Major news of the day

A suicide bomber has targeted a police barracks in Egypt’s restive Sinai Peninsula, killing one civilian and injuring 24 policemen. The attack happened early this morning near the provincial capital of al-Arish. It comes ahead of a major investment conference being held in the region.

Student protesters in Myanmar are clashing with riot police in Letpadan, 140km north of Yangon. Several hundred students are trying to break through police lines preventing them from continuing a march south. The students want changes to be made to a new bill which centralises control over higher education.

The US has targeted at least seven Venezuelan officials with sanctions for alleged human rights violations. Those named, including the head of police and national intelligence chief Gustavo Gonzalez, will have assets frozen and be blocked from doing business with American firms or travelling to the US.

European Headlines

FT – ECB launches bond-buying plan amid negative yields. Pledge on €1 trillion stimulus met as central banks risk losses on sovereign debt.

WSJE – ECB begins high-stakes test with QE. The European Central Bank on Monday began buying government bonds in a massive stimulus programme that takes the conservative bank into a new era and poses a high stakes test of its ability to bolster Europe’s struggling economy.

INYT – Redesigning the body to fend off disease. The next step in vaccines may be synthetic genes that produce antibodies.

France

Le Monde – Christians, Jews, Muslims: the call of religions against the law on the end of life. Representatives from the main religions in France issue an unprecedented and worried call against the law on the end of life.

Les Echos – Air France: a new programme to avoid decline. Alexandre de Juniac plans to re-negotiate Air France and KLM’s collective agreements. The group maintains a 20% to 40% cost variance with its main competitors.

Germany

Frankfurter Algemeiner – Eurogroup increases pressure on Greece. As of Wednesday negotiations will start with the Troika; demand for faster help has been rejected.

SudDeutsche Zeitung – Putin gave early command of Crimean annexation. The Kremlin leader openly gives details to his strategy and speaks for the first time about his decision. Merkel sees no chance for Russia to return to the group of most advanced industrial countries.

Italy

La Republica – Reforms: Forza Italia collapses. Rebels support draft legislation. The vote on a constitutional reform is dividing Silvio Berlusconi’s party. A small group of MPs from Forza Italia is in favour of adopting the reform, unlike Mr Berlusconi.

Il Sole 24 Hora – Greece’s effect on QE: European yields fall as ECB operation began. Stock Market remains cautious. The Eurogroup postponed the negotiation with Tsipras; discrepancies between Greece and the EU slow down market’s enthusiasm.

Poland

Gazeta – Senator from PiS is rolling with money. A dozen or so millions credited the accounts of senator from PiS party Grzegorz Bierecki instead of being used to save SKOK financial institutions, the head of the Polish Financial Supervision Authority warns.

Spain

El Pais – The police chief in charge of the Gonzalez case is involved in twelve businesses for several million euros. José Manuel Villarejo Perez is involved in private companies for a global capital of €16 million.

Expansion – Limitation for the PSOE leaders’ wages. Here is Pedro Sanchez’s new economic programme.

UK

The Times – Parents call in police to control their children. Families unable to deal with rows in the home.

The Guardian – Tory MPs “let ex-HSBC boss off the hook.” Bid to question Lord Green blocked, says Labour MP. Claim renews tensions over bank’s tax scandal.

©europeanunion2015