Stories for August 8th 2018

Wednesday, August 8th 2018 - 10:08 UTC
EU’s Blocking Statute enters in force to protect EU companies doing business with Iran

European foreign affairs chiefs have pledged to protect firms against the impact of US sanctions for doing business with Iran. An EU “blocking statute” took effect on Tuesday to nullify US legal action against European firms in connection with Iran.
Wednesday, August 8th 2018 - 09:50 UTC
UK farmers call to make food security a priority for a post Brexit scenario

British farmers have called on the government to make food security a top priority on the day the country’s cupboards would run bare if households relied only on British produce. A long-term decline in self-sufficiency that has stagnated at around 60% in recent years means around three quarters of the shortfall is imported from the rest of the European Union.
Wednesday, August 8th 2018 - 09:41 UTC
UK “bottom of the league” when improving life expectancy

The UK has fallen to the “bottom of the league” when it comes to improving life expectancy, it has been warned. The country experienced one of the biggest slowdowns in increased life expectancy between 2011 and 2016, according to new analysis by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Wednesday, August 8th 2018 - 07:44 UTC
Trump warns “anybody doing business with Iran will NOT be doing business with the United States”

President Donald Trump has issued a strong warning to anyone trading with Iran, following his re-imposition of sanctions on the country. “Anyone doing business with Iran will NOT be doing business with the United States,” the president tweeted.
Wednesday, August 8th 2018 - 07:34 UTC
Ex Uruguayan diplomat murders neighbor in London, a LGTB rights campaigner

A former Uruguayan diplomat has been sent to a secure psychiatric facility for killing his London neighbor after a long-running dispute. Enrique Facelli, who spent 18 years as cultural attaché at Uruguay's London embassy, was charged with the murder of LGBT rights campaigner Julian Aubrey, who lived in the same apartment building.
Wednesday, August 8th 2018 - 06:50 UTC
Colombian president Duque anticipates “corrections” to the peace deal with guerrillas

Colombia’s youngest elected president was sworn in to office on Tuesday, promising to “make corrections” to a peace deal with leftist rebels that has divided the country and to crack down on lingering armed groups still roaming the countryside.
Wednesday, August 8th 2018 - 06:33 UTC
Abortion debate: the “blue camp” trusts it has 37 votes (out of 72) in the Senate

An Argentine ruling coalition Senator predicted that the decriminalization abortion bill that will be debated on Wednesday in the upper House, will be rejected since the so called “negative position will triumph”. Ernesto Martinez, who represents the province of Cordoba and supports the bill, said that the “blue camp” had already got enough votes to win a majority.
Wednesday, August 8th 2018 - 06:20 UTC
Amnesty makes abortion decriminalization debate in Argentina a worldwide issue

Amnesty International has taken out a provocative advert that will appear in 134 countries on the eve of the vote to decriminalize abortion in Argentina. An image of a coat-hanger, a stark symbol long-associated with unsafe and clandestine abortions, will highlight the deadly consequences of the current law, and remind Senators that they have the power to save many lives by voting to decriminalize abortion.
Wednesday, August 8th 2018 - 06:02 UTC
Argentine ex-vice president Boudou sentenced to five years and ten months in prison

Argentina's former vice president, Amado Boudou, was sentenced to nearly six years in prison on Tuesday after being found guilty of corruption while serving under former president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner. The charges related to Boudou's attempt to buy a company that printed currency through a front business while serving as Cristina Fernández economy minister.
Wednesday, August 8th 2018 - 06:00 UTC
“UK is and will remain a tier one military power”, after Brexit, Defense Secretary tells Washington

British Defense Secretary Gavin Williamson insisted on Tuesday that Britain's military will not be diminished after it leaves the European Union next year. “Britain leaving the European Union has no impact in terms of the security and defense of Europe,” Mr Williamson said in a speech at the Atlantic Council in Washington.