News in English

8. April 2017, 21:58

Britain's High Court rules on Brexit

In a major blow for Britain's government, the High Court in London says Prime Minister, Theresa May, cannot trigger the U.K.'s exit from the European Union without approval from Parliament. She had planned to launch exit negotiations with the EU at the end of March. Claimants who brought the case argue that leaving he EU will remove vital rights, including free movement within the bloc, and successfully argued that that cannot be done without Parliament's approval. Theresa May's government has already said it will appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court.

IS orders followers to "stand and fight" in Mosul

The leader of the Islamic State group has released a new message urging his followers to stand their ground and fight for Mosul as they defend the city against a major offensive aimed at expelling them from their last urban stronghold in Iraq. The recorded message from Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi comes two weeks after the offensive was launched, and as it enters a decisive phase. Iraqi special forces have reached the outskirts of the city. Feisel Istrabadi is a former Iraqi ambassador to the United Nations: "I think most of us expect that there will be a fight for Mosul. They will not go gently into the good night. They have been preparing defenses. Unfortunately, including using civilians as human shields. There have been reports of ISIL executing some of its own members, because they have been trying to get away."

Italy shaken again by strong quake

A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck central Italy in the early hours of this morning...in the same region hit recently by strong tremors. Central Italy was hit by an initial earthquake on August 24th that killed 300 people. Since then, around 21,600 aftershocks have battered the region. There were no reports of casualties or further serious damage from the latest quake.

Amnesty accuses Italian police of abuse

Amnesty International says Italy has committed human rights abuses that may amount to torture in some cases as it tries to process the details of tens of thousands of migrants and refugees arriving by boat from Africa. The European Union called last year for Italy and Greece to set up "hotspots" to identify and fingerprint all new arrivals. Amnesty International researcher Matteo de Bellis says pressure from other EU leaders has pushed Italian authorities to their limits, and beyond, of what is legal: "We have seen how the emphasis put by European leaders, pushing Italian authorities to fingerprint 100% of arrivals, has resulted in the increasing use of force by the Italian police. I have gathered consistent testimonies of people who told me how they were beaten, slapped, even electrocuted to force them to give their fingerprints."

US: Church burning investigated as hate crime

AND, in the US, a historic black church in the state of Mississippi has been badly damaged by a fire and was also spray-painted with the words "Vote Trump". Fire officials say the fire was intentionally set and that the incident is being investigated as a hate crime.

The weather

While some lingering cloud cover and showers will affect regions along the northern edge of the Alps, the afternoon will bring increasing sunshine to most of the country. Highs ranging from 3 to 14 degrees.

Übersicht

• News In English