News in English

8. April 2017, 21:58

Ernst Strasser going to prison

Former Austrian Interior Minister Ernst Strasser has been sentenced to three years in prison by a court in Vienna. Strasser lost his appeal to have his conviction on corruption charges overturned. Strasser was serving as a member of the European Parliament in Brussels when he was caught on video seeking bribes from two British journalists posing as lobbyists.

Pistorius case nears its end

A court in South Africa is due to hand down the sentence against Oscar Pistorius. The double-amputee Olympic runner was earlier convicted of culpable homicide in the killing of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp early last year. Pistorius has said he mistook her for an intruder. Today his psychologist, Lore Hartzenberg, said Oscar Pistorius is now a broken man: “Mr. Pistorius’s fall from being an icon in world athletics to being vilified and humiliated had a profound affect on his identity of self. Mr. Pistorius experienced himself as utterly worthless, devastated, and guilt-ridden.”

EU to meet on Ebola

European Union health ministers will meet on Thursday to discuss the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. So far, only one case has been reported in the EU, in Spain, where several other people are under observation. Ebola has killed over 4000 people in Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia. In Liberia, health care workers are threatening to go on strike if they do not receive a wage increase. One Liberian doctor has said a strike would make matters worse as those infected would try and return to their home villages: “Some of them are strong enough to run, so they would leave the unit and go home because they have to eat. They would infect their community members, so we would see more infections on the street.”

Battles continue in Kobane

Kurdish fighters say they have won back some parts of the eastern Syrian city of Kobane from Islamic State militants. There were at least five US air strikes this morning against IS. Turkey now says it will help train Syrian rebels and provide air bases for air strikes against IS targets in Iraq and Syria. US National Security Adviser Susan Rice: “The Turks have made a commitment that they will, in the first instance, allow the United States and our partners to use Turkish bases and territory to train the moderate Syrian opposition forces, so that is a new commitment.”

Morales wins third term

Bolivia’s president Evo Morales has been elected to a third term in office. He won 60 percent of the vote in yesterday’s election. His main challenger, Samuel Doria Medina, won 25 percent. Morales was first elected in 2005.

More violence in Afghanistan

In Afghanistan, the Taliban are claiming responsibility for a suicide attack on a NATO military convoy near Kabul. One person was killed and dozens of others were wounded. An attack on an Afghan army patrol in the east of the country and killed two people and wounded six others.

Fatal bus in Egypt

30 people have been killed in a bus crash in southern Egypt. A dozen others were hurt when two buses collided on a highway north of Aswan.

Protests continue in St. Louis

In the United States, there were more protests last night in St. Louis, Missouri, over the recent police shootings of two black teenagers. The demonstration ended peacefully and another protest is planned for later today.

Nationalists lead Bosnian election results

Vote-counting continues in Bosnia-Herzegovina from the weekend’s general election. Early results, show nationalist parties will be the likely winners.

The weather

This afternoon’s weather will be sunny, though there will be fog in some low-lying regions, and the southwest can expect cloudy skies and scattered rainshowers. Highs today are ranging from 16 to 27 degrees.

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