British consulate employee detained for 'solicitation of prostitution,' Chinese state-run newspaper reports - CNN

Simon Cheng Man-kit, 28, was detained in the border city of Shenzhen, the report said.

China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed Wednesday that Cheng had been detained by police for 15 days under a sweeping security law, but did not specify a reason -- the law cited for his detention applies to numerous broad offenses.

Police in Shenzen's Luohu district said Cheng had violated article 66 of the law on administrative penalties for public security, according to Global Times.

The law stipulates that people who engage in prostitution or visit prostitutes shall be detained for no less than 10 days but no more than 15 days, and may also be fined 5,000 yuan ($705).

Cheng has not been heard from since August 8, when he told his girlfriend he had boarded a high-speed train, traveling from the Chinese city of Shenzhen to Hong Kong. "Pray for me," he texted her as he approached Chinese immigration, according to screenshots seen by CNN.

The train between the two cities only passes through one immigration checkpoint: West Kowloon station, shared by both China and Hong Kong on the tip of the territory's northern peninsula.

Annie Li, Cheng's girlfriend, declined to comment on the charges Thursday.

Responding to the new details on Cheng's detention, a British Foreign and Commonwealth Office spokesperson told CNN: "We continue to urgently seek further information about Simon's case. Neither we nor Simon's family have been able to speak to him since his detention.

"That is our priority and we continue to raise Simon's case repeatedly in China, Hong Kong and London and have sought to make contact with Simon himself," the foreign office spokesperson added.

Friends of Cheng fear his detention could have been linked to recent pro-democracy protests, noting that he had shared pro-democracy images on social media and had voiced support for the city's ongoing protest movement.

His detention comes amid reports Chinese immigration officials are regularly searching travelers' phones and bags as they cross the border for evidence they have taken part in protests.

CNN has reached out to Shenzhen police and is awaiting comment.

Global Times, which is published in both Chinese and English, is known for its nationalistic coverage. Like all state media outlets in China, it operates within a heavily censored environment that is tightly controlled by Communist authorities.

CNN's James Griffiths contributed to this report.

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2019-08-22 13:12:00Z
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Donald Trump proclaims himself 'the chosen one' - The Sun

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2019-08-22 09:18:16Z
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Boris Johnson to find Irish border solution in 30 days - The Sun

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2019-08-21 17:04:36Z
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Hong Kong protesters mark one month since mob attack with sit-in demo - CNN

On July 21, after a demonstration in downtown Hong Kong against a now-shelved extradition bill was broken up by police, protesters returning to Yuen Long were attacked by a mob wielding iron bars and bamboo sticks.

Footage of the attack posted on social media showed the marauding masked gang, wearing white T-shirts, attacking crowds on the platform and inside train carriages at Yuen Long MTR station, located in the far northwest of the semi-autonomous Chinese city.

Protesters were reportedly at the mercy of the mob for almost an hour before police arrived and at least 45 people were injured, some seriously.

Hong Kong police confirmed at a news conference on Tuesday that while there have been 28 arrests made stemming from the July 21 violence, none have yet been charged.

On Wednesday evening the Hong Kong government said in a statement that activists had blocked roads outside the station and that after "repeated warnings to the protesters went futile, police are now conducting a dispersal operation, using minimum force."

Hong Kong has been beset by a major political crisis, with last weekend marking the 11th consecutive weekend of mass demonstrations, first sparked by widespread opposition to a controversial bill that would enable China to extradite fugitives from the city.

While that bill isn't currently on the table, the demonstrations have since grown, with protesters expanding their demands for full democracy and police accountability.

While the demonstrations began fairly peacefully in March, clashes between police and demonstrators have marred recent demonstrations with tear gas, alleged police brutality, and angry confrontations at the fore of the protests.

CNN's AnneClaire Stapleton, Julia Hollingsworth and Tara John contributed to this report.

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2019-08-21 16:51:00Z
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US military drone shot down over Yemen - New York Post

A US military drone has been shot down over Yemen by a surface-to-air missile — the second downing of an American unmanned aerial vehicle in the country in recent months.

The MQ-9 Reaper drone was downed in Yemen’s Dhamar governate, southeast of the Houthi-controlled capital, Sanaa, on Tuesday night, two US officials told Reuters on Wednesday.

Washington believes the missile was provided to Houthi rebels by Iran, a US official told CNN, adding that it was not immediately clear if the drone was being operated by the US military or the intelligence community.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saria said the rocket that downed the drone “was developed locally.”

“Our skies are no longer open to violations as they once were and the coming days will see great surprises,” he added.

This is not the first time an American drone has been shot down in Yemen. In June, the US military said Houthi rebels had downed a US government-operated Reaper drone with help from Iran.

And Tehran also acknowledged earlier this year that the Revolutionary Guard Corps had shot down an American RQ-4A Global Hawk drone, insisting that it was shot down over Iranian territory. The US said the drone was in international airspace when it was brought down.

President Trump said he called off a counterstrike against Iran due to what he said would have been a high death toll.

US forces have occasionally launched airstrikes and drone attacks against Yemen’s al Qaeda branch, which has taken advantage of a four-year-old war between the Houthi movement and President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi’s Saudi-backed government to try to strengthen its position in the poor country.

Tuesday’s shoot-down comes as tensions between Iran and the US have mounted since the Trump administration last year quit an international deal to curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions and began to ratchet up sanctions.

Iranian officials denounced the new penalties as “economic warfare.”

On Wednesday, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Tehran may act “unpredictably” in response to the United States‘ “unpredictable” policies under Trump.

Also on Wednesday, Human Rights Watch said the Saudi-led coalition carried out at least five deadly attacks on Yemeni fishing boats last year, killing at least 47 Yemeni fishermen, including seven children.

The New York-based group added that more than 100 Yemeni fishermen are being held in Saudi Arabia, some of whom have been tortured in custody.

There was no immediate response by the coalition to the allegations by the group, which said it interviewed “survivors, witnesses, and knowledgeable sources about seven fishing boat attacks: six in 2018 and one in 2016.”

Civilians died in five attacks carried out with small arms and heavy weapons.

It said the fishermen waved white cloths, raised their hands, or otherwise showed they posed no threat. In three attacks, coalition forces did not try to rescue survivors, many of whom drowned.

The group said the Saudi-led coalition officials who ordered or carried out the attacks or tortured detainees “are most likely responsible for war crimes.”

“The naval attacks on Yemeni fishing boats make it clear that the Saudi-led coalition is not only killing civilians through countless illegal airstrikes, but also while conducting operations at sea,” said Priyanka Motaparthy, HRW’s acting emergencies director.

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2019-08-21 15:13:00Z
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US drone shot down over Yemen - CNN

The US believes the missile was provided to Houthi rebels by Iran, said the official, who added that it was not immediately clear if the drone was being operated by the US military or the intelligence community.

The official said the Trump administration will publicly call out Iran for the incident, which was first reported by Reuters.

Houthi rebels claimed its air defenses shot down the drone south of Yemen's capital, Sanaa. A Houthi spokesman said the missile was "developed locally" and will be revealed at a press conference.

The downing of a US drone by Iran in June nearly led to a US military strike, with President Donald Trump calling off the attack minutes before it was to take place due to what he said would have been a high death toll. The US claimed the drone was in international airspace over the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most vital shipping routes, while Iran said the drone was over its territory.

Tensions between Washington and Tehran have run high as the Trump administration has taken a hard stance against the longtime US foe. Since the decision by Trump in 2018 to abandon the Iran nuclear deal, Washington has attempted to use what it calls "maximum pressure" to change Iran's behavior and limit its nuclear ambitions.

On Tuesday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned against ending an arms embargo amid increasing efforts by Washington to restrict Iran's oil exports. The arms embargo was put in place by the UN and is set to be lifted five years after the adoption of the nuclear deal.

This story is breaking and will be updated.

CNN's Hamdi Alkshali contributed to this report.

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2019-08-21 12:21:00Z
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Italy's Premier Resigns In Fight Within His Coalition Government - NPR

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Italian Premier Giuseppe Conte (right) speaks to the Senate on Tuesday next to Deputy Premier Matteo Salvini. Gregorio Borgia/AP hide caption

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Italian Premier Giuseppe Conte has announced that his resignation amid political chaos and jockeying for power within his own coalition.

In a scathing speech to the Senate, Conte railed against his right-wing coalition partner, Deputy Premier Matteo Salvini. Conte is an independent. His coalition includes the anti-establishment Five Star Movement and Salvini's party, the League, which is staunchly anti-migrant and euroskeptic. Conte's government has held power for some 14 months.

Salvini's party said earlier this month that it planned to hold a no-confidence vote against Conte. On Tuesday, Conte accused Salvini of showing "grave contempt" for parliament, and accused him of putting Italy into a possible "dizzying spiral of political and financial instability," as The Associated Press reported.

He said Salvini initiated the crisis "for his own political and personal gain," as NPR's Sylvia Poggioli reported from Rome.

Italian President Sergio Mattarella will be the one to determine what happens next in Italy's political crisis. Mattarella will talk with parliamentary groups and decide whether a new coalition government can be formed or if elections will have to be held. They weren't scheduled for another three and a half years.

Some reports have suggested that the Five Star Movement might try to find an unlikely alliance with the center-left opposition Democratic Party. Poggioli describes them as "dire rivals" and says they're "on opposite sides of many issues."

It's clear that Salvini is hoping that he emerges from the chaos as Prime Minister, Poggioli reports, though the possible alliance of rivals would sorely complicate that ambition.

Ultimately, Poggioli notes, "this is the end of Italy's most hard line nationalist and populist government since World War II."

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2019-08-20 19:58:00Z
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