News Headlines - 10 August 2018
▽Colombia to withdraw from Unasur; South America split over Venezuela
Colombia’s foreign Minister Carlos Holmes announced Friday that his country is withdrawing from Unasur, the union of South American countries after months of division between member states.
The country suspended its membership in April after months of infighting on the worsening situation in neighboring Venezuela and the succession of Colombian ex-President Ernesto Samper as the South American union’s president.
The bloc was founded in 2008 to promote regional integration and diminish US influence in South America. Political divisions, however, had virtually paralyzed the organization.
▽Turkish lira hits record lows as Turkey-U.S. concerns weigh | Reuters
Turkey’s lira tumbled to another record low against the dollar on Thursday after a Turkish delegation returned from meeting U.S. officials in Washington with no apparent solution to a diplomatic rift that has opened up between them... The lira stood at 5.5575 against the dollar at 1724 GMT, down 5 from the previous day’s close and after sliding to an all-time low of 5.5690. It was headed for its biggest one-day drop since 2008.
▽Ryanair strike hits 55,000 passengers across Europe | Reuters
Ryanair endured its worst one-day strike on Friday after a walk-out by pilots in five European countries disrupted the plans of an estimated 55,000 travelers with the budget airline at the height of the summer holiday season.
Ryanair, which averted widespread strikes before last Christmas by agreeing to recognize unions for the first time in its 30-year history, has been unable to quell rising protests over slow progress in negotiating collective labor agreements.
In response to unions serving strike notices, Ryanair had announced the cancellations of 250 flights in and out of Germany, 104 to and from Belgium and another 42 in Sweden and its home market of Ireland, where around a quarter of its pilots were staging their fifth 24-hour walkout.
▽Michael Moore's Trump Documentary 'Fahrenheit 11/9' Due in September: Watch the Trailer | Billboard
Michael Moore’s Donald Trump critique Fahrenheit 11/9 will premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival before hitting theaters September 21.
Moore unveiled the first look at this latest documentary Thursday, releasing a trailer online. The title is an inversion of his 2004 George W. Bush documentary, Fahrenheit 9/11, which became the highest grossing documentary ever with $222.4 million in worldwide box office. The date refers to when Trump was declared winner of the 2016 election: November 9th.
Taiwan-controlled Quemoy island has started importing water from nearby Fujian province to ease its shortage, despite rising tensions across the strait.
Also known as Kinmen, officials from the island – which is just 2km from the mainland Chinese city of Xiamen and was a flashpoint during the cold war – signed an agreement with Fujian in 2015 to provide water for 30 years to resolve the problem.
