News in English

8. April 2017, 21:58

Thousands still stranded at Budapest station

Around 2,000 people remain stranded outside the main international railway station in Budapest, as Hungarian police again prevent them from leaving for Austria, Germany and other European destinations. Most are reportedly from Syria and other conflict zones. The Hungarian government says it´s observing European Union rules and travel is only possible with valid documents. Guy Verhofstadt is the leader of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe and the former Belgian prime minister: "Why is it not possible to try to help these people in facilities that we establish in the zones of conflict instead of pushing these people, these refugees, in the arms of criminal organisations because that is what we are doing." Meanwhile, two ships carrying more than 4,200 people have arrived at the Greek port of Piraeus from the island of Lesbos. Greece's caretaker cabinet is set to convene later today to discuss the unprecedented influx of migrants and refugees reaching its shores.

18 Turkish nationals kidnapped in Baghdad

Iraqi security officials say 18 Turkish workers and engineers have been kidnapped in the Sadr City district of Baghdad. Armed men in masks and military uniforms are said to have stormed the site of a Turkish construction company at dawn and disarmed the guards. The kidnappers´ identity and motives are not yet known.

Congo rebel leader pleads not guilty at ICC

The former Congolese warlord Bosco Ntaganda has gone on trial at the International Criminal Court in The Hague for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Nicknamed the Terminator, he´s denied all 18 charges which include murder, rape and the recruitment of child soldiers. Prosecutors say the former leader of rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo played a central role in savage ethnic attacks on civilians. More than 2,000 victims are to take part in the trial, including former child soldiers who will be called as witnesses.

Eight die in Paris fire

French police say 8 people have died in a fire at an apartment block in Paris and they are investigating whether the blaze was started intentionally. Two children were among the victims. Four survivors - some in a critical condition - are in hospital.

Progress in Thai bombing investigation

Police in Thailand say the fingerprints of a man arrested on Tuesday in connection with last month's bombing of a temple in Bangkok match those found on bomb-making materials. The attack at the Erawan shrine killed 20 people - Thailand's deadliest-ever bombing. The suspect, a foreigner who´s said to speak Turkish, was detained on the Thai-Cambodia border.

The weather

Mostly overcast with isolated showers, some sunshine in the west and south east. Highs today from 15 to 28.

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