IN BRIEF (Page 7)

United States

Trump endorses Golan sovereignty claim

US President Donald Trump abruptly declared on Thursday the United States will recognize Israel's claim to sovereignty over the disputed Golan Heights, a major shift in the country's policy that gives Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a political boost a month before what is expected to be a close election. But Trump's unexpected announcement, which came on the heels of controversies over US planned withdrawal from Syria, may further complicate the situation and escalate tensions in the region, US experts said. Israel seized the Golan Heights in the third Middle East war in 1967 and annexed it in the 1980s, but the international community never recognized the move.

New Zealand

Nation mourns with prayers and silence

The Muslim call to prayer sounded out over Christchurch and around New Zealand on Friday, as thousands gathered to remember the 50 people killed by a lone gunman at two mosques a week ago. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern joined about 20,000 people standing quietly at Hagley Park, in front of the Al Noor mosque where most of the victims were killed during Friday prayers last week. "New Zealand mourns with you. We are one," she said in a short speech, followed by two minutes of silence. Ardern, who swiftly denounced the shooting as terrorism, has announced a ban on military-style semi-automatic and assault rifles.

Korean Peninsula

DPRK withdraws from liaison office

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea withdrew from the joint liaison office with the Republic of Korea in the DPRK's border town of Kaesong, Seoul's Unification Ministry said on Friday. The ministry said that the DPRK side notified the ROK on Friday of its decision to pull out of the Kaesong liaison office according to instructions from higher authorities. The joint liaison office was opened in Kaesong in September to implement the agreement reached by ROK President Moon Jae-in and DPRK top leader Kim Jong-un during their first summit in April in the truce village of Panmunjom.

Republic Of Korea

FM intervenes in label dispute

ROK Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha has intervened over a provincial proposal to apply stickers to some Japanese-made items in schools as "made by a Japanese firm responsible for war crimes". Ties between Seoul and Tokyo have remained icy for years due to bitter disputes over history and territory stemming from Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula. Now 27 members of the Gyeonggi provincial legislature have proposed ordering all schools in the region to put stickers on items such as cameras and photocopiers made by Japanese firms they believe are implicated in abuses. They have put together a list of 284 companies, including household names like Toshiba, Mitsubishi and Hitachi. Kang told the national assembly on Thursday that the proposal needed to be "reviewed with caution" and "diplomatic relations should be taken into consideration".

Brazil

Ex-president Temer arrested in graft probe

Former Brazilian president Michel Temer was arrested on Thursday on corruption charges, a dramatic development in a sprawling graft probe that has roiled Latin America's biggest country and shows no sign of slowing. Judge Marcelo Bretas issued an arrest order for the ex-president as well as former cabinet minister and Temer ally Moreira Franco and eight others. According to the prosecutors, construction company Engevix paid Temer bribes in exchange for a contract to build a nuclear power plant in the city of Angra dos Reis.

Ap - Xinhua - Reuters - Afp

(China Daily 03/23/2019 page7)