Human Rights

MOSCOW, March 29. /TASS/. French and Belgian special services are preparing a chemical provocation in Syria in order to accuse Russia’s Aerospace Forces of strikes on civilians, the head of the Russian reconciliation center in Syria, Maj. Gen. Viktor Kupchishin, told reporters on Friday.

GAZA, March 30 (Xinhua) -- Israeli army tanks stationed on the border between eastern Gaza Strip and Israel struck on Friday night two military posts of the Islamic Hamas movement in southern and northern Gaza Strip, causing no injuries, according to local media reports.

The Gaza-based Al-Quds Radio reported that the Israeli army tanks fired a tank shell at a lookout post that belongs to Hamas militants east of central Gaza Strip close to the border with Israel.

GAZA, March 29 (Xinhua) -- In the Palestinian Gaza Strip, wedding plans of a Palestinian couple were torn apart after an Israeli airstrike destroyed the residential building that housed their future "nest."

The financial conditions of 26-year-old Walid al-Shawa, a taxi driver from Gaza city, are so difficult and cannot help him rent an apartment ahead of his wedding. That is why he rented a room at his sister's apartment, who lives in a residential building of several floors in Gaza City.

WASHINGTON, March 29 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday threatened to close the nation's southern border with Mexico next week, amid feud over illegal immigration.

"If Mexico doesn't immediately stop ALL illegal immigration coming into the United States through our southern border, I will be closing the border, or large sections of the border, next week," Trump said on Twitter.

He claimed closing off border crossings, key avenues for trade with Mexico, "would be a good thing!"

Mumbai, Mar 27 (PTI) Abdul Kadir Najmudin Sathak, an alleged aide of Islamic preacher Zakir Naik, Wednesday denied that he helped the controversial televangelist with money laundering.

Sathak, a jeweller, was arrested Friday under the Prevention of Money Laundering (PMLA).

CAIRO (AP) — A leading Egyptian pro-democracy activist was freed from prison early Friday after serving a five-year sentence for inciting and taking part in protests, his family and lawyer said. The terms of his release, however, require that he report to a police station every day for the next five years.

29 Mar 2019; AFP: A Maori lament echoed across Christchurch Friday as a survivor of the New Zealand mosque attacks told a national remembrance service he had forgiven the gunman responsible for the racist massacre that took his wife, and shocked the world.

"I am choosing peace and I have forgiven," wheelchair-bound Farid Ahmed told tens of thousands gathered in the grieving southern city, drawing sustained applause as he implored New Zealanders of all faiths to also reject hate.

29 Mar 2019; AFP: Philippine journalist Maria Ressa, a prominent critic of President Rodrigo Duterte, was rearrested on Friday in what press freedom advocates called retaliation for her news site's dogged coverage of the government.

Ressa and her website Rappler have been hit with a string of criminal charges in recent months that have sent shockwaves through the Philippines' media scene, prompting allegations she and her team are being targeted for their work.

28 Mar 2019; DW: Right-wing Christian groups in the United States spent at least $50 million (€56 million) on supporting far-right activists and campaigns in Europe in recent years, according to an investigative report.

Publicly available financial filings showed 15 conservative non-profit organizations spent some $51 million in Europe from 2008 to 2017, the report by UK-based openDemocracy found.

28 Mar 2019; DW: Hornbach, a German home improvement store, has been called on to apologize over a commercial that social media users decried as promoting stereotypes against Asian women.

The controversial commercial depicts several white men doing garden work. They are then encouraged to remove their sweaty, dirty clothing — including underwear — and place it in a box.