20.03.2017

News in English

UK to trigger Brexit countdown / EU-North African talks on migrants / Germany criticizes Erdogan statement / Airport attacker has drugs, alcohol in system / More fighting in Damascus / FBI chief to testify to Congress on claims Russia helped Trump / The weather

20.03.2017

UK to trigger Brexit countdown

British Prime Minister Theresa May will officially launch the process for the UK to leave the European Union on March 29th. That will start the clock ticking on a two-year countdown to Brexit and will open the way for talks between London and Brussels to begin in the coming weeks.

EU-North African talks on migrants

European Union and North African government ministers are meeting in Rome today to discuss how best to curb the number of migrants coming to Europe over the Mediterranean. The interior ministers from Libya, Tunisia, and Algeria are meeting with several of their EU counterparts, including Austria’s Wolfgang Sobotka. There has been an increase in migrants trying to make the dangerous trip across the Med since last year when Turkey reached a deal with the EU to stop refugees from trying to reach western Europe across the Balkans. Prior to today’s meeting, Libya told the EU that it needs 800 million euros to police its own coast.

Germany criticizes Erdogan statement

Germany has condemned an accusation by Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that Chancellor Angela Merkel is applying “Nazi” methods against Turks and Turkish officials in Germany. An official in Berlin today said that Nazi comparisons are unacceptable and called on Ankara to turn down its rhetoric ahead of a referendum in Turkey next month aimed at expending Erdogan’s presidential powers.

Airport attacker has drugs, alcohol in system

Officials in France say the gunman who attacked soldiers at Orly airport in Paris over the weekend had been drinking alcohol and taking drugs. Blood tests on the man’s body found traces of cannabis and cocaine after he was shot dead after aiming a gun at a French soldier at the airport. Previously on the same day, the 39-year old man was involved in another shooting and a carjacking. French officials have classified the incident at Orly as a terrorist act. The man’s family say he was radicalized while serving time in prison for petty crimes.

More fighting in Damascus

The Syrian government says it has blocked a surprise attack by opposition fighters on the eastern outskirts of Damascus. Government troops are trying to consolidate control of Damascus after recapturing the city of Aleppo last December with support from Russia.

FBI to testify to Congress on claims Russia helped Trump

In Washington today, FBI Director James Comey will testify before the US House of Representatives Intelligence committee. Comey will be asked about allegations that Russia meddled in last year’s US presidential election in support of Donald Trump. Senior intelligence officials believe there was covert Russian intervention, something which Trump denies. The chairman of the Intelligence committee is Democratic congressman Adam Schiff . “We think it’s in the public interest that this be addressed very openly by the director and we certainly expect that he will.”

The weather

The afternoon will remain mostly sunny in the south and the west, and a mix of sunny and cloudy skies in the rest of the country. Highs today are ranging from 11 to 22 degrees.

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