EU Plan on Migrant Crisis Yet to be Finalised
In talks that took place last Thursday, the EU offered faster visa liberalisations for Turks entering Europe, and promised to “re-energise” talks about Turkey joining the EU. In return, Turkey is to reduce the flow of migrants crossing the sea into mainland Europe.
However, Foreign Minister Sinirlioglu made clear that the plan is still preliminary after calling the proposed financial measures “unacceptable”. This comes after the Turkish President previously criticised Europe’s response to the crisis. Turkey currently houses some 2 million migrants, whilst 700,000 have reached Europe, with only a fraction being granted asylum.
Euan Hammond
Two Further Lockerbie Suspects Named
Two further suspects have been named in the investigation over the Lockerbie Bombings. Scottish and American investigators have been allowed to travel to Libya to question two new suspects, Mohammed Abouajela Masud and Abdullah al-Senussi, for the bombing of Pan Am flight 103, which exploded over Lockerbie, killing a total of 259 people on board the flight, and a further 11 people from the Scottish town.
Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, the only person to have been convicted over the bombing, was found guilty of mass murder and jailed for a minimum of 27 years in 2001. He later died in 2009. Family members of the victims have said to be “surprised, delighted and really gratified” by the news of further suspects being identified. Both Masud and al-Senussi are serving prison sentences in Libya, the latter being the brother-in-law and intelligence chief of Libya’s former dictator Colonel Gaddafi.
James Hicks
Stephen Lawrence Case Investigated
An investigation has begun into alleged police corruption during the Stephen Lawrence murder inquiry of 1993. Lawrence was stabbed to death in an attack at a bus stop by a gang of white teenagers, with Gary Dobson and David Norris being found guilty of murder and sentenced in January 2012 to minimum terms of 15 years and two months and 14 years and three months, respectively. Fresh allegations come following the Ellison Review in 2014 in which a former undercover Metropolitan Police officer was found to have spied on the Lawrence family and officers were found to have acted corruptly along several lines of inquiry. Any findings from the investigation will be reported to the Independent Police Complaints Commission and criminal or misconduct proceedings could follow.
Jonny Chard
Boris Johnson in Junior Rugby Gaffe
Boris Johnson has once again been caught in a moment of over-excitement on the sports field whilst on a three day trade mission to Japan. In what was supposed to be a relaxed game of street rugby in heart of Tokyo, the Mayor of London, ball in hand, managed to flatten an opponent whilst racing for the try line. His opponent was 10-year-old schoolboy Toki Sekiguchi. Following the hard-hitting shoulder barge, Johnson apologised for his actions, presenting Toki with a 2015 Rugby World Cup ball and posing for photographs. He later joked about the incident in a speech about the benefits of hosting major sporting events, with Japan due to host the Rugby World Cup and the Olympics. Last year he managed to trip a child whilst playing football outside London’s City Hall.
Jonny Chard
(Image: The Independent)