News in English

8. April 2017, 21:58

Banks remain closed in Cyprus

Officials in Cyprus have announced that all banks are now to be kept closed until Thursday, despite the bailout agreed with the European Union and IMF. Restrictions on transactions will be in place before banks open, to prevent mass withdrawals. Cypriot finance minister Michal Sarris has confirmed that big depositors could lose up to 40 percent of their funds as part of the rescue plan, with details being worked out today. “The exact percentage is not yet decided but it is going to be significant. I am afraid that people that have larger than 100,000 will have to exchange them for bank shares.” Meanwhile the chairman of the Bank of Cyprus, Andreas Artemis, has resigned.

Ntaganda appears before the ICC

The Rwandan-born warlord Bosco Ntaganda has made his first appearance before the International Criminal Court. He faces charges including murder, rape and using child soldiers in eastern Congo. Ntaganda had been one of the court's longest-sought fugitives until he turned himself in last week.

Syria’s opposition joins Arab League summit

Syria's opposition National Coalition has taken the country's official seat at an Arab League summit in Qatar. The assumption of the seat is considered an important development for the forces fighting President Bashar al Assad's regime.

North Korea threatens US bases

South Korean president Park Geun-hye has appealed to North Korea to change course as Pyongyang continues to threaten military action. North Korea says it has put its strategic rocket and long-range artillery units on combat posture, targeting US military bases in the Pacific.

BRICS meet on growth

The leaders of the five major emerging economies, Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, which account for over 40% of the world’s population, are beginning their annual summit in Durban in South Africa. They are expected to focus on ways to stimulate growth, as they face the impact of turmoil in the global economy.

Italy rules a re-trial in Knox case

Italy's highest court has ruled that American student Amanda Knox and her former boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito must face a retrial over the murder in 2007 of her British flatmate, Meredith Kercher. The case has caught attention worldwide. Knox and Sollecito served four years in jail in Italy after their conviction but were freed on appeal in October 2011.

US Supreme Court considers gay marriage

For the first time, the United States Supreme Court is to begin hearing arguments on two laws critical to the rights of gay couples to marry. New polls show a dramatic shift in the number of Americans who support overturning barriers to same-sex marriage.

The weather

Overcast with snowfalls across the country. Lively winds and top temperatures minus 6 to zero degrees.

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