US midterms heat up, Merkel quits, protests over blasphemy continue in Pakistan, Istanbul Airport opens

US midterms heat up

US midterms heat up The United States will hold its midterm elections on November 6, whereby the entire House of Representatives and a third of the Senate will be up for grabs. After losing the presidency in 2016, the Democrats will be hoping to take control over both representative bodies, and the world is watching with bated breath. A win in either house could result in the beginning of impeachment proceedings, or at least provide an obstruction to President Donald Trump's legislative agenda. The Democrats need to flip 23 seats from the Republicans to take over the majority of the House, they have currently 194 seats against 241 Republican-held seats, but with only 9 Republican seats being contested in the Senate, a majority in that body may be more difficult to attain. However, they are hopeful. Historically, opposition parties usually gain seats in the midterms, as they mobilize after a presidential loss. And the Democrats, incensed by Trump's policies and behavior, hope to get their base out voting for a change. Merkel calls it quits German Chancellor Angela Merkel has decided not to seek re-election as party chairwoman, meaning her fourth term as leader would be her last. That would bring to an end her 14-year tenure as chancellor in which she has dominated European politics. Merkel, 64, has been chairwoman of her conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) since 2000 and chancellor since 2005. Her decision to step down comes as her party suffered a second loss in regional elections this week. "I have the firm feeling that today the time has come to open a new chapter," Merkel, looking serious but calm, told reporters in Berlin after a meeting of the CDU's leadership. It means she will not contest the 2021 election, as her party seeks her successor. When Merkel came into office in 2005, George W Bush was US president, Jacques Chirac was in the Elysee Palace in Paris and Tony Blair was British prime minister. Merkel loomed large on the European stage since, helping guide the EU through the eurozone crisis and opening Germany's doors to migrants in 2015. Protests in Pakistan delay release of woman acquitted of blasphemy Acquitted of blasphemy charges by the Supreme Court on Wednesday, Asia Bibi has been prevented from being released by ongoing protests demanding she be hanged. The top court handed down its landmark decision on Wednesday, overturning Bibi's 2010 conviction on blasphemy charges. Since then, religious groups have blocked highways and damaged or set-fire to dozens of vehicles to pressure the government to stop her release from an undisclosed detention facility. Bibi was arrested in 2009 after she was accused of blasphemy following a quarrel with two fellow female farm workers who refused to drink from a water container used by a Christian. A few days later, a mob accused her of insulting the Prophet, leading to her 2010 conviction. One of the world's biggest airports inaugurated in Istanbul President Recep Tayyip Erdogan opened Istanbul's new airport this week, soon to be one of the world's three biggest airports with an initial annual capacity of 90 million passengers. The inauguration ceremony took place on Republic Day, the 95th anniversary of the founding of the Turkish Republic. The airport, still in its first phase, will be completed in 2028, continuing to operate and grow in that time. Erdogan said Istanbul Airport represented an $11.6 billion-plus investment, and the amount of rent to be paid to the government totaled some $25.3 billion. "We see Istanbul Airport as an investment not only in our country but also in our region and the world.