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Author: Vijeta Uniyal

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Vijeta Uniyal

Vijeta Uniyal is a writer based in Germany. He is Senior Distinguished Fellow of the Gatestone Institute and founder of the "Indians For Israel".

The United Kingdom is heading towards an uncertain future since Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Members of Parliament (MP) still cannot agree on Brexit. Parliament just entered a five-week-long suspension ahead of the October 31 Brexit deadline. Ahead of the parliament's shutdown, Johnson hoped to call a snap election for mid-October but failed twice to secure the required two-thirds majority in the Lower House of Commons. Instead, the MPs passed a bill designed to delay the Brexit deadline beyond October if the UK failed to reach a deal with the European Union.

The U.S. Ambassador to Berlin, Richard Grenell, has urged Germany to ban the Islamist terror organization Hezbollah from the country. Writing in the German newspaper Die Welt, the envoy called on Chancellor Angela Merkel's government to outlaw the Iran-backed terrorist group that has been "murdering innocent people from Lebanon to Syria, Thailand, Bulgaria, Spain and Argentina" for 37 years.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson plans to defy the Brexit delay bill, London-based newspaper The Telegraph reported. The House of Lords, the unelected Upper House of the UK Parliament, passed a bill on Friday blocking a no-deal Brexit ahead of the October 31 deadline. The bill, expected to be signed into law by the Queen on Monday, aims to force the British government to delay Brexit if it fails to reach a deal with the European Union.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's plan to push for a no-deal Brexit suffered a setback today after the country's parliament passed a bill to delay the Brexit beyond October 31. The motion was voted by 327 votes to 299, giving it a majority of 28 in the Lower House. The bill has now moved to the Upper House.

Germany's Alternative for Germany (AfD) party has surged in the regional elections, winning a quarter of the vote in the eastern states of Saxony and Brandenburg. The party made huge gains in the former communist east, emerging strong second by getting 27.5 percent in Saxony and 23.5 in Brandenburg.

Greece is increasing border patrols and speeding up deportations to combat the rising tide of illegal immigrants coming in from Turkey, country's center-right government said on Saturday. The measures were announced after a group of more than 500 Afghan and Syrian migrants landed on the Greek island of Lesbos earlier this week.

The European Union is ready to withdraw the October 31 deadline in a bid to prevent a no-deal Brexit, French President Emmanuel Macron said. The French announcement, reported by the British newspaper Daily Telegraph, comes days after Prime Minister Boris Johnson moved to suspend the nation's parliament for five weeks, a step likely to curb lawmakers' ability to pass resolutions challenging a possible no-deal Brexit.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has moved to suspend the British parliament for at least a month. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II has approved this request, allowing for a suspension until October 14. The decision comes as pro-EU Members of Parliament (MPs) are lobbying to prevent a possible no-deal Brexit.

The European Union expects the United Kingdom to pay a £39 billion ($48 billion) 'divorce bill' even in the case of a no-deal Brexit. The refusal to pay the amount could hurt the UK's prospects of entering into a trade agreement with the remaining 27 member state of the bloc. The UK is set to leave the EU on October 31.

In an ongoing war of words, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has told European Council President Donald Tusk that he will go down in history as 'Mr No-Deal' if the European Union continues with its refusal to change the withdrawal agreement. The remark came after the European Council President, who head the EU's executive body, said that Prime Minister Johnson should accept the withdrawal agreement handed by Brussels to his predecessor Theresa May as he "will not like to go down in history as 'Mr No Deal'."

Germany is heading into a recession, a report released by Chancellor Angela Merkel's office said. The economists working at the Chancellor's office see Germany technically in a recession given the country's negative growth in two successive quarters, the German weekly Der Spiegel reported. Europe's largest economy is expected to contract between July and September, as it did in the second quarter.

Ahead of his European trip, President Donald Trump has supported British Prime Minister Boris Johnson as he tries to negotiate a withdrawal agreement with the European Union. "That’s a very tough bargain they are driving, the European Union. We are going to see if we can work something out," President Trump said on Wednesday. The U.S. President will be in France this weekend to attend the annual Group of Seven (G-7) summit.

The Palestinian Authority (PA) has banned LGBT activities in the West Bank, launching a search for gay rights activists. The main target of the crackdown is a group called Al-Qaws for Sexual & Gender Diversity in Palestinian Society. The leading Palestinian gay rights group was planning to hold a meeting of its members later this month. "The attack on us is unprecedented," a member of Al-Qaws told The Jerusalem Post. "They are calling us traitors and corrupt people, and many are calling for our execution. We are afraid for our lives."

The Palestinian grandmother of Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib wished "ruin" on President Donald Trump in an ongoing controversy over Michigan lawmaker's proposed visit to Israel. "May God ruin him," Tlaib's grandmother was quoted saying by news agency Reuters.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has accused some British Members of Parliament (MP) of collaborating with the European Union to prevent Brexit. "There’s a terrible collaboration, as it were, going on between people who think they can block Brexit in parliament and our European friends," Prime Minister Johnson said during a question-and-answer session on Facebook.

Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini hit back at Richard Gere for criticizing the country's immigration policy. He told the U.S. celebrity to take illegal migrants with him to Hollywood. "Given this generous millionaire is voicing concern for the fate of the Open Arms migrants, we thank him," the Italian politician responded sarcastically. "He can take all the people aboard back to Hollywood, on his private plane, and support them in his villas. Thank you, Richard!"

German authorities have investigated hundreds of internet users over comments they made on a Facebook video posted by the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party. The massive probe, spanning over 250 investigations, was launched in response to the live streaming of a migrant protest by the Bavarian-wing of the AfD party in 2017, German media disclosed on Saturday. Some 97 people were fined and three others were to face incitement charges in the court, the weekly Der Spiegel reported.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel's ruling Christian Democratic party (CDU) has supported plans to raise meat prices to fight climate change. The meat tax, initially proposed by the Social Democrats (SPD) and the Green Party, will sharply increase the prices of meat products by raising the tax rate from the current rate of 7 percent to 19 percent.