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8. April 2017, 21:58

Assad warns against a Western strike

The Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has denied involvement in last month´s suspected chemical attacks in Damascus and says there is no evidence that his government used chemical weapons. In an interview with the American broadcaster PBS, Assad also warned that a military strike may prompt retaliation from his allies. The American Secretary of State, John Kerry, has been lobbying hard for military action against Syria during meetings with European Union and Arab foreign ministers. Speaking after talks today with the British Foreign Secretary, William Hague, Kerry said Assad could resolve the crisis by turning over his chemical weapons stock to the international community within a week. Lawmakers in the United States return from their summer recess today to start discussing President Barack Obama's resolution to launch a "limited, narrow" strike on Syria. The American political commentator, Michael Cohen, says there´s no certainty the resolution will pass: "I think Americans are very tired of overseas wars and if you think about it, after 9/11, we fought a disastrous war in Iraq, a fairly disastrous war in Afghanistan, we fought a war in Libya. I think there´s a sense among Americans that they´ve tired of this." Meanwhile, the Russian and Syrian foreign ministers have been holding talks in Moscow. Sergei Lavrov and Walid al-Moualem urged the US to focus on efforts to convene a peace conference rather than on military action.

Kremlin-ally wins Moscow Mayoral vote

Russian electoral officials have announced that the Kremlin-backed candidate, Sergei Sobyanin has won re-election as mayor of Moscow. Sobyanin secured 51% of the vote - just above the 50% threshold needed to avoid a second-round ballot. His main rival, the opposition leader Alexei Navalny, polled just over 27%. He has called for a run-off and refused to recognise the results, saying they had been "deliberately falsified".

Italian Senate debates Berlusconi´s expulsion

In Italy, a special Senate committee meets today to decide whether to expel the former prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi, from parliament following his conviction for tax fraud. Berlusconi’s centre-right People of Freedom party has warned it will pull out of the coalition and bring down the government if centre-left members vote to start proceedings for expulsion.

PKK rebels halt Turkey pull-out

Kurdish rebels have announced that they´re suspending their withdrawal from Turkey into bases in northern Iraq over what they say is the Turkish government's failure to advance peace talks aimed at ending nearly 30 years of conflict.

The weather

Showers should give way to some sunshine, but the cloud could persist from Carinthia to Lower Austria. Highs today from 13 to 22.

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