ECM WORLD WATCH: NATIONAL AND GLOBAL NEWS

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October 17, 2019 (San Diego’s East County) - East County Magazine's World Watch helps you be an informed citizen on important issues globally and nationally. As part of our commitment to reflect all voices and views, we include links to a variety of news sources representing a broad spectrum of political, religious, and social views. Top world and U.S. headlines include:

U.S.

WORLD

For excerpts and links to full stories,  click “read more” and scroll down.

U.S.

Pence announces Syria cease fire that seems to give Turkey everything it wants (CNN)

US Vice President Mike Pence announced in Turkey Thursday that he and Turkish President Erdogan agreed to a ceasefire halting Turkey's incursion into northern Syria, which was launched after President Donald Trump effectively gave Turkey the go ahead on a phone call with Erdogan earlier this month. The deal appears to secure Turkey most of its military objectives, forcing America's one-time allies in the fight against ISIS -- Kurdish forces -- to cede a vast swath of territory…

Republican anger grows as Trump disavows Kurds by saying they didn't help during WWII (CNN)

Republicans savaged President Donald Trump Wednesday for allowing Turkey to attack US allies in Syria as the President offered varying reasons for giving Turkey the green light, including the fact that Kurds did not fight alongside the US in World War II.  Turkey launched its military operation to flush Kurds allied with the US out of northeastern Syria sparking outrage in Congress, creating rare bipartisan unity about the risks to the Kurds, US national security interests, regional stability and the fight against ISIS.

Macabre Video of Fake Trump Shooting Media and Critics Is Shown at His Resort (New York Times)

A video depicting a macabre scene of a fake President Trump shooting, stabbing and brutally assaulting members of the news media and his political opponents was shown at a conference for his supporters at his Miami resort last week, according to footage obtained by The New York Times.

Senator Warren proposes $200 a month increase in Social Security benefits (Just Care)

Senator Elizabeth Warren just proposed a $200 a month increase in Social Security benefits in order to help ensure people have decent retirement income. Warren has the boldest proposal yet for ensuring that older adults live comfortably in retirement. In stark contrast, President Trump and his Republican allies plan to slash Social Security benefits.

Some Parts Of Trump's Executive Order On Medicare Could Lead To Higher Costs (NPR)

Vowing to protect Medicare with "every ounce of strength," President Trump spoke last week to a cheering crowd in Florida. But his executive order released shortly afterward includes provisions that could significantly alter key pillars of the program by making it easier for beneficiaries and doctors to opt out. The bottom line: The proposed changes might make it a bit simpler to find a doctor who takes new Medicare patients, but it could lead to higher costs for seniors and potentially expose some to surprise medical bills, a problem from which Medicare has traditionally protected consumers.

Exclusive: Giuliani associate linked to Yanukovych's stolen cash (Al Jazeera)

Semyon Kislin, friend of Trump's personal lawyer, tried to obtain millions of dollars stolen from the Ukrainian state.

Rudy Giuliani said he was flying to Vienna just before associates were arrested before reportedly trying to go to Vienna (CNN)

Rudy Giuliani (President Trump’s personal attorney) was planning to fly to Vienna, Austria, Thursday night, the same city where his two associates were headed to before they were arrested the night before… an indictment unsealed on Thursday revealing that two of his associates, Igor Fruman and Lev Parnas, were detained at Dulles International Airport on Wednesday evening. The men -- both central to the impeachment inquiry in the House -- were arrested and indicted on criminal charges for allegedly funneling foreign money into US elections.

Congress Can Seek Trump’s Financial Records, Appeals Court Rules (New York Times)

 

President Trump’s accounting firm must turn over eight years of financial records to a House committee, a federal appeals court ruled on Friday, handing the president a significant defeat in his attempts to block the release of the returns.

The memo: bad polls for Trump shake GOP (The Hill)

President Trump’s troubles are deepening, according to several recent opinion polls that show rising public support for impeachment. Those polls include one released Wednesday from Fox News that sent shock waves through Washington. It indicated 51 percent of voters support impeaching Trump and removing him from office.

We found a staggering 281 lobbyists who worked for the Trump administration (Pro Publica)

That’s one lobbyist for every 14 political appointees, and four times more than Obama had appointed six years into office.

WORLD

Turkey-Syria offensive: 'Hundreds' of IS relatives escape camp (BBC)

Hundreds of foreigners affiliated with the Islamic State group (IS) have escaped from a camp in northern Syria amid a Turkish offensive, Kurdish officials say … Turkey launched an assault last week aimed at driving Kurdish-led forces from the region…President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw US troops from the area effectively triggered the Turkish incursion against the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) - the main Western allies in the fight against IS.

174 Kurdish fighters dead on Day 2 of incursion: Ankara (New York Post)

 

The death toll in Turkey’s offensive into northern Syria spiked to more than 170 in the conflict’s second day Thursday, Turkish officials claimed — as Kurdish forces pushed back with mortar strikes.

Turkish-led forces film themselves executing a Kurdish captive in Syria (Washington Post)

Videos posted on social media showing at least one execution-style killing have called into question the discipline of the soldiers engaged in Turkey’s near week-long effort to seize territory controlled by Kurds in northeastern Syria. The most gruesome and explicit of the videos shows Turkish-allied Syrian fighters pumping bursts of automatic fire into the body of a bound man lying on the side of a desert road

How Ethiopia's Abiy Ahmed Won the Nobel Peace Prize  (Time)

Abiy Ahmed, the Ethiopian Prime Minister who engineered the end of a two-decade conflict with neighboring Eritrea, was named on Oct. 11 as the recipient of the 100th Nobel Peace Prize, for his efforts to “achieve peace and international cooperation.”

Nigerian police rescue 67 from 'inhuman' conditions at Islamic 'school' (Reuters)



Police in northern Nigeria rescued nearly 70 men and boys from a second purported Islamic school where they were shackled and subjected to "inhuman and degrading treatments."

At least 35 killed and 17 missing after Typhoon Hagibis tears through country, flooding rivers and submerging cities (Japan Times)

In the aftermath of the largest typhoon to hit Japan in decades, the nation on Sunday was still assessing the scope of the damage caused by the massive storm.

 


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