News / News Bulletin

French rail workers begin strike over working conditions

Wednesday, 01 June 2016 2:11 PM [ Last Update: Wednesday, 01 June 2016 2:11 PM ]

Striking employees of the railway operator SNCF gather outside the Lyon Perrache railway station, on June 1, 2016 during a strike against the government-proposed labor reforms. © AFP

Here is a round-up of global news developments:

A Saudi court has reportedly sentenced 14 people to death for carrying out terror attacks in the Shia-populated area of Qatif. In January, Saudi Arabia executed prominent Shia Muslim cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr and 46 others over terror-related charges. The execution of Sheikh Nimr drew widespread criticism from the international community.
A temporary ceasefire has been introduced in Daraya, a suburb on the south-west of the Syrian capital, Damascus. According to the Russian defense ministry, the 48-hour truce has gone into effect since June first. This will allow civilians trapped in the flashpoint area to be supplied with humanitarian aid.
At least 15 civilians have reportedly been killed in US-led airstrikes in northern Syria. The deaths come as thousands of mainly Kurdish fighters are taking part in a US-led offensive to liberate the city of Manbij. The operation aims to cut off Daesh access to the city along the Turkish border.
The United Nations Children's Fund has warned about the dire situation of more than 20,000 children trapped in Iraq’s Daesh-held city of Fallujah. The UNICEF representative in Iraq says the children may be forced into terrorist recruitment camps, or get separated from their families if they manage to leave the city.
Israeli forces have detained dozens of Palestinians after raiding their homes in the occupied Jerusalem al-Quds. Palestinian news agency MA’AN has put the number of arrests at 30. It says the forces broke into several houses and damaged property before making the arrests.
More than 2,000 Palestinian children have been killed by the Israeli regime over the past sixteen years. The Palestinian Ministry of Media says over six times that number have been wounded during the same period. The report also says around 12,000 others were detained by the Israeli regime.
French nationals are facing travel chaos amid an open-ended rail strike across the country. This is the railway workers’ eighth strike in three months. They are protesting against work time changes but their industrial action comes amid country-wide unrest over a controversial labor reforms bill.
Thousands of people have rallied across Peru to oppose the presidential candidacy of Keiko Fujimori days before the runoff contest. Fujimori’s critics view her as a threat to democracy. She has sought to counter her critics by pledging not to revive the hard-line methods of her father former president Alberto Fujimori.