News in Brief

6 civilians killed in fighting in Ukraine's Donetsk
Afp, Donetsk

Six civilians were killed in fighting in the rebel stronghold of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine on Sunday, the bloodiest day since a ceasefire was signed 10 days ago. "Six civilians perished during the hostilities over the past 24 hours," Donetsk deputy mayor Kostyantyn Savinov said yesterday, while the town hall said another 15 civilians had been injured.

France begins reconnaissance flights over Iraq
Afp, Al-dhafra

French planes carried out their first reconnaissance flights over Iraq yesterday in support of the US-led campaign against Islamic State jihadists. An AFP correspondent saw two French Rafale fighter jets equipped with high-precision cameras take off from the Al-Dhafra base in the United Arab Emirates during a visit by French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian.

Germany tries first 'Islamic State jihadist'
Afp, Frankfurt

An alleged German jihadist went on trial yesterday accused of fighting for Islamic State in Syria, amid calls for tougher action to prevent attacks in Europe by the extremist group. In the first German criminal proceedings involving IS, Kreshnik Berisha, a 20-year-old born in the business capital Frankfurt to a family from Kosovo, has been charged with membership of a foreign terrorist organisation. He could face 10 years in prison if convicted by the city's superior regional court.

IS suspects in Indonesia are China's Uighurs
Afp, Jakarta

Indonesian police yesterday said the four foreigners arrested over the weekend suspected of being linked to the Islamic State jihadist group were from China's ethnic Uighur minority. A day after identifying the four men as Turks, police said they had investigated and found that they had entered Indonesia using forged Turkish passports.