News Headlines - 12 Septeber 2020
▽Taro Kono says Japan could face snap election in October | The Japan Times
Defense Minister Taro Kono said Wednesday that he is expecting a snap general election, possibly in October, after a successor to outgoing Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is selected next week.
"We expect an early general election, probably sometime in October, or maybe in October," Kono said during an online event with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, adding that Japan will then be "ready" for the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, which were postponed to next summer due to the coronavirus pandemic.
▽Five North Koreans executed for criticising Kim Jong-un's economic policies - Mirror Online
North Korea executed five government officials after they spoke out against the regime's economic policies, it has been reported.
All five Economic Ministry employees were shot by firing squad on July 30 after details of their conversations emerged at a dinner party and were reported back to their bosses, according to DailyNK... In addition, it is said their families were transferred to a political prison camp (station 15) in Yodeok, Hamgyeongnam-do - one of the nation's most notorious sites for political dissidents.
Two former prime ministers warn that tearing up part of the withdrawal agreement will jeopardise peace in Northern Ireland, make it harder to negotiate trade deals and destroy trust in Britain
▽Shetlanders move towards independence from Scotland | The Times
It is a Scottish push for independence but not one that will go down well with Nicola Sturgeon, the first minister of Scotland. The Shetlands, the most northerly part of the United Kingdom, have voted decisively to look at declaring independence from Edinburgh and London.
Councillors there overwhelmingly backed a motion to find ways of achieving “financial and political self-determination”. The islands, famous for their ponies, sheepdogs and woolly jumpers, have a population of just over 20,000. The archipelago also contains the Sullom Voe oil and gas terminal, as well as oil fields and lucrative fishing waters.
▽World's wildlife populations in devastating decline warns WWF report - CNN
The world's wildlife populations have fallen by an average of 68% in just over four decades, with human consumption behind the devastating decline, the World Wildlife Fund warned in a new report released Wednesday.
The Living Planet Report 2020 assessed the population declines seen in more than 4,392 monitored species of mammals, birds, fish, reptiles and amphibians between 1970 and 2016... The regions of Latin America and the Caribbean are the world's worst-affected areas, with an average drop of 94%, the report said.
