How serious is Israel’s latest political crisis for its leader?
Protests are held over Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan to sack the Shin Bet chief and the attorney general. Major protests are being held in Israel against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. His firing of the internal security service chief is blocked by the Supreme Court – for now. But the opposition is calling for a general strike. How serious is this political crisis for Netanyahu? Presenter: Nick Clark Guests: Yariv Oppenheimer – Board member of the advocacy group Peace Now and member of the Democrats political party in Israel Neve Gordon – Israeli political scientist and professor of international law at Queen Mary University of London Yoni Ben Menachem – Israeli political commentator and a senior Middle East analyst for the Jerusalem Center Adblock test (Why?)
Cain Velasquez: Former UFC champion sentenced to prison for 2022 shooting
The retired heavyweight athlete has been sentenced to five years in prison after pleading no contest to attempted murder. Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champion Cain Velasquez has been sentenced to five years in prison for a shooting in 2022 when he chased after the man accused of molesting his son. Velasquez was sentenced in Santa Clara County, California, on Monday after he pleaded no contest to attempted murder, felony assault and other related gun charges last August for what the District Attorney’s Office called a “vigilante shooting spree”. He will receive credit for time served. On February 28, 2022, the two-time UFC heavyweight champion fired a gun multiple times at a truck carrying three people, including 46-year-old Harry Goularte, who is facing felony child molestation charges, according to the District Attorney’s Office. His defence lawyer, Renee Hessling, called the result “bittersweet” as they had hoped to keep Velasquez out of prison. “Throughout it all, Cain has shown courage and strength of character,” Hessling said in a statement. “He has taken responsibility for his actions and has been held accountable. The sentence handed down today reflects the complexities of the situation and acknowledges the man behind the headlines.” Advertisement Less than a week before the shooting, Goularte was arrested in connection with the sexual assault of a four-year-old at the daycare owned by his family. He was released without bail a few days later. Officials said he was released under house arrest and was on his way to retrieve an electronic monitoring bracelet when Velasquez attacked. Velasquez shot at Goularte’s truck in a car chase that continued for 17.7km (11 miles), the District Attorney’s Office said. Goularte was uninjured but his stepfather, who was driving, was hit twice. On his former teammate Kyle Kingsbury’s podcast, Velasquez said his handling of the situation was “not the way to do it”. “We cannot put the law in our own hands,” Velasquez said. “I know what I did, and I know what I did was very dangerous to other people, you know? Not just to people involved, but innocent people. I understand what I did and I’m willing to do everything I have to, to pay that back.” Velasquez also said it was important to have open and honest conversations with your kids about what kind of behaviour is acceptable and listen to what they say. “One man’s decision to take the law into his own hands left an innocent man wounded and endangered schoolchildren, teachers, and many others in our community,” District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in a statement. “If you want to do justice in Santa Clara County, please apply for a badge.” Velasquez became the UFC heavyweight champion on October 23, 2010, when he defeated then-champion Brock Lesnar at UFC 121. The retired athlete’s last professional fight was against Francis Ngannou on February 18, 2019. Cain Velasquez, left, fights Travis Browne during their heavyweight mixed martial arts bout at UFC 200, Saturday, July 9, 2016, in Las Vegas [John Locher/AP] Adblock test (Why?)
Lakers lose to Magic despite combined 56 points from LeBron, Doncic
The LA Lakers’ chances of securing a top-two Western Conference playoff spot took another hit with a loss in Orlando. The Los Angeles Lakers suffered another setback in their NBA playoff push, falling 118-106 to the Orlando Magic, who notched their first home victory since February. Despite 32 points from Luka Doncic and 24 from LeBron James, the Lakers dropped their third straight game on Monday, and at 43-28 are now tied with the Memphis Grizzlies in the battle for fourth place in the Western Conference. Franz Wagner scored 32 points and Paolo Banchero added 30 for the Magic, who out-scored the Lakers 34-18 in the third quarter to seize control of the contest. The defeat follows the Lakers’ blowout loss to the Chicago Bulls in James’s first game back after missing seven games with a groin injury. The Lakers had hoped James, Doncic and a newly healthy Rui Hachimura would fuel a strong stretch run in the West. The Oklahoma City Thunder is assured of the top seed, but the Denver Nuggets, Lakers and Grizzlies are all within two and a half games of the second-placed Houston Rockets. Lakers coach JJ Redick said his players are lacking the defensive intensity they displayed in an eight-game winning streak that had briefly pushed them to second in the standings. Advertisement “We can get back there,” Redick said, adding that the injury-enforced lineup changes may have taken a toll. “We look tired,” he said. “I don’t know what contributes to that … we weren’t able to sustain our level of intensity that we started the game out with.” The Lakers did cut a 17-point fourth-quarter deficit to seven with 5:39 remaining, but the Magic – eighth in the Eastern Conference – swiftly pulled away again. Redick said the Lakers could also use some practice time to get recently returned players reintegrated. “We’ve got to get back into the flow and the rhythm,” he said. “It’s not just [the returning players] getting back into the flow, but it’s the group and how the group functions.” Paolo Banchero, right, of the Orlando Magic dribbles the ball to the basket against LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers in the second half of a game at Kia Center on March 24, 2025, in Orlando, Florida, US [Julio Aguilar/Getty Images via AFP] Adblock test (Why?)
China’s missed emissions target poses challenge to global climate efforts
Taipei, Taiwan – China’s failure to meet a key carbon emissions target has raised concerns about its ability to achieve carbon neutrality, a potentially decisive factor in global efforts to avert the worst effects of climate change. China’s carbon intensity – a measurement of carbon emissions per unit of gross domestic product (GDP) – fell 3.4 percent in 2024, missing Beijing’s official target of 3.9 percent, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. China is also behind its longer-term goal of slashing carbon intensity by 18 percent between 2020 and 2025, as set by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in its most recent five-year plan. Under China’s “dual targets”, President Xi Jinping has pledged to reach peak emissions before the end of the decade and carbon neutrality by 2060. China’s progress is being closely watched around the world due to its paradoxical position as the world’s top polluter – responsible for about 30 percent of global emissions – and the world’s leader in renewable energy investment. Advertisement The country’s success or failure to meet its emissions targets will have major implications for the international community’s efforts to keep average temperatures from rising more than 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels, a benchmark set by the United Nations to avert “catastrophic” effects of climate change. The chances of the planet being able to keep below the 1.5C threshold over the long-term are already in doubt, after 2024 became the first calendar year in history where temperatures breached the limit. Although carbon intensity is just one of the benchmarks used by Beijing, it provides important insights into how decarbonisation is playing out across the economy, said Muyi Yang, a senior energy analyst at Ember, a global energy think tank based in the United Kingdom. “Even though the economy continued to grow, the reduction in emissions relative to that growth wasn’t as rapid as intended,” Muyi told Al Jazeera. The world’s second-largest economy relied heavily on industrial growth to power itself out of the economic slump caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, but this in turn has led to a recent surge in energy demand, Muyi said. While China’s economy officially grew 5 percent in 2024, electricity demand grew 6.8 percent year-on-year, according to government data. Carbon emissions grew 0.8 percent year-on-year. Record heatwaves have posed a further challenge to emission reduction efforts by disrupting energy production at hydropower dams, forcing authorities to make up the shortfall with coal power. Advertisement Despite the setbacks, Beijing has made remarkable achievements in renewable energy, according to Eric Fishman, a senior manager at the Lantau Group, an energy consultancy firm in Hong Kong. China last year met 14.5 percent of its total energy demand with wind and solar power and another 13.4 percent with hydropower, according to government data. The country also met about 75 percent of its incremental growth in energy demand – 500 out of 610 terawatt hours – with renewable energy, Fishman said, based on an analysis of government data. The figure represents “massive amounts of clean energy” roughly equivalent to Germany’s annual energy consumption, Fishman told Al Jazeera. Much of this growth has been driven by government support, including from the highest levels of the CCP. Xi Jinping Thought, Xi’s governing ideology enshrined in the Chinese constitution, states that China must strive towards an “ecological civilisation”. In 2021, Xi announced that “high energy consumption and high-emission projects that don’t meet requirements should be resolutely taken down”. The same year, China launched its Emissions Trading Scheme, the world’s largest carbon trading market, under which firms that produce less emissions than their designated allowance can sell their unused allowances to polluters exceeding their limits. More recently, Xi has called for China to focus on “new quality productive forces” and transition to more high-end and innovation-driven manufacturing, said Anika Patel, a China analyst at Carbon Brief. Advertisement “[China] has historically been seen as the ‘factory of the world’ but with a focus on the so-called ‘old three’, which are all lower-value products – appliances, clothing and toys. Now it wants to shift towards green growth and the ‘new three’, which is solar panels, electric vehicles and lithium-ion batteries,” Patel told Al Jazeera. The CCP will release its newest round of carbon emissions targets for 2026 to 2030 alongside its next five-year plan later this year, Patel said, which will impact the direction of both public and private sectors. Yao Zhe, a global policy adviser for Greenpeace East Asia, said while China is on track to reach peak carbon before 2030, whether it can leave coal fully behind in the long term is less certain. “Achieving carbon neutrality will require many more structural changes in China’s energy sector and economy as a whole. And those changes need to start soon after peak,” Yao told Al Jazeera. “While Chinese policymakers are good at supporting the cleantech industry, they tend to defer these structural reforms to a later timeframe – possibly later than 2035 – and this is a real concern.” Adblock test (Why?)
Al Jazeera condemns Israel’s killing of journalist Hossam Shabat in Gaza
Media network condemns ‘assassination’ of Gaza correspondent by Israeli forces. Below is Al Jazeera Media Network’s statement on the killing of Hossam Shabat. Al Jazeera Media Network strongly condemns the Israeli Occupation Forces’ assassination of Hossam Shabat, Al Jazeera Mubasher correspondent, who was brutally killed today, in an air strike targeting his car in Jabalia. Hossam joined the Network’s journalists and correspondents killed during the ongoing war on Gaza, including Samer Abudaqa, Hamza Al-Dahdouh, Ismail Al-Ghoul, and Ahmed Al-Louh. Al Jazeera affirms its commitment to pursue all legal measures to prosecute the perpetrators of these crimes against journalists. And stands in unwavering solidarity with all journalists in Gaza and reaffirms its commitment to achieving justice and prosecuting the killers of more than 200 journalists in Gaza since October 2023. The Network extends its condolences to Hossam’s family, and calls on all human rights and media organisations to condemn the Israeli occupation’s systematic killing of journalists, the evasion of responsibilities under international humanitarian law, and to bring the perpetrators of this heinous crime to justice. Advertisement Al Jazeera renews its firm commitment to covering events in the Gaza Strip, despite the ongoing targeting and harassment faced by its correspondents and journalists. Adblock test (Why?)
Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 1,125
These are the key developments on day 1,125 of Russia’s war on Ukraine. Here is the roundup of key events on Tuesday, March 25. Ceasefire United States and Russian officials wrapped up daylong talks in Saudi Arabia on Monday focused on a narrow proposal for a maritime ceasefire between Kyiv and Moscow in the Black Sea, allowing the free flow of shipping, part of a diplomatic effort that Washington hopes will help pave the way for broader peace negotiations. A White House source said progress was made in the Riyadh talks and that a “positive announcement” was expected “in the near future”. Russia was represented at the talks by Grigory Karasin, a former diplomat who is now the chair of the Russian upper house’s Foreign Affairs Committee. Karasin was cited by Russia’s Interfax news agency as saying during a break in the talks that they were progressing “creatively” and that the two sides had discussed issues regarded as “irritants” in bilateral ties. A joint statement by Washington and Moscow is to be published on Tuesday, Russia’s state-run news agencies TASS and Ria Novosti reported, citing sources from the Russian delegation. No further details were given. United Kingdom and French defence chiefs met again in London to discuss plans for allied countries to safeguard a potential Ukraine ceasefire as part of UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s so-called “coalition of the willing”. The meeting was the third of its kind since Starmer earlier this month announced he would work to bring together nations who could guarantee any cessation of hostilities between Russia and Ukraine. Advertisement Fighting Russian missiles struck the Ukrainian city of Sumy, injuring more than 80 people. Several high-rise residential blocks were damaged along with a school and hospital, regional Governor Volodymyr Artiukh said. Ukraine’s Public Prosecutor’s Office said 17 minors were among the injured. A Ukrainian artillery strike killed six people, including three journalists, in eastern Ukraine’s Russian-occupied Luhansk region, the region’s Russian-installed governor, Leonid Pasechnik, said. A 14-year-old child was also killed in the attack, according to Pasechnik. The attack killed a journalist from Russia’s Izvestia media outlet, Alexander Fedorchak, as well as camera operator Andrei Panov and driver Alexander Sirkeli working for Russian state television channel Zvezda, according to Pasechnik. Zvezda said another correspondent, Nikita Goldin, had been seriously wounded in the attack. Russian news agencies quoted security sources as saying the strike had been carried out by a HIMARS missile supplied to Ukraine by the US. Figures from the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine show that 18 Ukrainian and foreign reporters have been killed on assignment during the war. Another 10 journalists have been killed by bombs or shelling while not at work. More than 80 media employees have been killed while serving in the Ukrainian military. The Ukrainian military said its forces destroyed four Russian military helicopters stationed near the border. The aircraft hit were two Mi-8 transport helicopters and two Ka-52 combat helicopters, it said. The media office of a Ukrainian special forces unit published images said to show a HIMARS multiple rocket launcher attacking helicopters stationed on an airfield in the Russian border region of Belgorod. Advertisement A powerful cyberattack knocked out the online ticketing system for Ukraine’s state railway service, causing long queues at stations in what Kyiv officials said looked like a Russian attempt to “destabilise” the situation. The Ukrainian rail company, which has grappled with Russian missile strikes at various points during the war, did not explicitly say who it thought was behind the attack. Politics and diplomacy The Kremlin confirmed that Russian President Vladimir Putin gifted US President Donald Trump a portrait he commissioned of the US president. Putin gave the painting to Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, in Moscow earlier this month, the Russian president’s spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, said in a response to a journalist’s question, declining further comment. President Trump said that a strategic raw materials deal with Ukraine is likely to be agreed upon shortly. Trump said US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had told him that the rare earth minerals agreement with Ukraine was as good as finalised. “They’ll sign it shortly,” Trump said. Regional security At the meeting of British and French military chiefs in London, Admiral Tony Radakin, the head of the UK’s armed forces, said Europe’s two nuclear powers were “stepping up to forge a stronger and deeper partnership” after a meeting his French counterpart, General Thierry Burkhard. The two chiefs discussed efforts to “galvanise” the European response to the situation in Ukraine. Austria’s DSN domestic intelligence agency said it had uncovered an extensive Russian disinformation campaign centred around a Bulgarian national accused of spying and disseminating false information about Ukraine. The DSN said the woman had acknowledged working on behalf of Russia, especially in 2022 when Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, to turn public opinion in favour of Russia and against Kyiv. Russia has started planned exercises involving its Yars intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), the state-run RIA news agency reports, citing the Russian Defence Ministry. The Yars ICBM regiments in Sverdlovsk and Altai regions “will be deployed to field positions”, according to the ministry. Advertisement Sanctions A group of Republican and Democratic US senators has written a letter to push the Trump administration to transfer – and push allies to transfer – more than $300bn of seized Russian assets to help Ukraine, and not just use the debt’s interest to support Kyiv. The letter was described as a rare example of senior Republicans publicly pressing the Trump administration to be tougher with Moscow. The Czech Republic should finally stop receiving Russian oil supplies through the Druzhba pipeline, the country’s industry minister, Lukas Vlcek, said. The minister said the final decision lies with the refinery operator Orlen Unipetrol, which has been under Polish ownership since 2005. No Russian oil has been flowing through the Druzhba pipeline to the Czech Republic since March 4 because of payment problems due to the US sanctions imposed on Russian banks. Adblock test (Why?)
US to meet Ukraine again in Riyadh after talks with Russian delegation
United States officials are set to meet with their Ukrainian counterparts again after a round of talks with Russian negotiators on a partial ceasefire in Ukraine. A senior Ukrainian official told the AFP news agency that the meeting would be held later on Monday after US and Russian delegations wrap up their day’s talks in Saudi Arabia’s capital Riyadh. Monday’s US-Russia talks were primarily focused on ending attacks on Black Sea shipping, with a view to ushering in a broader ceasefire agreement that would bring an end to the three-year Russia-Ukraine war. US officials had already met the Ukrainian team on Sunday to discuss the protection of civilian and energy infrastructure, said Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov, who led the delegation and called the talks “productive”. Reporting from Kyiv, Al Jazeera’s Assed Baig said Ukraine was now keen to see Russia agree to a deal that would protect Black Sea shipping, particularly “the cessation of shelling of Ukrainian ports Odesa, Kherson and Mykolaiv”. Advertisement “Now that’s been a major concern for the Ukrainians. Ukraine really wants their ports operating and running and that’s why initially they proposed a ceasefire on air and sea,” said Baig. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed on Monday that US and Russian officials were discussing the possible resumption of the 2022 Black Sea Grain Initiative, an agreement that was supposed to allow Ukraine to ship millions of tonnes of grain and other food exports from its ports. Moscow pulled out of the initiative – brokered by Turkey and the United Nations – in 2023, accusing the West of failing to uphold its commitments to ease sanctions on Russia’s own exports of farm produce and fertilisers. No breakthrough expected “Nobody is holding their breath here expecting any breakthroughs. Even the spokesperson of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, said there are no expectations for a breakthrough in Riyadh on Monday”, said Al Jazeera’s Dorsa Jabbari, reporting from Moscow. “What is expected is that they are going to hammer out details of what Russia is asking for. The Russian delegation has been talking to the US official for at least the past eight hours, as we understand it, about the details on a 30-day ceasefire agreement when it comes to energy and infrastructure, and also the Black Sea initiative”, she added. Oleksiy Melnyk, co-director of Foreign Relations and International Security Programmes at Ukraine’s Razumkov Centre think tank, said the length of the negotiations pointed to the Russian side once again making “more and more” requests and demands. Advertisement Speaking to Al Jazeera from Kyiv, he said there was “zero trust between the two sides” and no “possibility for direct talks” between Moscow and Kyiv. Melnyk said the US could increase its pressure on the Ukrainian government, but noted: “If there are no prospects or interest on the Russian side except capitulation of Ukraine, what is the reason for Ukraine to engage in such negotiations?” Maximalist demands The focus on the Black Sea is a much narrower one than a broad 30-day ceasefire agreement that the US proposed to Russia in Saudi Arabia earlier this month. Last week, after separate phone calls with US President Donald Trump, both Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy agreed to a 30-day limited ceasefire, pledging not to attack energy infrastructure in each other’s territories. But both sides have accused the other of carrying out attacks on those specific energy targets in recent days. The Kremlin said on Monday that Russia was still abiding by the moratorium that Putin had promised Trump, despite Kyiv continuing to strike Russian energy facilities. Ukraine, which said it would only agree to the pause if a formal document was signed, has accused Moscow of flouting its own moratorium. Nevertheless, Trump has expressed broad satisfaction over the way talks have been going and has been complimentary about Putin’s engagement in the process so far, saying on Saturday that efforts to stop further escalation in the conflict were “somewhat under control”. Advertisement But there is scepticism among major European powers over whether Putin is ready to make meaningful concessions or will stick to what they see as his maximalist demands. Putin says he is ready to discuss peace but that Ukraine must officially drop its NATO ambitions and withdraw its troops from the entirety of the territory of four Ukrainian regions claimed and mostly controlled by Russia. Continued attacks Monday’s talks came after Russia launched its third consecutive overnight air attack on Kyiv, wounding one person and damaging houses in the region around the Ukrainian capital. Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Russia must stop its strikes instead of “making hollow statements about peace” in the wake of a Russian missile attack on the northeastern city Sumy in a “residential neighbourhood”. The attack injured at least 74 people, including 13 children, damaging a school and a hospital, according to the regional governor. “Any diplomacy with Moscow must be backed up by firepower, sanctions and pressure”, Sybiha said on X. Russia, for its part, said it had downed 227 Ukrainian drones in the last 24 hours, as firefighters in its southern Krasnodar region battled for a fifth day to put out a blaze at an oil depot struck in a Ukrainian drone attack last week. The Russian Defence Ministry claimed on Monday that Ukraine conducted two drone strikes on the Valuika gas distribution station in the Belgorod region on Saturday. Additionally, it said Ukrainian forces had attempted to attack the Glebovskoye gas condensate field in Crimea on Sunday, but that Russian air defences had repelled the assault. Advertisement Adblock test (Why?)
HIV and AIDS deaths could increase globally amid US aid freeze, UN says
US President Donald Trump put almost all US foreign aid on hold upon taking office. There could be 2,000 new HIV infections a day across the world and a tenfold increase in related deaths, possibly in the millions in the years to come, if funding frozen by the United States is not restored or replaced, the United Nations AIDS agency has said. US President Donald Trump put almost all US foreign aid on hold upon taking office on January 20. Days later, the US Department of State said life-saving HIV work under the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) would continue. But the disruption to health funding and the impact on broader services were having a devastating impact on people living with HIV/AIDS, UNAIDS executive director Winnie Byanyima told reporters in Geneva on Monday. “This sudden withdrawal of US funding has been shutting down many clinics, laying off thousands of health workers … All this means that we expect to see new infections rising. UNAIDS has estimated that we could see 2,000 new infections every day,” she said. She added that if funding from the US Agency for International Development (USAID) did not resume at the end of the 90-day pause, in April, or was not replaced by another government, “there will be, in the next four years, an additional 6.3 million AIDS deaths.” Advertisement “We’ll see it come back, and we’ll see people die the way we saw them in the ’90s and in the 2000s,” she said. Byanyima said the figures were based on UN modelling, but did not give more details on how the estimates had been reached. According to the latest data, there were 600,000 AIDS-related deaths globally in 2023. UNAIDS, which coordinates the global response to preventing and treating HIV/AIDS, received $50m in core funding last year from the US, representing 35 percent of the UN agency’s budget. The Trump administration has said the funding was frozen to ensure it was in line with the president’s “America First” policy. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has dismissed concerns that Washington is ending foreign aid, saying waivers had been provided for life-saving services. Trump’s team members say they have saved US taxpayers tens of billions of dollars through rapid-fire moves to cancel contracts, fire workers and root out fraud and waste in the government, although they have offered little evidence to support that assertion. Adblock test (Why?)
Turkiye detains over 1,100 as Erdogan blames ‘evil’ opposition for protests
Despite the crackdown, opposition activists promise to ‘not back down’, urging more people to take to streets. Turkish police have detained 1,113 people across the country over five days of protests as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan blames the main opposition party for the unrest sparked by the detention of his main political rival. Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya confirmed the total number of arrests on Monday after a fifth night of the largest anti-government protests the country has seen in more than a decade. They started after Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu was arrested on Wednesday and charged with corruption, aiding the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), and leading a criminal organisation. Speaking in Ankara on Monday, Erdogan slammed the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) for starting a “movement of violence”, adding that its “show” would eventually end and it would feel ashamed for the “evil” it did to the country. Reporting from Istanbul, Al Jazeera’s Aksel Zaimovic said the arrests had not dimmed the opposition’s resolve. “They say they are not backing down. In fact, they are encouraging more people to come and join the rally that’s scheduled in a few hours from now. Advertisement “They are saying they should boycott what they perceive to be pro-government media, all the media outlets that are not covering these protests, but also companies that have ties with government,” he said. Imamoglu is widely seen as the only politician who could pose a significant challenge to Erdogan, who has dominated Turkiye’s politics since 2003, first as prime minister and then as president. The Turkish government denies that the arrest of Imamoglu was politically motivated, insisting that the nation’s courts are independent. On Sunday, 53-year-old Imamoglu was stripped of his mayoral title and jailed in Silivri Prison on the outskirts of Istanbul pending trial on corruption charges that he denies. A further charge of “terrorism” was dismissed for the time being. That same day, he was overwhelmingly voted in as the CHP’s candidate for the 2028 presidential election with about 15 million people casting their ballots in a show of support for him. The demonstrations began in Istanbul after Imamoglu’s arrest, spreading to more than 55 of Turkiye’s 81 provinces. Protesters have clashed with riot police who have deployed tear gas and water cannon. Despite bans on street gatherings in many cities, the antigovernment demonstrations continued for a fifth consecutive night on Sunday with fierce clashes between protesters and riot police. Before dawn on Monday, police detained 10 Turkish journalists at home, according to the Media and Law Studies Association rights group. Detained journalists’ police statements completed, expected to be sent to the courthouse tomorrow On the morning of March 24, at least 10 journalists were detained in dawn raids in Istanbul and Izmir. The statements of the detained journalists have been completed and they are… pic.twitter.com/c949nEbvpg — MLSA (@mlsaturkey) March 24, 2025 Advertisement On Monday, young protesters held a rally next to the Besiktas port on the Bosphorus in Istanbul before the main nightly rally outside city hall, scheduled for 17:30 GMT. Yerlikaya said 123 police officers had been injured during the protests so far, adding that the government would not allow “terrorising of the streets”. Adblock test (Why?)
Canada election 2025: What you need to know
Montreal, Canada – Canadians will be heading to the polls next month for a federal election taking place in the shadow of a trade war with the United States. Prime Minister Mark Carney on Sunday triggered the vote as he seeks to build on his Liberal Party’s momentum since the start of the year. Experts say Canada-US ties – and a push for strong leadership to counter US President Donald Trump’s tariffs and annexation threats against the country – will dominate the five-week election race. Here’s a look at what you need to know about Canada’s election. When is the election? The parliamentary election will take place on Monday, April 28. Under Canadian election rules, federal campaign periods must be at least 37 days long but no more than 51 days. With Carney triggering the vote on Sunday and Election Day set for April 28, this year’s campaign will be the shortest allowable by law. Carney won the Liberal Party leadership race and became prime minister in March [Evan Buhler/Reuters] How does the election work? Canada has 343 federal electoral districts, which are known as ridings. Advertisement Eligible voters can cast a ballot for their preferred candidate in the riding in which they reside. The country has a first-past-the-post election system, which means that the candidate who secures the most votes in the riding wins – even if they don’t win a majority of the votes. They will then take up their respective seats in Canada’s lower house of Parliament, the House of Commons. Who will be the next prime minister? Under Canada’s parliamentary system, the party that wins the most seats in the House of Commons will typically be asked to form a government. If a party gets the most seats but not enough for an outright majority, it seeks to form an agreement with another party – or parties – to be able to pass legislation. The leader of the single largest party also becomes prime minister; Canadians do not vote directly for prime minister. Poilievre has been the leader of the Conservative Party since 2022 [Patrick Doyle/Reuters] What parties are in the running? Canada has four major federal political parties. The Liberals have been in government since 2015 and had 152 seats in Parliament at dissolution. The party was previously led by Justin Trudeau, who formally stepped down as prime minister on March 14 to allow Carney to take up the post. The Conservative Party served as Canada’s official opposition, with 120 seats in the previous Parliament. The party is led by Pierre Poilievre, an Ottawa-area legislator known for his populist rhetoric. The left-leaning New Democratic Party (NDP), led by Jagmeet Singh, had 24 parliamentary seats before the campaign was launched. The NDP had previously been propping up a Trudeau-led Liberal minority government but withdrew from that deal in September of last year. Advertisement The Bloc Quebecois – which only runs candidates in the French-speaking province of Quebec – had 33 legislators in the House of Commons. They are led by Yves-Francois Blanchet. Apart from the four big parties, there is also the Green Party of Canada, which had two seats in Parliament at dissolution but is not expected to make any major gains in the upcoming vote. Jagmeet Singh’s NDP had 24 parliamentary seats at dissolution [Patrick Doyle/Reuters] What do the polls say? Until as recently as January, the Conservatives had what many believed to be a clear path to winning a parliamentary majority. But Trump’s threats against Canada, coupled with Trudeau’s decision to resign and Carney’s rise as the new leader of the Liberal Party, have changed things: Most recent polls now suggest the Liberals either with a lead over the Tories, or locked in a neck-and-neck fight with their rivals. The CBC News Poll Tracker, which aggregates national polling data, had the Liberals with 37.5 percent support compared with 37.1 percent for the Conservatives on Sunday. The NDP was in third with 11.6 percent, followed by the Bloc Quebecois at 6.4 percent. The Greens had 3.8 percent. “The Liberals and Conservatives are effectively tied in national polls with the New Democrats trailing in a distant third place,” CBC reported as the election race began. “The Liberals would likely win the most seats, and potentially a majority government, if the election were held today due to the more efficient distribution of their support across the country.” Bloc Quebecois leader Yves-Francois Blanchet speaks to reporters in Ottawa [Carlos Osorio/Reuters] What issues will dominate the race? Opposition parties – including, most notably, Poilievre and the Conservatives – had hoped the 2025 election would centre on affordability issues, such as soaring grocery and housing costs. Advertisement But Trump’s tariffs and threats to make Canada into the US’s “51st state” have upended the conversation. Experts now say the central “ballot question” in the election campaign will be which party is best equipped to handle Trump and manage Canada-US ties. Canada’s main political party leaders have acknowledged Canadians’ concerns over Trump’s policies, promising to stand up for the country’s sovereignty. Adblock test (Why?)