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Somali Hotel Attack Leaves Many Dead & Wounded

Ten people have died and more than 50 are wounded after a car bomb and gun attack at a hotel in the Somali capital Mogadishu, a senior minister has said.

The attack took place at the Dayah hotel, where some members of parliament were thought to be staying, police said on Wednesday.

Somali security minister Abdirizak Omar Mohamed said the four attackers had been killed by security forces. The Islamist militant group al-Shabab has said it carried out the attack.

Ambulance workers say they have counted 28 bodies in the hotel and a further 43 people are injured – including seven journalists – although there is no official confirmation of this figure.

Eyewitnesses said the attackers had used a vehicle laden with explosives to blast their way into the hotel and once inside they started shooting.

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Tunisia Attack Inquest Hears Victim’s Statement

A holidaymaker « played dead » next to her husband’s body while a gunman killed 38 people at a Tunisian beach resort in 2015, an inquest has heard.

Allison Heathcote, 50, survived five gunshot wounds but husband Philip, then 53, died in the attack near Sousse. The pair, from Suffolk, had been on their 30th wedding anniversary holiday.

Mrs Heathcote’s statement was being read at the inquest into the deaths of 30 Britons killed by Islamist gunman Seifeddine Rezgui on 26 June.

The couple, who have a son, had arrived at the Riu Imperial Marhaba Hotel the day before the attack.

Mrs Heathcote, who was seriously injured by the gunman, did not attend the hearing at the Royal Courts of Justice in London.

In a statement read on her behalf, she described feeling « pure fear » as Rezgui wounded her, killed her husband, then walked away to murder others. She and Mr Heathcoate were on the beach where Rezgui launched his attack and had « dived into the sand between the sun beds », but were found by the gunman. She added: « I stayed laying on the sand, trying not to move and draw attention to the fact that I was still alive. »

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Russia, Turkey & Iran To Enforce Cessation Of Hostilities In Syria

Iran, Russia and Turkey say they will jointly enforce a fragile three-week cessation of hostilities in Syria.

The announcement came after two days of peace talks in the Kazakh capital, Astana.

In a joint statement, the three countries said there was no military solution to the Syrian conflict. It was not clear whether the Syrian government or the opposition backed the communique. Earlier, a rebel spokesman said « no agreements » would be signed.

More than 300,000 people have been killed and 11 million others displaced since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began in March 2011. The « trilateral mechanism » was agreed between Russia and Iran, which back Mr Assad’s government, and Turkey, which supports the opposition. It would « observe and ensure full compliance with the ceasefire, prevent any provocation and determine all modalities », the statement said.

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Trident Test Questioned By MPs

Labour and the Scottish National Party are urging the government to give a full explanation to MPs on how a test firing of a Trident missile went wrong.

The unarmed missile reportedly veered off course a few weeks before MPs voted to renew the nuclear weapons system. The Ministry of Defence says submarine HMS Vengeance and its crew were « successfully tested ».

Shadow chancellor John McDonnell said it was « extremely worrying » Parliament had not been told of June’s incident.

Nia Griffith, Labour’s shadow defence secretary, is calling for the prime minister to give « a full explanation » to MPs later. Meanwhile, Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, a long-standing opponent of Trident, whose submarines are based at Faslane, on the River Clyde, called the apparent misfire a « hugely serious issue ». The SNP leader tweeted: « There should be full disclosure of what happened, who knew what/when, and why the House of Commons wasn’t told. »

The Royal Navy has carried out half a dozen such tests since 2000 and in the past has publicised successful launches, but this time did not.

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Five Men & Two Women Arrested After Amsterdam Diamond Heist

Five men and two women have been arrested on suspicion of involvement in a €75m ($80m, £64m) diamond heist in 2005 at Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport, police in the Netherlands say.

The seven Dutch nationals were arrested in Amsterdam and Valencia in Spain. The armed gang, disguised as airport workers, stole the diamonds as they were about to be put onto a plane.

Some of the diamonds were recovered from a getaway car but stones worth an estimated €40m are still missing. Correspondents say the theft was one of the world’s biggest ever jewellery heists. The diamonds and other jewellery were stolen in a high security area of the airport after the thieves forced their way into a KLM armoured car.

The seven were detained in raids on Friday and Saturday on suspicion of robbery and money laundering. The gems were about to be flown to Antwerp, Europe’s diamond capital, when the robbers struck.

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