Subject: Morning Brief: Aging Algerian President Offers Departure Plan to Quell Widespread Protests
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Date: Mon, 4 Mar 2019 07:49:11 -0600 (CST)

Aging Algerian President Offers Departure Plan to Quell Widespread Protests

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MORNING BRIEF

Today's Global News from Foreign Policy

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03/04/2019

03/04/2019

TOP NEWS

Aging Algerian President Offers Departure Plan to Quell Widespread Protests

Top News: Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, 82, is facing the country’s strongest protest movement in years, with demonstrators accusing his government of widespread corruption and urging him to step down.

The protests started after the president announced he would run for a fifth term in office. In response, he pledged to undertake reforms and step down after the next elections. But it does not appear to have quelled the angry demonstrations, as some protesters have accused him of simply maneuvering to buy time.

The plan “will find my successor in a manner incontrovertibly peaceful, free and transparent,” he said. He also pledged to organize a national referendum for “a new constitution which will mark the birth of a new republic and a new Algerian political system.”

Bouteflika has made very few public appearances since suffering a stroke in 2013, fueling speculation the Algerian government is being run by a cadre of his senior advisors and generals behind the scenes.

Israel: The U.S. State Department formally closed its consulate in Jerusalem and folded it into the new U.S. embassy. The move formalizes President Donald Trump’s directive to move the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv, where most countries’ embassies are based, to the disputed city of Jerusalem, which infuriated many Palestinians. Trump recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital in late 2017.

AFRICA

•  Dozens of refugees and migrants are reportedly being tortured in an underground cell in Libya after breaking out of a detention center cell to protest treatment of their conditions.

•  An oil pipeline exploded in southern Nigeria on Saturday in an oil-rich and highly-polluted region.

•  Six people were killed by unidentified gunmen in a restive eastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo, sparking protests.

AMERICAS

•  Juan Guaidó, Venezuela’s opposition leader, announced he will return to his country after a tour of neighboring countries. He declared himself the country’s legitimate president to build pressure to force President Nicolás Maduro to step down.

•  A U.S. Congressional committee will launch an investigation into whether Trump abused his power and obstructed justice in ongoing federal probes.

•  At least 23 people were killed and more are missing after a tornado struck Alabama.

ASIA

•  Malaysia’s transport ministry said the country was open to new proposals on searches for Malaysian Airlines flight 370, which disappeared over the ocean five years ago and was never found.

•  The Taliban attacked an Afghan army camp in Helmand, killing 23 people and wounding 20, according to a provincial government official.

•  Meng Wanzhou, the executive at Chinese technology giant Huawei, is suing the Canadian government over her arrest, claiming law enforcement officials detained and interrogated her before they told her she was under arrest.

EUROPE

•  In Estonian elections, a far-right populist political party made significant gains, coming in third place after the ruling center-right and opposition parties.

•  French President Emmanuel Macron downplayed his country’s diplomatic rows with Italy over immigration issues and French protests, as “not serious.”

•  The United States will reverse its decision to downgrade the European Union’s diplomatic status in Washington, returning it to a mission equal to a national ambassador instead of ranked as an international organization envoy.

MIDDLE EAST

•  Islamic State fighters in eastern Syria mounted strong resistance to U.S.-backed fighters working to force them out of their final stronghold.

•  A group of 18 Yazidi women and children, freed from years of captivity by the Islamic State, reunited with their families in Iraq.

•  British Foreign Minister Jeremy Hunt visited Yemen where he warned a peace deal on the country’s key port could fall apart if warring parties don’t cooperate with a peace deal.

- By Robbie Gramer

(RYAD KRAMDI/AFP/Getty Images)

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