OCTOBER 2018-INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Angela Merkel to step down as German chancellor in 2021

  • Germany’s Angela Merkel has said she will step down as chancellor in 2021, following recent election setbacks.

  • She also said she would not seek re-election as leader of the centre-right CDU party in December.

  • She has held the post since 2000.

Higgins re-elected Irish President again

  • Michael D Higgins has been re-elected Irish president after winning a landslide victory with 8,22,566 votes.

  • The 77-year-old professor and campaigner will serve his second term after first being elected in 2011.

  • Mr Higgins is Ireland’s ninth president.

Jair Bolsonaro wins presidential election in Brazil

  • Far-right candidate Jair Bolsonaro has won a sweeping victory in Brazil’s presidential election.

  • Mr. Bolsonaro won 55.2% of the votes cast against 44.8% for Fernando Haddad from the left-wing Workers’ Party.

  • Mr. Bolsonaro campaigned on a promise to eradicate corruption and to drive down Brazil’s high crime levels.

  • His campaign slogan was ‘Brazil above everything, God above everyone’.

World’s largest airport ‘under one roof’ to open in Istanbu

  • The world’s largest airport terminal “under one roof” with a capacity to serve 90 million passengers will be officially opened in Istanbul, Turkey.

  • Dubbed as phase-1A of the project Istanbul New Airport will have a capacity to handle 90 million passenger per year, making it the largest such facility in the world.

Mahinda Rajapaksa sworn in as Sri Lanka’s new PM

  • Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena has sacked Ranil Wickremesinghe, incumbent prime minister of Sri Lanka and appointed former President Mahinda Rajapaksha as new Prime Minister.

  • In recent times, the politics of Sri Lanka is in turmoil because of the tension between President Sirisena and PM Vikramasinghe.

India to become world’s 3rd largest aviation market: IATA

  • International Air Transport Association (IATA) stated that, India will become the world’s 3rd largest aviation market around 2024 surpassing the United Kingdom.

  • India is at present, the world’s 7th largest aviation market.

  • By 2037, out of 572 million new passengers in the world, India will account for 414 million passengers.

Iraq PM Adel Abdul Mahdi sworn in

  • Iraq’s new Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi was sworn in but could not announce the full cabinet after legislators failed to reach a consensus on key postings.

  • Abdul Mahdi was initially expected to nominate a full 22-member cabinet, including the defence and interior ministers.

  • Under Iraq’s constitution, Shia, Sunnis, Kurds and other minorities must all be represented in cabinet.

Paul Biya wins 7th term as President of Cameroon

  • Paul Biya, won the 7th term as President of Cameroon.

  • Paul Biya has been ruling Cameroon since 1982.

  • He is 85 years old.

  • He had won 71.3 % of the ballot in the presidential election.

  • His rival Maurice Kamto came second with 14.2 % of the vote.

Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa to form new government in Bhutan

  • The Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa (DNT) will form new government in Bhutan.

  • The party has won 30 seats in 47 member National Assembly, the lower house of the parliament.

  • The Druk Phuensum Tshogpa (DPT) has got remaining 17 seats.

  • The Election Commission of Bhutan has formally announced the results of the parliamentary elections.

Maeen Abdulmalik sworn in as Yemen’s new PM

  • Yemen’s newly appointed Prime Minister Maeen Abdulmalik was sworn in to lead the internationally-backed government in the war-torn Arab country.

  • Maeen was appointed as Prime Minister by Yemen’s President Abdu-Rabbu Mansour Hadi earlier this week, replacing his sacked predecessor Ahmed Obeid bin Daghr.

Global Competitiveness Report 2018: India Ranks 58th, US Top

  • The World Economic Forum released the Global Competitiveness Report 2018.

  • According to the report, India has jumped five spots to become the 58th most competitive economy on the Global Competitiveness Index 2018 (GCI 4.0).

  • India witnessed the largest gain among the G20 nations.

  • The index covers 140 nations and it measures national competitiveness.

India is the world’s most depressed country, closely followed by China and the US

  • According to a World Health Organization report, India is the world’s most depressed country, closely followed by China and the US.

  • Also according to the 2015-16 National Mental Health Survey (NMHS) implemented by National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, every sixth person in India needs mental health help.

Global Hunger Index 2018: Belarus tops, India Ranks 103rd

  • The 2018 Global Hunger Index (GHI) indicates that the level of hunger and undernutrition worldwide falls into the serious category, at a value of 20.9, down from 29.2 in 2000.

  • As per the index, India was ranked 103rd out of 119 qualifying countries.

India elected to UNHRC securing maximum votes

  • India has been elected to the United Nations’ Human Rights Council with the highest vote among all candidates.

  • It secured 188 votes in the Asia-Pacific category for a period of three years.

  • India’s win with the highest number of votes reflects the country’s standing in the international comity.

Malaysian Government Abolishes Capital Punishment

  • In Malaysia, the cabinet decided to abolish the death penalty.

  • Communications and multimedia Minister Gobind Singh Deo stated that the government decided to scrap capital punishment following strong domestic opposition to the practice.

  • Capital punishment in Malaysia is currently mandatory for murder, kidnapping, possession of firearms and drug trafficking, among other crimes.

Singapore ranks first in World Bank Human Capital Index

  • Singapore has emerged as the top among the 157 countries and territories in the inaugural World Bank Human Capital Index (HCI), which measures the human capital that a child born today can expect to attain by the age of 18.

  • The index defines human capital as the knowledge, skills, and health that people accumulate over their lives.

Japanese Passport named as the World’s most powerful Passport

  • Replacing the Singaporean passport, the Japanese passport has been declared the most powerful passport across the world in 2018.

  • According to 2018 Henley Passport Index, the people having Japanese passport can travel without a visa or can get an on-arrival visa across 190 countries.

Interpol chief resigns amid detention in China

  • Meng Hongwei resigned as the President of International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol).

  • Meng Hongwei is from China.

  • He has resigned after he was detained in China and having been kept under probe for alleged involvement in criminal activities.

Aung San Suu Kyi, 1st Person to Lose Honorary Canadian Citizenship

  • Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi became the first person to be stripped of the honorary Canadian citizenship for her role in gross human rights violations against the Rohingya people.

  • The Canadian Senate formally revoked the symbolic honour that was bestowed on Suu Kyi in 2007.

  • Senators unanimously adopted a genocide motion tabled by Independent Senator Ratna Omidvar in the red chamber.

Kurdish moderate Barham Salih elected Iraq president

  • Moderate Kurdish candidate Barham Salih swept to the post of president of Iraq with a resounding victory in a parliamentary vote.
  • Saleh routed his main rival Fuad Hussein with 219 votes to 22.
  • Saleh immediately named Adel Abdul Mahdi prime minister-designate.


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