News in English

8. April 2017, 21:58

US Senate begins vetting Trump nominees

The US Senate is set to begin confirmation hearings today for President-elect Donald Trump's cabinet nominees. First up will be Trump's pick for attorney-general, Senator Jeff Sessions, who is expected to face tough questioning over alleged racist remarks and his hardline stance on immigration. Democrats, meanwhile, have called on Trump to review a decision to appoint his son-in-law Jared Kushner as an advisor, amid concerns about nepotism and conflict of interest. Huffington Post correspondent Christina Wilkie says Kushner's appointment has divided opinion. “This does very, very little to drain the swamp, which is the term that Trump has adopted for how he promised to rid Washington of cronyism. For people who are worried about what Trump might do in office, they should take heart knowing that Jared will be right down the hall in the west wing, because he has proven already to be able to reason with Trump which not very many of his staffers can do.”

Former German president Herzog dies

The former German president Roman Herzog has died at the age of 82. Herzog served as president from 1994 to 1999 after previously heading Germany's Constitutional Court. As a member of the conservative CDU party, he was a powerful advocate for reform following German reunification.

Iran bids farewell to leader of Islamic Revolution

Hundreds of thousands of people have gathered in central Tehran, to pay their respects to the former Iranian president, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who died on Sunday aged 82. Rafsanjani was one of the leaders of Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution. Later he became a key ally of reformists, pushing for greater economic and social freedoms. Nasser Hadian, Professor of Political Science at Tehran University, says Rafsanjani continued to wield substantial power up until his death. “Even though he has been outside power for the last 10 years, many people considered him to be the second most important individual in the Revolution and in Iran.”

FIFA agrees to expand 2026 World Cup

World football's governing body FIFA has unanimously approved plans to expand the 2026 World Cup from 32 to 48 teams. The first round will be divided into 16 groups of 3, with the top two teams in each group progressing to a round of 32. The 16 extra matches are expected to earn FIFA an additional one billion dollars in TV and sponsorship deals.

Court upholds Swiss mixed swimming lessons

A Muslim couple in Switzerland have failed in their bid to prevent their daughters from attending mixed school swimming lessons. The European Court of Human Rights ruled that the curriculum was designed to assist children's successful integration into society.

Turkish author wins Austrian Human Rights prize

This year's Bruno Kreisky Prize for human rights has been awarded to the Turkish author Asli Erdogan. The former physicist has been a vocal advocate for minority rights in her homeland. She is currently facing trial on controversial charges of spreading terrorist propaganda.

The weather

It should become increasingly sunny this afternoon with overcast conditions persisting in parts of the east and south. Top temperatures will range from -11 to +1.

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