AAP Rolling News Bulletin for May 23 at 1830
Senegal (DAKAR)
Senegal President Bassirou Diomaye Faye has sacked Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko and dissolved the government, according to a statement read on the national broadcaster.
The decision follows months of mounting strains between the two allies-turned-rivals.
Sonko, a charismatic figure with a large youth following, had backed Faye in the 2024 election after a defamation conviction barred him from running.
The secretary general of the presidency said in the statement that the government had been dissolved.
The statement was read out on broadcaster RTS on Friday, local time.
Mideast (ROME)
Activists released from Israeli custody after being detained on a flotilla trying to bring aid to the Gaza Strip were subjected to abuse, organisers say, with several hospitalised with injuries and at least 15 reporting sexual assaults.
Israel's prison service denied the allegations, and Reuters was not able to verify them independently.
Germany's foreign ministry said some of the country's citizens had been injured and that some accusations were "serious".
A legal source in Italy said prosecutors there were investigating possible crimes including kidnapping and sexual assault.
"The allegations raised are false and entirely without factual basis," an Israeli prison service spokesperson said in a statement.
"All prisoners and detainees are held in accordance with the law, with full regard for their basic rights and under the supervision of professional and trained prison staff," it said.
Iran (TEHRAN)
Pakistan's military chief Asim Munir has arrived in the Iranian capital as a part of the ongoing mediation efforts between the United States and Iran, the Pakistan military says.
The visit comes after Iran's foreign ministry confirmed this week that exchanges of proposals with the US are continuing "through Pakistan".
Iran is reviewing a new US proposal aimed at ending the conflict, foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said on Thursday.
There is a sense of optimism within Pakistani security circles that a preliminary agreement between the US and Iran is within reach.
Sources said Munir had been due to travel to Tehran on Thursday but waited for the go-ahead from the Iranian negotiators that an initial agreement could realistically be reached.
PollVic (MELBOURNE)
Federal and state leaders of Australia's two major political parties will rally their troops as an election looms large.
Victorian Labor and Liberal faithful will gather in Melbourne on Saturday for annual state meetings ahead of the November election.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Opposition Leader Angus Taylor are expected to attend, alongside their respective state party leaders Jacinta Allan and Jess Wilson.
In her speech, Ms Wilson will revive a 2022 election commitment to direct 25 per cent of all new Victorian government infrastructure spending to regional projects if the coalition wins government.
Recent reputable polls indicate the Victorian coalition holds a slight edge over Labor on a two-party-preferred basis as support for One Nation rises.
Ms Wilson also led Ms Allan as preferred premier, according to Resolve Strategic's latest bi-monthly poll.
Ebola (GENEVA)
The World Health Organisation has raised the risk of the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola turning into an outbreak across the Democratic Republic of Congo to "very high".
The strain, for which there is no approved vaccine or treatment, was declared an emergency of international concern by the WHO on Sunday.
"We are now revising our risk assessment to very high at the national level, high at the regional level and low at global level," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters.
So far, 82 cases have been confirmed in DR Congo, with seven confirmed deaths, 177 suspected deaths and almost 750 suspected cases.
The situation in Uganda is stable, with two cases confirmed in people who travelled from the DR Congo - one of them fatal, Tedros said.
Ukraine (MOSCOW)
Russian officials say at least six people have been killed and 39 children wounded in an overnight Ukrainian drone attack on a student dormitory in the Russian-controlled Luhansk region in eastern Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said another 15 people were reported missing and accused Ukrainian forces of deliberately hitting the site.
Reuters was not able to verify what happened independently and there was no comment on Friday from Ukraine, which wants to recapture Luhansk, one of four eastern regions that the Kremlin unilaterally claimed as its own in 2022 in what Ukraine denounced as an illegal land grab.
Both sides deny deliberately targeting civilians.
Putin characterised the incident as a terrorist attack, accusing Ukraine of intentionally targeting civilians.
Yana Lantratova, Russia's human rights commissioner, said that 86 teenagers aged 14 to 18 had been asleep inside the hostel belonging to Luhansk Pedagogical University's Starobilsk college when Ukrainian drones attacked it during the night.
NATO (HELSINGBORG)
US President Donald Trump has surprised NATO allies by pledging to send an additional 5000 troops to Poland, but Secretary of State Marco Rubio has cautioned alliance ministers that Washington's frustration with some of them will still need to be discussed.
"The president's views of, frankly, disappointment at some of our NATO allies and their response to our operations in the Middle East are well documented," Rubio said on Friday at a gathering of NATO foreign ministers in the Swedish town of Helsingborg.
"That will have to be addressed. That won't be solved or addressed today. That's something for the leaders level to discuss," Rubio told reporters, adding that any alliance "has to be good for everyone who's involved".
It was his first meeting with NATO allies since the war on Iran sparked deep divisions inside the bloc, with Trump saying he was considering withdrawing from the alliance and questioning whether Washington was bound to honour its mutual defence pact.
Ebola (RWAMPARA)
Protesters have set fire to tents for Ebola patients after Congolese authorities refused to give them the dead body of a victim they wanted to bury themselves, a beloved local footballer suspected to have died in the ongoing outbreak, witnesses say.
Police fired warning shots and tear gas to defuse the incident in Ituri province, which highlighted the struggle that authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo could face to enforce the safe burials of people with confirmed and suspected cases that are required to help contain the outbreak.
It took place in the town of Rwampara, which has been hit hard by the latest Ebola outbreak caused by the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which there is no approved vaccine or treatment.
In finance ...
US Fed (WASHINGTON, D. C.)
Kevin Warsh has been sworn in as the new head of the Federal Reserve, marking a new chapter after a strained relationship between the world's most powerful central bank and US President Donald Trump.
Speaking after taking the oath of office at the White House, Warsh pledged to be "reform-oriented," saying he would carry out his duties with "energy and purpose".
He said the coming years could "bring unmatched prosperity that will raise living standards for Americans from all walks of life".
Trump, who selected Warsh for the post, had repeatedly and unsuccessfully pushed for lower interest rates while criticising previous Fed chair Jerome Powell.
The president argues that lower borrowing costs would boost economic growth, investment and consumer spending but critics warn that cutting rates too aggressively could further fuel inflation.
Shein Everlane (NEW YORK CITY)
Everlane, the retailer that has bucked the fast-fashion industry by promising affordable ethically sourced and sustainable clothing, is being acquired by the king of fast-fashion Shein.
A letter to Everlane employees from their CEO Alfred Chang confirming the deal was obtained by the Associated Press on Friday.
Everlane, based in San Francisco, did not disclose a purchase price.
Chinese firm Shein declined to comment.
Everlane's majority owner L Catterton could not be immediately reached for comment.
Everlane was founded in 2011 by Michael Preysman and Jesse Farmer with a mission to produce eco friendly and affordable clothing.
The company publicised regular audits of its pay and working conditions, as well as the brand's environmental impact.
The online retailer opened its first physical store in 2017.
In entertainment ...
Cyrus (LONDON)
A tearful Miley Cyrus has thanked her family after being honoured with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
The Flowers singer was recognised at a ceremony in Hollywood and couldn't keep her emotions in check when it came to thanking her loved ones for their support.
Cyrus was accompanied at the ceremony by her mother Tish Cyrus, sister Brandi Cyrus and fiance Maxx Morando.
"To my family, my future family, parents, my mom, my siblings, my friends, my collaborators, thank you for loving and supporting not only the choices that I make, but my fears, and then facing them with me," she said.
"Today is something that I'll never forget and I'm always going to cherish. I love you all so much, thank you."
Obit Petrini (MILANO)
Carlo Petrini, the founder of the Slow Food global grassroots movement promoting sustainable food production and local, traditional cuisine, has died at age 76.
He died in his home town in Italy's northwestern Piedmont region.
The Slow Food organisation called him "a visionary leader and a public intellectual with a profound commitment to the common good, human relationships and the natural world".
Slow Food, initially called Arcigola, grew out of opposition to the arrival of fast food in Italy, with a 1986 protest on the steps of the newly opened McDonald's at Rome's Spanish Steps announcing their mission.
Petrini was elected president on December 9, 1989, in Paris, when more than 20 delegations from around the world signed the Slow Food Manifesto.
In sport ...
Super Reds (PERTH)
Jock Campbell has scored a try with just two minutes remaining as the Queensland Reds overcame a huge scare to beat Moana Pasifika 33-31 and all but secure a Super Rugby Pacific finals berth.
The Reds led 26-7 early in the second half of Saturday's match in Auckland, but Moana piled on the next three tries to take the lead as a boilover loomed.
Down by five points and with the clock ticking over to the 79th minute, the Reds made the most of a scrum by swinging the ball to fullback Campbell for the levelling try.
Ben Volavola made no mistake with the conversion from straight in front, with the Reds holding firm for victory.
"They came home with a wet sail. It was a set play for us, and thankfully it worked," Campbell told Stan after the match.
AFL Magpies (MELBOURNE)
Scott Pendlebury has run out alongside his children Jax and Darcy for his AFL/VFL record-breaking 433rd game for Collingwood in front of a huge MCG crowd.
The Magpies host West Coast in the Saturday twilight fixture, with more than 90,000 fans tipped to be part of the celebration of Pendlebury's remarkable milestone.
And in a surprise move, every Collingwood player has donned a gold number on the back of their jumper in Pendlebury's honour.
It comes after the club's original call to have only Pendlebury wearing a gold number came under fire.
"The jumpers look good," Magpies coach Craig McRae told Fox Footy before the match.
"I'm not sure we got approval for all of them - we might get in trouble for that - but we wanted to look like a team."
Ends Bulletin
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