Groups seek to influence plastic pollution treaty talks at the UN as negotiations wind down
Most were from organizations that are part of the Break Free From Plastic movement. They said they wanted their voices to be heard as the talks wind down in Switzerland. Nations are crafting the first global, legally binding treaty on plastics pollution.
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Winnipeg Free Press
9 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Tensions soar in Serbia as angry protesters clash with police, set fire to party offices
BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Angry protesters clashed with police in a town in western Serbia and in the capital Belgrade on Saturday as tensions soared further in the Balkan nation following days of violent demonstrations. Wearing scarves over their faces and chanting slogans against President Aleksandar Vucic, a group of young men threw flares at his Serbian Progressive Party offices in Valjevo, some 100 kilometers (60 miles) from the capital Belgrade. They set fire to the party's offices before clashing with riot police in a downtown area. Police threw multiple rounds of tear gas and charged at the demonstrators who hurled bottles, rocks and flares at them. Similar clashes also erupted on Saturday evening in Belgrade, with police directing tear gas at protesters while battling the protesters who set garbage containers on fire. The protesters in Valjevo turned out to the streets to protest what they allege is police brutality. There were no immediate reports on the numbers of injured people in either Valjevo or Belgrade. Serbia has been gripped by protests since November, when a train station canopy collapse killed 16 people. Many blamed the tragedy on poor renovation work resulting from widespread corruption in infrastructure projects. The student-led protests had been largely peaceful for months but turned violent this week. The situation has put pressure on Serbia's increasingly autocratic president Vucic, who has refused the protesters' demand to call an early parliamentary election. Vucic has accused the protesters of following orders from abroad to 'destroy Serbia,' and promised a crackdown on the nationwide movement led by university students. The protest in Valjevo drew several thousand people after a video on social media showed a young man from the town being severely beaten by police who kicked him and bashed him with batons during a protest earlier this week. The gathering was peaceful until groups of protesters threw flares at the SNS offices which sparked the fire inside. The incident marks the second such attack on the SNS party offices this week after protesters demolished the party headquarters in the northern city of Novi Sad on Wednesday. Clashes between the SNS party loyalists and police on one side and anti-government protesters on the other side have erupted every evening since then. Dozens of people have been injured and scores have been detained. Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Alain Berset, has called for 'calm and respect of the right to peaceful assembly' 'Serbian authorities must uphold Council of Europe standards,' he said on X this week. Serbian police have denied reports of brutality, saying they have been attacked and that dozens of officers have been injured in the rioting. Serbia is formally seeking EU membership, but Vucic has maintained strong ties with Russia and China. The Serbian president has faced accusations of stifling democratic freedoms while allowing organized crime and corruption to flourish. He has denied this.
Toronto Star
40 minutes ago
- Toronto Star
West Virginia is sending hundreds of National Guard members to Washington
WASHINGTON (AP) — Hundreds of West Virginia National Guard members will deploy across the nation's capital as part of the Trump administration's effort to overhaul policing in Washington through a federal crackdown on crime and homelessness. The move announced Saturday comes as protesters pushed back on federal law enforcement and National Guard troops fanning out in the heavily Democratic city following President Donald Trump's executive order federalizing local police forces and activating about 800 District of Columbia National Guard members.
Winnipeg Free Press
an hour ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Guatemalan prison guards freed after being held hostage by gang members
GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Guatemalan authorities on Saturday freed nine prison guards who had been held hostage since Thursday by rioting inmates in Guatemala City, an official said. Members of Guatemala's two largest gangs — Barrio 18 and Mara Salvatrucha — began rioting Tuesday in two prisons, demanding the return of 10 leaders who had been transferred to another facility and placed in solitary confinement. José Portillo, Deputy Minister of Security, told The Associated Press that the guards released Saturday had been held by members of Mara Salvatrucha. One prison official died Friday after being shot, authorities said, without providing further details. Local media reported the shooting occurred at one of the prisons involved in the riots. Earlier this year, U.S. President Donald Trump designated Mara Salvatrucha as a terrorist organization, placing it on a list of criminal groups that he said operate in the region and threaten public safety across the hemisphere. In another similar incident, anti-kidnapping teams freed 11 guards on Wednesday who were also held hostage by gang members in two Guatemalan prisons. ___ Follow AP's coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at
