News in English

8. April 2017, 21:58

Rebels agree truce in Syrian town

In Syria, two rebel groups who had been fighting each other in the town of Azaz have declared a truce. The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria - which is linked to al-Qaeda - seized the northern town earlier this week from the Free Syrian Army. Meanwhile, Syria's deputy Prime Minister Qadri Jamil has been quoted in the Guardian newspaper as saying that the conflict between government and opposition forces has reached a stalemate and that Damascus is preparing to call for a ceasefire. However, Jamil's party says he was misquoted. In another development, the US Secretary of State John Kerry says it's essential that the agreement reached over destroying Syria's chemical weapons is followed up by a "binding resolution" at the UN Security Council: "the complete removal of Syria's chemical weapons is possible here - through peaceful means. And that will be determined by the resolve of the United Nations to follow through on the agreement that Russia and the US reached in Geneva."

Mexico storm death toll rises

Officials in Mexico say the death toll from storms that hit the country earlier this week has now risen to 97. President Enrique Pena Nieto says he's cancelling a planned foreign trip to focus on relief efforts.

Dozens killed in Yemen attacks

In Yemen, up to 38 soldiers are reported to have been killed in coordinated attacks by al-Qaeda militants in the south of the country. Dozens of people were wounded in the assaults which targeted military bases.

Greenpeace accuses Russia of storming ship

The environmental group Greenpeace has accused the Russian Coast Guard of storming one of its ships which it's been using to protest oil drilling in Arctic waters. The incident happened a day after two activists were arrested by the Coast Guard after they tried to board an offshore drilling platform belonging to Russia's gas company Gazprom. Russia says the group's action was "aggressive and provocative". Ben Ayliffe is Greenpeace's Arctic Campaigner - he says from what he's heard from his colleagues on the ship, the Russian response was heavy-handed: "the idea that we were some sort of terrorists trying to take over the oil platform is frankly ludicrous. If anything the response from the Russian authorities has been incredible: we've been stormed in international waters by armed security guards. We've been held at gun-point - like hostages - for hours."

Earthquake felt in eastern Austria

An earthquake measuring 4.3 on the scale shook parts of the east of the country in the early hours of this morning. The tremor was felt in Lower Austria, Vienna and Burgenland. No major damage has been reported.

The weather

The south will have most of the sunshine and conditions should improve in the West with some sunshine. Elsewhere it will be cloudy with just some temporary sun and showers. There’ll be a lively wind and highs are ranging between 12 and 22 degrees with the warmer temperatures in the south.

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