November 23, 2014 UPDATE
A roundup of Romanian and international news
Valentin Țigău, 23.11.2014, 19:19
The President-elect of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, the Defence Minister, Mircea Duşa, other officials, colleagues of the eight servicemen who died on Friday in a helicopter crash, lit candles and sent condolences to the families and friends of the deceased. The caskets were brought on Sunday on the terrace in front of the “Nicolae Bălcescu” Ground Forces Academy in Sibiu, where a military and religious ceremony was held to commemorate the victims. Five of the eight bodies were then taken to the military unit in Campia Turzii, while the other three will be buried in their home villages in counties Arges, Alba and Olt.
The Government of Israel Sunday passed a controversial bill aimed at strengthening the status of Israel as a “Jewish” state. Parliament is next to make a decision on this text, which no longer defines Israel as a “Jewish and democratic” state, but as the “nation-state of the Jewish people”. Israel’s Arab population, the heirs of the Palestinians who stayed on their land after the state of Israel was established in 1948, and who account for one in five Israeli citizens, believe the text paves the way for turning Israeli Arabs into second-class citizens.
At least 40 people were killed on Sunday in a terrorist attack that took place in eastern Afghanistan, during a volleyball game, Reuters reports, quoting local sources. The suicide attack was committed in a village in Paktika province, near Pakistan.