'You saved Rahaf's life': online outcry kept 'terrified' Saudi woman safe, says friend
Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun was buoyed by thousands of messages during Thai ordeal, says Nourah Alharbi
Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun, the Saudi Arabian woman who fled her family and is now under UN protection in Thailand, has been sustained through the “terrifying” ordeal by thousands of online messages of support that probably saved her life, a friend has said.
Nourah Alharbi, 20, told the Guardian: “Yesterday, they [social media supporters] made the difference in Rahaf’s life. You saved Rahaf’s life yesterday: the people, the media.”
Speaking on Tuesday morning, Alharbi said Qunun was buoyed when she saw how many messages about her were being posted online. “She couldn’t believe it. Today when I was calling her ... [she said] she can see the thousands of messages, all of them supporting her. She’s terrified and stressed, and when she saw the messages it really made a difference for her.”
France plans tougher laws to counter yellow vest protests
France has said it plans to ban participation in unauthorized demonstrations in an effort to counter the ongoing yellow vest movement. The government is scrambling to put an end to the increasingly violent protests.
France plans to introduce tough legislation to ban unauthorized demonstrations and sanction rioters in response to violent yellow vest protests, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe has announced.
Eight weeks into demonstrations that have led to riots and clashes with police in Paris and other cities, the French government is struggling to deal with the leaderless movement that has become increasingly radicalized.
Eight weeks into demonstrations that have led to riots and clashes with police in Paris and other cities, the French government is struggling to deal with the leaderless movement that has become increasingly radicalized.
Nissan's Ghosn says 'wrongly accused' in first appearance since arrest
Nissan Motor Co Ltd's ousted Chairman Carlos Ghosn declared he was innocent on Tuesday in his first public appearance since his arrest in November, telling a Tokyo court that he was wrongly accused of financial misconduct.
"I have been wrongly accused and unfairly detained based on meritless and unsubstantiated accusations," he told the Tokyo District Court, according to a prepared statement which was obtained by Reuters.
"Contrary to the accusations made by the prosecutors, I never received any compensation from Nissan that was not disclosed, nor did I ever enter into any binding contract with Nissan to be paid a fixed amount that was not disclosed."
Critics lambast under-siege Netanyahu's speech attacking ‘witch-hunt’
By David M. Halbfinger
The announcement set Israel abuzz with suspense late on Monday afternoon: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had a "dramatic statement" to deliver at 8pm, at the start of the most heavily watched news hour.
Would it be about Iran? Hezbollah? Hamas? The Trump peace plan?
The subject, it turned out, was an existential threat not to Israel, but to Netanyahu's career.
Study: China faces 'unstoppable' population decline by mid-century
Updated 0422 GMT (1222 HKT) January 8, 2019
China will face an "unstoppable" population decline over the coming decades, with fewer and fewer workers struggling to support an increasingly aging society, according to a report by a leading state-sponsored Chinese thinktank.
The report, which comes more than three years since China officially ended its controversial decades-long one-child policy, warns that the "the era of negative population growth is almost here," forecasting that the country's population will peak at 1.44 billion in 2029.
The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences report suggests that the decline in fertility rates will lead to a decrease in overall population to 1990-era levels of 1.172 billion by 2065. World Bank data from 2017 showed a Chinese population of 1.386 billion.
North Korea's Kim visiting China at Xi Jinping's invitation
Visit comes days after North Korean leader says he may seek alternative path if US maintains pressure on his country.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has arrived in China for a four-day visit at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, as preparations increase for a second summit with US President Donald Trump.
The Korean Central News Agency said on Tuesday that Kim departed on Monday afternoon on a private train accompanied by his wife Ri Sol Ju and top North Korean officials.
A motorcade late on Tuesday morning was seen leaving a train station in the Chinese capital, Beijing, with police blocking a street with metal gates hours after Kim's train crossed the border into northern China, according to media reports.
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