From Foreign Waters

The Swedish government is demanding the release of a national of a country detained in China, publicist Gui Minhai, who was sentenced on Monday to 10 years in prison for spying for a foreign country.   About this on Tuesday on Twitter writes Foreign Minister Anne Linde.    "She noted the report on the verdict against Gui Minhai. Now we are trying to get more information. We did not have any indictments and access to court hearings. The government continues to demand the release of Gui Minhai and providing us access to our citizen to provide consular support," she said  she.   The mid-level court of Ningbo City (Zhejiang Province, East China) on Monday sentenced Gui Minhai to 10 years in prison for spying for a foreign state.   According to the verdict, the defendant was found guilty of "illegal intelligence activities abroad."   By court order, he will be "deprived of political rights for five years."   Gui Minghai is a Hong Kong-based pub

The Libyan National Army (LNA) spokesman Ahmed al-Mismari confirmed that a new shipment of weapons arrived at Misrata port from Turkey last week revealing that the cargo would have already been unloaded and reached the militias affiliated to the Government of National Accord (GNA) south of Misurata and Garabulli where violent clashes are still ongoing. The weapons and equipment arriving from Turkey to Misrata today aim at supporting the combat capabilities of terrorist organizations and armed gangs in the western region, Ahmed al-Mismari said. On Friday the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan confirmed for the first time that a number of Turkish soldiers had been killed in Libya. After revealing the presence of Syrian fighters among members of the Libyan military personnel training force, Erdogan announced the death of several of his soldiers in Tripoli. “Turkey is there in Libya with a training force. There are also people from the Syrian National Army,” Erdogan t

The deputy leader of the Afghan Taliban said that the movement would soon sign an agreement with the United States to reduce violence for seven days, adding that the movement’s leaders were “fully committed” to respect the “historic” agreement. "Today, we stand on the threshold of a peace agreement with the United States, it’s not a small achievement," wrote Serageldin Haqqani in an opinion piece in the New York Times, in the first important public statement by a prominent movement leader on the agreement to reduce violence for a week. The initial agreement reached during negotiations between representatives of the United States and the Taliban may lead to the withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan. "Achieving the agreement with all its capabilities and ensuring its success and gaining a lasting peace will depend on the United States strictly respecting all its obligations," Haqqani, who also leads the Haqqani network that has links to Pakista

Public sector workers in Greece went on strike on Tuesday to protest against the pension reduction "policy" imposed during the crisis until now with the new Government, according to the strong Adidi Syndicate.  Municipal and provincial workers also participate to demonstrations, as well as public transport workers. The protests in the central square of Athens really affected the traffic in the capital. Maritime traffic was disturbed as well by the maritime union strike. Reporters stopped working for three hours in the early afternoon and protests were expected to take place at noon in central Athens as the government says the pension reform bill that Parliament will vote on by Friday aims to ensure the continuity of the Greek pension system until 2070. Despite union opposition, the Hellenic Government included in the project the pension’s increases of some professional groups and reduction for retirees who continue to work. Greece has implemented s

Recep Tayyip Erdogan did not realize that his repressive policies towards the people and the violation of human rights are exposed to the countries of the world, until everyone described his statements on democracy as a political game, especially after his authorities arrested all opponents of him during the past years. This is confirmed by the report issued by the American human rights organization "Advocates of Silenced Turkey", which highlighted the mass arrests and torture in Turkey since the alleged coup attempt on July 15, 2016, revealing deaths due to torture. According to the American report, Turkish prisons currently contain more than 100,000 detainees, stressing the occurrence of torture and crimes of mistreatment systematically for the detainees who were arrested during the validity of the state of emergency since the coup in 2016 and for two years, indicating that most of the facts are documented By local and international human rights institutions.

Qatar is delaying payment of wages for migrant workers. In a report issued on Saturday, Human Rights Watch said that the Qatari efforts to ensure regular payment of workers' wages in full, "do not meet" international standards, talking about gaps in the protection systems for migrant workers. Foreigners make up 90% of Qatar's 2.75 million people, the majority of them from developing countries working on projects related to the hosting of the 2022 World Cup. In 2015, Qatar established a wage protection system to ensure that employers adhere to the deadlines for paying their employees' wages in full, against the backdrop of criticism by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch in this regard. A Human Rights Watch report revealed that an unnamed employer had delayed the payment of his managers ’wages for 5 months, and his workers’ wages for two months, highlighting loopholes in the Ministry of Labor’s monitoring of non-compliance with the payment of wages

President Donald Trump fired Gordon Sondland, the diplomat to the European Union, and Lt Col Alexander Vindman from his White House office on Friday. Both Vindman and Sondland gave damaging testimony during the indictment inquiry against Trump. Sondland said in an announcement that he was advised today that the president expects to review him by taking effect right now as United States Ambassador to the European Union." Hours sooner, Vindman, a Ukraine expert on the national security council who had been booked to rotate out of his White House assignments, was out of nowhere terminated on Friday, as indicated by an announcement from his legal counsel. The lawyer, David Pressman, stated: "He followed orders, he complied with his promise, and he served his nation. What's more, the most influential man on the planet – floated by the silent, the compliant, and the complicit – has chosen to get retribution. "There is no doubt in the minds of any America

On February 6, US President Donald Trump will meet with Kenyan leader Uhuru Kenyata to discuss expanding cooperation, including in the field of trade.  This is stated in a statement circulated on Wednesday by the White House press service.  “Om February 6th,  the US president will meet with the President of Kenya. Kenya remains an important partner of the United States in Africa and beyond,” the text says. “During the previous visit of the President of Kenya, the leaders established a strategic partnership dialogue, after which  expanded partnership in many areas. The US President is looking forward to discussing new opportunities to expand cooperation and trade. "  The White House emphasized that Kenya remains an important strategic partner for the United States in Africa.

In Japan, a cruise ship with 3,711 people on board is quarantined after the discovery of at least eight suspected cases. 3,711 people aboard Carnival Japan's Diamond Princess cruise ship quarantined in Yokohama Bay, in Japan. After landing a passenger in Hong Kong who tested positive for the coronavirus, at least eight other people experienced symptoms of contagion and fever. Japanese government spokesman Yoshihide Suga said adding that checks are underway on 2,666 passengers and 1,045 crew members. The number of coronavirus infections exceeded 20,400 in China, with 3,235 new cases confirmed. According to the latest official data, 64 deaths have occurred in the country, all in the province of Hubei, outbreak of the virus, and the total tall therefore rises to 425. While 635 infected, they have been discharged from hospitals. There is also a second victim outside of China after one death in the Philippines, a 39-year-old man lost his life in Hong Kong in hospital.

By Victoria Hudson. A Palestinian teenager died on Friday afternoon from serious injuries sustained during a Great March of Return to Gaza demonstration months ago. Gaza's ministry of health said Alaa al-Abbasi, 15, was shot in the head by Israeli occupation forces months ago during the protests of the Great March of Return east of Khan Younis, south of the Strip of Gaza. The Great Return March was launched on 30 March 2018 along the border of the Gaza Strip to demand the return of Palestinian refugees and an end to the 13-year blockade on Gaza. In 2020, Palestine refugees in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, Gaza, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria will “continue to face daunting human development and protection challenges” precipitated by the occupation of the West Bank, the conflict in Syria, the political crisis in Lebanon and the growing needs in Jordan, said Christian Saunders, Deputy Commissioner-General of United Nations Relief Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).