Italian coastguard recovers bodies of 45 drowned refugees

Here is a round-up of global news developments:

• A major fire has broken out at a military ammunition depot in central India, killing at least 17 soldiers. Some 19 others have been wounded in the fire in the city of Pulgaon in Maha-rashtra state. Firefighters have largely controlled the blaze, but there are fears of secondary fires and explosions.
• Italy’s Coastguard has recovered the bodies of 45 drowned refugees trying to pass through the Mediterranean in several rubber boats. Children and women are among the dead. Italian Navy vessels also intercepted boats carrying about 630 refugees during the operation.
• Doctors without Borders warns that some 100-thousand Syrian civilians are trapped on the border with Turkey. Regional manager of the medical charity group, Pablo Marco, says the trapped civilians, who are now only a few kilometers away from the positions of Daesh terrorists, have nowhere to go.
• Europe’s data watchdog rejects a privacy pact between the bloc and the U-S aimed at preventing Washington's spying on Europeans. The European Data Protection Supervisor says the transfer deal needs to be significantly improved. It says the deal was supposed to ensure that personal privacy is properly protected from spying.
• NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg says the Western military alliance is to boost its presence in Eastern Europe. He added that the alliance will make its final decisions regarding the exact number and locations of forces at its upcoming summit in Warsaw. Russia has frequently warned NATO against deployments close to its borders.
• Iraq's Special Forces and counter-terrorism units are steadily advancing in the Daesh-controlled city of Fallujah in an offensive to drive the terrorists from there. Government forces, backed by the Iraqi Air Force, entered the flashpoint city on Monday despite fierce resistance by Daesh snipers and mortar fire by the terrorists.
• Egypt has handed lengthy prison terms to 85 members of the Muslim Brotherhood during a mass trial in Cairo. The Brotherhood's spiritual guide Mohamed Badie was among 35 defendants to receive life terms for alleged role in Ismailia city violence in 2013.
• Security forces in Bahrain have clashed with demonstrators protesting against the increased sentence of the al-Wefaq society Chief Sheikh Ali Salman. Protests were held in several areas across the Persian Gulf kingdom. The protesters called for the immediate release of Sheikh Ali Salman and all other political prisoners.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk