BRIEF – ME! – DAILY NEWS BRIEFING

In today’s briefing update, The headlines are – Britain starts hearing the US case for extraditing Julian Assange today, if the case against him is successful he could face up to 175 years in jail.

Iran’s conservatives win in the election that saw the lowest voter turnout in decades.

Lesotho’s prime minister failed to turn up to Court to face the murder charge against him. The PM’s office said he had to travel to South Africa for urgent medical attention.

Two US students are bracing themselves for trial after being accused of murdering a 35-year-old Italian police officer.

Israel has carried out air raids on ‘terrorist targets’ in Syria and Gaza.

North Korea has quarantined 380 foreigners in a bid to stop the coronavirus from breaking out. There have been no reported cases of the virus in N Korea as of yet. 

Entertainment, Mel C has opened up about how a ‘scuffle’ with Victoria Beckham led to a past battle with eating disorders and depression. 

All this and more in today’s news briefing – A daily roundup of all the news headlines that you need to know, summarised as part of WTX News Briefing.

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Britain starts hearing US case for extraditing Wikileaks founder Assange

Arab News says Britain on Monday starts hearing Washington’s extradition request for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange in a test of media freedoms in the digital age and the limits of US justice. 

If Assange is extradited to the United States he could be jailed for 175 years if convicted on all 12 US Espionage Act charges and one count of computer hacking.

All the charges against him stem from his site WikiLeaks and its release in 2010 of a trove of classified State Department and Pentagon files detailing the realities of the US campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq. 

Read the full story on Arab News

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Iran conservatives prevail in polls marked by low turnout

Aljazeera News says Iran’s conservatives will dominate the country’s new parliament following an election that saw the lowest voter turnout in decades, according to state media.

Two days after the polls closed, an Al Jazeera tally based on interior ministry results published on Sunday by state media said conservative candidates had secured at least 219 seats in the 290-strong parliament, also known as the Majlis. 

11 seats are set to be contested in the second round in April. The new parliament also has at least 20 reformists and 35 independents. Five seats are guaranteed for the country’s religious minorities: Zoroastrians, Jews, Assyrians, Chaldean Christians and Armenian Christians.

Read the full story on Aljazeera

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Lesotho prime minister fails to show up in court to face murder charge

CNN says Lesotho’s PM Thomas Rhabane skipped the country for a medical check-up in South Africa on the day he was supposed to be in court to face charges of murdering his former wife, his office said.

Lipolelo Thabane was killed outside her home in the capital Maseru just days before the prime minister’s inauguration in June 2017. 

A statement from his office confirmed he had travelled to South Africa early Friday morning for “urgent medical attention.” 

“The reason we are making this press statement is to put down the rumours that the Prime Minister didn’t wish to appear in court,” the statement said. 

Read the full story on CNN

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US students accused if Italy cop murder brace for trial

France24 says two US students go on trial in Italy on Wednesday over the fatal stabbing last year of a policeman in Rome during a botched drug bust. 

Finnegan Lee Elder and Gabriel Hatale-Hjorth, teenagers at the time of the attack last July, have been charged with killing newlywed Mario Cerciello Rega, 35, who was stabbed 11 times. They face a life sentence if convicted.

The pair are expected in court for the first hearing in a case that has a lot of media coverage in Italy and strong public sympathy for Cerciello, who had only returned to work from his honeymoon when he was killed.

Read the full story on France24

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Israel carries out air raids against ‘terrorist targets’ in Syria and Gaza

RT News says the Israeli military launched a series of strikes targeting the Islamic Jihad movement in Syria and throughout Gaza, its spokesman confirmed on Twitter after Damascus’ air defences intercepted hostile targets. 

The attack on Syria happened close to midnight on Sunday, while Gaza was shelled earlier in the day. IDF spokesperson Avichay Adraee said on Twitter that “terrorist targets” belonging to Islamic Jihad came under fire in a rare admission of strikes against Syria. 

Read the full story on RT News

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North Korea quarantines foreigners amid virus fears

BBC News says North Korea has quarantined 380 foreigners in a bid to stop the coronavirus from breaking out.

The foreigners are mostly diplomats stationed in the capital Pyongyang, said news agency Yonhap, quoting the Korean Central Broadcasting Station. 

Around 200 foreigners had been quarantined for the past 30 days – but as that came to an end, the quarantine has been extended. 

There are no reported cases of Covid-19 in North Korea. It is not known how long the new quarantine will last. 

In South Korea, seven people have died and 763 people have been infected. Around 7,700 troops have been quarantined after 11 military members were infected. 

Read the full story on BBC News

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Mel C says ‘scuffle’ with Victoria Beckham led to an eating disorder and depression battle

Sky News says Mel C has opened up about her past struggle with eating disorders and depression after she was nearly kicked out of the Spice Girls following a “scuffle” with Victoria Beckham.

The singer known as Sporty Spice revealed last year that she was almost kicked out of the famous girl group months before it officially launched in 1996. 

She told the Guardian at the time that she was threatened with the sack after getting “lairy” and telling bandmate Beckham to “f*** off” at the Brit Awards.

Read the full story on Sky News

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