News | 19 September

Myanmar leader speaks on Rohingya crisis +++ Hurricane Maria strikes Caribbean

Myanmar leader speaks on Rohingya crisis +++ Hurricane Maria strikes Caribbean +++ Jihadists launch offensive in Syria +++ Trump campaign manager was monitored +++ Trump addresses UN general assembly +++ UN says millions in slave labour +++ The weather

News | 19 September

Joanna King

Myanmar leader speaks on Rohingya crisis

Myanmar's leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, has said she does not know why 400,000 Muslim Rohingya have fled the country for neighbouring Bangladesh. In her first public address on the crisis she said her government is still assessing allegations of atrocities. The United Nations has branded the army crackdown in northern Rakhine state – including indiscriminate killing of Rohingya and the destruction of their villages - as ethnic cleansing. Aung San Suu Kyi: “We want to find out why this exodus is happening. We would like to talk to those who have fled as well as those who have stayed.” The UN has demanded immediate access to Rakhine for investigators and aid groups.

Hurricane Maria strikes Caribbean

Hurricane Maria has struck the eastern Caribbean island of Dominica at category five strength, with initial reports of widespread devastation. Hurricane warnings have been issued throughout the region, including for islands already devastated by Hurricane Irma. Mark Brantley is the foreign minister of St Kitts and Nevis: “These monster storms are getting more frequent, and they’re getting more and more dangerous. Climate change is for us an existential threat because a single storm can wipe us out entirely.”

Jihadists launch offensive in Syria

Reports from Syria say insurgents have launched a major attack on government-held areas north of the city of Hama. Monitors say the offensive is the widest so far by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham - formerly known as the Nusra Front - and its allies. The jihadist alliance last week denounced ceasefire talks in Kazakhstan, and vowed to keep fighting.

Trump campaign manager was monitored

United States media are reporting that investigators wiretapped former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort under secret court orders before and after the presidential election, because of concerns about his links with Russia. Manafort is suspected of communicating with Russian operatives seeking to interfere in the US vote in favour of Trump.

Trump addresses UN general assembly

President Trump in his first address today to the United Nations general assembly is expected to call for North Korea to be put under greater international pressure over its nuclear weapons programme. The White House has said Trump will also call for international action to confront Iran, claiming it is a threat to global security.

UN says millions in slave labour

A study by the International Labour Organisation says over 40 million people are living in slavery, a quarter of them children, and over 70% of them women and girls. The UN body says despite millions of people working as forced labour in farming, fishing and construction or in the sex industry, only 63,000 victims of slavery were reported to the authorities last year.

The weather

Mainly overcast and wet. Top temperatures 4 to 14 degrees.

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