News in English

8. April 2017, 21:58

The US pledges military aid for Syria´s rebels

President Barack Obama has authorized sending American weapons to Syrian rebels for the first time, after the White House said it had proof that the Syrian government had used chemical weapons on a quote "small scale" against opposition forces. The setting up of a limited no-fly zone in Syria is also reportedly being considered. Russia has described the chemical weapons claims as "fabricated" and says the US move would undermine the chances for an international peace conference. The United Nations said on Thursday that at least 93,000 people have now died in the Syrian conflict.

Iranians vote for a new president

Millions of voters across Iran are casting their ballots in elections to choose a successor to the outgoing president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. All six candidates are seen as conservatives. But one of them, cleric Hassan Rouhani, has reportedly been reaching out to the reformists in recent days.Friday's election is the first since 2009, when protesters took to the streets in anger at the results, which they said had been rigged in favour of Ahmadinejad. Karim Sadjadpour is a policy analyst at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace: "Given what transpired in 2009 there´s a lot of cynicism. There´s a lot of question marks about the integrity of the voting process."

Erdogan meets protesters

Turkish protesters say that Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has pledged not to push ahead with controversial plans to redevelop Istanbul´s Gezi Park until a court rules on the project. Erdogan met a delegation overnight made up mostly of actors and artists but which also included two members of the protest group Taksim Solidarity. He had earlier given protesters a final warning to leave the park, after two weeks of demonstrations.

Czech PM under pressure to resign

Czech prosecutors say seven people have been charged, including the head of the prime minister's office and two military intelligence service members, following unprecedented raids on government and private offices across the Czech Republic on Thursday. The charges include the abuse of the military intelligence service. The opposition Social Democrats have threatened to call a vote of no confidence unless Prime Minister Petr Necas resigns. He has denied any wrongdoing.

Airbus A350 on maiden test flight

The newest aircraft from European plane maker Airbus has taken off on its maiden test flight from the French city of Toulouse. The Airbus A350 is designed to be more fuel-efficient, and a direct competitor to US rival Boeing's 787 Dreamliner.

The weather

Some sunshine but overcast with some rain along the north of the Alps. Highs today generally from 17 to 24, up to 27 in the east and south east.

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