WATCH PRESS TV NEWS HEADLINES

Here is a brief look at Press TV newsroom's headlines from 1800 GMT, March 8, 2019 to 0800 GMT, March 9, 2019.

Germany Hezbollah stance

The German deputy foreign minister says Berlin will not regard Lebanon's resistance movement, Hezbollah, as a terrorist organization. Niels Annen said Germany will not follow the UK in designating Hezbollah as a terrorist group. Annen underlined the significance of Hezbollah as a relevant factor in the Lebanese society. The European Union has also refused to follow the measure. Brussels believes the move is an internal decision by London and does not reflect the bloc’s policy towards Hezbollah. The refusal to ban Hezbollah is a rebuff to the US and Israel. Britain declared Hezbollah as a terrorist organization in late February.

EU Brexit proposal

The European Union says Britain can leave the bloc's customs union after the UK's planned exit from the union on March 29. The EU's chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, says the move is possible if an agreement to avoid a border between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic is maintained. But a British prime ministerial source says they are not impressed by the offer. Northern Ireland's co-ruling Democratic Unionist Party also said the offer is a non-starter as it does not respect the constitutional and economic integrity of the UK. London has in the past said any post-Brexit customs union with the EU must be applied to the whole of the UK.

USAF secretary resigns

The administration of US President Donald Trump is witnessing yet another resignation as a high-ranking military staffer has decided to quit. Air Force Secretary, Heather Wilson, says she has sent an official letter to the president to submit her resignation. The 58-year-old veteran told Trump she was planning to become president of the University of Texas at El Paso. Wilson was considered a top candidate to become the next secretary of defense. But her resignation leaves another vacant post at the top level of the Pentagon. More than two dozen senior figures in the Trump administration have either been fired or quit since he took office in January 2017. This includes Former Secretary of Defense, James Mattis, and Chief of Staff, John Kelly.

Sudan president order

Sudanese President, Omar al-Bashir, has ordered his national security service to release all female protesters, who were detained during the past months. Hundreds of protesters have been detained and at least 31 people have been killed during anti-government demonstrations in Sudan since mid-December. The protesters have been calling for an end to Bashir’s three-decade rule. In response, the veteran president has declared a year-long state of emergency across the country.

Venezuela power restoration

Venezuela begins restoring electricity after an over 24-hour power outage affected most of the Latin American nation. Local media say much of the capital, Caracas, along with several eastern states saw power return.The government says power went out due to a problem at the country’s main hydroelectric plant. It called the event an act of sabotage by ideological adversaries. Meanwhile, the US has intensified pressure on Caracas by announcing criminal charges against the Venezuelan industry minister. The World Bank has also added to the country’s economic woes. It has ordered Caracas to pay more than eight-billion dollars to US energy company, ConocoPhillips, for the 2007 expropriation of its assets.

Separated families in US

A US federal judge has expanded his order for migrant family reunification to all those separated under a crackdown launched by the Trump administration. The order by the district judge in California was previously applied to some 2700 children separated from their patents last spring. On Friday, Dana Sabraw ruled that all migrant families forced apart as early as July first, 2017 and the months afterward must be reunited. The move will cover thousands more families. Sabraw says his decision follows a government watchdog report in January stating that the separated families were far higher than the administration admitted publicly. President Donald Trump has taken tough measures to tackle immigration over the past year. His stance has sparked anger among politicians and the public.

Israel Gaza attacks

Israeli aircraft have carried out two airstrikes on the Gaza Strip following a day of deadly regime crackdown on Palestinian protesters in the coastal enclave. The airstrikes come amid rising violence against Palestinians ahead of Israeli elections. Our correspondent Ashraf Shanon has the details.

Kashmir general strike

People in Indian-controlled Kashmir have launched a general strike to protest Quote New Delhi’s crackdown on political and religious leaders. As our correspondent Ali Safvi reports, Kashmiris were also concerned about attempts to scrap the special status granted to the disputed region under the Indian constitution.

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