NEW ISRAELI LAW PROTECTS PRIME MINISTER FROM OUSTER

Jerusalem: Israel ratified a law on Thursday limiting the circumstances in which a prime minister can be removed, despite worries voiced by a government jurist that it may be meant to shield the incumbent Benjamin Netanyahu from any fallout from his corruption trials.

The amended definition for the "incapacity" of national leaders is among legislative measures by the religious-nationalist coalition that have tipped Israel into crisis, with the opposition arguing that judicial independence is in peril.

The coalition says the overhaul is aimed at pushing back against Supreme Court over-reach and restoring balance among branches of government.

By a 61-to-47 final vote, the Knesset approved the bill under which prime ministers can be deemed unfit - and compelled to step aside - either if they or three-quarters of cabinet ministers declare them so on physical or psychological grounds.

The stipulations fleshed out a quasi-constitutional "basic law" that provides the government with guidance in the event of a non-functioning prime minister - but which previously lacked details on circumstances that may give rise to such situations.

According to the non-partisan Israel Democracy Institute, the rule had earlier left Netanyahu vulnerable to a possible assertion of his incapacity by Attorney-General Gali Baharav-Miara, should she perceive an attempt by him to halt his three court cases.

The new law precludes this, IDI senior researcher Amir Fuchs said - while adding that he had considered such a finding by Bararav-Miara to be an unlikely "extreme case".

Netanyahu denies all charges against him, and has cast the trials as a politicised bid to force him from office.

TIKTOK CEO GRILLED BY SKEPTICAL LAWMAKERS ON SAFETY, CONTENT

The CEO of TikTok made a rare public appearance on Thursday before a US Congressional committee, where he faced a grilling on data security and user safety while he makes his own case for why the hugely popular video-sharing app shouldn't be banned. Shou Zi Chew's testimony comes at a crucial time for the company, which has acquired 150 million American users but is under increasing pressure from US officials.

TikTok and its parent company ByteDance have been swept up in a wider geopolitical battle between Beijing and Washington over trade and technology.

In her opening statement, Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, a Republican, assailed the social platform's trustworthiness because of its close ties to Beijing.

"Mr. Chew, you are here because the American people need the truth about the threat TikTok poses to our national and personal security," McMorris Rodgers said. "TikTok has repeatedly chosen a path for more control, more surveillance and more manipulation."

Chew, a 40-year-old Singapore native, will tell the US House Committee on Energy and Commerce that TikTok prioritises the safety of its young users and deny allegations that the app is a national security risk, according to his prepared remarks released ahead of the hearing.

TikTok has been dogged by claims that its Chinese ownership means user data could end up in the hands of the Chinese government or that it could be used to promote narratives favourable to the country's Communist leaders.

"We understand the popularity of Tiktok, we get that," said White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre at a press conference on Wednesday afternoon.

"But the President's job is to make sure again that the Americans, national security is protected as well. "

For its part, TikTok has been trying to distance itself from its Chinese origins, saying that 60 per cent of its parent company ByteDance is owned by global institutional investors such as Carlyle Group. ByteDance was founded by Chinese entrepreneurs in Beijing in 2012.

"Let me state this unequivocally: ByteDance is not an agent of China or any other country," Chew said.

A US ban on an app would be unprecedented and it's unclear how the government would go about enforcing it.

ANY BID TO ARREST PUTIN WOULD BE DECLARATION OF WAR: MEDVEDEV

Moscow : Any attempt to arrest President Putin after the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued a warrant for the Kremlin chief would amount to a declaration of war against Russia, his ally Dmitry Medvedevsaid on Thursday. The ICC issued an arrest warrant on Friday, accusing Putin of the war crime of illegally deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine. It said there are reasonable grounds to believe that Putin bears individual criminal responsibility.

Medvedev told Russian media that the ICC, which countries including Russia, China and the US do not recognise, was a “legal nonentity”. Any attempt to detain Putin, though, would be a declaration of war, said Medvedev, who serves as deputy chairman of Putin’s powerful security council.

Hungary, which signed and ratified the Rome Statute that created the ICC, said it would not arrest Putin if he entered the country. PM Viktor Orban’s chief of staff said it would have no legal grounds.

TAIWAN RECALLS ENVOY AS HONDURAS SWITCHES TIES TO BEIJING

Taipei : Taiwan says it has recalled its ambassador to Honduras amid moves by the Central American country to establish formal diplomatic ties with China. Taiwan and China have been locked in a battle for diplomatic recognition since the sides split amid civil war in 1949.

Honduras President Xiomara Castro announced last week that her government will seek to establish diplomatic relations with China, which would imply severing relations with Taiwan.

The switch would leave Taiwan recognised by only 13 countries, as China spends billions to win recognition for its ‘One China’ policy.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin dismissed reports that Honduras switched relations after Taiwan declined requests to buy $2. 5 billion in the country’s sovereign debt.

“We welcome the Honduran government’s positive statement to develop relations with China. We are ready to establish and develop bilateral relations on the basis of equality and mutual respect,” Wang said on Thursday.

Taiwan’s foreign ministry said it was “deeply dissatisfied” with the breaking of relations that had lasted more than 80 years and urged Honduras to “be careful of the risks of China's commitments made on its offer of diplomatic relations. ”

BORDEAUX TOWN HALL SET ON FIRE IN FRANCE PENSION PROTESTS

Bordeaux town hall has been set on fire as French protests continued over plans to raise the pension age.

More than a million people took to the streets across France on Thursday, with 119,000 in Paris, according to figures from the interior ministry.

Police fired tear gas at protesters in the capital and 80 people were arrested across the country.

The demonstrations were sparked by legislation raising the retirement age by two years to 64.

Fire engulfed the front door of the town hall in the southwest city of Bordeaux on Thursday evening after a day of protests and clashes.

It was not clear who was responsible for the blaze, which was quickly put out by firefighters.

In Paris, generally peaceful demonstrations saw occasional police clashes with masked rioters who smashed shop windows, demolished street furniture and attacked a McDonald's restaurant, according to Reuters news agency.

Police used tear gas and were pelted by objects and fireworks, AP news agency reported, with 33 people arrested in the capital.

US AND CANADA REACH DEAL TO REJECT ASYLUM SEEKERS

The US and Canada have reached a deal to reject asylum seekers at unofficial border crossings, officials say.

US President Joe Biden and Canadian PM Justin Trudeau will announce the pact on Friday during Mr Biden's visit to Ottawa.

The accord is expected to allow officials on both sides of the border to turn back such asylum seekers heading in either direction.

The US side has also seen a rise in migrant crossings there from Canada.

The move is part of efforts to limit an influx of migrants at Roxham Road, an unofficial crossing between New York state and the province of Quebec.

As a part of the deal, Canada will create a new refugee programme for 15,000 migrants fleeing persecution and violence in South and Central America, unnamed US officials told CBS News, the BBC's US partner.

Mr Biden is in Ottawa, Canada, for 24 hours to talk about a series of economic, trade and immigration issues with Mr Trudeau. The migration accord is scheduled to be announced before he returns to the US on Friday.

The deal is an amendment to the two sides' 2004 Safe Third Country Agreement, which requires migrants to make an asylum claim in the first "safe" country they reach, whether it is the US or Canada.

The new arrangement would close a loophole in the Safe Third Country Agreement that prevented Canada from turning away those crossing the border at unofficial crossing points.

The loophole had led migrants to enter Canada from places like Roxham Road.

AFTER IRAN, SAUDI TO RE-ESTABLISH TIES WITH SYRIA: REPORT

Beirut/Riyadh : Syria and Saudi Arabia have agreed to reopen their embassies after cutting diplomatic ties more than a decade ago, a step that would mark a leap forward in Damascus’s return to the Arab fold. Contacts between Riyadh and Damascus had gathered momentum following a landmark agreement to re-establish ties between Saudi Arabia and Iran, a key ally of President Bashar al-Assad, a source aligned with Damascus said. The re-establishment of ties between Riyadh and Damascus would mark the significant development yet in moves by Arab states to normalise ties with Assad, who was shunned by many Western and Arab states after Syria’s civil war began in2011. The two governments were “preparing to reopen embassies after Eid al-Fitr”, a source said. The Saudi government’s communication office, the kingdom’s foreign ministry and the Syrian government did not respond to requests for comment.

WORLD ATHLETICS BANS TRANSGENDER WOMEN FROM COMPETING IN FEMALE WORLD RANKING EVENTS

World Athletics has banned transgender women from competing in the female category at international events.

The governing body's president, Lord Coe, said no transgender athlete who had gone through male puberty would be permitted to compete in female world ranking competitions from 31 March.

A working group will be set up to conduct further research into the transgender eligibility guidelines.

"We're not saying no forever," he said.

Under previous rules, World Athletics required transgender women to reduce their amount of blood testosterone to a maximum of 5nmol/L, and stay under this threshold continuously for a period of 12 months before competing in the female category.

Lord Coe added the decision was "guided by the overarching principle which is to protect the female category".

He noted that there are currently no transgender athletes competing internationally in the sport.