News in English

8. April 2017, 21:58

Syria warring parties accept truce plan

The Syrian government and the main opposition and rebel umbrella group have given their formal acceptance of a partial truce announced by the US and Russia which should come into effect at midnight on Friday. The rebels are demanding that the government end sieges of rebel-held areas and cease aerial and artillery bombardment. The government says it won't halt combat operations against the Islamic State group, the al-Qaeda-linked Nusra Front and groups it said were linked to it. White House spokesman Josh Earnest: "we recognise that this is going to be difficult to implement. We know that there are a lot of obstacles and there are sure to be some setbacks. After all, for years we have been trying to reach a diplomatic resolution to the many problems that plague that nation that has broken apart. But this is a moment of opportunity." In another development, Syria's President Bashar Assad has called for parliamentary elections to be held in April.

Amnesty criticises Austria's migrant policy

Amnesty International says Austria is breaking international law by imposing limits on the number of asylum requests it's prepared to accept. Last Friday it brought in the new limit of 80 applications a day. The government says having accepted 90,000 asylum seekers last year it had no choice but to start restricting the numbers because of the failure of EU policy and lack of solidarity from other member states. But the head of Amnesty International's Austrian branch Heinz Patzelt says international human rights law does not recognise quotas and that Austria can do much more: "it's a ridiculous idea to say that we can only manage 80 - not 800 - but 80 asylum applications a day. A number which was much higher during the last years - not only in the last year but during the last decades."

Slovenian army to help control migrant flow

The Slovenian parliament has passed a law enabling the army to be sent to the country's border with Croatia to help police control the flow of refugees and migrants coming into the country. Prime Minister Miro Cerar says the army's border duty will be for three months.

Water supplies being restored in Delhi

Water supplies have been partially restored in the Indian capital, Delhi after protestors calling for job guarantees sabotaged a key canal. Up to 10 million people were affected. The city's schools, which were closed because of the crisis, have now re-opened. But officials say it could take up to 2 weeks to fully restore water supplies.

The weather

Cloudy with a few rain showers, or snow in the mountain areas. A few sunny periods. Highs ranging between 5 and 15 degrees for the time being, but gradually becoming cooler.

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