Editor’s Note: This listicle is part of a weekly series by The Ball State Daily News summarizing five stories from around the world. All summaries are based on stories published by The Associated Press.
International Women’s Day protests, quarantines in northern Italy, the plunging of stocks and oil prices around the world, China’s use of propaganda against the coronavirus outbreak and North Korea firing multiple weapons make up this week’s five international stories.
Women fill streets of world’s cities with call for justice
Women filled the streets of the world’s largest cities Sunday to protest gender violence and inequality for International Women’s Day. Mothers of murdered girls led a march in Mexico City, and participants in Paris inveighed against the “virus of the patriarchy.” While many protests were peaceful, others were marred by tension. Security forces arrested demonstrators at a rally in Kyrgyzstan, and police reportedly used tear gas to break up a demonstration in Turkey.
Read more: International news
Italy quarantines north in drastic bid to slow virus spread
Italy took a page from China’s playbook Sunday, attempting to lock down 16 million people — more than a quarter of its population — for nearly a month to halt the relentless march of the new coronavirus across Europe. Weddings, museums, movie theaters and shopping malls are all affected by the new restrictions, which focus on a swath of northern Italy, but are disrupting daily life and spreading confusion among residents and tourists around the country.
Read more: Italy
Stocks, oil prices plunge as virus closes sites around the world
The world’s largest economies delivered more worrisome cues Monday, as anxiety over the virus outbreak sent stock and oil prices plunging and closed sites from the Sistine Chapel to Saudi Arabian schools. Shares in Asia, the Mideast and Europe, and U.S. futures were down sharply, reports on the health of the economies of Japan and China stirred more unease, and the downturn was felt by people around the world.
Read more: Business
China turns to propaganda to right image in ‘virus war’
China’s ruling Communist Party has deployed its propaganda playbook to portray its leader as firmly in charge, leading an army of health workers in a “people’s war” against the disease. For the Communist Party, the epidemic is both a risk and an opportunity. It seeks to avoid blame for any mishandling of the outbreak, notably a slow initial response that allowed the virus to take hold. Conversely, it seeks credit for overcoming the crisis, enhancing the legitimacy of its rule.
Read more: Virus outbreak
N. Korea fires weapons after threatening ‘momentous’ action
North Korea fired three short-range projectiles off its east coast Monday, South Korea’s military said, two days after the North threatened to take “momentous” action to protest outside condemnation over its earlier live-fire exercises. Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the multiple projectiles fired from the eastern coastal town of Sondok flew as far as 125 miles at a maximum altitude of 30 miles before landing in the waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan.
Read more: North Korea
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