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WORLD NEWS Monday 6 January 2020

Spanish leader fails to form left-wing government on 1st try

MADRID (AP) — Spain's in- "Let us make this legislature
terim Prime Minister Pedro a re-vindication of the best
Sánchez failed Sunday on policies, of the best hopes,"
the first of two chances to Sánchez told the 350-seat
win the endorsement of the lower house before the
Spanish Parliament to form vote.
a left-wing coalition gov- The bar lowers on Tues-
ernment. day's second attempt, only
The Socialist leader will requiring a simple major-
have a second oppor- ity of more votes for than
tunity on Tuesday, when against. But Sánchez's
the threshold for success hopes of success will still
is lower and he hopes to depend on abstentions
have the support needed from several smaller parties,
to constitute a coalition including separatist parties
government of his center- from Catalonia and the
left Socialists and the anti- Basque Country. Support
austerity United We Can from the Catalan separat-
party. It would be Spain's ist ERC party has come at
first coalition government Spain's interim Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez speaks at the Spanish Parliament in Madrid, Spain, a heavy political price for
since the return of democ- Sunday, Jan. 5, 2020. Sánchez, who has agreed
racy following the death Associated Press to open talks between the
of dictator Gen. Francisco Spanish government and
Franco in 1975. the required absolute ma- United We Can lawmakers. ties and other smaller par- the Catalan regional gov-
As expected, Sánchez fell jority. The rest came from smaller tied tallied 165 "No" votes. ernment, which is led by
short Sunday, receiving Sánchez received back- left-wing and regional par- Eighteen lawmakers ab- fervent separatists, regard-
only 166 votes, below the ing from his 120 Socialist ties. The lawmakers of the stained and one did not ing the future of the restive
176 votes needed to reach lawmakers and from the 35 three main right-wing par- cast a vote. northeastern region.q

Police: Drunk driver kills 6 German tourists in Italy

By NICOLE WINFIELD man tourists. pitals, including two who
ROME (AP) — A drunk driv- The driver of the car had a were airlifted to a hospital
er plowed into a group of high blood alcohol content in Innsbruck, Austria, said
young German tourists in and was driving particularly Bolzano Carabinieri Cmdr.
northern Italy early Sunday, fast, a Carabineri police Alessandro Coassin.
killing six people and injur- official in Brunico told The Coassin said the driver,
ing 11, Italian authorities Associated Press, speaking identified by Italian me-
said. on condition of anonymity dia as a 28-year-old man
The deadly crash occurred because he wasn't autho- from the nearby town of
in a village near Valle Auri- rized to give his name. He Chienes, was arrested on
na, near Bolzano in the Alto said police had concluded suspicion of highway man-
Adige region, shortly after 1 that the car crash into pe- slaughter and injury and
a.m. as the Germans were destrians was not an act of was being treated at the
gathering to board their terrorism. hospital in Brunico.
bus. The Lutago volunteer fire The regional president of
The largely German-speak- service said on Facebook Alto Adige, Arno Kom-
ing autonomous region of that six people were killed patscher, told a press con- Emergency services of the Luttach voluntary fire brigade secure
northern Italy, with its ski re- at the scene. The injured, ference the victims were an accident site after a car drove into a group of people cross-
sorts in the Dolomites and four of whom were in criti- part of a group of young ing a road in Luttach, near Bruneck in the northern region South
quaint villages around Bol- cal condition, were taken Germans vacationing in Tirol, Italy, on early Sunday, Jan. 5, 2020.
zano, is popular with Ger- to several regional hos- the region. q Associated Press