Iraq security forces kill bridge protesters
BAGHDAD -- Iraqi security forces killed six anti-government protesters and wounded more than 100 others on Saturday, pushing them back from three flash-point bridges in central Baghdad, medical and security officials said.
Five of the protesters were killed by live ammunition, while the sixth died after being shot in the head with a tear gas canister. The Iraqi officials spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.
The deaths occurred Saturday as the protests intensified in the afternoon, when demonstrators tried to reach the three bridges spanning the Tigris River to the heavily fortified Green Zone, the seat of government. Protesters have tried to force their way across on an almost daily basis.
The protesters were pushed from the Sinak bridge to the nearby Khilani square, where 35 people were wounded, according to medical officials. Security forces also regained control of the nearby Ahrar and Shuhada bridges.
[GALLERY: Iraqi security forces clash with protesters » arkansasonline.com/1110iraqprotests/]
Soldiers die in Syrian, Turkish clashes
DAMASCUS, Syria -- Intense clashes broke out Saturday between Syrian government troops and Turkish-led forces in northeast Syria, killing at least four Syrian soldiers, the country's state media and an opposition war monitor reported.
Turkey invaded northeast Syria last month to push out Syrian Kurdish fighters near the border. The Kurdish groups called in Syrian government forces to halt Turkey's advance. Syrian government forces have since clashed with Turkish troops and Turkey-backed opposition fighters, despite a shaky truce brokered by Russia.
A cameraman for state-run Syrian TV was among those wounded in Saturday's clashes, according to both SANA and the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The Observatory reported the deaths of four Syrian soldiers and said a general and a paramedic were wounded. The Kurdish news agency Hawar said five government troops were killed and 26 wounded.
SANA said the clashes involved heavy machine gunfire and occurred in the village of Um Shaifa near the town of Ras al-Ayn, which was captured by Turkish-led forces last month. It later reported that government forces took the village from Turkey-backed opposition fighters.
The Free Burma Rangers, a humanitarian group active in northeast Syria, said four Syrian army soldiers were killed and seven were wounded, including a general. It said they were killed and wounded north of the town of Tal Tamr, adding that the rangers and the Kurdish Red Crescent had evacuated some of the Syrian troops.
Ukrainians, rebels pull back from front
MOSCOW -- Ukrainian and separatist rebel officials say both sides have begun pulling back forces and equipment from a front-line area of the conflict that has killed more than 13,000 people in the past five years.
The Saturday pullback in the Petrivske area follows two similar movements in eastern Ukraine, where Russia-backed rebels and Ukrainian forces have been fighting since 2014. The withdrawals are seen as a significant step that could lead to a summit of Russia, Ukraine, France and Germany on ending the conflict.
The Petrivske withdrawal initially was set for last weekend, but Ukraine called that off because of what it said were cease-fire violations by the rebels.
Ukraine military spokesman Andrei Andreev and the rebel news agency DAN confirmed both sides began moving at midday.
The full pullback, with each side moving 0.6 mile away from the front line, is expected to take three days, after which demining of the area is to take place.
Along with the rebel and military moves, tensions have also shown signs of easing after Ukraine and Russia each exchanged 35 prisoners to the other side in September.
But final resolution of the conflict remains elusive and argument continues over when and how elections could be held in the rebel territories that would allow them to achieve special status within Ukraine.
Storm forces Bangladesh to clear area
DHAKA, Bangladesh -- With a strong cyclone approaching Bangladesh late Saturday night, authorities evacuated hundreds of thousands of people to shelters across the low-lying delta nation's vast coastal region.
The weather office in the nation's capital, Dhaka, said cyclone Bulbul weakened around midnight on Saturday, but threats for a violent landfall remained intact when a tidal surge could sweep the vast coastal region. The latest weather forecast said the cyclone could cross the southwestern coastal region around 3 a.m. local time.
More than 300,000 people had moved to safer places and up to 1.8 million were expected to be evacuated by Saturday evening, said Enamur Rahman, Bangladesh's junior disaster management minister.
The weather office earlier Saturday issued the most severe storm signal for Bulbul, which was packing maximum sustained winds of 46 mph and gusts of up to 93 mph.
The weather office said coastal districts were likely to be inundated by storm surges of 5-7 feet above normal tide because of the impact of the cyclone.
-- Compiled by Democrat-Gazette staff from wire reports
A Section on 11/10/2019