News Headlines - 25 February 2018
▽Dutch parliament recognizes 1915 Armenian ′genocide′ | DW
The Dutch parliament has overwhelmingly voted to recognize the World War I massacre of Armenians as genocide, in a vote that may stoke further tensions with Turkey... As the successor state to the Ottoman Empire, Turkey denies that the World War I-era deaths amounted to genocide and has lashed out at countries that have officially recognized the term.
▽Venezuela Opposition Will Boycott Election, and Maduro Tightens His Hold - The New York Times
Venezuela’s alliance of opposition parties declared on Wednesday that it would boycott the coming presidential election, saying the electoral system was rigged in favor of President Nicolás Maduro and his United Socialist Party of Venezuela.
The decision effectively cleared a path for Mr. Maduro’s re-election to another six-year term and threw the future of the nation’s political opposition, deeply weakened by recent election losses and internal fractures, further into doubt.
China will remove the constitutional restriction on the maximum number of terms the president and vice-president can serve, Xinhua reported on Sunday, paving the way for President Xi Jinping to stay on beyond 2023.
In a brief report, the official news agency said the ruling Communist Party had proposed to remove the line that the president and vice-president “shall serve no more than two consecutive terms” from the constitution.
▽North Korea condemns U.S. sanctions as officials gather for Olympic ceremony
North Korea on Sunday accused the United States of provoking confrontation on the Korean peninsula with new sanctions, while South Korean protesters tried to block North Korean officials reaching the closing ceremony of the Winter Olympics.
▽Eve Muirhead devastated as Britain's curlers end up empty-handed | The Guardian
Britain’s skip, Eve Muirhead, has admitted her devastation after missing a makable shot to secure a women’s curling bronze, which would have been Team GB’s sixth medal of the Winter Olympics. Instead she inadvertently pushed Japan’s stone into position to allow her opponents to win 5-3.
It was a nervy and conservatively played affair, with little between the teams going into final end. Japan had a 4-3 lead but that was balanced by Britain having the hammer. With one stone remaining, Muirhead had one in hand – and what looked like a good chance to go for two shots and the victory. Instead she threw it too wide and hard and, as Japan’s curlers shed tears of joy, Muirhead kicked a stone in frustration as she left the ice.
