News in English

8. April 2017, 21:58

Lavrov and Kerry hold talks in Vienna

The Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov is in Vienna for talks on the conflict in Syria with the US Secretary of State John Kerry. The foreign ministers of Turkey and Saudi Arabia are also attending. The meetings follow a visit by Syrian President Bashar al Assad to Moscow earlier this week where he and President Vladimir Putin discussed Russia's military operations in the country. The Russian intervention has been criticised by the US and other countries who say the move is aimed at bolstering Assad's position rather than targeting Islamic State militants.

Slovenia asks for aid over refugee crisis

Slovenia's Prime Minister Miro Cerar says he's asked the European Commission for 60 million euros in financial aid as thousands of refugees continue to pass through the country. He says Slovenia has also requested police gear and personnel from the EU. Nearly 50,000 people have entered Slovenia since Hungary closed its border with Croatia.

42 die in French road accident

42 people have died in a traffic accident in France in the country's worst road crash in decades. The disaster happened when a bus and a truck collided near Bordeaux. The victims were mostly pensioners from nearby towns. The cause of the crash is being investigated. Titus Holliday is a journalist with the SudOuest newspaper: "it happened in a very rural area in the southwest of France on a very narrow road. The information we have is that the crash happened on a bend in the road and that the two vehicles caught fire."

Swedish police investigate school attack

Police in Sweden say the attacker who fatally stabbed two people and wounded two others at a school yesterday had racist motives. The 21-year old masked man entered the school in the town of Trollhattan which has a large proportion of immigrants. He was shot by police and later died of his wounds. Media reports have suggested that the attacker had far-right sympathies.

Clinton in Benghazi hearing

In the US, the presidential contender Hillary Clinton has had an 11-hour hearing before a Congressional committee over the deadly attack on the US consulate in Benghazi, Libya, in 2012. The former secretary of state deflected criticism that she didn't do enough to protect the mission. The Democrats say the Republican-led panel was aimed at harming her presidential bid, a sentiment that was echoed by Clinton: "it is deeply unfortunate that something as serious as what happened in Benghazi could ever be used for partisan political purposes."

The weather

Much of Austria will have increasing sunshine but the region from Salzburg to Mariazell will stay overcast and changeable for the time being. A strong wind at times and highs ranging between 8 and 17 degrees.

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