US police shooting black man
Ten days ago, a white US police officer fatally shot a black man, Patrick Lyoya, in the state of Michigan. Now, police have released footage of the moment of his death. Authorities say Patrick Lyoya was killed after the officer’s gun discharged during a lengthy struggle, but his family argue that he was shot execution style. According to several other released footage, initially, the police stopped Lyoya, claiming he was driving a car with a mismatched plate. Lyoya started running, and later got into a fight with the officer. Lyoya tried to get hold of the officer's taser, after which the officer tackled him to the ground and shot him in the head, a few seconds later. Michigan officials say an investigation is underway. The incident has triggered some protests and rallies in the US.
Israel atrocities
Israeli forces have conducted a fresh deadly raid into two Palestinian villages in the West Bank, amid growing anti-regime anger across the occupied territories. Soldiers killed two Palestinians and wounded several others during the operation that took place near the city of Jenin early this morning. The crackdown triggered Palestinian protests. The Palestinian Health Ministry says the victims were hit with live ammunition. The latest fatalities bring to 10 the number of Palestinians killed at Israeli hands since the weekend. Resistance groups in the cities of Ramallah and Bethlehem have declared a general strike on Thursday. They're calling on the Palestinian public to intensify confrontations with Israel. The situation is highly volatile in the occupied territories. In recent weeks, there's been a flareup in Palestinian retaliatory attacks, leaving over a dozen Israelis dead.
Russia warning NATO
Moscow issues fresh warnings to some Western states that might be mulling plans to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization - NATO. The deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council says Moscow will take measures in the Baltic, if Sweden and Finland join the Western military alliance. Dmitry Medvedev says if the two countries become part of NATO, a nuclear-free Baltic region will be off the table, adding that balance must be restored. According to Medvedev, even if Sweden and Finland join NATO, it won’t make any big difference to Russia, because that will only mean a few more opponents. Moscow is strongly opposed to NATO's eastward expansion, and views it a security threat.