Amazon workers strike on Prime Day
MADRID — Amazon workers in Spain and Germany called for strikes Tuesday over salary and working conditions to coincide with the online retailer’s global sales event, Prime Day.
TheCCOO and CGT workers’ unions in Spain said nearly 80 percent of workers walked off their positions at Amazon’s largest packing and distribution center in the country. It reported similar numbers Monday, the first of three days of strike action.
German union ver.di also called for walkouts Tuesday at several sites in the country, with further strikes expected on Wednesday.
New rules for Gaza cargo
JERUSALEM— Israel placed new restrictions on its only cargo crossing with the Gaza Strip on Tuesday.
Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Israel will stop transferring fuel through Kerem Shalom until Sunday, but will allow food and essential medication. Commercial cargo was suspended last week.
This follows a weekend when Hamas agreed to a cease-fire, but kites and balloons floated from Gaza into Israel, setting farms on fire.
In response, Israel pounded Hamas targets on Saturday while Hamas fired rockets toward Israel. Two Palestinian teens were killed and four Israelis were wounded amid the fighting.
EU, Japan sign trade deal
TOKYO— The European Union and Japan signed a deal Tuesday that will eliminate nearly all shared tariffs.
The pact counters President Donald Trump’s tariff hikes on imports from many U.S. trading partners. The deal covers a third of the global economy.
European Council President Donald Tusk said the partnership is being strengthened in areas including defense, climate change and human exchange, and is sending message against protectionism.
Neither EU leaders nor Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe mentioned Mr. Trump, but highlighted how the allies have been pushed closer by the U.S. president.
Social media rumors
NEWDELHI — India’s Supreme Court ordered a new anti-lynching law and to stop the spread of Internet rumors after dozens were killed in a string of mob attacks fueled by social media.
Lynchings sparked by grisly rumors have killed more than 20 recently. The rumors have spread on WhatsApp, which has more than 200 million users in India, the messaging app’s biggest market.
On Tuesday, a panel led by the chief justice of India, Dipak Misra, instructed Parliament to pass a new “special law” that would instill fear in would-be attackers. The panel also demanded that police take steps to further investigate and curb the dissemination of “irresponsible and explosive” messages and videos.
Bombing kills 10 in Syria
BEIRUT— A Syrian search and rescue team says at least 10 civilians were killed in a Russian airstrike on a school serving as a shelter in southwest Syria.
The Syrian Civil Defense said the building in Ain el-Tineh was being used to shelter families forced to flee their homes amid fighting.
Russia is supporting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s forces to recapture territory from rebels.
Moaz al-Assaad, a photographer at the scene, said he counted at least 20 wounded.
The International Rescue Committee says the government’s advance has trapped tens of thousands along the Golan Heights, which Israel occupied in 1967.