⊂ EUROPE ⊃
Truck attack in Jerusalem: A Palestinian man drove a truck into a group of Israeli soldiers as they were getting off a bus in Jerusalem on Sunday afternoon, killing four and injuring 17 others, according to the police and witnesses. Israeli police shot and killed the attack suspect, who they identified as 28-year-old Fadi Qunbar. Police have also arrested nine other suspects, including five of Qunbar’s family members. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the scene of the attack and said the perpetrator was by all indications a supporter of the Islamic State.
nytimes.com, cnn.com
Syrian air strikes resume: Air strikes escalated on Sunday in a rebel-held valley near Damascus containing the Syrian capital’s main water supply, a day after insurgents and the government failed to agree a plan to repair the springs knocked out of service two weeks ago. Several rebel groups warned that the escalation effectively meant the collapse of shaky ceasefire brokered by Russia and Turkey to pave the way for peace talks they hope to convene in Kazakhstan. Meanwhile, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said in an interview with French media that his forces were on the road to victory after recapturing the key city of Aleppo last month.
reuters.com
801 migrants sent back to Turkey under migrant deal: European officials deported 801 people to Turkey in 2016, and over half of the deportations happened within two months of the controversial March migration deal between the EU and Turkey, Germany’s „Welt am Sonntag“ weekly newspaper reported on Sunday. Last year’s multi-billion euro deal calls for Ankara to stop the flow of people trying to reach Europe from Turkey and also allows the EU to send back migrants who enter the 28-member bloc from Turkey while setting out special conditions for Syrians. For each Syrian who does not receive asylum in the EU, the bloc agrees to fly a vetted Syrian to a European country.
dw.com
EU Social Fund brings progress: The European Social Fund has reached half of all EU workers and helped 10 million citizens find jobs. Contrary to the popular wisdom, the social situation in Europe is improving. According to statistics published on Thursday, the FSE helped some 10 million Europeans find jobs between 2007 and 2014, at a cost of 115 billion euros. 21.1 million EU citizens are currently unemployed.
euractiv.com
⊂ QUOTES ⊃
„We are pleased to have been able to make that happen and the prime minister looks forward to visiting the new president in the spring.“
British Prime Minister Theresa May is set to become the first EU leader to visit President Donald Trump, after Downing Street announced a trip scheduled for the spring.
euractiv.com
⊂ COUNTRIES ⊃
Founder of Italy’s 5-Star proposes divorce from Ukip: Italy’s maverick 5-Star Movement should cut ties with the anti-European Union UK Independence Party (Ukip) and consider hooking up with the Liberals in the European Parliament, 5-Star founder Beppe Grillo said on Sunday. If the surprise switch goes ahead, it would see 5-Star enter mainstream European politics and move away from the anti-system fringes, a shift that might reassure other EU capitals that have grown uneasy about its rising popularity.
reuters.com
May set to announce revolutionary social reform policies: Under pressure to elaborate on her “Brexit means Brexit” motto, British prime minister Theresa May has announced she will set out her strategy for exiting the EU over the coming weeks. In her first interview of the year, she offered a glimpse of her strategy and set out a rather ambitious goal for the deal with Brussels. The lack of a coherent plan has been seized upon by the Scottish executive with the continued threat of a second independence referendum if Scotland is forced into a hard Brexit.
euronews.com
German minister accuses Social Democrats of failing to cooperate: German Interior Minister and Christian Democrat Thomas de Maiziere, has accused the CDU’s Social Democrat (SPD) coalition partners of failing to cooperate when it comes to security and terrorism. In an interview with German weekly, „Bild am Sonntag,“ de Maiziere said he was not sure whether everyone in the SPD was ready to take tough measures. SPD General Secretary Katarina Barley, however, said de Maiziere’s criticism of her party was only to distract from his own failures. She added that the interior minister had not been able to master the situation at the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees, which had allowed suspected Berlin Christmas market attacker Anis Amri to travel in Germany under 14 different aliases.
dw.com
Four dead in coach crash in France: Four people were killed and 25 injured in a coach accident in central France in the early hours of Sunday morning. Three of those hurt, including a two-year-old child, are said to be in a very serious condition. The bus was reportedly carrying more than 30 Portuguese nationals to Switzerland when the accident happened shortly before 4.30am near Charolles in the Saone-et-Loire department.
euronews.com
Portugal: Former President Mario Soares dies at 92 nytimes.com
Slovenia: Borders to be sealed for a limited period euronews.com
⊂ JOB-BOARD ⊃
politjobs.eu: PlasticsEurope seeks Public Affairs Manager (m/f) *** GIZ seeks Policy Advisor (m/f) *** Siegfried Mureșan MEP offers Traineeship *** European Sunlight Association seeks Communication Officer *** ChildFund Alliance seeks Director – Brussels Office *** Mototrola Solutions seeks Director of Government Affairs – Europe and Africa *** Bundesverband der Energie- und Wasserwirtschaft sucht Praktikant (m/w) *** Uni Europa seeks Policy Officer (m/f)
politjobs.eu, politjobs.eu/submit (Inserat schalten)
⊂ MALFUNCTION ⊃
Video prompts calls to probe Israeli influence on UK: Israel has apologised to the UK after one of its embassy staff in London was secretly filmed apparently suggesting he wanted to bring about the downfall of a British government minister who has been very critical of Israeli policy. The senior political officer was speaking in a London restaurant to a British civil servant, who is now said to have resigned.
euronews.com