News in English

8. April 2017, 21:58

Romanian PM resigns over nightclub fire

The Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta has announced the resignation of his government, following mass protests in the wake of a nightclub fire on Friday that killed 32 people. Some 25,000 protesters took to the streets of Bucharest on Tuesday evening calling for Ponta to stand down over government safety failures and widespread corruption. Calin Prodea was among those taking part: "Many laws aren´t respected at all because it´s easier for us to go around the system sometimes and if we can go around the system we try to do that. And it´s very, very spread - from the small level to the high level." Ponta is Romania´s only sitting premier to stand trial for corruption and had repeatedly ignored calls to resign.

Many dead after plane crashes in South Sudan

A Russian-built cargo plane has crashed after taking off from the airport in South Sudan's capital, Juba. There are unconfirmed reports that at least 40 people died on the aircraft and on the ground.

Turkey looks to increase the president´s powers

It´s being reported that Turkey´s ruling AK Party will revive a push for constitutional changes to increase the powers of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after it regained its parliamentary majority in Sunday´s election. Opponents say Erdogan has grown increasingly authoritarian.

Historic China-Taiwan talks

Taiwan's President Ma Ying-jeou will meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in Singapore on Saturday - the first meeting between the countries´ leaders since the Chinese civil war ended in 1949. They say the talks will focus on relations across the Taiwan Straits. China claims sovereignty over Taiwan and views the island as a breakaway province which will one day be reunited with the mainland.

State of emergency in the Maldives

The Maldives has declared a 30-day state of emergency, citing a threat to national security and public safety, amid continued political upheaval following a suspected assassination attempt on the president. The declaration by President Abdul Yameen follows the discovery of a weapons cache and explosives.

VW scandal deepens

Shares in Volkswagen have fallen after it reported "irregularities" in carbon dioxide emissions levels, which could affect around 800,000 cars in Europe. VW says the problem, which it came across while investigating the rigging of diesel emissions, could cost some 2 billion euros. The so-called irregularities relate to the way in which CO2 emissions and fuel consumption were measured during the technical approval process.

The weather

Plenty of sunshine, but some persistent fog. Top temperatures today from 9 to 18.

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