|
From Washington, this is VOA news. Three dead in Australia café standoff. Turkey's President Erdogan defends raids against media outlets. I'm Ray Kouguell reporting from Washington.
Australian police confirmed three people were killed during a day-long standoff at a Sydney café including the hostage taker. The siege ended at about 2 a.m. local time in the heart of Sydney's financial and shopping district packed with holiday shoppers after heavily-armed police stormed the café where a man reportedly held 17 people hostage for about 16 hours. New South Wales police say the 50-year-old assailant identified as Iranian immigrant Man Haron Monis is dead. A 34-year-old man and 38-year-old woman also were killed. Gunfire was exchanged, but police would not confirm the causes of the three deaths. For, the former hostages and a police officer are being treated for non-life-threatening injuries. Prime Minister Tony Abbott says the gunman was politically motivated, calling him mentally unstable, and was well-known to law enforcement. Belgian police have detained three people who took a hostage in the western city of Ghent Monday. The hostage was released unharmed. The motive remains unclear, but a Belgian official says there is no indication the incident is linked to terrorism, the Islamic State or the hostage situation in Sydney, Australia. The president of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Joseph Kabila, says he will not take orders from foreign leaders and that it is time for U.N. peacekeepers to leave his country. In a lengthy speech before parliament Monday, Mr. Kabila said Congo is ready to receive advice, guidelines and suggestions from the West, but that Congo will never accept "injunctions." He is under strong international pressure, especially from the U.S. and France, to leave office after a second term. This is VOA news. The World Health Organization says diagnostic tests that could more rapidly and simply detect the Ebola virus are being developed. After reviewing test candidates, WHO and partner agencies believe some of these new diagnostics will be available for use in West Africa in the coming months. We get details from Lisa Schlein in Geneva. It now takes between nine hours and four days to get confirmation of a suspected case of Ebola in West Africa. By any measure, this is too long because the virus spreads quickly and the possibility of more infections occurring while waiting for the test results is all too likely. Health agencies agree there is an urgent need for innovative ways to provide rapid, sensitive, safe and simple testing for Ebola. The World Health Organization says progress may not be as fast as some would like, but progress is being made. Lisa Schlein, for VOA news, Geneva. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Rome for talks Monday as Palestinian officials push for a U.N. resolution calling for an end to Israel's occupation of Palestinian territory within two years. Prior to the meeting, Mr. Netanyahu said he would not allow others to dictate a time frame for withdrawal. Monday's get-together was the first stop on Mr. Kerry's trip to assess the state of Israeli-Palestinian issues. He will meet Tuesday with chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat and Arab League chief Nabil Elaraby in London. Turkey's government is facing growing international pressure following police raids on media establishments. But Turkey's president is dismissing all the criticism, saying the country's national security is at stake. Dorian Jones explains. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said there would be no let-up of police probes against followers of Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, who he accuses of seeking to overthrow the state. Mr. Erdogan strongly defended Sunday's police raids on the Zaman newspaper and Samanyolu TV station. He said, "Elements who threaten our national security will receive the necessary treatment even if they are members of the press." Mr. Erdogan blames followers of Fethullah Gulen within the judiciary and police of being behind corruption probes launched last December implicating Erdogan's family members and senior ministers. Dorian Jones, of VOA news, Istanbul. The European Union agreed to implement a German-British plan to revive Bosnia-Herzegovina's bid to join the bloc. The plan depends on Bosnia's successfully making a series of reforms to ensure good governance and the rule of law. The initiative adopted Monday demands legal, social and economic reforms before any consideration of EU membership. I'm Ray Kouguell in Washington. That's the latest world news from VOA. |