132/2018 • 13 June, 2018
Boat collision on Russiaʼs Volga River kills 11 At least 16 people were on the catamaran when it collided with another boat 250 meters from the riverbank in Volgograd. Russiaʼs Investigative Committee has opened an investigation into the cause of the crash. At least 11 people on a river cruise died after their boat crashed into a barge on the Volga River in the Russian city of Volgograd on Monday. At least 16 Russians were on the vessel, according to Russiaʼs Investigative Committee, which has opened an investigation into possible breaches of safety regulations. Emergency services were made aware that the vessels had collided on the Volga River, about 250 meters from the riverbank at around 10 p.m. (1900 GMT). Five people were rescued and three survivors were in hospital, according to the website of regional governor Andrei Bocharov. "The rescue operations have just finished. The last body has been recovered and the number of dead is 11," the local emergencies ministry said in a statement quoted by the Ria Novosti news agency.
US Attorney General Jeff Sessions curbs asylum for immigrant victims of violence US Attorney General Jeff Sessions has delivered a ruling that curbs immigration judges from considering domestic and gang violence as grounds for asylum. The decision is expected to affect tens of thousands of cases. US Attorney General Jeff Sessions has said immigration judges generally cannot consider domestic and gang violence as grounds for asylum. Mondayʼs ruling could affect large numbers of Central Americans who have increasingly turned to the United States for protection. "Generally, claims by aliens pertaining to domestic violence or gang violence perpetrated by non-government actors will not qualify for asylum," Sessions wrote in 31-page decision. "The mere fact that a country may have problems effectively policing certain crimes — such as domestic violence or gang violence — or that certain populations are more likely to be victims of crime, cannot itself establish an asylum claim." The move, which was widely expected, overruled a Board of Immigration Appeals decision in 2016 that gave asylum status to a woman from El Salvador who had fled her husband. 2
Franceʼs Emmanuel Macron blasts Italy for ʼcynicismʼ over migrant ship Italy had a responsibility to help them, Marcon said
French President Emmanuel Marcon slammed Romeʼs "cynicism and irresponsibility" after Italyʼs new government turned away a ship full of migrants from its shores. Top French officials on Tuesday publicly decriedItalyʼs decision to reject port for the French NGO rescue ship, Aquarius, with 629 immigrants on board. According to Emmanuel Macronʼs spokesman Benjamin Grivaux, the French president believes Italy was obligated to accept Aquarius under maritime law. "There is a degree of cynicism and irresponsibility in the Italian governmentʼs behavior with regards to this dramatic humanitarian situation," Griveaux quoted Macron as saying. Griveaux said Macron made the remarks dur-
Venezuelaʼs hyperinflation soars to 24,571 percent The South American country is spiraling further into a humanitarian disaster spurred by the governmentʼs economic policies, which have caused Venezuelaʼs inflation to skyrocket 24,571 percent in the past 12 months. The opposition-dominated Venezuelan parliament issued fresh economic data on Monday, showing that inflation for the month of May spiked 110.1 percent compared with April, and sending annual inflation to a staggering 24,571 percent. With daily inflation running at 2.4 percent,the countryʼs currency, the bolivar,plunged about 98 percent in the course of the past 12 months alone.
ing Tuesdayʼs weekly Cabinet meeting. Macron also praised Spain for pledging to accept the ship once it reaches their shores. "You canʼt create a precedent that will enable one European country to offload onto other European countries," Griveaux said. "We need to show solidarity which Italy has not shown." Separately, Franceʼs Prime Minister Edouard Philippe told French lawmakers that the new Italian government had "chosen to not respect its international obligations in terms of security for the people." "Itʼs a tragedy that we are experiencing every day," said the parliamentʼs finance commission spokesman Rafael Guzman as he revealed the latest figures. Opposition politicians in the South Americancountry blamethe socialist government of President Nicolas Madurofor the massive economic crisis. Years of mismanagement had led to widespread shortages of food and medicine, they said, and had caused the oil-rich country and itsstate-owned oil company PDVSAto default onsome of its debt.
Ukraine and Russia interests ʼfar apartʼ as peace talks resume in Berlin
The KATRIN Tritium Neutrino experiment: A giant scale for the tiniest particles starts Neutrinos are so tiny and inconspicuous that physicists believed for a long time they had no mass. Now, a massive device that scientists say will determine the mass of neutrinos has begun operation in Karlsruhe. What is the exact mass of the three known kinds of neutrinos? Any answers? No? Well, donʼt worry, because nobody knows. Not yet. Electron, muon and tau neutrinos are simply too difficult to grasp for scientists. The ghost particles are electrically neutral, and do not interact with electromagnetic fields, light or matter. But the Karlsruhe Tritium Neutrino Experiment (KATRIN) hopes to shed light on the question of neutrino mass. On Monday, June 11, 2018, a ceremonial inauguration marked the beginning of measuring operations. One part of the device, the electron source, has been operational since October 16, 2016. But the real fun starts now. About 200 researchers from 20 institutions in seven countries are cooperating in the experiments at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT).
Germanyʼs Heiko Maas has hosted the foreign ministers from Russia and Ukraine, as talks aimed at resolving the Ukraine conflict resumed for the first time in 16 months. Maas has warned that talks will be "tough." Russian and Ukrainian officials met for first time in over a year on Monday, suggesting the two sides may be prepared to restart efforts to resolve theconflict in eastern Ukraine. However, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, who mediated the talks in Berlin along with his French counterpart Jean-Yves Le Drian, warned ahead of the meeting that "Ukraine and Russiaʼs interests and views lie far apart in many areas." "The implementation of the Minsk accords stalled for too long, at the expense of the people in eastern Ukraine, who wish for nothing more ardently than peace," Maas told German daily paper Bild. "I have no illusions — the new start will be difficult."