BBC在线收听下载:以色列总理内塔尼亚胡无法组建新政府

BBC news with Neil Nunes.

The Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has given up efforts to form a new coalition government, clearing the way for his rival, the former military chief Benny Gantz to attempt to do so. Neither the Blue and White party of Mr.Gantz nor Mr.Netanyahu's Likud managed to secure a majority in September's election.

A 3rd night of curfew has been announced in the Chilean capital Santiago, following a weekend of violent anti-austerity protests, looting and arson. 11 people have died. On Monday, there were more mass protests and sporadic violence and demonstrators against police, who responded with tear gas and water cannon.

Lebanon is continuing to be rocked by big street protests even as the prime minister Saad Hariri announced a set of reforms he hoped would calm public anger. Politian salaries are to be halved, but demonstrators say the reforms should have come earlier.    

President Putin has replaced the head of his Human Rights Council, a move that critics say damages the credibility of the body. Mikhail Fedotov is being removed from the body along with four others. The new council leader will be a pro-Kremlin journalist.

President Trump says Kurds in northeastern Syria are smart to have withdrawn a day before the expected expiry of ceasefire in the Turkish offensive. He said the U.S. never gave the Kurds a commitment that it would stay to protect them.  

A leaked document from the accounting firm Ernst & Young gives details of an empowerment leadership training seminar it held, which focused on the women’s appearance in relation to success at work. The empowerment leadership seminar advised women not to flaunt their bodies and said that women’s brains were like pancakes and smaller than those of men. The firm said the course isn’t offered in that form anymore.

BBC news.