News in Brief
BRASILIA (Reuters) - Environmentalist Marina Silva has widened her lead over President Dilma Rousseff to 10 percentage points in what could be a likely runoff in Brazil’s October election, a survey by polling firm Datafolha showed on Friday.
It was the third poll in less than a week that projected the Oct. 5 election would go to a second-round vote in which Rousseff would be unseated by Silva, who entered the race just 10 days ago following the death of her party’s candidate.
The popular anti-establishment figure is threatening to end the 12-year rule of the Workers’ Party in a hotly contested vote that is being watched closely by investors hoping that a change of government will issue in more market-friendly policies.
Silva has surged to 34 percent support from 21 percent in a previous Datafolha poll conducted before she launched her candidacy. She is now tied with Rousseff whose support has fallen to 34 percent from 36 percent in a first-round vote.
If the race goes to a runoff on Oct. 26 as expected, Silva would win 50 percent of the votes, while Rousseff would get 40 percent, widening her margin of victory from six to 10 percentage points, according to Datafolha.
Support for centrist candidate and market favorite Aecio Neves has dropped to 15 percent from 20 percent in the previous poll on Aug. 18.
With Rousseff’s re-election chances looking dimmer in the polls, the president suffered another blow on Friday with the publication of data confirming Brazil has fallen into recession.
The recession will give her opponents a powerful weapon at a moment when her candidacy is at its most vulnerable just five weeks from election day.
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TRIPOLI (Press TV) – Thousands of Libyans have held an anti-government demonstration in the capital, Tripoli, calling for the resignation of the new parliament.
People took to the streets of Tripoli on Friday, calling for the return of Libya’s outgoing parliament, known as the General National Congress (GNC).
The protesters also expressed support for the militias from the so-called Fajr Libya coalition, who seized the Tripoli International Airport last weekend.
They further condemned the airstrikes allegedly carried out by Egypt and the United Arab Emirates on militia positions near the battered airport.
Similar demonstrations were also held in the cities of Misrata and Benghazi.
The crisis in Libya is worsening as clashes between rival militia groups continue and political divisions become deeper.
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BRUSSELS (Press TV) – European Union leaders have gathered in Brussels to discuss Ukraine’s crisis amid allegations by the West and Kiev regarding Moscow’s military involvement in the Eastern European country.
This comes as Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko on Saturday pushed EU leaders for tightening sanctions against Russia.
Fears of a wider confrontation in the region rose after NATO said Russia has sent at least 1,000 troops into Ukraine to help the pro-Russia forces.
"Invasion of Russian troops in(to) Ukraine is an act of aggression and requires an adequate reaction from the EU,” Poroshenko said on Twitter as he held meetings with top EU officials.
A high-ranking official in Poroshenko’s administration said late Friday that Ukraine’s delegation in Brussels will push for more substantial support for Kiev and "another set of sanctions against Russia.”
The EU and the US have already imposed the toughest sanctions on Russia since the Cold War over Ukraine’s crisis.
Poroshenko will also travel to the NATO summit in Wales next week to meet with US President Barack Obama and seek practical help from the military alliance.
During the summit, the EU leaders will also pick a president for the European Council to replace Herman Van Rompuy and a foreign policy chief to replace Catherine Ashton.