WATCH PRESS TV NEWS HEADLINES

Here is a brief look at Press TV newsroom's headlines from 1800 GMT, December 20, 2018 to 0800 GMT, December 21, 2018.

Pentagon chief quits

US President Donald Trump says Defense Secretary James Mattis will leave his job at the end of February 2019. In a tweet, Trump hailed the Pentagon chief’s efforts saying he will retire with distinction. The US president added that he would nominate a successor to Mattis shortly. In his resignation letter, Mattis said he was stepping down so Trump could have a defense chief whose views align more closely with his own. This comes a day after Trump said American forces will withdraw from Syria. Mattis and the president's other top national security advisers opposed the decision. In October, Trump said Mattis is a sort of Democrat who might be leaving his post.

US government shutdown

A senior US lawmaker says President Donald Trump has made it clear that he’s ready for a government shutdown if Congress doesn’t fund his wall on the southern border. Trump has told lawmakers that he won’t sign a stopgap spending bill passed by the Senate to keep the government running until a permanent agreement. Trump is demanding five billion dollars for the wall on the Mexico border. Key government agencies will run out of funds on Friday. Democrats have said they will not fund Trump’s wall. Fears of a shutdown sent US stocks crashing. The Dow Jones lost about 2 percent. US stocks are on pace for their biggest December decline since 1931, the depths of the Great Depression.

Spain politics

Pro-independence protesters take to streets in Barcelona as Spain's Premier Pedro Sanchez meets Catalan leader Quim Torra. Sanchez is on a two-day visit to the Catalan capital, and will hold his weekly cabinet meeting there on Friday. The socialist prime minister is trying to help resolve a long-running political conflict over the region’s independence drive. But many independence campaigners are unhappy with Sanchez’ presence in Catalonia. They claim Madrid’s choice of meeting in Barcelona a year after it took control of Catalonia is deliberate and provocative. Jailed Catalan independence leaders have even called for peaceful demonstrations. National police have been deployed in Barcelona amid fears that the protests may turn violent.

US immigration policy

The US administration is to force people seeking asylum to stay in Mexico while their asylum requests are processed. US officials announced a partnership between Washington and Mexico City under which migrants must remain in Mexico before they are given reply. The officials said under the agreement between the two countries, "catch and release" policy will now be replaced with "catch and return". Mexican government says it reaffirms its sovereign right to admit or reject the entry of foreigners into its territory. Immigrant advocates and human rights experts quickly slammed the policy change as illegal and a violation of the rights of refugees.

Hungary labor law

The Hungarian president has signed into law a labor reform after week-long protests by workers and the opposition. In a statement, Janos Ader said the reform does not violate Hungary’s constitution and will safeguard workers’ rights. Ader reassured Hungarian workers that they will be informed about any overtime in advance. Hungary’s opposition parties and workers have threatened to stage fresh rallies against what they call the government’s slave laws. The protests broke out last week after the country’s parliament, controlled by the rightwing ruling party, passed a pair of laws that force workers to work hundreds of additional hours a year.

Macron concessions

The French National Assembly has passed a package of emergency concessions in an attempt to end violent anti-government protests in the country. The package includes tax cuts for a majority of pensioners and tax-free overtime pay for all workers. The concessions should now be approved by the Senate. The move came after President Emmanuel Macron promised to respond to the protesters’ demand, saying his government had cancelled plans to increase fuel tax, and gas and electricity prices during the winter. People have been holding mass rallies across France over the past consecutive weekends to protest Macron’s economic policies. Nearly ten people have lost their lives and hundreds sustained injuries since the beginning of the so-called Yellow Vest protests on November 17.

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