Austria to close 7 mosques +++ G7 leaders meet for tense summit +++ Trump considering inviting Kim to White House

9. Juli 2018, 02:00

Austria to close 7 mosques

The Austrian government has announced it is closing 7 mosques and expelling several imams in what Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said was a crackdown on political Islam as well as foreign financing of religious groups. One of the mosques has reported links to the Turkish ultra-nationalist group "Grey Wolves". A spokesman for the Turkish president Ibrahim Kalin described the Austrian government's move as "Islamophobic" and "racist".

G7 leaders meet for tense summit

Leaders of the G7 group are gathering for a summit in Canada against a background of tensions over President Trump's decision to impose trade tariffs on steel and aluminium. Trump says the tariffs are necessary to protect US industry. But Canada and the EU have denounced them as illegal and are preparing retaliatory measures. The French President Emmanuel Macron says he'll use the summit to try and change Trump's mind: "I will repeat to President Trump that the measures he's taken are counter-productive - including for his own economy. For me it's also a question of principle. You can't wage a trade war between allies." There are also strong disagreements with Washington over the Iran nuclear deal and climate change.

Trump considering inviting Kim to White House

President Trump says he would consider inviting North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un to the White House if their summit in Singapore next week goes well. The US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says he's received a personal assurance from Kim that North Korea is prepared to denuclearise and that the two sides were closer to reaching agreement on what that meant: "he has indicated to me - personally - that he is prepared to denuclearise and that he understands that we can't do it the way we've done it before - that this has to be big and bold."

Speculation over possible Trump-Putin summit

Unconfirmed media reports say Moscow and Washington are discussing a possible meeting between President Putin and President Trump. The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Putin had suggested Vienna as a possible venue during his visit to Austria earlier this week.

ICRC pulls 71 staff out of Yemen

The International Committee of the Red Cross says it's pulled 71 of its international staff out of Yemen because of security incidents and threats. The aid agency has called on the warring sides in the country's three-year conflict to provide security guarantees so it can keep running its food and medical programmes.

The weather

A mix of cloud and occasional sunshine but some showers and storms moving in from the southwest - some of which could be heavy. Highs ranging mostly between 24 and 31 degrees - a bit cooler in the southwest.

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