AP, Paris
Police gradually began reopening Paris’ Gare du Nord train station early on Tuesday morning after earlier evacuating the platforms and cordoning off the area because of a security alert, local police authorities said.
A Reuters witness at the scene said there were between 20 to 30 police vans outside the station in central Paris with security forces wearing balaclavas and carrying assault weapons.
Syrian peace talks in Geneva on May 16
Reuters, Geneva
United Nations mediator Staffan de Mistura said on Monday that he was reconvening peace talks between the Syrian government and opposition in Geneva on May 16.
In a statement, de Mistura voiced hope that the agreement reached last week in Astana among Russia, Iran and Turkey to set up “de-escalation” zones in Syria will be implemented in full “thus bringing about a significant de-escalation in violence, and helping shape an environment conducive to the political intra-Syrian talks in Geneva”.
Cholera outbreak in Yemen: MSF
AFP, Sanaa
At least 570 suspected cases of cholera have surfaced in war-torn Yemen in the past three weeks, sparking fears of a potential epidemic, Doctors Without Borders said Sunday. The Shiite Huthi rebels put the number of cases at 1,681 in 12 provinces, including in the north and west of the country, according to the Sabanews.net website which cited their health minister, Mohamed bin Hafedh.
Death toll in Iran mine blast rises to 43
AFP, Tehran
Iranian rescue workers on Tuesday pulled out the 43rd and last body of victims killed in a mine explosion after six days of round-the-clock digging, the state broadcaster reported.
The explosion happened on Wednesday in Zemestan Yort mine in Golestan province when workers tried to jump-start an engine in a tunnel filled with methane gas.
