BRIEF – ME! – DAILY NEWS BRIEFING

In today’s briefing update, The headlines are – A 19-year-old man has been arrested over a reported threat he made against one of the mosques that were attacked in last year’s massacre in New Zealand. 

In the US, Bernie leads and his campaign attempts to keep Cali voting stations open past 8 pm as wait times of over 4 hours threaten victory.

In the UK, Home Secretary Priti Patel is facing fresh bullying claims – the third government department to make accusations of bullying against Patel. 

Coronavirus, Iran has temporarily released 54,000 prisoners in an attempt to stop the virus spreading around jails. Those released were serving less than five years and had posted bail. 

Entertainment, James Bond fans are calling for the new film – No Time To Die – to be released in the summer instead of April due to the coronavirus. 

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New Zealand teen arrested after threat to a mosque

France24 says New Zealand police arrested a 19-year-old man over an “abhorrent” threat made against one of the Christchurch mosques targeted in a mass shooting last year.

As it gets closer to the first anniversary of the massacre by a self-avowed white supremacist that killed 51 Muslim worshippers, police condemned the threat and increased patrols at two mosques that were attacked. 

The message was made on an encrypted messaging app reportedly showing a man in a balaclava sitting in a car outside the Al Nor mosque accompanied by threatening text and a gun emoji. 

Read the full story on France24

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Sanders leads & sues to keep LA polls open later as California turns into Super Tuesday’s biggest prize

RT News says the Bernie Sanders campaign is suing to keep polling stations in LA open past 8 pm as wait times of up to 4 hours and voting machine problems threaten a victory that exit polls place within tantalising reach. 

The campaign filed an emergency injunction to keep polls open an additional two hours on Super Tuesday in LA County, where the rollout of a new voting system has gone less than smoothly. 

The new system shuttered thousands of neighbourhood polling places in favour of larger regional centres leaving voters with little choice but to wait in line for hours.

Read the full story on RT News

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Iran temporarily releases 54,000 prisoners to try and stop coronavirus from spreading in jails

Fox News says Iran temporarily released more than 54,000 prisoners in an effort to prevent the spread of the coronavirus outbreak in the country’s overcrowded prisons. COVID-19 has killed dozens in the country and infected 23 members of parliament. 

Judiciary spokesman Gholam Hossein Esmaili told reports that certain inmates were allowed out of prison after testing negative for the virus and posting bail. “Security prisoners” – sentenced to more than five years – would not be released. 

Esmaili indicated that several famous Iranian political prisoners and British dual national Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe would be allowed out. 

Read the full story on Fox News

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Refugee aid groups attacked as tensions rock Greek Island

Arab News says several aid groups on Lesbos Island said Tuesday they were suspending work with refugees and evacuating staff following violence by locals, amid fear and confusion on an island in the crosshairs of the migrant crisis. 

While Greece’s land border with Turkey has seen the largest push of migrants heading for Europe in recent days, there has also been a rise in people attempting the short boat journey to Greece’s northern Aegean islands.

In an effort to curb the influx, which erupted after Ankara said last week it would no longer stop refugees from entering Europe, Athens has suspended asylum procedures and bolstered its borders.

Read the full story on Arab News

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Priti Patel faces fresh bullying claims

BBC News says Home Secretary Priti Patel has been accused of bullying staff at a third government department, BBC Newsnight has learned.

The new claims were reportedly brought to a senior official at the Department for International Development after she quit as its Secretary of State in 2017. 

A Tory source said “dark forces” were trying to influence an inquiry into Ms Patel’s conduct in her current role. 

Ms Patel has denied all allegations. 

The BBC says it reported that an official in the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) received a £25,000 payout after alleging she was bullied by Ms Patel in 2015 during her time as employment minister.

Read the full story on BBC News

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Bond fans call for No Time To Die release to be delayed due to coronavirus

Sky News says James Bond fans have called for the release of the new film No Time To Die to be delayed because of the coronavirus outbreak.

The movie is due to be released in UK cinemas on 2 April this year. 

But a fan site has said it should not be released until the summer. 

In an open letter on the site signed off by the page’s co-founder James Page, the fan group calls on production companies MGM, Eon and Universal to “put public health above marketing release schedules.”

Read the full story on Sky News

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