najib is implicated in a corruption scandal and is accused of involvement in embezzling billions of dollars from a state fund. He denies any wrongdoing.

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