BBC News Briefing

30 May, 2024

Sofia Lotto Persio

Hello. A Hong Kong court has convicted 14 pro-democracy activists in the city's biggest security case to date. Kelly Ng and Lok Lee report on the case. In Italy, Mark Lowen looks into the country's complicated relationship with fascist ideology. For BBC Monitoring, Sandro Gvindadze explores the Kremlin's use of comic books as war propaganda. Finally, we join New Yorkers in marvelling at the spectacle of "Manhattanhenge".

TOP OF THE AGENDA

'A trial of the pro-democracy movement'

Police stand guard outside the West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts building in Hong Kong,.

The verdict was handed down under tight security, with many of the defendants' supporters present. Credit: Reuters

In March 2021, authorities in Hong Kong charged activists involved in the territory's pro-democracy demonstrations with subversion. It was the widest use yet of a controversial security law that was passed the previous year. Of those, 16 pleaded not guilty. The court, which lacked many of the rights and conditions guaranteeing a fair trial, decided on the verdicts on Thursday. It convicted 14 activists, while two were acquitted. They remain on bail pending the determination of the appeal. To date, nearly 300 people have been arrested under the security law, which legal experts have criticised as silencing dissent. This was “a trial of Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement,” said Eric Lai, a research fellow at the Georgetown Center for Asian Law. Sentencing of the activists is expected at a later date. They face a maximum term of life imprisonment.

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Hong Kong 47: Meet the activists who fought for democratic rights in the territory.

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Explainer: How the 2020 security law changed Hong Kong.

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Article 23: An expansion to the 2020 law was passed in March, and includes new offences such as external interference and insurrection. The first arrests under the new law occurred this week.

WORLD HEADLINES

War in Gaza: Israel's military has said it has taken control of a buffer zone along the Egypt border known as the Philadelphi Corridor, meaning it now controls Gaza's entire land border.

Presidential anniversary: Bola Tinubu marked his first year in power by changing Nigeria's national anthem, but critics question his priorities as people face a cost-of-living crisis.

Death at Schiphol: A person has been killed after ending up in the running jet engine of a KLM passenger plane at Amsterdam's airport.

American Airlines: Three black men have filed a racial discrimination lawsuit against the carrier, alleging that they were briefly removed from a flight after a complaint about body odour.

Prolific vandal: California authorities have arrested an 81-year-old man on suspicion of being a "serial slingshot shooter" who has plagued a neighbourhood for years.

AT THE SCENE

Italy

Thorn in the side of Italian politics

Giorgia Meloni speaks at a news conference

Ms Meloni's party bears the same three-coloured flame logo adopted by neo-fascist groups. Credit: Getty Images

In the past three decades, movements rooted in post-war fascism have become more visible and less marginalised in Italian politics. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's party Brothers of Italy is the most prominent, but not the only example - nor the most extreme.

Mark Lowen, Italy correspondent

At Forza Nuova's local headquarters in the northern city of Verona, the walls are draped in racist and extremist symbols, along with scarves bearing the words "White Power" and "We are fascists - a call to arms". The party has never attracted enough votes to have MPs elected to parliament but its visibility in protests and the actions of its members, including violence against immigrants, make it and other extremist groups a thorn in the side of Italian politics. At a recent funeral, a member's coffin was draped in a swastika flag.

Read in full

BEYOND THE HEADLINES

Kremlin comics glorify its war in Ukraine

A Ukrainian soldier is portrayed surrendering and changing his name to its Russian version. Credit: rybar.ru

In April, the Russian defence and education ministries started distributing tens of thousands of comic books that praise the invasion of Ukraine in schools across Russia and Ukraine’s Russia-occupied territories. The comics consist of 22 short stories dedicated to Russian servicemen decorated for their role in the war.

Find out more

SOMETHING DIFFERENT

Feeling the heat

When even box office hits bring in meagre sales, big-budget films are in dire straits.

Hollywood's issue

And finally...

Each year the Sun aligns with some of New York's gridiron street layout, drawing thousands of people gathering to watch a sunset between the skyscrapers. Here's a look at the last "Manhattanhenge" event.

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– Sofia

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