WATCH PRESS TV NEWS HEADLINES

Here is a brief look at Press TV Newsroom's headlines from 09:00 GMT to 17:00 GMT, February 6, 2018.

West Bank Clashes

Israeli forces have killed a man who had allegedly shot dead a rabbi in the Occupied West Bank last month. Soldiers surrounded the house of Ahmed Nasr Jarrar in Yarmoun village, west of the city of Jenin early Tuesday. Troops opened fire on him as he walked out. There are reports that clashes have erupted in the area. Israeli authorities say Jarrar was the leader of a group tasked with targeting Israelis and had most probably killed the rabbi himself. Tensions have risen in Palestinian territories since US President Donald Trump declared Jerusalem al-Quds as the capital of Israel last December. Two dozen Palestinians have been killed in clashes with Israelis since then.

Global stock plunge

European and Asian stock markets take a tumble after stocks went into free fall in the United States. Main European benchmarks were down to nearly 3 percent at open. The German stock market tumbled 3.6 percent while the Paris market tanked 3.4 percent. The London stock market also fell three-point-five percent. Meanwhile, shares tumbled in Asia with Japan’s Nikkei index closing down 4.7 percent on Tuesday. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng also plummeted nearly five percent. This came after the Dow Jones Industrial Average suffered its biggest decline since 2011. The Dow plummeted more than 1100 points, or 4.6 percent, in trading on Monday. The sell-off is partly blamed on a possible hike in the interest rate. In reaction, the White House said President Donald Trump was focused on long-term economic fundamentals, which it described as exceptionally strong.

Turkish troops toll

The Turkish military says a rocket and mortar attack on forces in Syria’s Idlib province left one soldier dead and five more injured. The military said they suffered the casualties as forces were setting up a post in the area. A civilian member of the Turkish convoy was also injured in the attack. The military did not specify who the militants were. Back on January 30, another attack on Turkish forces in Idlib left one person dead. That attack was blamed on YPG militants. Turkey has been fighting the US-backed militants in Afrin in Syria’s Idlib. The operation has left at least 13 Turkish soldiers dead since it began on January 20.

Iran JCPOA ‘non-negotiable’

President Hassan Rouhani says the nuclear deal between Tehran and the P5+1 countries has been solid enough to resist the pressure of the US government. Fielding questions of Iranian and foreign journalists, Rouhani said President Trump sees the nuclear deal as an agreement between the Democratic Party and Iran. This he emphasized is an accord clinched by seven countries and approved by the UN Security Council. Rouhani added that Tehran will take its future measures based on its own interests in case Washington decides to withdraw from the JCPOA. The Iranian president also condemned the presence of US forces on Syrian soil. He noted that no army can enter Syria without the permission of the government in Damascus. Rouhani also expressed hope that Turkey will stop its military operation against the Kurds in Northern Syria.

Turkey Syria offensive

The Turkish president has once again warned against the US military support for militants in northern Syria, blaming Washington for the presence of terror groups in Syria’s strategic town of Manbij. Rejep Tayyip Erdogan was addressing his party members in Ankara. He said the US is sending weapons to Kurdish-dominated areas near Manbij, vowing Turkish troops would expand its cross-border military operation to the Syrian town. Erdogan noted that the US has calculations for Turkey, Iran, and maybe Russia, saying he won’t believe that Washington is fighting Daesh in the area, as the White House claims. Turkey launched a military campaign in Syria’s northern Afrin region on January 20. Ankara says the offensive aims to fight the Kurdish YPG that it claims to be affiliated with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party. The YPG enjoys the US military support.

Merkel ‘painful concessions’

Germany’s main political parties are holding a final day of talks to reach an agreement on a coalition government after months of political uncertainty.  Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative Christian Democrats, Bavaria’s CSU party and the center-left Social Democrats want to clinch a deal by the end of Tuesday. The three parties managed to reach a framework agreement in last month’s preliminary talks. Upon arrival at the venue of the meeting, Merkel said she is ready to make painful compromises.

Iraq fighting Daesh

Iraqi forces are bracing themselves for a major military operation in the northern governorate of Kirkuk to eliminate the remnants of Daesh terrorists, and prevent future terror attacks. Altaf Ahmad reports.

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