World
Croatians vote in election pitting the PM against the country’s president
Exit polls expected minutes after voting ends at 7pm (17:00 GMT), with official results due in the coming days.
Croatians are casting ballots in a parliamentary election largely pitting incumbent Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic against the country’s president, Zoran Milanovic.
Voters will choose between more than 2,000 candidates in Wednesday’s polls that come as the country wrestles with high inflation, a labour shortage and allegations of official corruption.
Exit polls are expected minutes after voting ends at 7pm (17:00 GMT), with official results due in the coming days.
For months, 54-year-old Plenkovic and his ruling conservative Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) seemed poised for an easy victory that would secure his third term as prime minister.
But in mid-March, Milanovic, a 57-year-old populist, made the surprise announcement that he would challenge Plenkovic and become candidate prime minister for the Social Democrats (SDP).
However, the Constitutional Court warned Milanovic that his candidacy while he is president is incompatible with his official position.
The president holds a largely ceremonial role in Croatia, while the prime minister exerts most of the political power. Milanovic’s mandate expires in January but he said he would step down if the SDP and its allies secure a majority to form a new government.
Pre-election polls suggested that the HDZ would win most seats in the 151-seat parliament, but not enough to secure an outright majority. Coalition talks are expected to follow the vote.
The streets of Zagreb were quiet as voters lined up to cast their ballots on a national holiday.
“We would like to see politicians work in the interest of the people; that is what we elect them for. Nothing like in the past 30 years,” pensioner Biserka Kolaric, who voted in the capital, told Reuters.
Fears of weakening EU’s unity on Ukraine
The HDZ has largely held power since Croatia gained independence from the former Yugoslavia in 1991.
If it stays in power, the country would continue a pro-Western course in supporting Ukraine in its fight against Russia. A success for SDP could put it on track for victory in the European Parliament elections in June and the presidential election in December.
Plenkovic has lambasted Milanovic over his criticism of EU backing for Ukraine against Russia’s invasion and the president’s opposition to training Ukrainian soldiers in Croatia.
“Milanovic is pushing Croatia and the Croatian people into the Russian world,” Plenkovic told supporters during a pre-election rally.
The president has argued that he is protecting Croatian interests and seeks to prevent the country being “dragged into war”.
“My character is not easy, but I will not remain silent,” he wrote in a recent Facebook post and pledged to “form a national salvation government”.
Corruption accusations
The president has also accused Plenkovic and the HDZ of rampant corruption and “massive theft” of state funds, referring to past and present scandals, some of which had ended up in the courts.
Several ministers from the party have stepped down amid corruption allegations. One acting minister was arrested.
“Croatia has never had such a corrupt government,” Milanovic said in his final address ahead of the vote.
Plenkovic, who has led the government since 2016, has repeatedly denied the accusations. He has also accused his rival of violating the constitution, making hate speech and called him a “coward” for not resigning to contest the polls.
The prime minister has been highlighting his role in guiding the country of 3.8 million people into the eurozone and Europe’s passport-free Schengen area last year.
But with an average monthly wage of 1,240 euros ($1,345), the country remains one of the European Union’s poorest.
More than 1,600 rescue workers have arrived and 25 flights filled with aid will land over the next day in Venezuela after earthquakes devastated the country on Wednesday, according to Venezuela’s vice minister of foreign affairs, Oliver Blanco.
World
American rescue teams pull infant alive from rubble in Venezuela days after devastating twin earthquakes
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American search-and-rescue teams pulled an infant alive from beneath the rubble in Venezuela days after the country’s devastating earthquakes, the U.S. Department of State said Saturday.
The State Department shared video on social media showing U.S. personnel pulling the infant from the rubble as rescue crews continued searching for survivors more than 72 hours after two powerful earthquakes struck the South American country.
The infant was 9 months old and was rescued along with her mother, the State Department told Fox News Digital. Both suffered only minor injuries, according to the rescue team.
“This heroic rescue was carried out in Catia La Mar by the Fairfax County Urban Search and Rescue team (USA-01), which deployed to Venezuela on June 26 following activation by the State Department,” a State Department spokesperson said.
TRUMP SAYS VENEZUELA EARTHQUAKES LEFT ‘DEVASTATING NUMBER OF DEATHS’ AS US READIES AID
American search-and-rescue teams rescued an infant trapped beneath the rubble following this week’s deadly earthquakes in Venezuela, according to the State Department. (Department of State)
The rescue comes as emergency crews race against time to locate survivors before the critical rescue window closes.
“Against impossible odds, hope endures,” the State Department posted on X.
“American search and rescue teams rescued an infant from beneath the rubble following the earthquake in Venezuela,” the post continued. “Every life saved is a victory.”
The White House also shared the video, calling it “America at its best.”
“Thank you to the American search and rescue teams providing assistance in Venezuela,” the White House wrote.
PLAYERS, FANS FLEE STADIUM AS POWERFUL EARTHQUAKES STRIKE DURING VENEZUELA BASEBALL GAME
Rescue workers search through the rubble three days after earthquakes struck Catia la Mar, Venezuela. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)
Round-the-clock rescue efforts have continued since magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 earthquakes struck Venezuela’s northern coast Wednesday.
As of Saturday evening, officials said the death toll from the twin earthquakes had reached 1,430.
Earlier Saturday, officials reported that 243 people had been rescued.
FORMER METS PITCHER NARROWLY ESCAPES DEATH IN VENEZUELA EARTHQUAKES THANKS TO ELEVATOR MALFUNCTION
Rescue personnel with a rescue dog assist in rescue efforts after earthquakes hit the country, in La Guaira, Venezuela, Saturday. (REUTERS/Leonardo Fernandez Viloria)
According to The Associated Press, more than 68,000 people remain missing across the country.
Aid groups consider the first 48 to 72 hours after a disaster to be the most critical window for finding survivors, though access to food and water can extend that period.
Venezuelan officials said 17 flights carrying more than 1,600 rescue personnel had arrived Saturday to assist with search-and-rescue efforts.
US RESCUE TEAMS TO DESCEND ON HARD-HIT CARIBBEAN AFTER CATASTROPHIC HURRICANE MELISSA’S IMPACT
Members of the County of Los Angeles Fire Department’s international urban search and rescue team (USA-2) prepare to leave for Venezuela, in Pacoima, Calif., on Thursday. (Blake Fagan/AFP via Getty Images)
Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) teams from Virginia, California and Florida were dispatched to Venezuela on Friday to help search collapsed buildings.
According to the State Department, the three USAR teams include 312 personnel and 18 canine teams, including firefighters, physicians, structural engineers and canine search specialists. The teams also deployed more than 200,000 pounds of specialized rescue equipment.
The Los Angeles County team includes 73 members equipped with concrete-breaking equipment and specialized listening devices used to detect survivors trapped beneath debris.
COLORADO AVALANCHE VICTIM RESCUED IN DRAMATIC VIDEO
Responders search for victims in a demolished building in Caracas, Venezuela, after a magnitude 7.2 earthquake and a 7.5 aftershock struck the region. (Jesus Vargas/Getty Images)
Rescuers have fanned out across La Guaira, where the worst destruction occurred, and parts of Caracas, where families and volunteers have spent days pulling survivors and victims from the rubble.
The United States has pledged $150 million in emergency assistance and support for international relief organizations responding to the disaster.
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Fox News Digital has reached out to the State Department for additional information on the rescue.
Fox News Digital’s James Cirrone, and The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić announced on Saturday that he will resign in the coming weeks and called for early presidential and parliamentary elections.
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“I will be president for only a few weeks, and then I will resign,” Vučić told supporters at a rally in Belgrade. His second and final term was due to expire in mid-2027.
His remarks followed recent comments suggesting he could step down, amid speculation that he may seek a return as prime minister, a position he held from 2014 to 2017
It also follows a year and a half of student-led anti-corruption protests, triggered by the collapse of a railway station canopy in Novi Sad that killed 16 people. The protesters have been demanding early elections.
During his speech, Vučić said he would support his Serbian Progressive Party in the upcoming elections, including snap parliamentary polls originally scheduled for next year.
He did not provide a specific timeline for his resignation or for the dissolution of parliament, which is required before early legislative elections can be held.
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