Thursday, November 15, 2018



Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh don't want to go home, and ‘toxic’ is Oxford’s word of the year.

This is TRT World’s Daily News Brief for Thursday, November 15th.

Doubts over Rohingya repatriation

We begin with Rohingya refugees as Bangladesh was set to start sending them back to Myanmar today.

But most of the first batch of returnees have gone into hiding. They say they don't want to return.

Some 700,000 Rohingya fled to Bangladesh after the Myanmar military launched an ethnic cleansing campaign last year.

Lieberman resigns over Gaza ceasefire

The Israeli defence minister has resigned after the government agreed to a ceasefire following Israel's latest attacks on Gaza.

Hamas welcomed the departure of Avigdor Lieberman, saying it's a win for the beseiged Palestinian enclave.

Lieberman's party is also pulling out of Israel's governing coalition, which could trigger elections.

Migrant caravan reaches US border

The first wave of a caravan of Central American refugees and migrants has arrived at Mexico's border with the US.

Most of the people in the caravan are fleeing poverty and violence at home.

It's unclear what will happen next. Trump has called it an invasion and sent troops to the border.

California wildfire death toll rises, many missing

Fires in the north and south of California are still burning and could be for some time.

The total death toll is now at least 60 and expected to rise.

The fires are the deadliest in the US state's history.

Scientists and the government say this kind of blaze is becoming the norm, with less rain and longer droughts.

‘Toxic’ is Oxford’s Word of the Year 2018

And finally,

Oxford Dictionaries has chosen 'toxic' as its word of the year.

And why not: we have toxic air, toxic waste, toxic masculinity and let's not forget - toxic politicians.

The short list was pretty good too. Words like 'gaslighting,' 'techlash' and of course, 'incel,' i.e. can't get a date, and don't know why.

And that’s your daily news brief from TRT World... For more, head to TRTWORLD.com

Wednesday, November 14, 2018



Life returns to 'normal' in Gaza, and Mexican drug lord 'El Chapo' gets his day in court.

This is TRT World’s Daily News Brief for Wednesday, November 14th.

Life in Gaza returns to 'normal'

Life in Gaza is returning to 'normal' - whatever that is - after the worst flare-up in fighting with Israel since a war in 2014.

It started on Sunday with a botched Israeli raid into the besieged territory.

By the time the fighting stopped over a dozen people were dead, all but one of them were Palestinians.

Sri Lankan parliament rejects government

The political chaos is continuing in Sri Lanka, where parliament today passed a vote of no-confidence in the government.

In late October, the president ousted the prime minister. He installed a new PM and suspended parliament.

But the Supreme Court on Tuesday said that parliament could keep working.

So it did. But the ex-prime minister's party has a majority there, hence today's vote.

PM May seeks UK cabinet approval for Brexit

Brexit has moved a step closer. The British government and EU have reached a draft agreement on the broad terms of the divorce.

But hardliners in her governing party say the deal is a sell-out and they won't support it in parliament.

Fires rage in California, dozens dead, many more missing

The official death toll in the fires in California is closing in on 50. But many people are still missing and that number is likely to rise.

The fires are still burning at both ends of the parched US state.

The forest service and researchers say that so-called 'megafires' are becoming the norm, the result of less rain and longer droughts.

El Chapo says it wasn't me

And finally,

The infamous Mexican drug lord and escape artist Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman has gone on trial in the US.

His defence was hardly novel. He said it wasn't me, but someone called Ismael Zambada.

El Chapo's exploits have become the stuff of legend - in a bad way. Cocaine. Bribery. Prison escapes. Dozens dead. All to feed that insatiable need for a fix.

OUTRO: And that’s your daily news brief from TRT World... For more, head to TRTWORLD.com

Tuesday, November 13, 2018



The Khashoggi hit squad apparently phoned home, and super-hero Stan Lee passes away at 95.

This is TRT World’s Daily News Brief for Tuesday, November 13th.

“Tell your boss” - Khashoggi's killers allegedly phoned home

The New York Times is reporting that the team sent to kill Saudi critic Jamal Khashoggi phoned home after the hit.

"Tell your boss," the agent allegedly said after Khashoggi was murdered in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on October 2.

The report comes as Turkey's President Erdogan told a group of western leaders the kill order came from the "highest level" of the Saudi government.

Fresh violence erupts in Gaza

Israeli air strikes overnight killed three Palestinians and destroyed a Hamas building while rocket fire from the enclave left one dead in Israel.

The flare-up comes after a botched Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip left seven Palestinians and an Israeli officer dead on Sunday night.

Hamas vowed retaliation for the attack.

Death toll in California fires continues to rise

The death toll from a massive blaze in northern California has risen to at least 42, making it the deadliest wildfire in the history of the state.

Fires are also burning in the south where at least two people have died.

Hundreds of people are still missing with the fires far from contained.

US researchers say N Korea has secret missile bases

North Korea is operating at least 13 undeclared bases to hide mobile, nuclear-capable missiles.

That’s according to a new study by US researchers.

The Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington says there could be as many as 20 of the sites.

It's unclear, even if the report is correct, whether it's new information.

But it could cloud Trump's claim that he's working on a deal with North Korea's Kim Jong-un.

Marvel legend Stan Lee dies at 95

And finally,

The man who gave us Spider-Man, The Hulk and Iron Man, to name just a few, has passed away.

Stan Lee practically invented the modern US superhero, a kind of mister or miss nobody who was really a secret somebody.

He was 95 when he passed away in Los Angeles.

OUTRO: And that’s your daily news brief from TRT World... For more, head to TRTWORLD.com

Monday, November 12, 2018



Fighting rages on in Yemen, and China's annual online shopping frenzy breaks all records.

This is TRT World’s Daily News Brief for Monday, November 12th.

Dozens die in latest fighting in Yemen's Hudaida

Fighting is raging in the Yemeni city of Hudaida where medics and the military say some 150 people died in the last 24 hours.

The city is home to more than half a million people and a lifeline to much of the country where 14 million people face starvation according to the UN.

A Saudi-led coalition that backs the government-in-exile is fighting Iran-linked Houthi rebels who hold Hudaida and the capital, Sanaa.

Violence flares in Gaza

Violence flared in Gaza overnight with at least seven Palestinians killed by Israeli air strikes.

The Israeli military said one of its officers was killed.

It's not clear what caused the latest flare-up.

But Israel has killed about 170 Palestinian demonstrators, many of them unarmed, in months of protests on the Gaza border.

Death toll rises as wildfires rage in California

The wildfires in California have now killed at least 31 people, 29 in the north of the US state and two in the south.

A quarter of a million people have fled the blaze in the north where more than 6,000 homes have been destroyed.

Officials fear the death toll will rise as dozens of people are still missing.

World remembers end of WW1

Dozens of leaders attended a ceremony in France on Sunday to mark 100 years since the end of World War One.

When the guns fell silent, people started to call it the 'war to end all wars'.

Looking back they could not have been more wrong.

And perhaps what is most troubling is that many world leaders today are again embracing insular nationalism, a key cause of the four years of carnage that killed millions worldwide.

China's annual online shopping frenzy sets another record

And finally,

China likes to shop. A lot. Sunday was 'Singles' Day', November 11, or 1-1-1-1.

But it's been co-opted by online retailers as an excuse to spend.

And spend they did, to the tune of more than $30 billion.

And that’s your daily news brief from TRT World... For more, head to TRTWORLD.com

Friday, November 9, 2018



Gunman kills 12 people at a bar in southern California, and China debuts an AI news anchor.

This is TRT World’s Daily News Brief for Friday, November 9th.

California bar shooting

A gunman who opened fire in a crowded bar in southern California killed at least 12 people.

The shooter was a former marine. He also died, apparently of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

The slaughter in Thousand Oaks comes after an anti-semite gunned down 11 Jews at a synagogue in Pittsburgh less than two weeks ago.

Syria regime attacks near Idlib

Syrian regime forces killed 22 rebels overnight near Idlib province according to a war monitor.

The fighting erupted when regime forces moved on a rebel position in neighbouring Hama province.

Idlib is the last major rebel and opposition stronghold in Syria.

A truce agreed by Turkey and Russia is in effect there in a bid to prevent further fighting.

Asia Bibi still in Pakistan amid protests

Protests are expected in Pakistan today for the second Friday since the Supreme Court overturned the death sentence of a woman convicted of blaspheming Islam.

Asia Bibi was freed from jail on Wednesday. Officials say she and her family are in a secure and secret location for their own protection.

Russia hosts meeting on Afghanistan

Russia is hosting a conference on Afghanistan bringing the Afghan authorities and the Taliban to the negotiating table.

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov opened the meeting on Friday, saying he hoped it would pave the way for peace talks.

Russia's predecessor, the Soviet Union, sent troops to Afghanistan in 1979.

Since that intervention almost 40 years ago, Afghanistan has been plagued by conflict.

China's Xinhua agency unveils AI news anchor

And finally,

China's state news agency, Xinhua, has introduced its newest employee: A virtual news anchor.

We'll call it a 'he,' as the AI is based on real life anchor Zhang Zhao.

However, he's not the first. That honour goes to Ananova who went to air in 2000 in the UK.

Ananova was a female avatar. She retired in 2004.

Maybe she can make a comeback, and co-host a gig with Xinhua's AI?

And that’s your daily news brief from TRT World... For more, head to TRTWORLD.com

Thursday, November 8, 2018



Asia Bibi is set free in Pakistan, and so are a group of school children who were kidnapped in Cameroon.

This is TRT World’s Daily News Brief for Thursday, November 8th.

Asia Bibi freed from prison in Pakistan

A Pakistani woman has been freed from prison a week after the Supreme Court overturned her conviction and death sentence for blasphemy against Islam.

Asia Bibi is now in a secure location, apparently inside the country, according to officials.

Bibi, a Christian, and now in her fifties, was sent to death row in 2010 after an altercation with several neighbours.

Trump dumps Attorney General Sessions

In the first fallout from the US Congressional midterms, President Donald Trump has dumped his attorney general, Jeff Sessions.

Trump named a loyalist to the post, who has the power to take control of the Mueller probe into the alleged Russian hack of the US presidential election in 2016.

Mueller's team has indicted 34 people so far including several close to Trump.

CNN's Jim Acosta loses his White House Press pass

The second fallout was the White House pulling the credentials of CNN reporter Jim Acosta.

Trump has waged war on CNN, calling it and other mainstream media like the New York Times 'fake news,' and attacking them for pointing to what they say are his lies instead of what he says are the successes of his two years in office.

Acosta's White House pass was pulled after an exchange with a visibly agitated commander-in-chief.

How will Democrats deal with Trump

Now that the Democrats have control of the House in Congress, how will they deal with the president?

If they go after him, it's likely it could go to the Senate, which is still under Republican control, or it could go to the Supreme Court where Trump appointments could defend him.

If the Democrats ignore him and focus on policy, Washington could face two years of gridlock.

That being said, Trump's thirst for attention could well decide the issue.

Kidnapped school children freed in Cameroon

And finally,

Some good news. Dozens of school children kidnapped in Cameroon have been freed.

The gunmen are still holding a principal and a teacher.

The government blamed separatists. But a separatist spokesman denied any involvement.

And that’s your daily news brief from TRT World... For more, head to TRTWORLD.com

Wednesday, November 7, 2018



In the US midterms, Republicans retain control of the Senate, but the Democrats take the House.

This is TRT World’s Daily News Brief for Wednesday, November 7th.

Democrats and Republicans split 2018 midterms

In a mixed day for the major parties, Democrats won control of the House in the US Congressional midterm elections on Tuesday.

But Republicans retained control of the Senate.

The elections were widely seen as a referendum on the style of President Donald Trump.

So, it seems the jury is still out.

Turkey welcomes US bounties on PKK terrorists

The Turkish foreign ministry has welcomed a decision by the US state department to put multi-million-dollar bounties on the heads of three senior PKK terrorists.

The three are Murat Karayilan, Cemil Bayik and Duran Kalkan.

Anybody who provides information leading to their identification or location could receive from 3 to 5 million dollars.

Erdogan says US-SDF patrols are "unacceptable"

Staying with the PKK, and Turkey's President Erdogan says joint US-SDF patrols in Syria are "unacceptable."

The SDF is dominated by the YPG which is the Syrian arm of the PKK terrorist group.

Erdogan says he expects Trump to stop the patrols which are reported to be taking place just south of the Turkish border.

Madagascans vote for a president

Millions of voters in Madagascar queued in long lines early today to cast their ballots in a presidential election as the Indian Ocean island struggles to create jobs, fight poverty and end corruption.

None of the front runners is expected to win the first round outright in the field of 36 contenders.

If the poll does go to a second round as expected, the top two candidates will face off on December 19.

Hindus celebrate Diwali

And finally,

Hindus around the world are celebrating Diwali, or the Festival of Lights.

The five-day celebration does not have fixed dates each year. But the main day is always the third day.

This year in northern India that day is today. In southern India it was yesterday.

And that’s your daily news brief from TRT World... For more, head to TRTWORLD.com