Pompeo holds talks on missing Saudi journalist +++ EU Brexit summit in Brussels

17. November 2018, 02:00

Pompeo holds talks on missing Saudi journalist

The US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has held talks in Turkey with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan over the suspected murder of the Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The writer was last seen two weeks ago entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Turkish officials say a search of the building had provided more evidence that he was killed there. Pompeo had come from Riyadh where he met senior Saudi officials including King Salman. He told reporters they had promised a complete investigation: "I stressed the importance of them conducting a complete investigation and they made a commitment. They said they would do that. They said there would be a thorough, complete and transparent investigation. We'll all see the results of that. They also indicated they would get this done quickly. I don't know the precise timeline." Meanwhile, President Donald Trump has complained that there had been a rush to judgment in blaming Riyadh, adding that the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman had denied any knowledge of what had happened to Khashoggi.

EU Brexit summit in Brussels

The British Prime Minister Theresa May will urge other EU leaders to give ground on the issue of the Irish border in the Brexit negotiations when she addresses them at a summit in Brussels later today. But senior EU officials say it's up to the UK to come up with fresh ideas. Britain is due to leave the bloc at the end of March. Politico journalist Ryan Heath: "the more likely outcome is that they don't have any agreement today. I think that we are realistically heading towards a November or a December conclusion. It's in Theresa May's interests to wait as long as possible because she needs to minimise the time that her political opponents have to try and unpick what she negotiates in Brussels."

Canada legalises sale and use of cannabis

Canada has become the second country in the world after Uruguay to legalise the possession and use of recreational cannabis. Medical marijuana has been legal in the country since 2001. The first shops to sell cannabis legally have already opened.

Anna Burns wins Man Booker prize

This year’s Man Booker Prize for fiction has been won by Anna Burns for "Milkman" which is set during the years of conflict in Northern Ireland. She's the first writer from Northern Ireland to win the prize which is open to English-language authors from around the world.

The weather

Plenty of sunshine along the Alps. But the east and south will be cloudy with isolated showers and just sunny periods. Highs ranging between 13 and 22 degrees.

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