News in English

8. April 2017, 21:58

Pilot trial nearing end

A court in Russia is preparing to issue the verdict on a Ukrainian military pilot faces charges of murder in connection with the deaths of two Russian journalists who were killed at the beginning of the war in eastern Ukraine two years ago. Nadezhda Savchenko was captured by pro-Russian rebels in June of 2014 and handed over to Russia. Moscow claims she was captured inside Russia. Savchenko has denied any wrongdoing. Olga Evshina is a journalist at the trial: “Prosecutors have asked for 23 years in jail, but Savchenko’s lawyers hope there will be a political solution to this case, that she might be exchanged for Russian military servicemen who are now on trial back in Kiev.”

Greek-Turkish talks on refugees

Officials from Turkey and Greece are holding more talks today on implementing the agreement between the European and Turkey, which went into effect over the weekend. Under that deal, migrants arriving illegally in Greece will be sent back to Turkey if they do not apply for asylum, or if their claim is rejected.

Belgium: 30-plus people behind Paris attacks

Belgium’s foreign ministry says at least 30 people, and possibly more, were involved in last November’s Paris attacks in which 130 people were killed. The statement comes after police arrested Islamic State militant Salah Ab-de-salam during a raid in Brussels on Friday. He was a member of the group which launched the Paris attacks and had been on the run since the violence in the French capital.

Austrian among Spanish crash victims

Police in Spain say a female Austrian student was among the 13 people who were killed yesterday in a bus crash in Catalonia. All of the victims were between the ages of 19 and 25, and were part of a group of exchange students from 16 nations.

Castro and Obama to meet in Havana

Cuban President Raul Castro and US President Barack Obama will meet today in Havana on Day Two of the first US presidential visit to Cuba in almost 90 years. It also comes less than a year after the two countries restored ties cut in the early 1960s at the height of the Cold War. Obama is also expected to meet with Cuban opposition leaders, human rights activists, and entrepeneurs. He says he hopes the visit will further normalize relations between Cuba and the United States: “This is a historic visit and it’s a historic opportunity to engage directly with the Cuban people and to forge new agreements and commercial deals, to build new ties between our two peoples, and for me to lay out my vision of a future which is brighter than our past.” The rest of the afternoon will be mostly cloudy, with a few scattered rain showers and brief periods of sunshine.

The weather

Highs today are ranging from 5 to 15 degrees.

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