Turkey detains 137 demonstrators in Istanbul on May Day
Turkish police said they detained 137 people in Istanbul on Wednesday for trying to hold illegal demonstrations in various parts of the city to celebrate May Day.
U.N. rights office concerned by use of force in Venezuela
The United Nations human rights office said on Wednesday it was “extremely worried” by reports of excessive use of force against demonstrators across Venezuela.
Mexico to recover bodies of miners killed in 2006 blast
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador pledged on Wednesday to recover the more than 60 remaining bodies of miners killed in a massive coal shaft explosion in 2006, a mission he described as a humanitarian promise made to victims’ families.
U.S. has done ‘exhaustive planning’ on Venezuela scenarios: Shanahan
Acting U.S. Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan said on Wednesday the United States had carried out “exhaustive planning” on Venezuela and had contingency plans for different scenarios, adding that the focus was on diplomatic and economic pressure.
Russia warns U.S. over ‘aggressive’ moves in Venezuela
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo by phone that further “aggressive steps” in Venezuela would be fraught with the gravest consequences, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday.
China seeks loophole as U.N. nears pact banning toxic chemical: activists
Negotiators from more than 180 countries are nearing agreement on a global ban on a toxic chemical linked to cancer and other health issues, but China is pushing for an exemption for use in firefighting foams, campaigners said on Wednesday.
Cubans protest U.S. sanctions as Trump raises pressure on Venezuela
Millions of Cubans took to the streets on Wednesday in protest over new sanctions imposed on the Caribbean island by the Trump administration and U.S. efforts to topple the government of socialist ally Venezuela.
U.N. blacklists founder of Pakistan-based militant group Jaish-e-Mohammed
A U.N. Security Council committee blacklisted the head of the Pakistan-based militant group Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) on Wednesday after China dropped its objection to the move, ending a decade-long diplomatic impasse.
PM May: Deal on second phase of Brexit negotiations still possible by end 2020
British Prime Minister Theresa May said on Wednesday she still believed it was possible to reach a deal on the second phase of Brexit negotiations by the current deadline of Dec. 31 2020.
Nations using oil ‘as a weapon’ causing damage to OPEC -Iran oil minister
Iran’s oil minister hit out on Wednesday against the use of oil sanctions “as a weapon” by the United States and the damage it was doing to OPEC, according to SHANA, the news outlet of the OPEC member’s oil ministry.
