Europe

ALEXANDROUPOLIS, Greece, Aug 13 (Reuters) - The EU's border agency is trialling new high-tech surveillance equipment to detect migrant boats, just as rapid gains by Taliban fighters in Afghanistan have raised the prospect of a surge in people fleeing to Europe.

A balloon system equipped with cameras is being tested at Alexandroupolis airport near the Greek-Turkish land border in northeastern Greece, and on the island of Limnos, with the aim of giving border officials a clearer view of approaching boats.

MADRID, Aug 13 (Reuters) - Spain on Friday started sending hundreds of Moroccan youths, who in May crossed into its North African enclave of Ceuta, back to Morocco after reaching an agreement with Rabat, Spanish media reported, signalling an improvement in ties after a long row.

La Ser radio cited sources in Ceuta as saying the minors were already being transported to Morocco in small groups using vans from a sports complex converted into a makeshift reception centre.

GENEVA, Aug 13 (Reuters) - The World Health Organization said on Friday it was setting up a new group to trace the origins of the coronavirus, seeking to end what it called "political point scoring" that had hampered investigations.

The inability of the WHO to say where and how the virus began spreading has fuelled tensions among its members, particularly between China, where COVID-19 cases were first identified in Wuhan in late 2019, and the United States.

13 Aug 2021; MEMO: The Spanish Ministry of Defence has ruled out modifying its defence strategy with regard to the cities of Ceuta and Melilla, after learning that Morocco has agreed to purchase military equipment from Turkey.

Recently, press reports stated that Rabat is negotiating with Turkey to buy 22 reconnaissance and attack helicopter T-129 at a cost of approximately $1.4 billion, in addition to 12 Turkish drones to monitor the borders of Ceuta and Melilla.

13 Aug 2021; MEMO: The International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague is examining the possibility of opening an investigation into Israel's demolition of the homes of dozens of Palestinians in the village of Khirbet Humsa in the occupied Jordan Valley.

The investigation comes in response to a petition titled "Israel Practices a War Crime" filed by the Combatants for Peace organisation; which includes former Israeli soldiers and Palestinians who are working together to end the Israeli occupation.

LONDON, Aug. 13 (Xinhua) -- Six people, including the suspect, were killed in a shooting on Thursday evening in Plymouth, a port city in Devon in southwest England, local police confirmed.

Devon and Cornwall Police tweeted that police were called to "a serious firearms incident" in the Keyham area of Plymouth at around 6:10 p.m. (1710 GMT).

"Following attendance at the scene, two females and two males were deceased at the scene. A further male, believed to be the offender, was also deceased at the scene. All are believed to have died from gunshot wounds," it said.

MOSCOW (AP) — A second person has died in southwestern Russia following an explosion on a city bus that also injured another 17 people, officials said Friday.

Authorities said Thursday’s blast on the bus in the city of Voronezh was caused by leaky gas equipment. No trace of chemical explosives was found, they said.

The Investigative Committee, Russia’s top criminal investigation agency, has opened a probe for possible charges of unsafe consumer services.

SUDAK /Crimea/, August 12. /TASS/: Crimea is part of the Union State of Russia and Belarus as a Russian region, it’s enshrined in Russian laws, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told reporters on Thursday, commenting on Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko’s statement that he was willing to recognize Crimea’s reunification with Russia after "the last of the Russian oligarchs."

DONETSK, August 12. /TASS/: The Ukrainian armed forces sent combat groups to the disengagement line in the south of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), the DPR people’s militia reported on Thursday.

VERKHNEZEISK, August 12. /TASS/: An upgrade of the eastern leg of the Baikal-Amur Main Railway (BAM) by 2024 year-end will ramp up the transport capabilities of Eastern Siberia and boost transit traffic and the transit transportation volume after its implementation, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said at the inauguration ceremony.