DAILY NEWS IN ENGLISH
New Zealand bans foreigners from buying homes New Zealandʼs parliament on Wednesday passed a law banning many non-resident foreigners from buying existing homes in the country. The bill aims to stop New Zealanders being outbid by wealthy foreign buyers. Read more: Airbnb on collision course with EU The passage of the law sees one of Prime Minister Jacinda Ardernʼs election promises come to fruition, after she vowed to clamp down on house price growth and homelessness during her election campaign. "This is a significant milestone and demonstrates this governmentʼs commitment to making the dream of home ownership a reality for more New Zealanders," Associate Finance Minister David Parker said.
Speculation mounts over Genoa bridge collapse The Morandi Bridge — known to locals as Genoaʼs "Brooklyn Bridge" — was a key artery to the Italian Riviera and to Franceʼs southern coast.A huge section of the structure collapsed on Tuesdayin the Italian city of Genoa, sending cars and trucks plunging into heaps of rubble. Scores were killed and the death toll is expected to rise. Lightning strike Regional weather services had issued a storm warning for the morning of the collapse and the national police force said on Twitter the disaster happened amid a "violent cloudburst." "The fact that there was reported to be a storm at the time may or may not be particularly relevant. In addition, ongoing work on the bridge may or may not be partly responsible for the collapse," said Ian Firth, former president of the Institution of Structural Engineers. The civil protection agency could not confirm witness accounts that the bridge cracked after being hit by lighting.
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Angela Merkelʼs headaches in Russia talks War and fuel:
Vladimir Putin is coming to Germany on Saturday to discuss Syria, Ukraine and the Nord Stream 2 pipeline with Angela Merkel. But what can the two long-serving leaders hope to say that they havenʼt said before?
Turkey in fresh round of retaliatory tariffs on US products Turkey has hiked tariffs on US products ranging from cars to tobacco. The move came amid an unresolved diplomatic and trade spat with the United States, which had contributed to a full-blown currency crisis. Turkeyʼs new measures, which go into effect immediately, include raising the import tariff on US-made alcoholic beverages to 140 percent and increasing the duty on passenger cars imported from the US to 120 percent.
Plastics, coal and agricultural producewere also on the list that was published in an official gazette on Wednesday. "As part of the principle of reciprocity, tax rates on some products have been raised against the US administrationʼs deliberate attacks on our economy," Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay commented. The higher duties camejust one day after Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan called for a boycott of all US electronic goods, insisting Turks did not need them.
Nebraska executes first US inmate using fentanyl Nebraskan authorities on Tuesday carried out the first execution of a prisoner in the state in 21 years. It also marked the first execution of a prisonerin the US using the painkiller fentanyl, a drug that has fueled an opioid crisis across the country. Forming part of a four-drug concoction, fentanyl was used as a painkiller. The other drugs included the sedative diazepam to render unconsciousness,
the muscle relaxer cisatracurium to stop the prisonerʼs breathing and potassium chloride to stop the heart. "I recognize that todayʼs execution impacts many people on many levels," said Scott Frakes, director of the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services. The lethal injection was carried out with "professionalism, respect for the process and dignity for all involved," he added.
London terror suspect identified as Briton of Sudanese origin The man whoploughed his car into London pedestriansoutside the Houses of Parliament on Tuesday has been identified as a Briton of Sudanese origin living in Birmingham, according to UK media reports. The 29-year-old was named by newspapers as Salih K.* The Press Associated news agency reported that a Facebook page for a man of that name living in Birmingham showed that he worked as a shop manager and had studied at the Sudan University of Science and Technology. Chief counter-terrorism officerNeil Basu said the suspect was not known to intelligence agencies, although The Times newspaper claimed that he was known to police.
Senatorʼs ʼWhite Australiaʼ speech sparks uproar Australiaʼs prime minister and politicians from across the political spectrum on Wednesday condemned a speech by a freshman senator calling for only white immigration and a "final solution" to end Muslim immigration. Senator Fraser Anning used his first speech in parliament on Tuesday to call for a return to a "White Australia" immigration policy that reflects the "European Christian composition of society," echoing a policy that barred people of non-European descent from immigrating. The policy was abolished in 1973. "I believe that the reasons for ending all further Muslim immigration are both compelling and self-evident," Anning, a member of the right-wing Katterʼs Australian Party (KAP), told a mostly empty hall of lawmakers.
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