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101/2019 • 4 MAY, 2019 WEEKEND ISSUE

DAILY NEWS IN ENGLISH

Hungaryʼs Orban inches closer to Salvini-led anti-migrant EU bloc Orbanʼs Fidesz could need new allies after EU vote

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban edged closer to Italyʼs farright leader on Thursday, signaling he may break with the mainstream European conservative group following European Parliament elections in late May Orbanʼs ruling Fidesz Party wassuspended, but not expelled, in March from the European Peopleʼs Party (EPP) over the deterioration in the rule of law in Hungary under his right-wing government. The EPP, made up of centerright parties including Germanyʼs Christian Democrats, is projected tokeep its place as the European Parliamentʼs biggest groupfollowing the May 23-26 elections. That would put the EPP in a pole position to choose the next European Commission president. Orban has suggested that Fidesz may leave the EPP after the European Parliament elections, which polls suggest could see asurge in support for anti-immigrant, nationalist parties. After talks in Budapest with Italyʼs hard-line Interior Minister Matteo Salvini, the Hungarian leader said he was moving closer to formal cooperation. "We are spectacularly, confidently, openly seeking cooperation with Salvini," Orban told journalists after talks with Salvini in Budapest. "Although what actual form that takes we will see… I am convinced that

Europe needs an alliance of antiimmigration parties," he said. However, Orbanʼs influence over the EPP is waning following Fideszʼs suspension from the group triggered by his repeated assaults on EU institutions. Manfred Weber, the EPPʼs lead candidate and currently a frontrunner for the EU executive post, said Thursday that Orban can no longer dictate the groupʼs policies. "He has no impact any more on EPP policies," Weber said at a debate in response to a question about Orbanʼs proposal for the EPP to cooperate with new far-right group led by Salvini. On a trip to Niger, German Chancellor Angela Merkel gave her full support for Weberʼs stance, saying "there will not be cooperation of any kind with right-wing parties after the election." Salvini, meanwhile, has praised Orban for seeking "to enforce an aspect within the EPP which respects the history, the present and future of European peoples." "I do not wish to intervene into that debate. I hope he will emerge victoriously," Salvini said. Germanyʼs Alternative for Germany (AfD),Marine Le Penʼs National Rally in France,the Austrian Freedom Party and right-wing parties in Finland and Denmark have expressed interest in Salviniʼs proposal for a new nationalist bloc.

North Korea food rations hit record low level after poor harvest: UN

Cyclone Fani hits Indiaʼs east coast after huge evacuation operation

Germany: 3 arrests in Darknet ʼWall Street Marketʼ probe

North Korea is experiencing one of its most severe food crises in years following the worst harvests in decades, caused by dry spells, heat waves and flooding, the UN said on Friday. The World Food Programme (WFP) said the North Korean government had reduced rations to their lowest level ever for this time of year. People were receiving just 300 grams (less than 11 ounces) per day, down from 360 grams per day at the same time last year.

Tropical Cyclone Fanimade landfall on the coast of the Indian state of Odishaat around 8 a.m. local time (0330 UTC) on Friday, with forecasters predicting that the storm would cause widespread devastation. The storm is the fiercest in the region since a 1999 cyclone that killed some 10,000 people in Odisha. Winds brought by the cyclone were reportedly gusting at up to 205 kilometers (127 miles) per hour when it made landfall.

Stolen data, forged documents and drugs were all sold on what is reportedly the worldʼs second-biggest Darknet platform. International police cooperation helped nab the suspects, who are also wanted by US prosecutors. German police on Friday said that three men were being held in custody as part of an international investigation into the illegal online operation named "Wall Street Market," which was shut down on Thursday.

Hungaryʼs Viktor Orban has sent his clearest signal yet that his party may split with Europeʼs main conservative group and join an antiimmigrant, nationalist bloc led by Italyʼs Matteo Salvini in the EU Parliament.

UKʼs big two suffer Brexit backlash in local elections Voters in England appeared to have punished both UK Prime Minister Theresa Mayʼs Conservative Party and the Labour opposition, as local council election results emerged on Friday. Both parties, which pledged to carry out Brexit in their 2017 election manifestos, appeared to have suffered badly, with most council results declared. While the Conservatives lost by far the most seats, shedding more than 500 local councilors, Labour dropped more than 70 when they had been hoping to make gains at the Conservativesʼ expense.


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