Global warming behind record cold in China
The cold wave in China breaks records - not since 1951 have there been so many hours of freezing temperatures in December as this year, writes Reuters. On Christmas Eve, 300 hours of sub-zero temperatures were reported in Beijing during the month, and nine days in a row with sub-10 degrees.
The past week has been record cold with temperatures down to minus 40 degrees in the northern and northwestern parts of the country.
Paradoxically, the record cold may be due to global warming, climatologist Shao Sun told Reuters.
- The warming leads to the weakening of the polar vortex in the Arctic, which makes it easier for cold air in the vortex to move south and contribute to cold waves, he says.
The record cold follows a summer with record heat in northern China, writes the Hong Kong Free Press.
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Parliamentary elections in Serbia
Tear gas against protesters - threatens to storm the town hall
The crowds that have demonstrated in Belgrade since the election on Sunday are threatening to storm the city hall, AP reports. They are calling for the election to be redone after international election observers and independent organizations say they have documented electoral fraud by President Aleksandar Vucic's SNS party.
Riot police have barricaded themselves inside the city hall and are firing tear gas at the protesters, who have broken windows in the entrance.
The opposition leader Marinika Tepic, who previously participated in the demonstrations, is now protesting instead by going on hunger strike locked in her office in the parliament where she sleeps on a sofa.
- This simply has to be done to draw attention to people in Serbia and internationally, she tells AFP.
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The change of power in Argentina
Emergency congress is called to push for giant reform
Argentina's newly elected President Javier Milei is calling for extra sessions of Congress in the intervening days to push through his giant package of economic reforms, reports AFP.
The package of over 350 laws on, among other things, the deregulation of the housing and labor markets, the sale of state-owned enterprises and cuts in government spending constitute a decree. It can only be accepted or rejected in its entirety by Congress within ten days. Unless both chambers vote down the decree, it will go into effect automatically, according to Reuters.
Since the decree was presented on December 21, thousands of people have demonstrated around the capital and in several other parts of the country.
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