Welcome to Fresh Start.

This is People’s Daily app.

Here are today’s picks from our editors.

Xi calls for promotion of patriotism, dedication

Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for efforts in promoting the patriotism and dedication demonstrated by a late militia member who spent 32 years guarding an island post.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, said the spirit of Wang Jicai, former head of the militia post on Kaishan Island in east China's Jiangsu Province, should be pursued by hardworking people in the new era.

Wang resolutely stuck to his post without any complaint or regret, composing an extraordinary chapter in a life on an ordinary post, Xi said.

Xi asked for condolences and care for Wang's family and said that for those who dedicate themselves to difficult posts for a long time like Wang, organizations at all levels should proactively help them overcome difficulties, and care for them more in their thoughts, work and lives.

Wang started working on Kaishan Island in 1986 with his wife and they dedicated all their youth to the lonely strategic outpost in the Yellow Sea.

The couple were honored as "national role models of the time" in 2014.

On July 27, Wang died of sudden illness on duty at the age of 58. (Xinhua)

China to set up technical support system against IP infringement

China is looking to establish a technical support system to detect, monitor and track evidence of intellectual property (IP) infringement and counterfeiting by 2020.

According to a working plan on IP protection with Internet Plus technology that was issued and made public by the State Intellectual Property Office, the system will feature the creation of several basic databases, including one with core information of IP authorization files.

As another part of the support system, an intelligent detection system will be set up to identify and track evidence of IP infringement and counterfeiting. Its work will involve a list of products and enterprises prone to IP infringement, based on big data analysis.  (Xinhua)

Trump reimposes sanctions to levy economic pressure on Iran

US President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday reimposing many sanctions on Iran, three months after pulling out of the Iran nuclear deal, saying the US policy is to levy “maximum economic pressure” on the country.

In a statement, Trump said the Iran nuclear deal was a “horrible, one-sided deal” and that it left the Iranian government flush with cash to use to fuel conflict in the Middle East.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says renewed US sanctions on Iran will be rigorously enforced and remain in place until the Iranian government radically changes course. (AFP - AP）

Russia starts imposing new taxes on US goods

Russia on Sunday started imposing additional import tariffs of 25 - 40 percent for a range of US goods, according to the Russian government.

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev last month signed a government order setting the new tariffs, stipulating that it would become effective 30 days after its official publication on July 6.

The new tariffs, in retaliation to US extra tariffs of 25 percent on steel and of 10 percent on aluminum starting on March 23, apply to equipment for road construction, oil and gas industry, metal processing machinery as well as fiber-optics. (Xinhua)

China to raise retail prices of gasoline, diesel

China will raise the retail prices of gasoline and diesel starting Tuesday, the top economic planner announced Monday.

Retail prices will go up by 70 yuan (about $10) per ton for the two types of refined oil products, according to the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).

Under the current pricing mechanism, if international crude oil prices change by more than 50 yuan per ton and remain at that level for ten working days, the prices of refined oil products such as gasoline and diesel in China will be adjusted accordingly. (Xinhua)

11 killed and nearly 70 wounded in Chicago weekend shootings

At least 11 people were shot and killed and about 70 others were wounded over the weekend in Chicago, in a spasm of gun violence that police attributed mostly to gangs.

The violence peaked early Sunday, including one shooting on the city’s South Side that wounded eight people.

Gang members are using large summer crowds as cover in some cases, police Patrol Chief Fred Waller said Sunday. (AP)

Cellist kicked off flight over instrument miscommunication

Jingjing Hu, a music student at Chicago-based DePaul University, was kicked off an American Airlines flight earlier this week because the cello she brought aboard the plane was deemed "too big."

Hu’s husband Jay Tang had booked extra roundtrip tickets specifically for her cello, which is worth about 30,000 US dollars, so she could carry it as cabin baggage, and had verified with the airline to ensure that both aircrafts could accommodate the instrument.

However, after boarding her returning flight to Chicago on Thursday, she was asked to get off the plane.

American Airlines said in a statement that there was a "miscommunication" about whether the instrument met the requirements to fit aboard the particular aircraft. (CGTN)

Thanks for listening and be sure to catch us tomorrow.

And now for the Question of the Day.

How long is a day on earth?

(Answer: 23 hours, 56 minutes and 4.0916 seconds.)

Today’s quote is from Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu.

“Nothing is softer or more flexible than water, yet nothing can resist it.”

(Produced by Nancy Yan Xu, Ryan Yaoran Yu, Lance Crayon, Raymond Mendoza, and Terry Guanlin Li)