Strong winds have swept a large part of northern China since Friday evening, prompting widespread weather warnings and emergency response measures, disrupting traffic, and toppling utility poles.
The National Meteorological Center on Saturday renewed an orange alert for strong gales that are expected to sweep the country's northern and coastal regions over the weekend, warning that winds of up to force 13 (37.0-41.4 meters per second) on the national wind scale will hit parts of Inner Mongolia, Shanxi, Hebei and Beijing from 8:00 Saturday to 8:00 Sunday.
In Zhoukou, a city in central China's Henan Province, gusty winds caused disturbances to greenhouse coverings at vegetable farms in Taikang County.
To prevent damage to crops, agricultural experts went to fields to assist farmers with securing the coverings.
On Saturday, the coastal areas of east China's Zhejiang Province experienced strong winds that led to the suspension of 71 passenger ferry routes in Zhoushan City.
As a precaution, maritime authorities implemented wind-control measures, and 43,000 tourists at the Putuo Mountain scenic area were evacuated in advance.
Similarly, coastal areas of east China's Fujian Province also reported gusts reaching force 9 (20.8-24.4 meters per second) on Saturday, with some areas seeing winds of force 11 (28.5-32.6 meters per second).
The strong winds halted 205 ferries on 77 routes, and 97 construction projects on water in the province.
Meanwhile, coastal ports enforced traffic controls, and large vessels and cruise ships were moved to safer waters.
In Huangshi, a city in central China's Hubei Province, thunderstorms and strong winds brought heavy rain to the city from Friday evening to the early morning on Saturday, flooding the city's downtown area and damaging power lines that affected 1,700 households.
Strong winds sweep parts of China
Thousands of demonstrators rallied in Italy and Greece on Saturday to protest against U.S. military intervention in Venezuela, with protesters in Rome, Milan and Athens condemning Washington's actions and calling for respect for Venezuelan sovereignty.
In Rome, more than 1,000 demonstrators marched toward the area near the U.S. Embassy, calling on Washington to immediately release Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife.
Police blocked roads around the embassy to prevent protesters from approaching the building, but demonstrators continued to denounce U.S. actions.
"First of all, we oppose U.S. imperialist aggression. This kind of behavior is shameful. The U.S. is attacking a sovereign country, and as [U.S. President Donald] Trump himself has said, this is for oil interests," said protester Giovanni Barbera.
Saturday's rally marked the second large-scale protest in Rome this month against U.S. military operations in Venezuela, following an earlier one on on Jan 3.
Participants included members of multiple political parties, labor unions and social organizations. The protesters held banners reading "Stop imperialist interference" and "Free Maduro," urging the international community to respect Venezuela's sovereignty and the will of its people, and condemning the U.S. for violating international law.
"We are protesting the way the U.S. handles international politics. Since the events of January 3, we have seen violations of international law, and we are very concerned about how the global situation is developing," said protester Stefano De Angelis.
Organizers said solidarity rallies in support of Venezuela were held in 30 Italian cities on the same day.
Meanwhile, similar protests were also staged in Greece. About 200 people gathered outside the U.S. Embassy in Athens, voicing support for Venezuela and opposition to U.S. military actions.
"We oppose U.S. imperialism and its attack on Venezuela. At the same time, the U.S. is also threatening Cuba, Mexico and Greenland. We must stand up against this behavior," said Greek protester Argiro Sirmakezi.
Protesters rally in Italy, Greece against U.S. military operation in Venezuela
