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This summary is provided by the STA:
Slovenian voters reject waters act in referendum
LJUBLJANA - Slovenian voters overwhelmingly rejected the new waters act in a referendum. More than 86% voted against, show near-final unofficial results. The statutory requirement that at least 20% of all voters must be against for a law to be rejected has been satisfied as well. Turnout was just shy of 46%, the highest in a referendum since 2007. The referendum has been stolen and misused to achieve other goals, including political targets, said Environment Minister Andrej Vizjak, who believed "people have reacted emotionally". "It has been shown that Slovenia is home to compassionate and tolerant people who help each other and fight for the public good and for nature," said Nika Kovač of the Institute 8 March, one of the NGOs that initiated the referendum. The opposition said the result would require the government to resign, but Prime Minister Janez Janša dismissed this notion.
Slovenian ambassador in Iran summoned over Janša's statements
LJUBLJANA/TEHRAN, Iran - The Iranian Foreign Ministry summoned Slovenia's Ambassador to Iran Kristina Radej over Prime Minister Janez Janša's call for an inquiry into a 1988 massacre of 30,000 political prisoners in Iran. Tehran has asked for an explanation from the government for Janša's video address at a recent Free Iran World Summit, an annual global event organised by the Iranian diaspora, which Tehran described as an online meeting of a "terrorist group". Janša told the Free Iran World Summit the investigation into the massacre was especially important in light of the fact that the regime's next president will be Ebrahim Raisi, who is accused by Amnesty International of crimes against humanity for his role in the massacre.
25 new coronavirus cases confirmed on Saturday
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia confirmed 25 new cases of coronavirus on Saturday, the highest weekend figure since mid-June and the continuation of a week-long exponential trend. The positive cases came from 774 PCR tests, for a positivity rate of 3.2%. The 14-day incidence per 100,000 population has risen to 26 from 19 a week ago. Hospital numbers have remained unchanged, with 43 in hospital as of this morning, including ten in intensive care, according to the tracker Covid-19 Sledilnik.
Speaker and foreign ministry mark Srebrenica Memorial Day
LJUBLJANA - Speaker Igor Zorčič and the Foreign Ministry paid tribute to the victims of the Srebrenica massacre, which took place 26 years ago. The ministry said that relativisation or denial of the tragic event was unacceptable as Zorčič highlighted the role of Slovenia's EU presidency in efforts to achieve reconciliation in the Western Balkans. "The European Union will have, with the help of Slovenia as the EU presiding country, the best opportunity in the next six months to take a step forward towards the integration of Western Balkan countries. Only a joint, European future will be a lasting guarantee for stability and peace in the region and Europe," he wrote.
Logar talks bilateral ties, vaccine donation with Egyptian counterpart
BRUSSELS, Belgium - Foreign Minister Anže Logar met with his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry ahead of a session of the EU's Foreign Affairs Council. Bilateral relations topped the agenda. The ministers said relations between the two countries were good and friendly, confirming a mutual interest in the continuation of political dialogue and stronger economic, scientific, tourist and cultural ties, the Foreign Ministry said.
