News in English

8. April 2017, 21:58

Kerry urges Mideast peace talks

The United States secretary of state John Kerry has said peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians scheduled to begin in Jerusalem tomorrow should not be derailed by Israel’s announcement on Sunday that it had approved the construction of 1,200 new homes in East Jerusalem and the West Bank. The Palestinians have accused Israel of attempting to sabotage the talks. Kerry said tensions over settlements underlined the need to proceed quickly with negotiations: “What this underscores actually is the importance of getting to the table quickly and resolving the questions with respect to settlements which are best resolved by solving the problem of security and borders.” The release of a first group of 26 Palestinian prisoners promised by Israel is expected to take place late tonight.

US considers reform to criminal justice

The United States attorney general Eric Holder has outlined major changes to the criminal justice system to reduce mandatory minimum prison sentences for some drug offences. US prisons are massively overcrowded, with almost 1% of the adult population incarcerated, and a disproportionate number of inmates black or Hispanic. Holder said harsh prison terms for low level non-violent drug offenders are too expensive and unfair: “Too many Americans go to too many prisons for far too long and for no truly good law enforcement reason.”

Death penalty in Xinjiang violence

In China, two men have been sentenced to death on terror charges and three others to prison terms in connection with clashes in the western region of Xinjiang in April that left 21 people dead. Correspondents have said the violence may reflect tensions between the Muslim Uighur population and Han Chinese rather than terrorism.

Boko Haram attacks mosque

Suspected Islamic militants from the Boko Haram group have shot dead 44 people praying at a mosque in northeast Nigeria. There are reports Boko Haram may have been targeting vigilante groups formed to oppose them.

Keita wins Mali presidency

A former prime minister of Mali, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, has won the presidential election in a runoff vote. 4 billion dollars of international aid to Mali is dependent on it re-establishing democratic government after a year of unrest including a military coup and French-led military intervention.

Art theft trial opens in Bucharest

The trial opens today in Bucharest of six Romanians accused of stealing seven famous artworks from the Kunsthal museum in Rotterdam last October, including paintings by Picasso, Matisse and Monet. There are fears the mother of one of the accused may have burnt some of the works to destroy the evidence.

The weather

Rain and thundershowers in Alpine areas and the south. Mainly dry with sunny spells in the Danube area. Top temperatures 24 to 30 degrees.

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